RBR: Real Steel

When there are actual movies being developed on board games like Battleship, you wonder why this film was not called by its inspiration - Rock'em Sock'em robots. In Real Steel, Hugh Jackman plays a washed up boxer who now spends his career fighting robots remotely. Early on in the film he learns he has a son who he must now watch after the boy's mother passes away. Soon the two bond over the constructing and training of a robot named Atom, who may or may not possess skills beyond most robots. If all of this sounds corny and familiar, you're right. The film liberally borrows plot devices and themes from films like Rocky, The Champ, Over the Top and, Transformers. It would be easy to criticize such lazy storytelling, but the problem is that the ideas they use are crowd-pleasers and they work here as well. You can't help but get invested in seeing them form a bond and watch the robot be victorious. And I will definitely give the film credit for visually making the robot fights look very impressive. The biggest drawback of the film is its runtime and usage of that time. There's no reason why this film should have been over two hours long. Subplots involving the boy teaching the robot to dance and a loan shark chasing after Jackman's character seem superfluous and could have easily been edited out of the film. In fact, the time spent on those scenes should have been used to more firmly establish the film's villain. Both the champion robot and its handlers are not developed enough to make us root that hard against them. The finish to the final battle in the film certainly leaves the door wide open for a sequel, so I hope when they make the next film, they correct some of these issues and perhaps delve into more of the science fiction aspects of the story that were only loosely covered in this first outing. This is no cinematic classic, but it uses a tried-and-true formula effectively to make it entertaining. The cast gives good performances (with the exception of the kid who's brash attitude can be grating at times) and the robot battles are a lot of fun. If the subject matter interests you at all, this is definitely worth a rental. Rating: *** 1/2

Fall Movie Preview (October)

THE IDES OF MARCH (October 7)
Plot: "The Ides of March" takes place during the frantic last days before a heavily contested Ohio presidential primary, when an up-and-coming campaign press secretary (Ryan Gosling) finds himself involved in a political scandal that threatens to upend his candidate's shot at the presidency.

Quick thoughts: I'm not sure if there is a film this fall that has a better pedigree than this one. I would expect this to be a major player come awards season. This is one of the films I'm most looking forward to seeing. And if you're concerned about the film being too political, from what I hear, it's more about morality and self evaluation than it is about promoting one party over the other.


THE BIG YEAR (October 14)
Plot: Based on Mark Obmascik's 1998 book "The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession," the film is about three men who try to outdo each other in a bird-watching competition to spot the rarest birds in North America. The rivalry is an allegory for the challenges each faces in his own life.

Quick thoughts: Just the notion of a movie about bird-watching startting Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson has me already laughing, so I can only imagine what the final product will be like. If that trio wasn't strong enough you also have people like Jim Parsons, Rashida Jones, and Kevin Pollack mixed in the fray to amp the funny quotient even more. The only thing that concerns me is that we haven't seen a trailer yet for the film. Without that, I can't know for sure whether this will be comedy gold or simply a movie for the birds.


MARGIN CALL (October 21)
Plot: Set in the high-stakes world of the financial industry, "Margin Call" is a thriller entangling the key players at an investment firm during one perilous 24-hour period in the early stages of the 2008 financial crisis. When entry-level analyst Peter Sullivan (Zachary Quinto) unlocks information that could prove to be the downfall of the firm, a roller-coaster ride ensues as decisions both financial and moral catapult the lives of all involved to the brink of disaster. Expanding the parameters of genre, "Margin Call" is a riveting examination of the human components of a subject too often relegated to partisan issues of black and white.

Quick thoughts: I mentioned in the September preview yesterday when discussing Contagion that audiences may not be too keen to watch a movie about a deadly virus. That may go double for this film which focuses on the 2008 financial meltdown. While I can sympathize with not wanting to pay to relive that, I can't ignore the terrific cast of actor they have compiled for this film, who each seem to be giving stellar performances based on the trailer. That alone is enough to pique my interest.


PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3 (October 21)
Plot: The third film is being envisioned as an origin story set in the 1980s that will follow a new family.

Quick thoughts: The first film I didn't care for, although some of that could have had to do with the fact that it was overhyped and I saw it on a weekday morning. I decided to keep an open mind and watched the second one. I thought it was better, but still not overly scary. At this point though, they've got me interested in the story they've established with these characters so I'm hoping that this origin story provides us with some answers as to why these things are happening. This will likely be the best bet for anyone looking for some scares come Halloween time.


IN TIME (October 28)
Plot: "In Time" presents a world where time has become the ultimate currency. You stop aging at 25, but there's a catch: you're genetically-engineered to live only one more year, unless you can buy your way out of it. The rich "earn" decades at a time (remaining at age 25), becoming essentially immortal, while the rest beg, borrow or steal enough hours to make it through the day. When a man from the wrong side of the tracks is falsely accused of murder, he is forced to go on the run with a beautiful hostage. Living minute to minute, the duo's love becomes a powerful tool in their war against the system.

Quick thoughts: The premise of the film immediately hooked me and it's the type of high concept film that I wish Hollywood would do more of. I was disappointed that the trailer seemingly gave away the entire film. Let's hope that just like with Dream House, there's more than meets the eye. The success of this film will likely determine whether or not Justin Timberlake actually has a future as a leading man in Hollywood.

OTHER POSSIBLE FILMS OF INTEREST
Real Steel (October 7)
The Rum Diary (October 28)