I, Asimov?

If you're an Isaac Asimov fan, prepare to be disappointed. This movie is almost completely unrelated to any of his fiction. It mentions the Three Laws. Other than that, this is not an Asimov story. (In fact, it was originally written as an unrelated screenplay and then minorly revised to fit Asimov's book.) The film is, in fact, an example of the "Frankenstein complex" that Asimov wrote his robot stories to oppose.

Taken on its own terms, though, I, Robot is not a bad movie. The action sequences are exciting, the storyline is interesting and well-developed and the dialogue is snappy and engaging. Will Smith portrays Del Spooner's troubled past very well. Even before the whole story comes out, you know something's very wrong and are curious for his history.

The film centers around Detective Spooner's investigation of the death of his friend, a prominent robot designer. There's evidence that Dr. Lanning was killed by one of his own robots. As Spooner investigates, though, he finds troubling signs of a much deeper problem.

All in all, it's not a bad movie. But don't think you're going to see an Asimov story. This is Hollywood s.f. all the way.

Robots powered by Asimov's spinning grave

I gave it three stars because it's an OK popcorn flick. It's not a horrible movie. The story is pretty weak, but the effects and pacing are pretty enjoyable. Will Smith does a good job- I like his work, and the fights and chase scenes are fun. This reminds me of the more recent "Aeon Flux" movie- both films are based on wonderful original "properties" (a book and an animated series, respectively) that tried their best to squeeze through Hollywood's "blockbuster" nozzle.

As noted by previous reviewers, this film has little to do with book it shares its title with. Asimov was compelled to write his robot stories in the first place because he was tired of the "conquering robot" cliche as seen in "R.U.R."

I think that Anne Robinson (Host of "The Weakest Link") would have been a much better casting choice for the role of Dr. Susan Calvin, but the script is so far from the book that it probably doesn't matter.

Fast-paced Action, Awesome CGI, Lacking Script

I, Robot takes the majority of its basis and foundation from a series of short stories written by the great science fiction writer Isaac Asimov (although he was more than a writer), more than likely including some elements from the short story "Robot Dreams." Overall, I, Robot is an above average film. So, what holds it back from being better in my opinion? Such as with movies like the recent Star Wars - Episode III installment, the CGI isn't the problem; in fact, I, Robot's CGI is great: it's the script that lacks, and Smith's overbearing star quality overcasting the film.

To be honest, I love Will Smith during his run with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air television series. (I know the dialogue to just about every episode! LOL!) Pre- and post-Fresh Prince Will Smith just doesn't do it for me: being a self-proclaimed hip hop and aficionado, I was never into Will Smith as a rapper, and his acting career is...well, let me put it this way: In my opinion, whenever Will Smith is cast for a role to play a character, we always seem to get Will Smith on the screen, and not the character he's supposed to be portraying. However, this is probably why people cast him anyhow: star quality, and not necessarily fusing oneself with the character to be played. Let's face it; from a Hollywood standpoint, if you're going for the mega-blockbuster to rake in hundreds of millions of dollars, why cast some no name kid the world's never seen? Go for the big boys! Why? Because they'll sell the movie, that's why!

Particularly, the whole "star starring in a movie" versus a "star portraying a character in a movie" thing to me is rather annoying. You know, it's like casting Michael Jordan to play in an NBA version of a live-action Dragon Ball Z movie: "MJ, king of the Super Sayan Basketball Tournament," or the same type of annoying when you watch singers or rappers on television playing characters that sing or rap...can we get a little substance rather than advancing the careers of people who already make too much money, please?

I noticed on I, Robot, there's a part toward the end where the robot psychologist Dr. Calvin is entering some commands into a keypad to shut down the VIKI positronic brain and a metal sheath shuts over the keypad locking her out...and Will Smith punches the sheath, which then uncovers the keypad and allows her to continue entering commands, delivering the cheesy "I hate heights." This scene is akin to a very similar "I-punch-something-and-seem-macho" scene in Independence Day where the alien Will drags through the desert suddenly comes out of the hatch...and, you guessed it, he punches it and delivers, "Welcome to Earth." In a humorous way, the whole "I-punch-something-and-seem-macho" gag is really disgusting and gives that ol' Hollywood campiness we never want.

Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics is included in the film, which gave the storyline a nice touch, although at times the overusage of the Three Laws got a little confusing (as evidenced in the scene where the psychologist and Del Spooner are conversing back and forth about the laws in a robot-controlled facility where Sonny the dream-having robot is hiding).

I personally thought the Dr. Lanning character could've been expanded on a little more; he just seems as if he should've had more of an important role in the film...well, other than being dead, but with the latter being said, I'm probably asking too much. I also think the Chief of Police character (who was always in Spooner's behind) could've been rounded out a little bit better than he was: would a real chief of police give a knucklehead like Spooner as many chances as he did? (He was an overly nice fellow for a chief who has to keep dealing with a hardheaded "solo act".)

The excellent parts are definitely the action scenes and the CGI. I think Alex Proyas (director) did an excellent in choosing a great art and visual effects department for coming up with the facial and body design of the robots. I think the clouded-crystalline look of the robot faces was ingenious, and gets away from the traditional robot image (e.g. HAL 9000, R2-D2, etc.). The robots even have awesome acrobatics and maneuvering capabilities! I also believe Proyas has definitely stepped his game up with I, Robot in terms of his directing: his usage of motion capture, panning, "tone poems," and angles was ASTONISHING and CAPTIVATING, to say the least -- hats off to Proyas!

Overall, this is not a bad film: it's your average blockbuster action flick, heavy on the action and effects, light on the substance, but in this case I wouldn't say the entire film lacks substance. The only things that bring I, Robot down is a script that I think could've been adapted from the short stories more appropriately, and the biggest problem is how the star quality of Will Smith almost completely eclipses the fictional aspect of the movie. Otherwise, this is a nice one to chill with and have some fun looking at. Very entertaining.

WARNING: Asimov loyalists - I, Robot is not an authentic rendition of Asimov's robot short stories from which the film is based. So before you blow steam at the film, I told you so!