Real Steel (***)
Directed by: Shawn Levy
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Dakota Goyo, Evangeline Lily, Kevin Durand,
Hope Davis, Anthony Mackie, James Rebhorn, Olga Fonda, Karl Yune
Seen: December 3rd 2011
*** Out of ****
Real Steel may be the feel good movie of the year, and even a
relatively heavy dose of clichéd sports movie moments and some ridiculous
science fiction elements does nothing to take that away from this movie where
the underdog really surprises everyone. Yes, it’s basically the kid’s game Rock
’Em Sock ’Em Robots, but it’s also partially based on Richard Matheson’s (I am
Legend, Stir of Echoes, What Dreams May Come) 1956 short story Steel, and tells
of a not-so-far in the future world where mankind’s thirst for violence has
escalated beyond human boxing – the want for total destruction of an opponent
the driving force; calling for humans controlling robot fighters squaring off
in the ring.
Charlie (Jackman) is a very down on his luck competitor. He basically
buys old robots and attempts to make money in underground fights and while he
often gets short-changed by promoters and opponents, his greed for the big win
also does him no favours. When he loses yet another fight against a live bull
(Texas style fighting), belonging to the smug and arrogant Ricky (Durand), he
skips town without paying what he owes. Just before running however, Charlie is
informed that his ex-girlfriend from 10 years earlier has died, and their son is
now the subject of a custody hearing which Charlie must attend. As it happens
Charlie ends up with Max (Goyo), having to look after him for a while before
handing him over to Max’s aunt Debra (Davis) and her rich husband Marvin
(Rebhorn), who pays Charlie to sign Max over into their eventual custody.
Charlie uses the money to buy another robot, the once-hero Noisy Boy,
but his greed again costs him as Noisy Boy is destroyed in a relatively quick
bout. Max forces himself into Charlie’s plans, and they go to a scrap-yard to
steal robot parts, where Max almost falls off a cliff, “rescued” by a forgotten
robot which he salvages. The robot is Atom, a sparring robot, built to take
punishment but not necessarily dish it out. Max convinces Charlie to get him a
fight, and to everyone’s surprise, they manage a win, the small belief that a
career is on the cards taking root in that moment. They go from strength to
strength, and eventually (as expected for this type of movie) end up in the big
leagues. Advancing through the ranks, they are faced with the “evil” corporate
owners/drivers of the WRB (World Robot Boxing League), Farra Lemcova (Fonda)
and genius robot designer Tak Mashido (Yune), the designer of Zeus, an unbeatable
and devastating force of a robot. And the sparks that have flown for most of
the movie now ignites.
While the movie gets a little drawn out before the action/fighting
starts; when it starts the adrenaline doesn’t stop. The fights are cool, the
visual effects fantastic, and the urgency impressive. The father-son dynamic
between Jackman and Goyo grows from an almost purely business deal to something
heart-warming, and there’s even a small romance between Charlie and his old
trainer’s daughter, Bailey (Lily), that doesn’t detract from the movie but rather
injects another bit of beautiful emotion. The bad guys are clearly cut
villains, with Kevin Durand and Olga Fonda adding the necessary attitude to
oppose Charlie and Max on their way to infamy. Dakota Goyo does a great job and
his interaction with Evangeline Lily and especially with Jackman is really
something to behold.
Real Steel easily beats out the Transformer movies for pure heart; and
while not on such a grand scale, doesn’t stand back when it comes to visual
effects either. Another movie that defines in some way what we go to the movies
for – good entertainment value, a good
helping of heart – Real Steel definitely gets my vote.
Comments