I, Robot (2004)

In the year 2035 a techno-phobic cop investigates a crime that may have been perpetrated by a robot, which leads to a larger threat to humanity.

Director:

Alex Proyas

Writers:

Jeff Vintar (screenplay), Akiva Goldsman (screenplay),

Stars:

Will Smith, Bridget Moynahan, Alan Tudyk

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Will Smith	...	Del Spooner
Bridget Moynahan	...	Susan Calvin
Alan Tudyk	...	Sonny
James Cromwell	...	Dr. Alfred Lanning
Bruce Greenwood	...	Lawrence Robertson
Adrian Ricard	...	Granny (as Adrian L. Ricard)
Chi McBride	...	Lt. John Bergin
Jerry Wasserman	...	Baldez
Fiona Hogan	...	V.I.K.I.
Peter Shinkoda	...	Chin
Terry Chen	...	Chin
David Haysom	...	NS4 Robot / NS5 Robot
Scott Heindl	...	NS4 Robot / NS5 Robot
Sharon Wilkins	...	Asthmatic Woman
Craig March	...	Detective

Storyline

Set in a future Earth (2035 A.D.) where robots are common assistants and workers for their human owners, this is the story of "robotophobic" Chicago Police Detective Del Spooner's investigation into the murder of Dr. Alfred Lanning, who works at U.S. Robotics, in which a robot, Sonny , appears to be implicated, even though that would mean the robot had violated the Three Laws of Robotics, which is apparently impossible. It seems impossible because.. if robots can break those laws, there's nothing to stop them from taking over the world, as humans have grown to become completely dependent upon their robots. Or maybe... they already have? Aiding Spooner in his investigation is a psychologist, Dr. Susan Calvin, who specializes in the psyches of robots.

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Plot Keywords:

robot | law | suicide | investigation | death | 

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Taglines:

Laws are made to be broken

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Genres:

Action | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense stylized action, and some brief partial nudity

Details

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 July 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hardwired

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$120,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$1,565,004 (Italy) (22 October 2004)

Gross:

$144,795,350 (USA) (24 December 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Mediastream Vierte Film GmbH & Co. Vermarktungs KG, Davis Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Alphacine)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the newscast, Dr. Alfred Lanning was born in 1971 and was 64 when he was murdered. Interesting enough, he was the same age at the time as the actor who played him, James Cromwell.

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Goofs

When Spooner and Dr. Calvin are looking for the "suspect" robot and they enter the factory, the count is 1,000 units, which would mean 25 rows of 40 columns, or 40 rows of 25 columns. We can clearly see that the columns are at least 50 rows back and 50 columns wide, or at least 2,500 robots.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Detective Del Spooner: [singing along with Stevie Wonder's "Superstition"] Seven years of bad luck.

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Crazy Credits

Instead of opening credits, the beginning of the movie features Isaac Asimov's 3 Laws of Robotics: LAW I. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. LAW II. A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. LAW III. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

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Connections

Referenced in The Troop: I, Monster (2010)

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Soundtracks

"NS5 Commercial"
Written, Performed and Produced by Stephen Barton

User Reviews

Good mix of action and philosophy

Like the Matrix and many other major movies, I, Robot has its foundations in philosophy, in its case the question of epistemology(The study of knowledge itself and computers being self-aware).

Will Smith is Spooner, a cop with an apparent attitude problem. Set in the future, I Robot sees Spooner embarking on a puzzling case of suicide where he believes it was actually murder. By a robot.

In this future society (With more than a homage to Blade Runner) robots are used as slaves of humans in all facets of life. They have 3 rules of conduct hard coded into them which essentially state they cannot harm humans. So the postulation by Spooner that a robot killed a man after a history where no robot had ever committed so much as a mugging presents a big problem to both his peers and his boss.

Suffice to say the story's plot thickens and a number of twists and turns emerge before the truth is revealed.

Will Smith is an absolute surprise here. Having previously been a light-hearted comedy actor he puts in a truly excellent and believable shift as a wise-cracking cop with a dark past.

However, the real star is the special effects and visual trickery. Impossible but ingenious camerawork and some jawdropping animation really make I, Robot feel truly alive and utterly believable, while never being dull for a second.

It arguably doesn't delve too deep into its philosophical undertones, but it doesn't really need to. It's a traditional Hollywood blockbuster action flick but it unquestionably has a brain and is a clear cut above the likes of Armageddon et al.

Very enjoyable.