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Jul. 18th, 2004 11:17 am
Movie Review: I, Robot
Elli and I went to see I, Robot last night. To our surprise, the movie was not as unconnected to the Asimov stories as it first appeared in previews.
To be sure, the movie is NOT the book, but seeing as how the book is not a novel but a collection of nine short stories about a future society where robots are everywhere, this isn't really a bad thing.
The obligatory "based on ..." blurb in this movie was changed to "Suggested by the book by ISAAC ASIMOV" and came at the beginning of the end titles rather than at the beginning. I like the placement, it's sort of a "If you liked this, go check out the book that gave us the idea" thing, though depressingly few people will do so.
Set in Chicago in the year 2035, the movie follows Detective Del Spooner, a man who doesn't like robots due to an incident years ago, as he investigates a death that may have been committed by a robot. "Robot shrink" Susan Calvin (a character direct from Asimov's stories) helps him along the way, and is given considerable screen time to shine on her own.
As well as Susan Calvin, ideas from Asimov's stories fill the movie, though most are changed subtly to better fit the film's story. I found this to be a good thing, and it made the movie much closer to the source material in the same way Harlan Ellison's never-filmed script of the same name used elements of Asimov's story to support that script's original story (which was substantially different than this one's).
As to the movie itself, it has a trio of likable characters, enough action to sate fans of the genre, and enough of Will Smith's trademark "Snarky Cop" routine to satisfy those of us who like his schtick.
The only downside to the movie for me was the fact that I figured out the perpetrator in the first half-hour of the movie. However, the mystery element of the movie isn't as emphasized as the action, so I was able to sit back and watch the characters catch up.
An amusing side note is that the character whose death begins everything was born in 1971, making him the same age I'll be in 2035. It was just kind of neat; whatever our world looks like 31 years from now, it'll still be fun for me.
To be sure, the movie is NOT the book, but seeing as how the book is not a novel but a collection of nine short stories about a future society where robots are everywhere, this isn't really a bad thing.
The obligatory "based on ..." blurb in this movie was changed to "Suggested by the book by ISAAC ASIMOV" and came at the beginning of the end titles rather than at the beginning. I like the placement, it's sort of a "If you liked this, go check out the book that gave us the idea" thing, though depressingly few people will do so.
Set in Chicago in the year 2035, the movie follows Detective Del Spooner, a man who doesn't like robots due to an incident years ago, as he investigates a death that may have been committed by a robot. "Robot shrink" Susan Calvin (a character direct from Asimov's stories) helps him along the way, and is given considerable screen time to shine on her own.
As well as Susan Calvin, ideas from Asimov's stories fill the movie, though most are changed subtly to better fit the film's story. I found this to be a good thing, and it made the movie much closer to the source material in the same way Harlan Ellison's never-filmed script of the same name used elements of Asimov's story to support that script's original story (which was substantially different than this one's).
As to the movie itself, it has a trio of likable characters, enough action to sate fans of the genre, and enough of Will Smith's trademark "Snarky Cop" routine to satisfy those of us who like his schtick.
The only downside to the movie for me was the fact that I figured out the perpetrator in the first half-hour of the movie. However, the mystery element of the movie isn't as emphasized as the action, so I was able to sit back and watch the characters catch up.
An amusing side note is that the character whose death begins everything was born in 1971, making him the same age I'll be in 2035. It was just kind of neat; whatever our world looks like 31 years from now, it'll still be fun for me.
