Movie Review:

Meet the Robinsons

by Lynn B

In the animated feature Meet the Robinsons, Lewis, a bright, young orphan pre-teen who is great with inventions, is never adopted because he just seems too eccentric for a majority of potential parents. When an evil fellow from the future steals Lewis’ latest invention the memory scanner, a teen from the future arrives and whisks Lewis away in a time machine to meet his wacky family, hopefully retrieve the machine and fix a possible messed up futureworld for both Lewis, the Robinsons and all mankind.

I saw this film in digital 3-D. Hopefully, there will be a theater in your area equipped for it although you can certainly enjoy the movie without the process. This 3-D pops right out atcha and looks great! No headaches, no blurry edges or weird colors with this new, improved type of projection.

Although the movie isn’t packed with tons of those famous Disney double-entendre jokes that are funny for kids and teens as well as adults, Meet the Robinsons is imaginative, charming and fun. You’ll really root for young Lewis as his brilliance is mistaken for eccentricity and he can’t fit in or find parents. Even evil “Bowler Hat Guy” who steals Lewis’ invention has a secret identity that makes him ultimately sympathetic. The crazy Robinson family members are a hoot to watch and the film has some fun twists that you might see coming but will enjoy none-the-less.

The moral of the tale is that we need to keep going forward instead of dwelling in the past. This was included in a quote from Walt Disney himself and it’s certainly a good lesson for all ages. The Robinsons don’t judge Lewis for failing to fix a complicated device but cheer him on for giving it his best try. If our teachers would just do that, we would all turn out to be better motivated and happy with ourselves. Turns out that the director of the film Stephen Anderson was himself adopted so he is aware of the feelings these kids have.

On the negative side, although it’s cool that the Robinson family is comprised of lots of strange and eccentric people, there is a chubby family member in a wheelchair that is so odd that he’s kind of disturbing. Also, he’s not in the ads for the movie. It’s commendable to include those with disabilities in a film like this but this fellow seems over the top. The family, with the exception of Wilbur, the 13-year-old who comes to take Lewis to the future, might be a bit too bizarre for some. However, I don’t know if they appeared the same way in the original novel by William Joyce or not.

Wrapping up, overall, you’ll enjoy the 3-D if it’s in your area, the morals, the lead character, the art direction and the outcome. I was a bit reminded of the popular Back to the Future films. Meet the Robinsons is worth seeing even if every minute isn’t the clever, joke-packed joy that Shrek, for instance, was.

 

This movie is rated G

Official Movie Web Site - Meet The Robinsons

Pictures courtesy of and copyright Walt Disney Studios, 2007