Robots (PG, 2005)

ROBOTS takes place in an all-mechanical world. Rodney Copperbottom (voiced by Ewan McGregor) arrives after 12 hours of labor -- that's how long it takes his robot parents too assemble him from a kit. They are loving and devoted but not wealthy. As Rodney grows, he gets new hand-me-down parts, including one embarrassing year with a torso that once belonged to a teenaged girl cousin. Rodney dreams of being an inventor and making life better and easier. His hero is Bigweld (Mel Brooks), who urges everyone to come up with ideas to solve problems. But Bigweld is replaced by Ratchet (Greg Kinnear), the new president of Bigweld industries. Ratchet decides the company will no longer provide parts to fix old robots. They will make money by making perfectly good robots feel bad about themselves so that they will order unnecessary upgrades. Their slogan will be, "Why be you when you can be new?" So Rodney and his friends have to find a way to bring back Bigweld and make the world safe for the mutts and oddballs, especially the ones with a dream.

Just like its endearing hero Rodney, this movie is assembled from hand-me-down parts (like its classic underdog story) but it has so much heart that it is transformed into something irresistibly fresh and downright adorable. Robots is brilliantly imagined by illustrator William Joyce, and every single shot is filled with fabulously imaginative detail, every bit of it adorably witty, wonderfully fantastic, and perfectly logical.

The movie has excitement, snappy wisecracks, and music that will make you want to get up and dance. As often in animation, the actors provide pleasant but not very distinctive voices and the comedians steal the show. Robin Williams, Brooks, and Jennifer Coolidge are the highlights. But the star here is the design, as much a part of the story as the plot and the characters. It all comes together in a story that works on every level, with something for every age, with silly humor, clever puns, sly satire, endearing characters, and, rarest of all, a story that is not just heartwarming but meaningful.

Studio: Twentieth Century Fox
Director: Chris Wedge
Cast: Amanda Bynes, Ewan McGregor, Halle Berry
Genre: Family and Kids
Run time: 90 minutes
Theatrical release: March 11, 2005
DVD release: September 27, 2005
MPAA Rating: PG
MPAA explanation: some brief language and suggestive humor.