Parents' Guide to

Real Steel

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 12+

Predictable but fun fight movie has lots of robot action.

Movie PG-13 2011 126 minutes
Real Steel Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 11+

Based on 37 parent reviews

Pinar
Pinar Parent of 9-year-old
January 9, 2021
age 10+

Really enjoyed the movie

We watched it with my 10 year old son and we loved it.
ThisCreeperMC
ThisCreeperMC Adult
April 19, 2019
age 18+

super scary and intense

there was a lot of robot violence like how noisy boy's head got chopped off and then blood just went everywhere (or his juice or something but in a robots case that's like blood) so that was really disturbing also the kid and the dad swears like what the heck why would the kid swear hes only like 10 11 not a good role model and like ambush's leg fell off and there was like a bunch of green stuff coming out of it and that's where the too much drugs come from because green stuff leaks out of his leg when the bull kills him. another thing that i think is really weird is that the robot explodes and blood flies onto everyones face when metro dies. it was super disturbing as the noisy boy death too. the robot fights were super intense. also there was one very disturbing and intense scene, where charlie and max get beaten up and my kids were crying very loudly because they were super scared for there life when charlie was getting creamed and destroyed and there was a bunch of blood so it was very weird and violent i rate it rated R because super scary and there is too much blood involved and too many drugs there is also a little thing but what ever that my review would not recommend for 3 yr olds

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 37 parent reviews

What's the Story?

It's 2024, and one-time boxer Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) has no shame. He owes everyone money, and he abandoned his son, Max (Dakota Goyo), long ago. All he cares about is the next pay-off at the next match he arranges for the two-ton boxing robots that he pieces together from scrap parts. It's a life, if not a fulfilling one. But then his ex-girlfriend dies, leaving his son alone. His ex's sister (Hope Davis) desperately wants to adopt Max, so Charlie sees an opening: Why not make a deal with her husband for $100,000 for signing his parental rights over? But first Max must stay with Charlie until his aunt and uncle return from a European tour. Charlie hopes to leave his son with the daughter of his old coach (Evangeline Lilly), but Max isn't having any of it: He wants to join Charlie on the road. Before they know it, they're training what appears to be a genuine, previous-generation model championship fighter called Atom. But there's more than a bout at stake.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (37):
Kids say (82):

REAL STEEL doesn't break new cinematic ground; it's an amalgam -- like the robots featured in it -- of many other movies (imagine Rocky meeting RoboCop). Can the audience predict what comes next, considering that it borrows so much from every other fight film (with a little father-son drama thrown in for good measure)? Duh.

Yet REAL STEEL is surprisingly enjoyable -- as long as you dial down your expectations. Yes, it's shlocky, but Goyo and Jackman share a believable chemistry, and the young actor is just plain terrific. (Lilly doesn't have much to work with, though what she does reminds us how great she is.) It's hard to believe how carried away you can get cheering on a pair of robots in a ring. Expect it to happen, so our advice is to just go with it.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Charlie and Max's relationship. How do they compare to other fathers and sons you've seen in the media? Are they relatable characters? Role models?

  • How do you feel about boxing, especially when it's all-out like the fights choreographed here? Does the violence have less impact since the robots are the ones primarily involved?

Movie Details

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