THE STORY – The epic adventure follows the journey of a robot—ROZZUM unit 7134, “Roz” for short — that is shipwrecked on an uninhabited island and must learn to adapt to the harsh surroundings, gradually building relationships with the animals on the island and becoming the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling.
THE CAST – Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Bill Nighy, Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill & Catherine O’Hara
THE TEAM – Chris Sanders (Director/Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 101 Minutes
A peaceful island in the middle of nowhere finds its precious balance threatened by the appearance of a giant white metal monster: Rozim 7134 (Lupita Nyong’o), a robot designed to help humans with any task. Unfortunately, there are no humans on this island, leaving the robot with no purpose. After teaching herself how to understand the languages of the island’s varied animal species, she saves one goose egg from a fox named Fink (Pedro Pascal), which hatches a baby who imprints on her. Now, Rozim finally has a purpose: To be the baby goose’s mother and prepare him for the upcoming winter migration. But, since animal instinct leads the gosling – who “Roz” names Brightbill (Kit Connor) – to act just like its mother, he has trouble finding and fitting into a flock. Will Roz be able to help him survive in a world full of predators and fit in with the rest of his species?
Chris Sanders’s “The Wild Robot” has all the makings of a family classic. The painterly beauty of the animation, with its rich, deep, vibrant colors, instantly transports you to another world. It’s never anything less than gorgeous to look at, and when paired with the magically majestic score by Kris Bowers, the film reaches rare heights of emotion for a family film. It’s also incredibly funny, with plenty of the expected slapstick and fart jokes, but also a surprisingly dark streak of humor for something aimed at kids (the number of animal deaths played for laughs is shocking, but not nearly as much as how well they land). The deep thematic resonance of Roz becoming a mother ensures that the film will play differently, but just as well, to audiences of all ages, allowing someone who loved the film as a child to get something new out of it at different stages of their life. These are all signs of a movie built to withstand the test of time, and the complete lack of topical references and meme-chasing moments is not only refreshing but heartening to see from Dreamworks, the home of the instantly dated “Shrek” films.
The all-star voice cast (another Dreamworks Animation staple) is also a cut above the usual, with character actors like Bill Nighy (as elder goose Longneck), Matt Berry (as Paddler, a beaver obsessed with chewing through the biggest tree in the forest), Ving Rhames (as the falcon Thunderbolt, who teaches Brightbill how to fly), Mark Hamill (as the most dangerous predator of all, a grizzly bear named Thorn), and Catherine O’Hara (as the mother to a litter of possums obsessed with death) giving the film real personality. The three central voice performances are beautiful, with Connor and Pascal adding emotional depth in places you wouldn’t expect. Nyong’o, however, is in a league of her own. The Oscar winner once again proves her incredible abilities, providing subtle yet distinct shifts in her vocal texture to show Roz’s journey from a task-oriented robot to a mother figure with undeniably real emotions. Animators can do a lot, but since Roz’s face can’t show any real emotion, most of the work falls at Nyong’o’s feet. She responds to the challenge of voicing a robot by doing some of her most richly detailed, layered work to date, modulating her voice to reflect how far Roz has strayed from her original programming.
Roz’s arc is surprisingly mature for a family feature. Parents may want to talk about it with their kids after seeing “The Wild Robot,” as it may provoke questions about how much work parenting is and how it can take its toll, even on a robot. If your kids choose to ignore it, though, don’t be surprised, as they’re more likely to identify with Brightbill, whose arc has a nuanced, if standard, “be true to yourself” message that will speak to children of all ages. While the big action climax has a generic chase setup to it, the emotional core sets it apart from other, similar sequences, tying everything together in a way that will make you cheer through tears as both Brightbill and Roz become heroes in different ways, further adding to the film’s depth.
While it can often seem like the film is taking on too many different thematic elements – in addition to motherhood and acceptance, the film also deals with community and how we need to work together even with our enemies when our survival is on the line, as well as the nature vs. nurture debate – they all come together to create a beautiful tapestry of life at its most complex and interconnected. That’s heady stuff for kids, but they don’t have to grasp everything yet. Like their new heroes Roz and Brightbill, they’ll grow into it. Five, ten, even 20 years down the line, they’ll watch “The Wild Robot” and marvel at how much they thought they missed when they were kids that they absorbed subconsciously due to how thoroughly well-crafted the film is. It’s clear that everyone behind the film respects their audience, no matter their age, resulting in a movie that is superbly crafted and deeply resonant on multiple levels. The emotions felt while watching will stick with you long after it’s over.
