The hero of "Robots," the new animated motion picture from the creators of "Ice Age," is an ambitious young robot named Rodney Copperbottom (voiced by Ewan McGregor). Rodney's father, Herb (Stanley Tucci), is a dishwasher who cannot afford to buy new parts for his son. As a result, Rodney is forced to use his cousins' hand-me-downs, which are either too big or just downright embarrassing. However, despite material hardships, Herb instills hope in Rodney and encourages him never to give up on his dreams. When Rodney sees Bigweld (Mel Brooks), head of robot part-producing company Bigweld Industries on television, Rodney finds his life goal: to become an inventor like Bigweld. But Rodney soon realizes that his dreams will go nowhere if he remains in his small town, so with the support of his parents, he dives headlong into the hectic bustle of Robot City. There, he hopes to meet his idol Bigweld and get a job as an inventor at Bigweld's company.
Needless to say, things don't go as planned. Drastic changes have taken place at Bigweld Industries. Bigweld has disappeared, and in his place sits Ratchet (Greg Kinnear), who plots with his mother Madame Gasket (Jim Broadbent) to take over the company. Whereas Bigweld sincerely wanted to improve the lives of other robots, a sentiment reflected in his company slogan ("You can shine no matter what you're made of"), Ratchet is solely concerned with maximizing profits at the great expense of consumers. He devises a new slogan ("Why be you when you can be new") and ceases the production of spare parts.
Upgrades are where profits lie, according to Ratchet, and those who cannot afford upgrades are fit only to be scrap metal. Ratchet's new directive also conveniently benefits Madame Gasket, the owner of a metal recycling factory, by depriving outdated robots and poor robots of the means to repair themselves and therefore forcing them into the scrap metal pile. When Rodney discovers Ratchet and Madame Gasket's evil plans, he, along with his new friend Fender (Robin Williams) and a gang of misfit robots, decides to tackle the big corporation and fight for the underdogs.
Although the plot is predictable and most of the characters are forgettable, even superfluous, there are many extremely hilarious sequences involving pop culture parodies ranging from Britney Spears to "Singin' in the Rain" and yes, even the dance move "The Robot," that had me laughing out loud. With Robin Williams as one of the voice actors, how could there not be some great humor? I must admit, however, that as much as I love Robin Williams, at times his presence can be distracting and overbearing. You never forget that Williams is Fender's voice, which weakens Fender as a character. However, Williams livens up the scene, and without him, the comedic tone of "Robots" would be quite flat.
But by far, the best part of "Robots" has to be the amazingly intricate visuals. In contrast to the unoriginal story, the creative visuals engage and entertain the imagination. When Rodney first arrives in Robot City, we are amazed right along with him by the surrounding sights and sounds. And when Rodney gets on the "express" to Bigweld Industries, it's more than the obligatory roller coaster ride that seems to appear in most children's films. Imagine if your daily commute resembled being the pinball in a pinball machine, and you will have some idea of what I am talking about.
I can't say that I would recommend this movie to everyone. At times, the constant movement and the incessant chatter grew tiresome, and I experienced sensory overload. This animated film is not a must-see along the ranks of "Monsters, Inc." or "Finding Nemo," which are much less frenetic and much more enjoyable. But I must admit that I am a sucker for feel-good films, especially animations, and if you are like me, you too will enjoy "Robots" despite its flaws.