The trailer of ‘The Wild Robot’ was enough to send shivers down my spine. I got goosebumps from the exquisite visuals and the soaring musical score. I was very much excited to watch this new animated full-length feature from Dreamworks studios; the same studio who gave us such lovely films like ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ and ‘Bad Guys’ and directed and written by Chris Sanders, who co-directed and co-wrote ‘Lilo & Stitch’ and ‘How to Train Your Dragon.’ I was so sure this was going to be an event film.
The film opens with a crash; much like the trailer suggests, a hi-tech flying ship crashes into an uninhabited island and a robot, ROZZUM unit no 7134, is accidentally activated by otters who were inspecting the crash site. The robot is a servant robot who is programmed to follow orders but with no humans around to give it orders, it finds itself without purpose. It manages to frighten all the animals in the island and decides that if it can’t find a human to give it orders, it will take orders from any other living thing. It studies the languages of the animals so that it can talk to them.
This is where I got surprised. I only saw the teaser, and not the trailer, and I didn’t realise the film had dialogue. After ROZZUM 7134 learns the language of the animals, it now speaks to everyone, and they don’t stop talking. I was a little annoyed by this change in tone. In an uninhabited island, the animals all spoke so western-like and operated with such modern language. It felt off to me, despite its fantastic cast like Pedro Pascal as a conniving fox, Catherine O’ Hara as a possum mother, and Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o as ROZZUM 7134.
In the attempt to find a task to perform, ROZZUM 7134 has a tussle with a bear and accidentally destroys a nest of goose eggs, except for one. The goose egg hatches and imprints itself on the robot, who it now identifies as its mother. The fox, Fink, who at first was trying to eat the egg, now assigns the robot its first task: it now must care for the goose. Fink plans to use ROZZUM 7134 for his own purposes but as time goes by, the three make an unlikely family.
I was resistant to the film as I found the anthropomorphication of the animals to be against my expectations. There’s so much beauty in the imagery (I read that Hayao Miyazaki was one of the inspirations of the visual design of the film) and the trailer was able to elicit so much emotion from me. I thought the film would be doing that here.
What I did not expect was how I was going to react by the second act of the movie. ‘The Wild Robot’ takes its time to build the family of the robot, now called Roz, Fink, and the young orphan gosling, Brightbill (voiced by Kit Connor). Roz must help Brightbill learn to eat, swim and fly on his own if he will survive as a goose.
By halfway through the film, I started crying at every major scene. All the beauty and warmth and heart that was featured in the teaser I saw came out in full force in the second and third act of ‘The Wild Robot.’ Through its wonderful characters and how it establishes the ecosystem of that island, the film is able to highlight the power of community, of a family, and the joys of kindness and generosity. Despite my resistance, the film won me over. Through its depiction of a very modern family: Roz and Fink and Brightbill; it shows us what adoption looks like and feels like and how it is just like any other family. Through the film, it shows that family can also be a choice that you make.
It’s a story of motherhood, of family, and community. It also manages to make jabs and digs at the corporate world – because of course, the company that made Roz is going to want her back – and creates a lovely contrast between the world of men and the uninhabited world of the island. Lush imagery, unforgettable characters, and gorgeous musical score, ‘The Wild Robot’ is another stellar film out of Dreamworks.
My Rating:
The Wild Robot is now showing! Check showtimes and buy tickets here.
