The Bottom Line
If you're looking for a movie that's fun for the whole family, Astro Boy is definitely it.
Cast:
Cast:
- Freddie Highmore-Astro Boy
- Nicolas Cage-Doctor Tenma
- Kristen Bell-Cora
- Samuel L. Jackson-Zog
- Bill Nighy-Doctor Elefun/Robotski
- Donald Sutherland-President Stone
- Nathan Lane-Hamegg
- Charlize Theron as "Our Friends" Narrator
- Eugene Levy as Orrin
- Matt Lucas as Sparx
- Madeline Carroll as Widget/Grace
- Sterling Beaumon as Sludge
Pros
- Great cgi animation
- Excellent movie for the kiddos
- Nice, heartwarming story
Cons
- Follows the original anime "loosely" but not to the letter
Description
- Release date: October 23, 2009
- Studio: Imagi Animation Studios
- Rating: PG
Guide Review - Astro Boy Movie (2009)
I will be honest -- I wasn't expecting much from Astro Boy with its mediocre reviews. But I was pleasantly surprised.Astro Boy is the story of Toby/Astro, a robot child who lives in Metro City, a city that floats in mid-air above the rest of the planet. Toby was created by Dr. Tenma after his real son, Toby is killed in a military demonstration gone awry, an event that is in part, Dr. Tenma's fault.
He creates the robot Toby out of remorse and powers him with the powerful and mysterious "blue core energy", an energy by the way, that the President of Metro City wants himself.
But Dr. Tenma soon realizes that robot Toby is not his real son Toby and essentially kicks him out. Meanwhile, the President is searching for the blue core energy because he wants to start a war with those still living on the surface of the planet in the hopes of raising his approval rating and winning another election.
The chase ensues, Toby/Astro ends up on the surface and makes friends with human kids until they find out he's a robot. Their psuedo-guardian, Hamegg, puts Toby in the robot wars until the military drones arrive and haul Toby off to harness the blue core energy inside.
They take him to Dr. Tenma who realizes that he loves Toby/Astro even though he's not his real son and the big showdown ensues.
I won't ruin the ending for you but sufficed to say, Toby/Astro finally finds his purpose and everyone gets what they deserve.
The big complaint from anime fans is that this movie doesn't follow the original series to the letter and that's true. In the original, Dr. Tenma sells Astro to Hamegg and doesn't have a change of heart later on.
But despite the variations in the story line, this is a beautiful CGI piece that tells a nice story and introduces a whole new generation to the Astro Boy saga. My verdict? Go see it. It's really worth the admission price.
