Psycho's Movie Reviews #365: Meet The Robinsons (2007)

Meet the Robinsons is a 2007 American computer-animated science-fiction comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 47th animated film produced by the studio, it is loosely based on the 1990 children's book A Day with Wilbur Robinson by William Joyce. The film follows Lewis, a 12-year-old inventor boy, who is whisked away by Wilbur, a young time-traveller, to spend a day in the future with Wilbur's eccentric family and uncover an amazing secret at the same time, while trying to prevent DOR-15 from destroying the future.

Directed by Stephen Anderson, the film's voice cast includes Anderson, Daniel Hansen, Jordan Fry, Wesley Singerman, Angela Bassett, Tom Selleck, Harland Williams, Laurie Metcalf, Nicole Sullivan, Adam West, Ethan Sandler, and Tom Kenny. Meet the Robinsons was released in standard and Disney Digital 3-D versions on March 23, 2007 in the United States and March 30, 2007 in the United Kingdom.

The film received generally positive reviews from critics. On an estimated budget of $150 million, it earned $169.3 million at the box office.

Plot

Lewis is an aspiring 12-year-old inventor who grew up in an orphanage, whose energy and eccentricity has been scaring off potential parents. He works all night on a machine to scan his memory to locate his birth mother, who abandoned him at the orphanage when he was a baby. While taking the scanner to his school's science fair, Lewis meets 13-year-old Wilbur Robinson, a mysterious boy claiming to be a time cop from the future. Wilbur needs to recover a time machine that a man wearing a bowler hat has stolen. Lewis tries to demonstrate the scanner, but it has been sabotaged by the Bowler Hat Guy and falls apart, throwing the science fair into chaos. Lewis leaves while the Bowler Hat Guy, with the help of a robotic bowler hat named Doris, repairs and steals the scanner.

Wilbur meets Lewis at the orphanage and asks him to repair the scanner. Lewis agrees to do so only if Wilbur can prove he is telling the truth, which Wilbur does by taking them in a second time machine to the year 2037, which is extremely advanced technologically. When they arrive, Lewis realizes he can simply use the time machine to meet his mother; the resulting argument makes them crash. Wilbur asks Lewis to fix the time machine, and Lewis agrees on the condition that Wilbur has to take him to visit his mother afterwards. Reluctantly, Wilbur agrees and hides Lewis in the garage. Lewis accidentally leaves, however, and ends up meeting the rest of the Robinson family except for Cornelius, Wilbur's father and the main creator of most of the time's inventions, who is away on a business trip. Having followed Lewis, the Bowler Hat Guy and Doris try to kidnap him, but the Robinsons beat them back. The Robinsons offer to adopt Lewis, but change their mind when they learn that he is from the past. Wilbur admits to lying to Lewis about taking him back to see his mom, causing Lewis to run off in disgust.

The Bowler Hat Guy and Doris approach Lewis and offer to take him to his mother if he fixes the memory scanner. Upon doing so, however, they take Lewis hostage. The Bowler Hat Guy reveals that Cornelius Robinson is, in fact, Lewis's future self, and that he himself is a grown-up version of Lewis's roommate, Michael "Goob" Yagoobian. Because he was kept awake by Lewis's work on the scanner, Goob fell asleep during an important Little League game and failed to make an important catch that cost the game. Goob became so bitter as a result that he was never adopted and remained in the orphanage long after it closed. Doris is "DOR-15", one of Lewis's failed and abandoned inventions. They both blamed Lewis for their misfortunes and decided to ruin his life by stealing the memory scanner and having Goob claim credit for it, who will then have Doris be mass-produced. Leaving Lewis behind, they take off with the scanner. However, it is revealed that Doris tricked everyone, and that by changing the past, Goob has allowed the mass-produced Doris hats to enslave humanity and render the future post-apocalyptic. Lewis repairs the second time machine, confronts Doris in the past and destroys her by promising to never invent her, restoring the future to its utopian self. After persuasion from Lewis, Wilbur tries to ask the adult Goob to join the family, but finds that Goob has run away, apparently ashamed by what he has done.

Back in Wilbur's time, Lewis finally meets Cornelius face to face. Cornelius explains how the memory scanner started their successful career, and persuades Lewis to return to the science fair. Wilbur takes Lewis back, but makes one stop first: as he promised, he takes Lewis back to the moment when his mother abandoned him. Though Lewis approaches his mother, he ultimately decides not to interact with her, realizing the family he will come to have with Wilbur and others.

Wilbur drops Lewis off in his own time and leaves. Lewis heads to the fair, but en route wakes up Goob just in time for him to make the winning catch, saving the game and thereby preventing his villainous ways. He is subsequently adopted. Back at the fair, Lewis asks for one more chance to demonstrate his scanner, which this time succeeds. He is adopted by Lucille, one of the science fair judges, and her husband Bud, who nicknames him "Cornelius" and takes him home.

The film ends with a quote which reiterates the message of not dwelling on failures and "keep moving forward", attributed to Walt Disney.

Production

Originally titled A Day with Wilbur Robinson, production began in June 2004, and was scheduled for a 2006 release. During the film's production, Walt Disney Animation Studios' storyboard artist Stephen Anderson decided to direct the film due to his personal connection to Lewis, since they both grew up adopted.

The studio planned to adapt Joyce's style to the film, but due to his involvement stylistically in Blue Sky Studios' Robots, the style was slightly reworked. While still taking cues from his retro style, influenced by everything from Technicolor movies to '40s architectural design, the crew also took inspiration from the company Apple. Unlike their previous film Chicken Little, a film starring CG animals, the animation crew had the challenge to animate CG humans. They took inspiration from Pixar's The Incredibles when animating the characters. They also took inspiration from Disney animated classics, such as Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, and Peter Pan, and from Warner Brothers cartoons to capture the 1950s aesthetic.

While the film was in production, The Walt Disney Company announced on January 24, 2006 that it would be acquiring Pixar, and as a result, John Lasseter became the chief creative officer of both Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. When he saw an early screening for the movie, he told Anderson that he did not find the villain scary or threatening enough, and suggested that he make some changes. Ten months later, almost 60% of the film had been scrapped and redone. The villain had improved and was given a new sidekick, a dinosaur chase had been added, and the ending was changed.

Release/Reception/Box Office

Over 600 REAL D Cinema digital 3D-equipped theaters presented Disney Digital 3-D version of the film. In all theatrical showings, the standard version of the film was preceded by the 1938 Mickey Mouse short film Boat Builders and the 3D version was preceded by the 1953 Chip 'n Dale 3D short Working for Peanuts. The final credits of the 3D version were left two-dimensional, except for the names of those who converted the film to 3D.

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 67% of critics gave the film positive reviews based on 143 reviews, with an average rating of 6.40/10. The site's critics consensus states, "Meet the Robinsons is a visually impressive children's animated film marked by a story of considerable depth." Metacritic reported the film had a weighted average score of 61 out of 100 based on 27 critic reviews, indicating "generally favourable reviews".

Realmovienews stated that it has "a snappy plot that demands close attention as it whizzes back and forth in the space-time continuum, touching on serious ideas and proposing some rather disturbing alternate realities. And the witty story twists are handled with rare subtlety and intelligence. In the end it may get a little weepy and inspirational. But it's so charming that we don't mind at all". Danny Minton of the Beaumont Journal said that "The Robinsons might not be a family you want to hang out with, but they sure were fun to meet in this imaginative and beautiful 3-D experience". Andrew L. Urban of Australian Urban Cinefile said that "Walt Disney stood for fantasy on screen and this is a loving tribute to his legacy". Kyle Smith of the New York Post named it the 10th best film of 2007.

Conversely, A. O. Scott of The New York Times wrote: "Meet the Robinsons is surely one of the worst theatrically released animated features issued under the Disney label in quite some time", while Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a "C" and said "This is one bumpy ride".

The film grossed $25,123,781 on its opening weekend, falling behind Blades of Glory. Over its theatrical run, it grossed $97,822,171 in the United States and Canada and $71,510,863 in other territories, totalling $169,333,034 worldwide.

Budget $150 million

Box office $169.3 million

My Review

Trying to figure out when the last time a movie from Disney proper charmed me like this, not sure. I love the Heffalump movie and I'm a fan of Treasure Planet- though once Martin Short shows up I think it goes off the rails. Heffalump aside (That's a TV movie on the big screen- so I'm dismissing for purposes of comparison on that technicality- though its easily one of my favourite Disney films) I think this probably the one film from the Mouse House I'm happiest with since Lilo and Stitch. Is it the equal of Lilo? no it doesn't have the "This is my family, its broken but still good" moment that makes me cry every time- nor, and most importantly it does not have the bra wearing caped crusader(though there are moments and lines...).

What the film has, that most other Disney films don't, and which is the reason that Lilo, and Treasure Planet and the other really good films work, is the characters. Lets face it this movie is about characters- and how they interact. The plot- the time travel to the future and stop the baddie plot, isn't all that great, but the pieces are- all of the jokes, and emotion and everything else comes out of the people in the film. yes they are people, even the frogs and the t-rex and the hat. They created personalities for everyone and everything in this film. That's why the film works. You're in a place with real people, there are no cookie cutter characters, there are different people, not ones a dog, and ones a chicken and ones a fish or a pig like in Chicken Little. (which has moments- and two or three real characters). No one is a stereotype or if they are they bend the rules- the bowler hat man is typical Snidely Whiplash characterization, but its turned on its head- things are not what you think they are with him. I loved that they dressed up what you expect with things you don't- the twist of who the Robinsons are-what you can't guess?- twist Rules that you would expect from old time travel movies to make a new sort of sense.

Frankly the plot is disposable- but the people are not the lines of dialog are not. I would love to know what was cut out of this film-65% of it was apparently removed and re-shot-I'd love to know what was there(Hello DVD)- what gems might it contain. I'm guessing the film was more rambling- probably like Robots.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed Meet the Robinsons. For me this was a decade where animated films were very hit and miss, and while no masterpiece Meet the Robinsons had something that made it memorable and watchable. I do agree the pacing does get a little too hectic, and the villain was a little too stereotyped for my liking, while there are some parts where it wasn't as interesting. That said, visually and technically it is a marvel, with the character designs good and the colours and backgrounds even better. The soundtrack was a great touch too, and while not exactly original the story isn't too predictable, too derivative or too saccharine. Instead it is fun, while the writing is funny and smart while surprisingly complex too. And the voice acting is top notch from all involved. Overall, not an animated classic but nothing to bury either. 7/10

{I love the soundtrack to this film, you can look up on Youtube the entire score but I'm just going to post my favourite 3}

{3 - Little Wonders}

{2 - Another Believer}

{1 - The Future Is Alive}