Directed by Shawn Levy
Written by John Gatins, Dan Gilroy and Jeremy Leven
Cinematography by Mauro Firoe
Music Composed by Danny Elfman
Cast
Hugh Jackman ... Charlie Kenton
Dakota Goyo ... Max Kenton
Evangeline Lilly ... Bailey Tallet
Anthony Mackie ... Finn
Kevin Durand ... Ricky
Hope Davis ... Aunt Debra
James Rebhorn ... Marvin
Marco Ruggeri ... Cliff
Karl Yune ... Tak Mashido
Olga Fonda ... Farra Lemkova
Runtime: 127 min
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for some violence, intense action and brief language Official Website
Real Steel is a movie that will be easy for a lot of people to dismiss. I was making some jokes heading into the theater with some fellow critics about Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, so it is easy to see that a lot of people won’t be willing to give the movie a chance. However, as the movie progressed, it started to win me over. I can honestly say that this is the first time I have gone to a movie screening and people actually cheered at various points in the movie. That is what this movie is all about. It is one of the most crowd pleasing films I have seen in a long time.
Real Steel is an inspirational sports movie with giant robots in the place of human athletes. Instead of seeing Rocky Balboa trying to beat the champion Apollo Creed, we get Atom trying to defeat the unbeatable Zeus. Despite the silliness of giant fighting robots, the movie possesses enough heart to make it a successful addition to the genre.
Hugh Jackman is Charlie Kenton, a former boxer trying to make his way in a new world where robots replace real humans in the sport. Charlie explains at one point that people always wanted more violence, from MMA to martial arts. Finally, the robots were developed to give the fans the most violence possible without the limitations of humans. All robots are controlled by remote controls, where the “trainers” program certain boxing moves into the robot’s memory and then operate it in a manner such as a video game.
Charlie is also in a lot of financial trouble. He owes numerous people money, and when his robot is destroyed in a fight with a bull at a Texas carnival, he is left without a robot boxer and no money to pay his debts. His former trainer’s daughter Bailey (Lost’s Evangeline Lilly) runs a gym but is going under because Charlie is unable to help pay his rent there.
This is the basis of the movie, but at the heart, is a father/son relationship. Charlie ran out on his son after he was born and has never been part of the youngster’s life. When the boy’s mother dies, Charlie is summoned to court as the next of kin. When he learns the boy's aunt is rich, he offers to sign over the rights to the boy in exchange for money to help him get out of debt. The only stipulation is that they will be in Italy for the summer and he has to keep the boy until they return.
The movie starts off slow, showing a lot of character development mainly to prove that Charlie is a worthless human being when we first meet him. The only person in his life that is a positive influence is Bailey but that is not enough as he spirals out of control. When the young boy enters his life, as always in these kinds of movies, it changes Charlie’s life for the better. This is not a movie that breaks new ground, everything that happens here happened before in Rocky, Big Daddy and a number of other films.
However, the way successful movies work is by giving fans what they want to see. It is not what happens in the movie that matters but how it happens. Nothing in Real Steel is original but the way director Shawn Levy constructs it is masterful. Everyone knows that the underdog robot will work his way up to a title shot with Zeus. Everyone also knows the movie will show the smart ass kid cracking jokes and looking both cute and vulnerable at different points in the movie. Everyone knows what this movie is about but that doesn’t matter because the movie makes you feel like standing up and cheering when the fights take place.
It also works because both Hugh Jackson and young Dakota Goyo are spectacular in their roles and give the movie a real heart to go along with the giant robot fighting action. Real Steel also possesses the ability to bring a tear to anyone who loves a good father-son story. This movie pretty much has it all including an ending familiar to those who love Rocky. This is not the most original movie in the world but it is the most fun I have had at a movie in 2011.
The 411: Real Steel is a retelling of Rocky with giant fighting robots. While it all seems silly and almost looks like a boxing version of Transformers, it couldn’t be more different. Real Steel is a movie with a lot of heart and Shawn Levy constructs it perfectly, making every boxing match exciting and thrilling. A lot of cynical people may turn their nose up at this film but anyone who wants a fun, entertaining romp won’t find a better movie this year. This is the true definition of a guilty pleasure and I am happy to recommend it.
Posted By: Guest#3358 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 12:08 AM
awesome ive been looking forward to the Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots movie good to know its actually worth watching
Posted By: Nik Venom (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 01:25 AM
i went to a sneak preview for this.. and this movie was crap. i give it a 2/10. totally cliched, hollywood written, full of product placement, the plot is bad, kid actor is annoying and prissy, looks like the kid from that 80s tv show "small wonder".. a waste of time for sure.
Posted By: kj nutt (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 02:39 AM
Call me a film snob, but this looks like shit. It's got Jackman for starters so, yeah shit. Happy to be an elitist snob.
Posted By: Guest#7387 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 04:35 AM
Call me a film snob, but this looks like shit. It's got Jackman for starters so, yeah shit. Happy to be an elitist snob.
Posted By: Guest#7387 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 04:35 AM
And so are we. Stay away from our movies.
Posted By: The Movie-Going Public (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 08:17 AM
Unless he is playing wolverine I'm, not interested. Yes I am pigeon holing him into one role because I have yet to see him in anything else worth watching.
If i wanted to see a movie that looked like something the scyfy channel would put on at 2am...well i would watch the scyfy channel at 2am.
Posted By: Guest#3319 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 08:17 AM
Call me a film snob, but this looks like shit. It's got Jackman for starters so, yeah shit. Happy to be an elitist snob.
Posted By: Guest#7387 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 04:35 AM
You're watching his "good paycheck" movies; go see the Fountain and the Prestige for great Jackman performances.
If you were expecting award winning performances here you went to the wrong movie. This film is for fun, sometimes you just have to just lose yourself in a film and enjoy the ride.
Posted By: Lemming (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 08:24 AM
Rock Em Sock Em Robot movie is STUPID. If you like this and are older than 12 you should kill yourself now.
Posted By: Guest#5799 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 08:57 AM
Why would anyone be happy to be an elitist snob? When you automatically write off categories of movies, you stand a good chance of missing something special. Saying you are above a movie doesn't make you suave, or cool, it just limits your scope.
This movie looks a bit cheesy, but it looks like fun to me. If I was in my younger years, I would be eating this film up. Good review, by the way!
Posted By: Kevin Hopp (Registered) on October 07, 2011 at 09:41 AM
Interesting to see the commentors who obviously haven't seen the movie hate it so much (elitist snob/12 yr old commentors).
Reminds me of the Transformers hate.
Conclusion = people unecessarily hate robot movies because they are afraid robots will take over the world.
Posted By: RobotFear (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 10:17 AM
Call me a film snob, but this looks like shit. It's got Jackman for starters so, yeah shit. Happy to be an elitist snob.
elitist snob? really? really? i understand the movie isn';t oscar calibre, but its not supposed to be, its supposed to be a fun entertaining film. as far as jackman goes, if you think hes shit, go watch the prestige, the fountain, and other non x men movies to find this man has more talent then you will ever have you keyboard trolling warrior loser. enjoy your indyrific films no one has ever heard of or cared about.
Posted By: cody (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 12:16 PM
"awesome ive been looking forward to the Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots movie good to know its actually worth watching"
Not least because it's actually based on a short story by one of the greatest science fiction authors of the 20th Century that was published ten years before Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots even came out.
But it seems we're so jaded that it seems more likely Hollywood would make a film based on a toy game rather than an adaptation of a high-concept science fiction story.
Posted By: The Tortoise King (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 12:17 PM
Interesting to see the commentors who obviously haven't seen the movie hate it so much (elitist snob/12 yr old commentors).
Reminds me of the Transformers hate.
Conclusion = people unnecessarily hate robot movies because they are afraid robots will take over the world.
Posted By: RobotFear (Guest)
Actually it is a bunch of window lickers that have nothing better to do while mommy fixes their hot pockets.
Posted By: Guest#6986 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 01:10 PM
i saw this shitty movie wed night on a "sneak preview" type deal my friend invited me to. i don't claim to be an elitesit anything and i do enjoy some good cheese that this had the potential of being.. but instead they throw every cliche in the book, load it with obvious product placement and advertising (dr. pepper, bing, xbox "720").. and the writing is just bad.. lazy. why am i asking questions like "how is the kid drag a 1000 lb robot up a thousand stairs??"... and it has dialog like: jackman's character: gimmme a fight fight booker: maybe i can get you in the undercard.. it's 50gs guaranteed and 1000 each round you survive, gight to the death jackman: undercard??! gimme the main event fight booker: okay, you got it. its 50gs, 1000 each round you survive and fight to the death.
pretty retarded. and spoiler: the robot is like the iron giant in that it's alive and it likes to share a special bond with young boys.
Posted By: kj nutt (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 02:26 PM
I liked him in swordfish
Posted By: SSgt Monoxide (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 02:54 PM
After Lost began, I thought the gorgeous and talented Evangeline Lilly had a promising career ahead of her and would become a bigger star but she has done so little in the last seven years. I hope she’ll have a career renaissance with Real Steel and The Hobbit films and do more mainstream movies from now on. Good for her to keep landing such high profile roles. She deserves it. It’s an exceptional performance by her in Real Steel, just wonderful.
Posted By: Maguire (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 03:00 PM
ok.. so i realized that the robot is "alive" when the robot started doing the shadow thing with the kid and the kid says the secret is safe.. but he didn't know that when he supposedly drug hum up all them stairs. why didn't they just reveal he was alive down there then it covers up the hole that he was able to drag them up.. but they didn't!
Posted By: kj nutt (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 03:19 PM
Cool now I can go see it! I had high hopes for this film glad it got good ratings.
Posted By: Chewb (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 04:15 PM
"pretty retarded. and spoiler: the robot is like the iron giant in that it's alive and it likes to share a special bond with young boys. - Posted By: kj nutt (Guest)"
The robot was NOT alive. It had a shadow program built into it for the sparring techniques that it was built for. Don't listen to these people. The robot was a remote controlled robot that only worked based on its programming.
Posted By: Shawn S Lealos (Registered) on October 07, 2011 at 05:09 PM
Unless he is playing wolverine I'm, not interested. Yes I am pigeon holing him into one role because I have yet to see him in anything else worth watching.
Posted By: Guest#3319 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 08:17 AM
So what you are really saying is that you are a stupid douche that hasn't actually watched his other fantastic roles from The Fountain or The Prestige. Yeah that guy starring in Les Mis on Broadway is just nothing but Wolverine right?? Go fuck yourself.
Posted By: Erik... (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 06:33 PM
So what you are really saying is that you are a stupid douche that hasn't actually watched his other fantastic roles from The Fountain or The Prestige. Yeah that guy starring in Les Mis on Broadway is just nothing but Wolverine right?? Go fuck yourself.
Posted By: Erik... (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 06:33 PM
They SUCKED HARD...and I aw les mis with colm wilkenson back in the 80's and this guy can't even lace that guys boots.
Posted By: Guest#3212 (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 08:41 PM
then what was that scene where the kid was all doin the shadow thing with the robot for the first time and danced around and then the robot and the kid were face to face and the robot gave empathetic eyes and the kid said "you don't wanna anyone to know, right" and the robot nodded, and the kid said "your secret is safe".. did i just imagine that scene. also, why wouldn't jackman wanna use its "shadow" technology in the first place being that he was a former champion boxer. this movie made no sense to me. the robots were pretty dumb too, the idea that this would replace real sports in the future is too much.
Posted By: kj nutt (Guest) on October 07, 2011 at 09:03 PM
I like Jackman but The Fountain SUCKS. The gayest scene / ending of any movie goes to the Fountain.
I might go see this because I like Jackman that much.
Posted By: Guest#0119 (Guest) on October 08, 2011 at 04:39 PM
You mentioned Rocky, but I thought it looked more like "Over the Top" with robots on the trailer.
If I'm lucky, I'll be able to avoid seeing this movie until I die.
Posted By: Guest#6245 (Guest) on October 09, 2011 at 12:15 PM
The Fountain was pretty lame but do NOT talk shit on the Prestige. Fucking awesome movie and Jackman was beyond terrific in it.
Posted By: Guest#2390 (Guest) on October 09, 2011 at 02:03 PM
"then what was that scene where the kid was all doin the shadow thing with the robot for the first time and danced around and then the robot and the kid were face to face and the robot gave empathetic eyes and the kid said "you don't wanna anyone to know, right" and the robot nodded, and the kid said "your secret is safe".. did i just imagine that scene"
Kind of. The robot's eyes never changed and were only lights. They just followed the human the robot was shadowing. The robot also never nodded. The kid was just being a kid and imagining things (or pretending).
Posted By: Shawn S Lealos (Registered) on October 10, 2011 at 12:36 AM
Shaddow Boxing function at the end had GF weeping, as were most of the audiance. Really cool
Posted By: andrew (Guest) on October 10, 2011 at 08:07 AM
Elitist snob says:
Yes I have seen The Fountain and Prestige and thought they both sucked, mainly because of Jackman. He's fine as Wolverine, but that's it. A cartoon character. It's so easy and so much fun to offend all you stupid idiots. Thanks for your encouraging words. Keep them coming.
Posted By: Ebert Jr (Guest) on October 11, 2011 at 01:46 AM
anakin was the worst part especially him dancing, otherwise it was a good popcorn flick
Posted By: Guest#0015 (Guest) on October 13, 2011 at 06:29 PM
Yea.. I saw this movie back in the 80s. It was called "Rocky 4" and "Over The Top". Entertaining but not an 8. HJ did good in this role but the movie was to similar to the movies above. At one point I wanted to get up and say "He is cut!!! You see, he is not a machine he is... " oh never mind... these are machines but you see the similarities.
Posted By: D3Lions (Guest) on October 24, 2011 at 07:06 PM
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