Not every review has to mention what a huge fan the reviewer is of the movie’s leading man….as a mantra, it sounds doable but as a practical matter, it really has no value whatsoever. How can I type anything related to Hugh Jackman and not visualize him as Wolverine, or put aside my ever-growing affection for the man and his abs (in this specific movie, ass)?
Well, now that’s out there in the open, let me tell you that there were numerous pros and cons presented to me even as I type this: trash the movie, yet spare the man? Avoid UFC comparisons? Be objective as to the purpose of one Evangeline Lilly in this one? So many dilemmas, so little time…
Tell you what, as an absolutely rabid fan of the UFC (Junior Dos Santos’ my man!) I found the premise of Real Steel fun and entertaining. Fighting robots, how cool is that? Apparently, not as cool as one’s imagination or the trailer itself could lead you to believe.
DO NOT think this is Sci-Fi. Set in 2020, it can hardly be technologically evolved enough (aside from the fighting robots, that is). It’s set in too near a future where the clothes, the gadgets, the cars are as if we’re talking about now and then, not now and what’s to come.
Hugh Jackman tries to pull it off and he does succeed with the little that he’s got, however, the overall feeling is of a family movie where the long lost son gets to indulge in his dad’s apparent business plots by proving to him that his robot can fight. Whatevs.
Evangeline Lilly, of her LOST fame, sure manages to look completely unattractive here which is almost a sacrilege.
Tell you what? Watch it, have fun with it, prepare yourself for the first 20 minutes of insane boredom after which all those UFC –ish robotic fights will occur and, in the end, you’ll realize that you’ve just seen Rocky 1 robotically enhanced and that Real Steal 2 is already in production (scheduled for 2014). Hell, what movie of late does not have its sequel?
7 out of 10.