I, Robot – Blu-ray

Breaking the law! Breaking the law!

Del Spooner is a scarred cop. He hasn’t had good experiences with robots and does not trust any of them. Known for his chucks, and his old-school ways, he has never quite let go of the past, nor has he let go of the incident that started his so-called paranoia. When his friend, Dr. Alfred Lanning, apparently commits suicide, Del finds more than he bargained for. He not only finds that Dr. Lanning didn’t commit suicide, but finds a robot that might have the information to his murder, or even worse, be the cause of his murder. Impossible? Yes, because robots can’t murder people, they are programmed to obey three laws to protect them. These three laws prevent the robot from harming humans, which doesn’t jive with what Spooner has found out. Trying to find more about this rogue robot, Spooner soon finds himself in the middle of a covered up revolution that might be the very unraveling of him and the entire human race.

Let me just start out by saying that I could watch this movie on a lazy Saturday, any day of the week. That says a lot about the film itself. There are only a handful of films that I could say this about. One of my favorites is The Goonies. I could watch that anytime. I, Robot, while it wasn’t a huge success theatrically, certainly does lend some very good moments throughout the film. Alex Proyas knows how to bring these things out in the story and his actors. He does a masterful job at translating what could be potentially a bleak future for the human race into something haunting and mesmerizing at the same time. While the majority of the robots in the film are scary, they’re so neat to watch when it comes to taking down bad and good guys. Outside of this, Proyas visually tells a very film noir futuristic tale that intertwines mystery and suspense perfectly. There are moments where you’ll hit a dead-end in the film, much like Will Smith’s character, but it’ll keep your mind at its peak performance in figuring out the complex storyline.

As for Will Smith’s performance, it was beautiful at the very least. He did a great job in selling the broken cop story. He was the perfect hero who ultimately finds himself in the role of saving the world. This is much better than I Am Legend in his book of roles. His on screen presence and his way to turn serious into funny and vice-versa, gives this actor so much ammunition every time he brings his characters to life. Kudos to him for his role.

With all this good, there is a slight downside to the movie. The storyline does tend to drag a bit. Just a bit though. Towards the end of the film you will be wanting the plot to climax (giggle if you want, it’s a true term), but it simply doesn’t give you the pleasure. It’s a bit off balance, but again just slightly. For critics in the mainstream press, this is certainly the point where the film hurt a bit. When you finally do get to the climax of the story, it’s quite good. Even the ending is one for the ages, it’s not bleak for any party involved. Without a doubt though, the slowdown is noticeable.

With that said, I still enjoyed the film very much. So much, that if you have not seen I, Robot, this is your chance to get your movie on. It is quite intelligent and entertaining with both action and mystery (and suspense).

Blu-ray is the wave of the future, there will be one in every household. Hope it can cook.

This is the most beautiful movie I’ve seen on Blu-ray to date. If the future looks this good then I’m going to have to jump in a cryogenic pod and freeze myself. The grays, whites, blacks and blues stand out so well in high-definition. The chase scene at the beginning of the film, when Spooner thinks a robot snatched a purse, is just gorgeous. Will Smith fans will appreciate the scenes when he has his shirt off, especially. I’m just glad my wife was asleep when I was reviewing this. Anyway, the audio also is quite gorgeous as it comes to you in a beautiful DTS 5.1 HD. You will hear everything in perfect balance. It is literally perfect audio.

Now for the best part of the Blu-ray, the special features. Here’s what you get on the I, Robot special features:

– Commentary by Director Alex Proyas and Screenwriter Akiva Goldsman

– Commentary by Screenwriter Jeff Vintar

– Commentary by Composer Marco Beltrami with isolated cues from the score

– I, Robot Trivia Track

– Extended and Deleted Scenes

– D-Box Technology

– Red Button – Behind the Camera –
Day Out of Days – Production Diaries
CGI and Design Featurettes
Sentient Machines – Robotic Behavior
The Filmmakers’ Toolbox – VFX How-To-Clips
Deleted Scenes and Alternate Ending

– Green Button – Commentary Guide –
Three Full-Length Commentaries – Hear Director Alex Proyas, Screenwriter Akiva Goldsmith, etc.

– Yellow Button – Annotated Guide
Trivia Track

– Blue Button – Search Index
Explore all the Disc has to offer

– Personal Scene Selection & Enhanced D-Box