I, Robot
Reviewer: Lee Griffiths
Issue 105 July 2008
(1 votes, average: 6 out of 10)
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Rise of the machines.
The Lowdown: The year is 2035 and robots have become a part of everyday life. When a famed robot inventor mysteriously commits suicide, Detective Del Spooner suspects foul play by the supposedly harmless robot race. However, technophobe Spooner soon realises that there may be more to the case than first meets the eye.
Review: You can’t help but think that if Alex Proyas had gone a bit Dark City (1998) with his Isaac Asimov based sci-fi flick, we could have been looking at a genre classic. As it stands though – with the help of a smart mouthed Will Smith – I, Robot places muscle over mind, with Will Smith’s buff physique and motorbike acrobatics taking priority over some genuinely brilliant ideas.
While the meandering narrative and clunky structure make I, Robot seem about 30 minutes longer than it should have been, if you can look beyond its flaws and the shameless product placement, Proyas’ blockbuster is a slick piece of work that demands to be admired for its aesthetic splendour. Indeed, the glossy, effects-heavy feature is the perfect candidate for Blu-ray, and I, Robot well and truly does the HD format proud.
Giving the film a new lease of life, the Blu-ray upgrade is no less than spectacular in regards to the picture and audio quality. The disc provides one of the most consistently brilliant pictures we’ve seen so far, with standout examples of the picture’s sharpness, depth and contrast arriving at every turn, from the futuristic skyline at night to the close-ups of the characters’ faces. We did spot a tiny bit of grain during one scene where Smith arrives at the dead doc’s house gates, but really, it’s just nitpicking, and throughout the 115-minute running time, the picture quality is flawless.
The audio is just as impressive, with gunshots, explosions and car chases providing loud and powerful audio highlights, with the DTS-HD Master Audio upping the ante and delivering a deafening soundtrack experience from beginning to end.
On the special features, some old bonus goodies get an interactive going over with the ‘In-Movie’ options, which, with a press of the red, blue, yellow or green buttons on your remote, grants access to the corresponding extras including behind-the-scenes footage, trivia, an audio commentary and an A-Z ‘search’ option (where you can look up any subject in the film and skip straight to that specific moment: e.g. ‘E’ for explosions etc). There’s also a D-Box option for the ultimate home cinema experience (if you happen to own the D-box equipment).
While numerous Blu-rays have arrived and dazzled with their picture and audio quality, few have made the film actually feel like a brand new experience, but sure enough, I, Robot in HD provides such a blindingly beautiful visual and audio trip, you really will feel short-changed when returning to the standard DVD.
PICTURE: 9
AUDIO: 9
FILM: 6
EXTRAS: 7
DVD Info:
Certificate: 15
Starring: Will Smith, Bridget Moynahan, Alan Tudyk
Directed By: Alex Proyas, 2004
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Visuals: 2.35:1 Widescreen
Running Time: 115 mins
Price: £22.99
Film supplied by:
Premier PR
Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Director Alex Proyas And Screenwriter Akiva Goldsman
‘Behind The Camera’ Featurettes
‘Search Index’
Trivia Track
Personal Scene Selection
‘D-Box Motion Code’ Option
In-Movie Features
Scene Selection
