Hugh Jackman jumps back on to our big screens tomorrow with plenty of metal, but no claws in sight, for his latest flick, Real Steel.
Real Steel is inspired by a short story by Richard ‘I am Legend’ Matheson about a down and out boxer named Charlie Kenton, played in the film by Hugh Jackman. The tale is set in the not too distant future where Kenton has had to face up to the reality that robot boxing matches are the new mega draw and not man-to-man matches. He’s a bit of a rogue who has hit a sleazy down patch and the relationship with estranged son (Dakota Goyo) is also at a low point.
As the story progresses we find out that after the pair discover a discarded sparring robot called ‘Atom’, train it up to dish out some effective metal crunching techniques, and in one scene to actually dance, that their relationship is set to improve tremendously. The whole premise of this trifecta relationship being that if there is one thing that father and son can do well together, it is work together on something to win. In this case a giant, arse-kicking robot that has a very similar personality to a loveable Ivan Drago.
Should you see it? Yes. It’s fun, but a bit mindless. Jackman is great to watch as ever and its broad appeal will connect to a lot of different tastes and ages. But that’s where it also has its rough edges, as it’s basically nothing new and actually quite formulaic. It’s also 127 minutes long, and gets a bit predictive in its cadences, especially as the film nears its end.
The film means well, and does pack some nicely placed emotional punches, but for the film connoisseurs it may be a choice for a DVD night in then a box office evening out. For everyone else who likes to dig into a good ol’ actiony, fun, sci-fi flick at the picture house – Ding-Ding!
[Rating:3/5]
