Reviews & Ratings for
Astro Boy More at IMDbPro »

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62 out of 87 people found the following review useful:
Amazingly BETTER than expected, 17 October 2009

Author: berrorg from Canada

I just came from an advance screening of Astroboy where I dutifully took my kids at 10 am to watch "this" thinking that if I was lucky I would be able to doze off for a few minutes during the movie. Boy, I couldn't! The story was captivating from the beginning. Yes, it was very directed at kids, you know, the far off humour and such, but when I saw Toby, the genius' "kid", I felt that the movie was after all NOT just a Pinocchio rip-off where an old man made a robot-boy because he was bored or lonely... the reasons behind the creation of Astroboy were tragic and even mature. Of course, if you are a manga aficionado, you may be thinking "duh! that's how's supposed to be", but I am NOT. I barely watched a show now and then when I was a kid (I'm 36 years old... too young for Astroboy), so I wasn't really aware of the story. So I thought, well, this development has to be a fluke inherited from the original story, from then on it should go downhill... but it did NOT. The story is full of tragedy, though decisions that if you think them through you can even understand (like a father understanding that memories cannot truly replace his son), and redemption that may be obvious to superheroes experts, but are very well exposed to a new generation of kids that will witness a clear fight between good and evil (positive and negative forces) adorned with an excellent and adequate portion of comedy. Not just a kid's movie, but a movie that I will surely watch again when my kids "force" me to buy it and to watch it with them dozens of times. Go, Astro!

34 out of 48 people found the following review useful:
Pleasantly Surprised, Kids Loved It, 26 October 2009

Author: Trangor from United States

Unlike many of the other reviews(it seems), I don't have an ax to grind. I vaguely remembered the character and actually thought it was a French cartoon. If it was on TV, I never saw it.

As such, my expectations were fairly plebeian - just a family film with good production values and some entertainment value. Well, Astroboy IS well produced and IS very entertaining. There was plenty of comedy to keep the film light and lots of action to keep things moving.

I might agree with those who think the portrayal of Toby's(Astroboy's) father was rather cold. However, it fits with the sequence of events and one assumes that the producers were following the original story (I'm not going to read the comic book to find out).

There are many endearing characters in the film and interesting villains to boot. The animation varied from good to excellent and the pacing avoided any significant lulls. All in all, well and cleverly done. Good job, Imagi, and all the talented people who contributed.

I recommend this to anyone who wants some light-hearted entertainment. My family loved it.

34 out of 50 people found the following review useful:
Nice family movie, 29 October 2009

Author: (yannigk) from NJ

I never expected to see some high-art film when I saw the trailer for the movie. It's Astro Boy, the kid fighting evil aliens or robots on Saturday mornings. I expect it to be just a movie about a young super kid fighting.. well.. robots and aliens.

So when I walked into the movie I was pleasantly surprised that there are more than fighting in the movie. I was touched in many places where the father (Dr. Tenma) and son (Toby/ Astro)'s bittersweet relationship is shown. The acting is GREAT! Both by the actors (Nicholas Cage, Donald Sutherland, Nathan Lane, they're all great) and by the animators in Hong Kong.

There are also many funny moments, although not enough time was given to laugh at them. I wish the pacing was a bit slower at the start of the movie (but I read many people were bored at the start of the movie). Well.. the problem is that they need to zip in all the story about the beginning of Astroboy, in about 15-20 minutes time.

I love the little robots like Trash Can and the RRF. They are such relief makers in the movie. Most of the funny moments came from them.

I read reviews about certain political agendas etc, in the movie. But i disagree. Those statements are only made to support the story, and shouldn't be looked at with too much thought. Remember this is a kid's movie, and should be taken lightly as an entertainment source, don't think too much about it.

I don't really get why the box office for this movie is so bad. I mean, this is WAY BETTER THAN Bee Movie, or Space Chimps, or Open Season 2... SERIOUSLY. It deserves better.

I went to see this movie on a Saturday and there were a lot of parents with kids in the cinema. When the movie finished the kids were happy and thrilled and said "That was awesome!" Take your kids to this movie. They'll love it.

31 out of 46 people found the following review useful:
Excellent movie for kids and adults, 7 November 2009

Author: saggnev from United States

Before going to see Astro Boy I decided to read some of the comments that were posted here. I read reviews by some who liked the movie as well as by some who did not like the movie. With an average score of 6.4 I went to see the movie with relatively low expectations although I got the feeling that those who did not like the movie were mostly upset about the movie not being "true" to the original TV series and were having some issues with certain characters reminding them of other characters such as Pinocchio. Well, I did not see the original TV series so I did not care whether or not the movie and the TV series were similar enough. I also did not mind that some of the side kicks may have had some resemblance to characters from other movies. The bottom line is that my 5.5 year old and I loved Astro Boy!

17 out of 21 people found the following review useful:
Charming story and visuals, give it a try., 15 January 2010

Author: (quocanh80@hotmail.com) from Saigon, Vietnam

For some reason my expectations were not high for this movie, the IMDb rating was pretty average and there was not much hype surrounding it's release. It seems any computer animated movie that is neither Pixar nor Shrek has a difficult time getting noticed. Having seen this movie now I can whole heartedly say that this movie is as fun and action packed as any movie from the Pixar stable.

The visuals are excellent and on a par with the latest computer generated movies, the story is heart warming and touches on philosophical themes often related to more adult titles like Blade Runner or even Ghost in the Shell, the action is well handled and true to the cartoon origins of the title and ultimately there is enough depth and charm in this movie to satisfy both kids and adults. The only drawback I feel this movie has is the somewhat out of place voice acting of some of the main characters, it seems that the producers wanted the film to be attached to some big name actors rather then finding voice actors that would suit the specific characters,specifically I felt that Bill Nighy voice was out of place as the Professor and perhaps Nic Cage could have brought more energy to the role. It did feel as though the voice work was done after visuals and not vice versa which led to a somewhat flat performance by some actors. That, however is just me being ultra critical, overall this is a top draw movie and worth a look. Give it a try.

23 out of 39 people found the following review useful:
Lots of fun, 27 October 2009

Author: David Robertson (wliia) from Australia

This was a really good movie. I really enjoyed this. Granted I'm not a fan of Astro Boy, but I still enjoyed this film. The voice actors delivered great performances. Nathan Lane was brilliant as Ham Egg, as was Kristen Bell as Cora. Freddie Highmore did great as Astro, and as much as everyone groans whenever Nicolas Cage is mentioned, he did a wonderful job as Dr. Tenma. The action in this film was great. I was never bored during the film. It had a lot of great stuff, and some funny moments. It's a great animated film that delivers on action, great performances and awesome sequences. I had a great time with Astro Boy. I hope it does for you too.

17 out of 28 people found the following review useful:
A real surprise!, 13 October 2009

Author: kewlmatto from Queensland, Australia

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

The first fifteen minutes of its dialogue was groan-inducing...this, combined with Nic Cage's droning voice is enough to turn the viewer off quickly.

Fortunately, you can't judge this one by its opening act. As soon as Astro leaves Metro City, the film really picks up. This is surprisingly intelligent, fun, nostalgic and engaging.

The film manages to canvass some rather complex ideas regarding robotics, which really raise the quality of the story to a higher level. Characters have some shades of grey which are much appreciated.

The animation is strong, though it is a little too Western in appearance at times, and it would have been nice to see a bit more anime style.

Unfortunately, the lack of the classic music theme does leave a gaping hole.

6 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
An entertaining animation, 15 March 2010

Author: Gordon-11 from Hong Kong

This film is about a top robot scientist, who copes with his sons death by building a high tech robot to replace his son.

I find "Astro Boy" very well made. It has got an engaging and exciting plot with plenty of action. There are also plenty of emotional elements to touch people's hearts. The leading character, Toby, is well portrayed. he is such a good boy with a sad background. It is easy to sympathise with his situation, making viewers connect with him and hence be engaged by the story. Visuals are great as the sets are vibrantly composed, making every scene a joy to watch. "Astro Boy" is a fun film to watch. Both kids and adults will all be entertained by it!

7 out of 9 people found the following review useful:
Simply Awesome, 6 March 2010

Author: mongomauler-1 from United States

I don't know who said they thought this was a Rip-Off of Pinnochio but it isn't and never was. I don't know why people insist on taking movies and trying to find other movies "they ripped off". For me as a kid it was one of my favorites and every time my 11 year old grandson comes over we watch one of the old B&W episodes I have on DVD. I took him to the theatre to see this just me and him and we were both like a couple of kids.(I'm 55) I'm not going to spoil it for anyone that has not seen it but I believe it is a great family movie, or at least one you can let your child watch without supervision. I enjoyed it a lot. My Grandson looks forward to our weekly viewings now with his Grandpa. As a long time ASTROBOY Fan I wish we could figure out if it is one word or two ? All my old stuff the ASTROBOY runs together. Anyway I believe this is a fun entertaining movie and not for all, but give it a try for your kids and grandkids. I think they will enjoy it.

17 out of 29 people found the following review useful:
As a film for kids that don't know the character its an okay film with great bits. For Astro's fans its a misfire with great bits, 2 November 2009

Author: dbborroughs from Glen Cove, New York

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

What are we to make of the computer animated film of Astro Boy? If one doesn't know the character its an often rip roaring children's film that shows having spent much too much time in the Hollywood pressure cooker that insists on the same cliché's being repeated over and over again. It's the story of a distraught scientist, head of Metro City 's ministry of science, who creates a robot in his son's image after the boy is killed in a military demonstration. The military of course wants the robot and pursues him. He eventually ends up in the trash heap under the city where he makes friends of a bunch of cute kids who takes him to meet their Fagin like protector. Said protector then turns on Astro and forces him to fight in robot gladiatorial games, which are interrupted by the arrival of the military who grab Astro who then attempts to escape only to have to fight the evil military's robot monster.

The film as some really great sequences, Astro's creation is pure magic, Astro flying for the first time has the "Oh Wow" factor in spades, the gladiatorial games are wonderful, the final battle is great and the fade out is the moment Astro is the hero we expect. Also great are the Zog sequences and some of the small character moments. The problem is the cookie cutter approach that ties all the elements together in the story, which was no doubt forced upon the filmmakers. This approach makes the film like any number of bland children's films with the same elements we've see a thousand times before (loving parents, spunky kids as friends, cute pet, military bad guys). The effect on the film is that you have these wonderful soaring moments mired in a story that is less then thrilling and takes the shine off the good stuff.

If you don't know the character it's a serviceable children's film, with some great sequences. I'm sure kids will like the film if not love it. It's the sort of thing that will probably blend into a thousand other similar films down the road with only the odd moments and sequences to make it stand out.

But what if you're an Astro Boy fan from the comics and the TV shows? I think fans of the show are going to be very disappointed.(I should mention I've read all the comics and seen all the TV shows)

Astro's arrival in an American studio has resulted in a radical dumbing down and rewriting of the origin of the character-among other things. Gone is the death of Dr Tenma's son in an auto accident. Gone is the entire issue of Astro's abandonment by his father who sends him off to a circus where he's found and raised as a "normal" boy. Gone is Tokyo of the future(now past). Gone is the notion of robots looking like people and the integration, of sorts, into society.

I could go on, but what would be the point? Basically they took most of Astro's world and flushed it. I wouldn't care but what they replaced it with was everything that Astro was not. They essentially removed anything that has kept the character alive for the better part of 60 years in comics and 50 years on TV. Astro is now just one of any other similar goody goody kids films with cutesy kid characters for Astro to interact with.

Yes there are some great sequence. As I said the first flying sequence, the Zog bits and the arena of death are all sterling bits of animation that pay homage to Tezuka (who is in the film). The problem is that outside of the moments this isn't Astro, even if all the characters are there.

Part of my problem comes from the whole military themed story. I doubt very much Tezuka would have been happy with it. While his works often dealt with military and similar themes I don't think he would have ever thought of his best known character in a tale with an origin like this. Its not where he was going with the tale.Tezuka seemed to want tales about hope and coming together (at least in Astro) and thats not really the case here. It's a radical rethink of the character that doesn't really work.(and it shows misunderstanding of most of the characters). It's the PC police tampering in order not to have events that either kids can duplicate or which will truly frighten them- give an outside enemy and no one will get upset.

I'm not against rethinking Astro. The recent manga series Pluto, which retells the Tezuka story The Greatest Robot in the World (and which echoes in this film) is a rethink that is both new and faithful to the old. This film is just the characters and some of the elements thrown in a blender.

In my humble opinion as a real Astro Boy story it's a misfire. It doesn't work. Its got moments, but as a whole it doesn't work. Astro will of course survive this, but I think this film will mostly end up forgotten.

Over all fans should wait for cable. Non-fans may want to go to a bargain matinée

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