Review of Astro Boy (2009) by Peyton M — 27 Jul 2017

I can understand why this got a mixed reception because there are some things that I really admire about it, but there are also a ton of setbacks that keep it from being a good movie. The animation is incredible with all the different gadgets and weapons that Astro Boy has inside of him, really amazing technology, the spectacular designs of the robots, some of the concepts it brings out are very fascinating, and the world of the movie looks like it would be interesting to explore.

But the problem is how everything was handled execution wise. The story has its problems of being inconsistent with the tone. There are moments where it would get really serious, and there are times where it tries to be lighthearted by attempting to make the audience laugh, which I know a lot of movies do that, but they usually know how to balance out the comedy and the drama, and I feel like this movie really doesn't.

Also, it tries to cram in way too many characters, and the movie is so focused on trying to make ALL of them funny rather than trying to make them strong as characters, and as a result, the movie doesn't leave much room for character development.

In all, I don't hate Astro Boy, it has a few things going for it that are good, but there are elements that I felt could have been tweaked in order to improve the quality of the film a little bit more.