Humans love violence; at least seeing it in a controlled environment. Fighting tournaments are wildly popular and boxing is chief among them. Brutal as it is, what happens when people want more? Real Steel imagines a time in the near future when the job of boxers has been delegated to huge humanoid robots controlled by operators. Without the limitations of fleshiness, these metal men duke it out to the 'death' much to the delight of the massive crowds.
The story of Real Steel revolves around a former boxer down on his luck. Now a robot operator, Charlie Kenton's (Hugh Jackman) already messed-up life is further complicated by the arrival of his 11-year old son Max (Dakota Goyo) after his mother's untimely death. Wanting nothing to do with the boy, Charlie nevertheless is stuck with him for a while, to neither one's great delight. Max is annoying, bratty, and belligerent towards Charlie but they eventually bond over an old fighting robot they find in a junk yard while scouring for parts. Max drives Charlie to enter their robot in fights which they surprisingly win and this leads to bigger fights and the predictable father-son bonding.
It's a far from original story - basically Rocky with robots - but it's done really well and with heart and wit. Formulaic as it is, the story is still highly engaging and the robot 'chereography' is simply amazing. The fluidity and realism of the motion is really very impressive (Michael Bay, eat your heart out). Filmed without quick-cuts, the fight scenes highlight each and every punch and throw in metal-crunching detail. The main robot 'Atom' is highly likeable with his blue oval 'eyes' recalling to mind EVE from Wall·E. The way he 'shadows' his operator is really fun to watch and makes him seem almost more than just a dumb machine (a point which is alluded to but not explored).
Of course a movie with just cool robots and no humans worth rooting for (ahem), is much less fun. Fortunately we have Jackman giving a honest performance as an incredibly selfish man who seems to care about nothing other than himself but is still not beyond redemption. Evangeline Lily (forever Kate from Lost) plays Bailey, his long-suffering on-and-off romantic interest who still believes in him despite his massive screw-ups and cavalier attitude. Both fine performances, but the star of the show is undoubtedly scene-stealing little Dakota Goyo (last seen as a young Thor) who in his first big movie turns in a believable and natural performance. The character of Max is childish, audacious, stubborn, cheeky, rude, and at times too mature for his age. Goyo pulls this off while still coming across as a normal honest-to-goodness little boy secretly longing for his absent father's affection.
Everyone loves an underdog. Here we have a washed up boxer, an obsolete robot from a junkyard, and a half-orphaned little boy - underdogs if ever there were any. In the obligatory final fight, I had to resist the urge to punch imaginary opponents to cheer them on.
For a fighting good time, I give Real Steel eight out of ten baby seals.
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