Robot & Frank

So I went to see a late night showing of this film slightly inebriated with a hipflask of more booze. My drinking habits are not nearly as bad as this blog makes out, I just tend to drink when I want to talk about my life or blog about things, go figure. I have to say, it feels like I've just been watching bloated Hollywood Oscar bait massively long films lately at the cinema; it was almost a relief to sit through a standard tightly paced film which clocked in at just under 90 minutes. That's my initial reaction anyway, plus the other reaction was, well I need a robot in my life, the third was, that's a damn good looking family even by Hollywood standards... But I'll elaborate. As it's painfully obvious that it's very hard for me to be critical about anything as I spend most of my time rambling, these reviews after all, are but mere reactions; I have to say I genuinely liked this film. Go figure, I go to the cinema and see a film I like. I would find it hard to fault this film largely because I felt such a strong liking for it, I liked the story, the characters, the brisk pace, the emotional beats, the reality of the near future and heartbreaking experience of old age finally catching up with you.

Robot & Frank is a simple film, the basic premise is, old man gets given robot nurse to take care of him as his Alzheimer's is starting to become an issue and his kids are busy with their own lives and he's alone. It's an incredibly close to home for a lot of people and an identifiable situation, caring for an aging parent, or painfully losing grasp of your independence. As it's set in the near future, the possibility of robot nurses is a reasonable stretch of the imagination, Robot (who throughout the film remains unnamed - but everyone refers to as Robot) is a likelihood in the future, at least that's what the end credits would have you believe when you see all the different robots capable of menial tasks already. Frank used to be a cat burglar, mostly precious jewels, the more money per pound, and when he notices his robotic nurse seems amenable to his exploits, they become a team. He doesn't really corrupt Robot, Robot's aim is to keep Frank active and healthy; he believes that Frank's 'project' is doing him some good, so he seems happy to go along with the lock picking and safe cracking as long as Frank has something to concentrate on. The pair become more acquainted and Frank begins to accept his buddy as he learns more about him and the robot responds to his cutting insults with calm chirpy responses and takes good care of him all the while. Damn it's just so nice to see an curmudgeon and his mechanical nurse just getting along once in a while.

This is going to be an incredibly short blog I fear, because I don't want to give much away, it's a film I think people should see, mostly because it's not your standard popcorn fest, but it's a genuinely moving and humorous piece of cinema. Plus Frank Langella has Liv Tyler and James Marsden as his children (who look frighteningly close to siblings and are devilishly attractive) and he is wooing the dazzlingly unaged Susan Sarandon, it's a damn good looking cast. Fine I got a bit teary at the end, and it wasn't because of Robot which I was expecting, it was the perfectly human and real prospect of growing old and accepting it, the film doesn't explicitly spell it out, but it's still incredibly heart breaking... Actually, that's all I really wanted to say. The film is well paced, it doesn't outstay it's welcome, the developments and emotional beats feel earned, there are some laughs, there are some sad smiles, a couple of tears, it's just a really well structured film. I just thought it was great, and the fact that no one has heard of it saddens me because it's quite a little gem that should be enjoyed.