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Technology doesn’t threaten mankind in I, Robot, but oligarchy and avarice do. The plot trappings and the voice-activated futurescape conjure Robocop and Minority Report and likewise feature an imperiled hero who goes from being an insider to becoming a fugitive who knows too much. Del Spooner (Will Smith) is a technophobe cop in the year 2035 where everyone has a C-3P0-like robo-servant. He has a deep mistrust of the wind-up beings (to a point where he’s accused of profiling "their kind"), but thanks to Isaac Asimov’s three laws of robotics (the movie is loosely based on the sci-fi author’s book of the same title), robots are hardwired not to harm humans. No robot has ever committed a crime. That is, until there’s a homicide and the only possible suspect is a droid. Smith is his likable self, but more appealing is the rendering of the sleek skeletal ’bots with their translucent skin and eerily human eyes. Director Alex Proyas (The Crow and Dark City) hones another foreboding future world, Bridget Moynahan (squeeze of Pats QB Tom Brady) tags along as a robo-psychologist who feels less than her subjects, and Alan Tudyk (Steve the Pirate in Dodgeball) gives the performance (movement and voice) of the film as Sonny, the ’bot under suspicion. (114 minutes)
BY TOM MEEK
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