Astro Boy

Astro Boy 2009 is underrated. I know it was a flop when it came out and that it caused IMAGI Studios to shutter, but I'm a sucker for my favorite character and campy movies and I just HAD to buy this. Now Metro City is still the jewel in the crown (of my bookshelf)!

Astroboy is an interesting movie. I went and saw this movie a few days after it released in theatres. I kinda remember the cartoon as a kid and this helped to relive those memories. Astroboy is a robot that has superpowers and uses them to save people and the world.Astroboy is a character that dates back to the 1950's when it was created by Osamu Tezuka. Astro is really well known in Japan and there were several of the cartoon series came here to the United States.The movie follows the story pretty well but at the same time adds a few new things here and there to not just be a copy and paste kind of story.There are some spoilers ahead:.......In the manga (or comic) and now Movie is a boy named Toby who dies in an accident and his father Dr. Tenma builds a robot to be just like Toby. The scene may scare some children that are really young but personally they did it tastefully and there are no gory scenes or anything. (For the parents you see a bright flash and his hat is lying on the ground). Alot of parents were upset by this however many movies made by Disney and so forth have had characters die in their movies constantly but people still praise them.I suppose since it is a young boy they feel that it should not occur but the producers of the film wanted to keep the orgin of Astro as close as possible.The movie was pretty well done. There's some drama in along with action and that was pretty good. It helped lead into the action sequences instead of being non-stop action or drama. I liked this film since it was something everyone could enjoy. I went with my mom, dad, and 7 year old niece. She really enjoyed it and the whole family wants it on DVD and blu-ray. I do not remember any bad language as well.I feel that if people gave Astroboy a chance they will enjoy it. We've watched many kids films like Kung Fu Panda, Monsters Vs Aliens, and so on recently and this was one we all could watch no problem.The movie looks great but in this day and age it is hard to compete with kids films since many come along on a constant basis. I really enjoy the Pixar films like the Incredibles, Toy Story, etc and I put Astroboy on par with them. I feel that this movie was definitely better than some of the recent kid films.I also would encourage people if they are interested to check out the cartoons. They are actually pretty good. I bought them since I barely remember them as a kid and I am glad I did. The 80's set is really good. It covers some serious topics while still having that cute appeal for kids. They are on amazon and really inexpensive as well.I'll attempt to break it down for people.Pros: 1.Based on a popular character in Japan2. Something both adults and children can enjoy3. No bad language and little potty humor (if any)4. Pretty good voice actors as well.Cons: 1. Fans of the old cartoons may not like the new lookHope everyone has a great day!

Really good movie and nothing came broken or anything like that

Knowing how badly this movie did at the box office, I was expecting something really horrible. But, it was pretty darn good. It has great animation, art direction, and a story full of ethos. There are definitely some emotional parts that might overwhelm some children. I even got misty at certain moments. Being a father, I'm always looking for things to watch with my son. He's going through an Avenger's phase at the moment. I'm a big old school Marvel fan myself, growing up collecting comic books and trading cards. This movie is way better than some of the animation that have come out recently for Marvel.The more old school cartoons that came out in 90s were much better dealing with more realistic or darker themes.The recent ones are very superficial. Characters being emotionally flat and under-developed. (I dread watching them with my son, often falling asleep.) It could be criticized that Astro Boy doesn't change much himself, being forever wide-eyed and idealistic, however, the characters around him do change dealing with themes like prejudice, segregation, militarism, and class-warfare. Some of the character arcs are unearned, but in comparison to even some adult films, they do earn it.And this movie definitely earns a view. Not everyone will like it, but many more will. I recommend watching the first twenty minutes and making a decision for yourself. "Onward and upward..."

Astroboy is a remake of an old, very popular, black and white TV show in Japan.The movie does a decent job of re-creating the atmosphere of those shows, but more importantly, stands on it's own two feet in it's own right.It's fast paced, full of action, and has a decent story. The only reason I don't give it 5 stars is that it suffers from the same problems the original did. It has a very simplistic approach to very real, and complex, problems.Warning! The following contains spoilers!In a future where pollution and climate change have driven humanity from Earth's surface to a single city floating above the clouds, a scientist with his priorities out of whack works to create the most powerful weapon of war ever built for an unstable and unerringly stupid politician, and because of it, his precocious son, Toby, is vaporized during the first weapons test. Inconsolable, the scientist thinks he can build a 'perfect' duplicate of Toby: a robot that not only looks and sounds like the boy, but has all of his memories. Inevitably, the scientist eventually realizes that this new Toby is not a perfect duplicate, and is only a constant reminder of his catastrophic failure as a father, and rejects the 'boy' asking his superior "Dr. Elephant" to shut down and disassemble 'Toby'. Confused, betrayed and in fear for his 'life', Toby runs away, and escaping to the surface, which has become the ultimate landfill for the city above. There he get's his 'real' name, Astroboy, after befriending the broken robots and other beings inhabiting the littered surface.