Robosapien review

Cody, a robosapien, has been developed as a search and rescue robot that will be used for military purposes. Soon the evil Kinetech Labs want to use Cody for all the wrong reasons, so his creator sets him free. Only to be found by vastly unpopular school kid Henry (Coleman), who fixes him to become his best friend. Yet this all comes to an abrupt end when Kinetech Labs tracks down Cody and takes him back to the lab, and they also kidnap Henry’s mother & Cody’s inventor. It’s left to one boy and his robot to save the day for everyone.

Following in the footsteps of Transformers, Robosapien the film is based around the big-selling toy robot from several years ago. Clearly wanting to emulate the success that Transformers had yet aimed at a slightly younger audience, and with the producer of superhero hits Spider-Man and Iron Man on board, there is obviously a considerable push to make this a kiddie film franchise. Robosapien is done via standard CGI that we see everyday on the kids channels; there is nothing visually outstanding about the design, so it’s left to the story to keep the film interesting and this is where it will keep the younger audience involved. Cody has some very funny and witty lines that made even the adults chuckle, of course comparisons to Short Circuit will always be made but that’s no bad thing and this could easily be Johnny 5’s more hip cousin. However, it’s the relationship between Cody and his new “owner” Henry that held our attention; they seem to play off each other in a way that echoes buddy comedy films of years gone by. Coleman makes every scene his own and is the complete star of this film. He is going to be one to watch in the future.

Granted the plot is nothing we haven’t seen before, but Robosapien has a lot going for it. The cast is a wide scope of familiar actors, yet it’s the relationship between the two leads that makes this film an enjoyable romp. It’s fun, flashy, informative and heartfelt that will appeal to all generations.

• Robosapien at IMDb