Meet the Robinsons

Disney delivers a winner with animated sci-fi story

By Brett Buckalew | Metromix

March 30, 2007

Disney's latest foray into computer animation, "Meet the Robinsons," may not reach the bar set so high by celebrated sister company Pixar (home of "Toy Story," "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo"), but does suggest that Disney is ready for a comeback. The studio's best effort in years takes the humor, heart and attention to detail of the animation giant's "Lion King"–dominated '90s golden era, and brings them into the realm of 21st Century visuals.

Many of Disney's recent titles, including "Home on the Range" and "Chicken Little" felt like the cartoon equivalent of bland fast food. "Robinsons" immediately offers a nice change of pace by making the hero a human boy, rather than the usual talking animal.

Young orphan Lewis has a hobby of inventing malfunctioning gadgets that alienate prospective adoptive parents. When one of those inventions, a Memory Scanner, turns out to work, a teenager named Wilbur Robinson arrives from the future to prevent the machine from falling into the hands of a mysterious villain. Wilbur takes a skeptical Lewis back to the technologically advanced future, where Lewis meets Wilbur's eccentric family, including a mother who teaches frogs to sing and an octopus butler.

The Robinsons are such a large brood that none of them, except for Wilbur, emerge as fully developed characters, ironic considering the movie's title. But the friendship between Lewis and Wilbur is endearing, and in classic Disney fashion, the geeky, yearning Lewis gently pulls viewers' heartstrings,.

"Robinsons" offers plenty of all-ages laughs, surprising plot twists and beautiful images (especially dazzling in 3-D showings at select theaters), but it's the story's emotional engagement that ultimately provides the hope that the future of Disney animation can match its past.