CGI Goes on Rampage, Viewing Public Loses

Rating: 3/10 (4 January 2005)

To paraphrase a famous jurist, I may not be able to define "too much CGI," but I know it when I see it. And this movie has too much CGI.
When "Jurassic Park" was released, it defined a new level in CGI. The dinosaurs were of high quality and moved in an appropriate manner. But then every producer got on the CGI bandwagon and we soon had movies like "Spiderman," where the CGI is quite obvious. "The Hulk" was probably the lowest point for CGI as the main character was rendered in a manner only slightly superior to Saturday morning cartoons.
In addition, directors and producers completely abandoned the laws of physics, permitting characters to make completely unrealistic actions with regards to momentum, inertia, and kinetic energy. (In "Jurassic Park," great care was taken that the creatures moved in a manner and at a speed commensurate with their physical size and mass.)
Sad to say, "I, Robot" is the most extreme example of this trend that I've ever watched. The CGI effects are shoved right in your face. They are distractingly cartoonish, with little effort made to render surfaces and motion in a realistic manner. Human characters take falls that are simply impossible to recover from, while taking corners at g-forces that would pop your eyes right out of your sockets.
When CGI becomes THIS intrusive and unrealistic, the move shares the same fate.