Better than I had expected

Rating: 8/10 (20 July 2004)

The movie was based on a lot of Asimov's ideas. As a mystery, it is a style that Asimov utilized. Apart from that, it had little to do with his collection of short stories whose title is used for the film or any of his related works. The three laws of robotics are there, as is Susan Calvin, depicted very similarly to the character in the book. The movie had a good mystery plot and human interest. The plot was similar to one that Asimov might have created, except that he never had a robot "overseer" running all the other robots. As a cat lover, I appreciated the brief appearance of a cat. Will Smith's character was human if not exactly likable. The most sympathetic character was the robot named Sonny.
Overall I found the movie interesting, entertaining, and touching. Only the action sequences were disappointing. They were boring, because they were so predictable. The special effects were also excellently done. The ending also bothered me. The existence of all the robots in a ghetto was never explained.