Meet the Robinsons

Meet the Robinsons

Director: Stephen J. Anderson. Cast: Angela Bassett, Daniel Hansen, Jordan Fry 

This one must have totally escaped me when it was first released, to the point that I was not aware it even existed. It is really the most un-Disney animated feature I can think of (together with the slightly superior Big Hero 6), but flaws aside (and there are a few) it is a rather audacious film, with an original “time travel” story and a couple of wonderful messages hidden within it which make it a definite worthwhile film to watch with your kids. Some of it may well go over their heads, so be prepared to answer quite a few questions during and afterwards: the film takes a few too many shortcuts, assuming you know what the time travel rules are and possibly assuming that you have even seen “Back to the Future”.

If only the makers has focussed on the core story and central message and wasted less time with chaotic subplots and secondary characters, this could have been a real gem. As it is, “Meet the Robinsons” is an interesting film which should be commended for at least trying, but loses itself somewhere in the middle where it overcooks it a bit.

My 4 stars rating should really be a three and a half but hopefully it’ll push people to re-discover it.