I admit it! I am a full-fledged cheesy-action-movie-junkie-whore, god dammit. And you know what? I own that. I own that with fucking pride, man. PRIDE, I say!Now, what is "Real Steel" you ask? Well, it's a big mushy slushy of "Rocky", "Over the Top", "Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots" and a brilliant little Twilight Zone episode called "Steel" which, awesomely enough, was written by a personal fave author of mine, Richard Matheson, which is also the story that this film is inspired by. (Oh, the things you learn when you love movies and books at the same time.)
Some might be tempted to include Transformers, but I'm not down with that. Transformers are aliens from another planet, nay, galaxy and they have not to do with man-made ass-kicking machines. There's no galactic war here, no human slavery, no All Spark. Here there power cores, vintage models, underground robot boxing leagues and massive, MASSIVE amounts of robot HEART.
The film itself is SO reminiscent of both the Rocky films and "Over the Top" that I'm surprised they didn't cite them in the credits. I know the film is more of an homage, but it actually lifts entire sequences from both films. I swear the final fight between Hugh Jackman's little-robot-that-could, Atom and the big, bad, shiny black undefeated 'bot named Zeus (Zeus...that's not obvious or anything, *cough* Apollo Creed *cough*) is a complete reproduction of the Rocky Balboa VS Ivan Drago fight. Zeus even throws Atom into his own corner at one point and I sort of whisper yelled "Draaaaaaggggggggooooooo!" in the theater. Also, the montages of Jackman's Charlie and NOT-newcomer Dakota Goyo's Max on the road with Atom and working out by the truck on the side of the road is so right out of OTT it's not even funny. (Note, Goyo should be familiar to you if you watched Thor earlier this year. He played the young Thor in flashbacks to Chris Hemsworth's mighty god.)
For an effects heavy film the movie is beautifully shot, and I think this has to do both with the landscape we're able to see at times, juxtaposing this massive technology with wheat silos and acres upon acres of agriculture. Danny Elfman lent his talent for the film's score which adds a lot of depth to certain climactic scenes.
Goyo and Jackman have an insane chemistry together on screen. Jackman is playing somewhere in between his character in "Swordfish" and the smarmy Wolverine. It's comfortable for him, but he really shines in the dialogue scenes with Goyo. Kevin Durand and Anthony Mackie are great as supporting players, Durand a former foe of Jackman's when boxing was still man VS man and Mackie as a bookie/emcee who loves Charlie, but doesn't trust him as far as he can throw him. The other bright spot in terms of talent is the insanely beautiful Evangeline Lily as Charlie's landlord/love interest Bailey. She makes tough, smart bitch look SO awesome. I love you Ms. Lily.
The central heart line of the flick is the standard underdog story. Max's robot is a little guy, a sparring bot (ahem, ROCKY!), he's old, he's beat up, his joints need oil, but guess what? Homey can take a hit. And he can keep taking hits. All night long, and still get up and fight back. In a world of command prompts and voice-activated punch combinations, Atom is a real boxer. He's a fighter. Max realizes that Charlie's knowledge of the sport and his LOVE of the sport will help lead Atom to the top. So, they come up with an arrangement. Max is a great dancer and Charlie will only teach Atom to box if Max will dance going into the ring before every fight. (Atom has a baller "shadow feature" so therefore Max dancing in the ring = Atom dancing in the ring and it is every bit as amazeballs as it sounds.) Little by little they scrap and climb and finally they get the big dog, Zeus.
The subplot of the film has to do with Charlie giving up custody of Max in exchange for the summer and a buttload of cash, but I'm ignoring that because I don't enjoy the thought of him giving up Max at the end. *Tear*
The final fight is just plain awesome. Max and Charlie and Atom are in fine form, and the undefeated Zeus has finally met with something he can't adapt to. And why? Because Atom isn't just steel. He's steel and determination and he has the heart of a champion inside him. Naturally, Charlie gets his chance at championship redemption when the voice-recognition software gets futzed up and we have the required slo-mo crying scenes of everyone involved, but it just feels SO amazing to watch that little robot kick Zeus's face in. (The actual result of the fight is also pulled from "Rocky Balboa", it's not about the decision, it's about the fight itself.)
This is the kind of movie you go to...whenever. With friends, with family, with your kids. I went after a really bad day at work and it just brought me so much happiness. It's the kind of movie that makes you happy about life. It makes you feel better about everything. For that two hours, everything is right with the world. So, if you need a pick-me-up or you just want to have a great time at the movies, definitely check out this flick, because it's a knock-out.
