Meet the Robinsons is just what you’d expect from a Disney movie: a fun film that anyone can enjoy, whether it be the whole family or anyone by themselves, no matter what age they are. It has a fair bit of action, lots of comedy, wacky characters, a cast that includes Angela Bassett, Laurie Metcalf, Adam West and Jordan Fry, and stunning visuals that make it perfect to watch on Blu-ray. But at the core of the story is a theme of family and how important it is to a person, in particular the main character, Lewis.
Lewis is an orphan who grew up in an orphanage his whole life after being left on its doorstep as a baby. He’s also an aspiring inventor, always coming up with all sorts of interesting and working on them at all hours of the night (much to the dismay of his roommate, Goob, who is often kept up all night by the noise Lewis makes when he works). Unfortunately, his inventions never seem to work, literally blowing up in his face and scaring off potential parents.
While heading to the school fair to show off his latest invention, a machine that scans and displays a person’s memory, he meets Wilbur Robinson, a boy who claims to be from the future and is chasing after a man in a bowler hat. When Lewis’ invention fails yet again (not knowing it was sabotaged by “Bowler-Hat-Guy”, who wants to steal the invention to claim and sell as his own) and he decides to quit being an inventor. This causes Wilbur, who really does turn out to be a time traveler, to take Lewis to the future, where his inventions have created a wonderful utopia. He also meets Wilbur’s family, a wacky bunch that immediately warms up to him and makes him feel welcome. But close behind is the Bowler-Hat-Man, who, with the help of “Doris”, his “hat” that’s really a robot, seeks to kidnap Lewis to get him to help with his scheme.
If you’d seen the trailers for this movie, then you know just how wacky and funny it is. The Robinsons are just plain funny, whether it be the grandpa who wears his clothing backwards, the mom who trains frogs to sing in a band (complete with instruments), or the guy who delivers pizzas via rocket-pack. And then there’s the movie’s villain, the Man in the Bowler Hat, and his wacky schemes to snag Lewis. From the first look, he seems to be a parody of a bad guy from an old movie serial, right down to his black cloak, long pointed face and nose and cheesy mustache. And his plans to kidnap Lewis are right up there with something Wile E. Coyote would come up with, seemingly brilliant at first but then the flaws come out during the execution. Yeah, using a brain-washed T-Rex is a good idea, but not if your target manages to get himself into a tight corner that a pair of tiny arms can’t reach into.
As mentioned, the true core of this movie is the importance of family. The Robinsons are a family through and through, sticking together and caring about one another. Yeah, they have their arguments and disagreements like any other family, but at the end of the day they end up laughing if off and go on with their routines. And then there’s Lewis, who has never had a family and whose desire for one helps drive the movie. Yeah, there’s the time travel plot and the importance of Lewis’ role to the future, the family theme seems to be the true heart of the movie.
Meet the Robinson’s comes to blu-ray once more, but this time in a Blu-ray 3d combo pack. So if you have 3d or are looking to future proof yourself then this is definitely the edition to have. Everything you need for this great family flick in one amaray case. Meet the Robinson’s has its fair share of dark animated moments, but the darks are simply that … nice, pure, and dark. The video quality shouldnt have anyone second guessing this release and Disney once more succeeded.
Meet the Robinsons comes to blu-ray again … with a DTS HD Master 5.1 audio track that definitely holds it’s own. Obviously this is a front heavy track with the rears only getting the slight ambient noise, but the sub gets plenty of play to engulf you in the flick. I really don’t have any true complaints about this audio track except for some light crackle that I hope to god wasn’t my speaker at a particular scene. Other than that, this track more than takes care of this release onto blu-ray.
Although maybe not as juicy as you would like the supplements for this disc are pretty much all the same. The main reason you should be buying this release would be for the blu-ray 3d.
Audio Commentary with Director Stephen Anderson
Inventing the Robinsons
Deleted Scenes
Inventions that Shaped the World
Interactive Games:
Music Videos
There really isn’t a lot that you can’t like about this movie. True, there is one part that’s rather predictable to figure out when you watch it, but that’s about it. There’s other twists and turns you don’t see coming to keep things interesting, as well as some action scenes that, while mostly kid-friendly, still manage to keep things lively. So whether you have kids or not, this is one you could add to your collection. The blu-ray video quality is top notch and the 3d adds a whole other layer to this animated flick that you’ll just keep on coming back to. Overall, a fine release to blu-ray and probably the last version of Meet The Robinsons you’ll ever need.
