Our story takes place in some future time. The violence of boxing has led to all humans retiring from the ring and being replaced by Bots. Giant fighting robots. Much like today's fight world, there is a circuit of highly paid and sanctioned fights, as well as a seedy underbelly of fights in vacant lots and deserted zoos. Charlie travels around to the seedy joints, fighting his Bots for money, even against bulls. The problem is, Charlie is so stupid and inept he can't make a living and he is a scab on the butt of humanity.
I'll tell you how bad the dude is; when Charlie's son, Max, whom he has never gone around in 11 years, is going to be adopted after the mother's death, Charlie signs over custody of the kid for $50,000. So it looks like the kid's aunt will raise him. Charlie is supposed to keep Max for the summer and then turn him over to the aunt.
So, Max and Charlie travel and fight their Bot. The thing is, Max has found a Bot of his own, an older model that has the ability to ape or mimic the movement of his handler. The kid helps bring out a crowd by dancing in unison with his Bot, then Charlie, the former boxer, teaches the Bot to fight. It is a great combo and before long, they are making some serious dough. They finally get a shot on the sanctioned tour, called Real Steel. Their old Bot, who was built as a sparring partner and can take a beating like Rocky Balboa, wins his first pro bout and the kid has the nerve to challenge the undefeated Champ, a robot who is modestly named Zeus, to a fight.
This story is so skillfully woven, so engaging, that I was all into the thing almost immediately. It is probably 4.5 stars out of 5. It's about way more than sports or science fiction. It's about a dad's battle to redeem himself in the eyes of his son, and just as important, in his own eyes. It's about a middle-aged guy who tries to do something right for a change.
In this old world there are good movies and bad movies. There are visual feasts and eye candy stars and good plots that bring people in. Then, every once in a while, you find a movie that just works. I don't think you can plan that or pay so much and it happens on a set. There is no formula. Perhaps it takes a special story and that story becoming real to the people playing the parts. Maybe, sometimes, it just speaks to your heart and maybe to no one else's. Then again, maybe it just touches the minds of millions of folks who, just once in their life, would like a shot at the title.
Yeah, the title is Real Steel, but it could have been called Rocky-Bot.
From the author's green retreat, I'm CE Wills.
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