‘Real Steel’ Blu-ray Review

A lot of people like to believe this is just a rock ’em sock ’em robots movie, but that couldn’t be farther from the case. ‘Real Steel’ is actually about as close to a new ‘Rocky’ film you may ever find yourself getting to. It’s a fun, exciting, and for some, inspirational movie about how far you one person will go to follow their dreams. Hugh Jackman plays Charlie Kenton, a former box in the year 2020 who is down on his luck and is trying to make a living boxing with robots. But when he finds out that his ex girlfriend has passed away, he’s brought to a hearing to decide the fate of where his estranged son, Max (Dakota Goyo), will go. None of this was what Charlie had planned for, but Max may be exactly what he needed to turn his life around.  There are ally fights, boxing matches, and plenty of funny and heartwarming moments that will leave fans cheering during this movie. This was one of my favorite films of last year, and Disney has put together a pretty stellar package here for it. Hit the jump for my full review.

I was never expecting to love ‘Real Steel’ as much as I did. I knew the movie was based on the short story ‘Steel’ by Richard Matheson, which I had seen adapted once before into an episode of the original ‘The Twilight Zone’. But from the trailers, this movie looked like what everyone was calling it: the Rock ’em Sock ’em Robots movie. But really, this couldn’t be farther from the case. Does it have giant robots fighting? Sure does. But there’s more to it than that, and ‘Real Steel’ can now be considered ‘Rocky’ for a new generation. This was really a much more fun and uplifting movie than I was expecting. The cast is great, and I love seeing Hugh Jackman when he’s having fun. He’s great here as the washed up boxer Charlie, who just can’t seem to stay on the straight and narrow. He’s got all kinds of debts, and he just can’t seem to straighten out his life. Jackman is great at really sinking his teeth into the character. It actually almost seems if the part was written for him. Charlie Goyo, who plays Max, is actually a great young actor. This was the first movie I’ve ever seen him in, and I was very impressed. He and Jackman share great chemistry together, and they definitely pull off father and son well. And of course, as a ‘Lost’ fan, it was great to see Evangeline Lilly, who played Kate on the series, doing something new with her career. She’s great as Bailey, Charlie’s oldest, and really only, friend. She is a great actress and will have a long career ahead of her.

The blu-ray Disney has put together is really great, though I have one miner quarrel. The commentary track from director Shawn Levy appears to only be on the DVD in the package, which I find a bit strange. I’m not sure why it wasn’t included on the blu-ray, but unfortunately that’s the case. As far as the rest of the features go though, we have some great ones. There’s a mock Documentary ‘Countdown to the Fight: The Charlie Kenton Story’ with all the actors in character doing interviews before the big fight, which I really loved. This may actually be my favorite special feature on the disc. Then we have seventeen minutes of deleted scenes, including a deleted storyline that was kind of fun, but I see why it was left on the cutting room floor for time issues. Then there is a short look at the way the bots were created, as well as a short on the four day shooting of the scene where Max and Charlie find Atom. The Sugar Ray Leonard feature is pretty cool too, where you see the real boxing legend and the work he did training Hugh Jackman on the film. They made sure that it was made very authentically to match a real life boxer, and it definitely shows here. And last but not least, you have a short but fun blooper reel. I always love things like that and it made me laugh out loud quite a few times.

‘Real Steel’ is one of the rare family movies that doesn’t seem to pander to the kids or be too adult that kids won’t enjoy it. It’s a great middle ground, and there is something for everyone to enjoy in it. It’s one of the best sports movies I’ve seen in years, let alone just a great movie overall. Jackman and Goyo are great together as Charlie and Max, and I for one hope that the planned sequel happens soon, because these are characters I can’t wait to revisit again. I can’t recommend this movie enough, and Disney really has put together a great blu-ray set, my one nitpick aside. Look for ‘Real Steel’ to hit shelves January 24!

Related articles

• Real Steel Coming to Bluray & DVD Jan 24th 2012 (chipandco.com)
• Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots – The Movie. (chipandco.com)

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