ROBOT AND FRANK (2012)

ROBOT & FRANK. Jake Schreier, dir. Christopher D. Ford, script. USA: TBB et al. (prod.) / Samuel Goldwyn Pictures (US theatrical dist.; see IMDb for details ), 2012. 89 min.

Opening title indicates that R&F is set in the very near future, and the final credits intercut with shots of contemporary humanoid caretaker robots. So R&F is very "near-in" SF with robotics as a central motif to a movie with additional interests: somewhat picaresque caper film, family dramatic-comedy, a meditation on old-age, ethics, and the law. Relevant here in featuring an AI caretaker robot with a personality and a voice somewhat reminiscent of HAL 9000's in 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY; the robot passes the Turing Test but may or may not exceed its programming, attain self-consciousness, and/or have individuality or an urge for self-preservation. The "may or may not" contributes to R&F's lack of "the look and feel" of a SciFi movie, but helps make it more seriously science-fictional.

5. DRAMA, RDE,14/IX/12