Frank (Frank Langella) is a retired jewel thief living in
upstate New York who is gradually starting to lose his memory. His guilt-ridden
son Hunter (James Marsden) provides a helper robot (voiced by Peter Sarsgaard)
to look after him. Though Frank objects to the robot’s presence at first, he
soon finds that he can teach it the tools of the criminal trade. Together, the
two conspire to steal a rare book to win the affection of a local librarian
(Susan Sarandon).
Directed by Jake Schreier, Robot & Frank is part old-age tragedy, part buddy comedy, and
part sci-fi parable. These various components don’t always mesh well, but the
resulting concoction is interesting more times than not.
It helps that Langella and Sarsgaard are excellent in the
title roles. Frank is depicted as a wily old thief, tamed by age and failing
memory, still rough around the edges, and still capable of raising hell when
the situation dictates. Sarsgaard’s performance calls to mind that of another
sympathetic robot: Kevin Spacey in Moon.
It gets some funny lines (especially when forced to socialize with another
robot), but despite, as he often reminds Frank, not being a person, it seems,
in a way, more human than the film’s supporting characters. The town’s sheriff
(Jeremy Sisto) is incompetent, the library’s new owner is a sniveling jerk, and
Frank’s son and daughter (Liv Tyler) seem to see him as a problem rather than a
person.
Robot
& Frank premise is also almost unbearably simple – it’s exactly what it says on
the box – but the film is able to wring the most out of it. If you are looking
for a philosophically deeper exploration of technological ethics, look
elsewhere. As a small film, however, this manages to be both moving and
amusing.
7.75/10
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