Asimov fans howled bloody murder & were rightly annoyed that this film has nothing to do with the three laws of robotics or anything written by Asimov.

The climax is cribbed from a better film, Colossus: The Forbin Project based on a novel by D. F. Jones.

A story based on Asimov's laws of robotics would've been more intellectual, not just animated non-stop violence, & a script exists, by Harlan Ellison, which is rumored to be just about the best science fiction film script ever written, though never apt to be filmed.

In this story, a police officer (Will Smith) who is mistrustful of robots generally sets out to investigate a murder he believes was committed by a robot. Although this ain't Asimov, it is only the pretence of being so that annoys. In its own right it's a cool exciting movie.

The animated robots never stop looking like animation, but it's beautiful animation, & the robot Sonny is just flat-out the best character in the movie, which doesn't say much for the human stars, but who cares. Just enjoy this thing like a super-cool cartoon, & stop expecting Asimov.



Paranoia fules Will Smith's ultra-action techno-thriller Enemy of the State (1998). Will plays Robert Clayton Dean, an attorney in Washington, D.C., who has a successful career & a loving wife & young son.

Life is good. Until, alas, he is unexpectedly on the run due to crimes he cannot prove he did not commit.

He's been framed by an evil government agent (Jon Voight) eager to do away with all citizens' right to privacy while covering up his own murderous misbehavior. A retired agent (Gene Hackman) with a conscience & a cat joins forces to save Dean's ass, at great risk to both.

Fortunately for Dean, the bad-guy's comedy-releif minions (Jack Black & Jaimie Kennedy) are complete dufuses.

So even with futuristic surveillance capacity allowing them to follow Dean's every move, he has a definite chance of coming out on top, with a big superviolent John Wu-esque climax & an unlikely happy ending for the primary cast.

If one wanted to pick this thing apart, it's a cinch, starting with the premise that a D.C. lawyer would automatically have action-man abilities. But Will Smith makes his character credible & likeable, & we root for the good guys with sincere worry for their safety.

The fact that there's a lefty message about the misuse of governmental authority against its own citizens doesn't get in the way of a regular ol' action tale, but a touch of social awareness is nice to see. And of course Jon Voight does creepy-evil shtick so well. So, in all, entertaining nonsense, with enough visual dynamism to deserve it's snazzy new release on BluRay with extras.

copyright © by Paghat the Ratgirl