Real Steel

Because plain old Steel apparently wouldn't cut it, the semi-film version of Richard Matheson's short story of the same name is Real Steel. This is a film that cuts it.

About a decade into the future, human boxers are now extinct. These days, prize fights are waged by super duper robots. Charlie (Hugh Jackman), a one time boxer, now makes a living maintaining his own Rock'em Sock'em robot. But he can't really maintain a decent relationship with his son Max (Dakota Goyo), who's now in his custody.

After his best bot Ambush and then his replacement Noisy Boy fall in battle, Charlie's left without a living. So Charlie and Max go to the scrap yard to find a replacement. They find Atom, a robot that fights by shadowboxing. After much persuasion, Charlie lets Max take Atom on the Robot Fighting Circuit against the biggest bruisers ever built. But how long until they really get in over their heads?

Yes, there's fighting robots, but there's also people here. Among them there's Jackman and Goyo, who are perfectly abrasive and still likeable. And then there's Kevin Durand, who plays the perfectly unlikeable human villain Ricky. These humans do some fine work here because they aren't swamped by the visual effects.

Then again, the visual effects are still great. Particularly because these robots are part motion capture, part animatronic and both versions blend into the environment. When these robots fight, it's just as exciting and comprehensible as any boxing film.

It's fun all the way, even if it slightly drags to just over two hours. Still, it's better than pushing three and that's a plus in its corner. And in its corner is a winner.