OK for kids 7+
Action-packed adventure a fun bet for young superhero fans.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that this animated robot superhero adventure based on the 1960s anime series Astro Boy is age-appropriate for elementary-schoolers. It has fairly sophisticated themes (grief, loss, and war), as well as plenty of cartoon action violence -- including the death of a child, the destruction of several robots, explosions, and robots armed with heavy artillery. But language is limited to mild insults like "idiot," and there's no product placement to worry about. A war-obsessed military man is presented as a humorously negative character; on the opposite end of the political spectrum is a trio of revolutionary robots who call each other "comrade" and have a poster of Lenin in their meeting place.
- Families can talk about how Astro Boy compares to other superheroes. He's created as a robot with special powers, rather than born or accidentally transformed. How does Astro Boy accept (as Spider-Man says) that with great power comes great responsibility?
- Do you think the movie's more mature themes will resonate with kids? What other movies touch on issues related to technology, pollution, war, and the like? Is this appropriate material for a kids' movie?
- How is Toby's death handled? Many children's movies feature the death of a parent, but it's rare for the death of a child to be included. Kids: Would you have preferred for Toby to be transformed into Astro Boy rather than die?
The good stuff
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Educational value: Kids learn about inclusiveness through the orphans and their early acceptance of Astro Boy, as well as about mustering the courage to defend others through Astro Boy's actions.
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Messages: Despite the fact that Dr. Tenma does something clearly unethical by creating a robot with his dead son's memories, the movie has several positive messages. Cora's ability to forgive Astro Boy for not revealing that he's a robot shows kids that it's his character -- not his "parts" -- that make him a good friend. And Astro Boy's decision to bravely put himself in danger because he's the only one who can fight the negative energy is an example of selflessly overcoming obstacles and accepting your own responsibility.
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Role models: Although the hawkish Metro City General and his cronies are basically warmongerers, most of the role models are positive. Dr. Tenma redeems himself by saving Astro Boy, and Astro Boy himself acts bravely and selflessly to stop the negative-energy killer robot. Cora is also a positive role model, as she's not a damsel-in-distress type but rather a confident, capable girl.
What to watch for
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Violence and scariness: A lot of weapon-based explosions and disasters when the "negative energy" is unleashed. Several robots are destroyed throughout the movie, most of them a bit comically during their Coliseum-like battles to the "death." A child dies (off screen).
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Sexy stuff: Astro Boy and Cora flirt mildly, but it's not more than a couple of looks and a hug.
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Language: Characters occasionally say mildly insulting words like "idiot" and "stupid," and there are a couple of jokes about weapons growing out of Astro Boy's "butt" and the "sudden release" of a robot's "bodily fluids."
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Consumerism: Not an issue
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Drinking, drugs and smoking: Not an issue
Fan Reviews provided by
5
Astro Boy by Raven-Maniac
Took my 3-1/2 year old son to see it. What an excellent movie. Good from start to finish. He loved it and sat and watched the entire movie. I asked him afterwards if he liked and he gave me the biggest smile and said yeah dad I liked the dog garbage can.
4
Reasonably Good. Not amazing. by chris_l_miller
Good story for boys 5 and up. SPOILER ALERT: The boy dies and then the father just makes another boy from robot parts. The robot thinks he's a boy and then finds out he's not. I wouldn't recommend this story to anyone trying to explain any good morals about life or about what's important. But straight entertainment value it's pretty good.
4
Astroboy by robot243
This movie was very great. The name is great to. Its cool and very funny. Hes ready for
anything. The boy is a robot but he looks just like a boy. Like a part were he has muchine guns
on his but. I recomend this movie to all kids5 through 14.
4
Five Word Review by marinaccio
machine guns in my butt!
2
Decent movie but not for small children by mbolz
Pace and story line of the movie were very good. However, the story begins with "Toby" actually dying. Not good for small kids. Dad struggles to recreate and bond with robot son. A true PG movie.
2
Too sad for most children (and parents) by radfrog
My 8 year old son said this movie was "too sad" for him. I totally agreed with him. Since when should the death of a child have a place in a kid's movie? My son thought up two or three different ways the writers could have introduced Astro Boy that did not involve killing anyone. But I guess he has more imagination than the writers of this sad movie. That said, the animation was fine, the voice acting decent, and one or two of the secondary plots (the Robot Revolutionary Front comes to mind) were actually funny. Leave the smaller kids at home and take a box of kleenex if you must see this.