The Wild Robot: An Incredible Animated Movie

The Wild Robot Amazes From Its Very First Minute

The Wild Robot is, simply put, almost as perfect an animated movie as there could be. I am in awe of it. The writing, the character work, the multiple incredible scenes. If you have not yet experienced this movie—even if you’ve been spoiled on the plot—you should seek it out immediately. It’s instantly in the top tier. The Spider-Verse, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, and Encanto tier.

It’s so good that I actually am having trouble figuring out how to review it. How do you describe perfection except by stating “This is perfect” and “This is incredible?” Forgive me if this review becomes repetitive, but know that each statement of excellence should not diminish the previous. Everything builds on everything else.  

Praise For This Movie Does Not Quite Do It Justice

Let’s start with the animation. Because The Wild Robot spends the first few moments basically showing off. A sudden flight of butterflies has seemingly very minimal—if at all—plot relevance, but it’s so stunning that I forgave it instantly. Its sole purpose seems to be to show off the attention to natural environments. And that’s only half of where the incredible work went. The other half was animating The Wild Robot herself. The level of care put into her various motions—including mimicking different animals—is tremendous.

And then there are the layers of character work happening within scenes. Somehow, The Wild Robot isn’t just a story of a robot trying to survive on an island. It’s a story about parenthood, self-expression, self-worth, kindness, and learning to stand on one’s own. It argues about the nature of souls even—and all of that without hitting any of the cheesy roadblocks that other narratives like this would employ. I believed that this robot could overcome anything done to her body, code, or programming, even if—from a sci-fi perspective—it still doesn’t make any sense. And, somehow making the effort all the more impressive, it doesn’t convey all those themes and emotional beats by having a lot of unrelated scenes. It weaves all of them through the framing device of a robot trying to take care of a baby bird before migration and then waiting for winter to end. The story isn’t complicated; the impact is profound.

The Wild Robot Tells A Wonderfully Personal Story

But this is also a movie for kids, so it’s got jokes. But—somehow—most of the jokes are funny. There’s not a ton of potty humor. I don’t recall any puns. And there’s no “annoyance humor.” It’s actually really morbid sometimes. The animals of the island are used to the idea that they could be eaten—or otherwise killed—and are fairly blasé about it. This is a DreamWorks production, so I guess that tone shouldn’t be surprising, but it was incredibly well utilized.  

And I think a big secret to why this all works is the voice acting. The comedy is delivered without commentary—it’s just allowed to be funny. And if The Wild Robot wants you to sympathize with a character, it knows how. One of the first lines from our robot friend instantly makes you feel for her, all because of how it was said. And then, as more characters talk, the cries of anguish, the friendly banter, the inspiring speeches—yes, this movie has inspiring speeches—are all given maximum weight by each performance. No matter the logic underpinning a scene, I believed in the feelings of everyone. I believed in the stakes and their convictions. This movie washes over you like any wonderful story should.

It’s So Easy To Just Experience This Amazing Film

But I have to point out some issues I saw. There are very few issues—obviously—but some exist. One is that some scenes don’t flow into others as well as they could. Especially one taking place in a waterlogged cave. The character work done in that cave was amazing, but it drops out of nowhere—and the logistics are muddled. Logistics are actually the underpinning issue with most scenes that don’t quite work on reflection. The Wild Robot is a parable, of sorts. An emotional piece. It doesn’t always make sense if you think about what’s literally happening, or what should be happening. A fire manages to stay lit no matter what. Carnivores seem fine with not eating ever again. And other moments that feel like too heavy of spoilers to mention. Basically, you could nitpick The Wild Robot a lot, if you felt like it.

But I don’t recommend it. There came a point in The Wild Robot where I literally did not stop crying until it ended. I kept having to wipe my eyes to see the screen. No movie or show I can recall has ever done that to me. Everything Everywhere All at Once made me cry a few distinct times but never has a movie had that sustained of an emotional effect on me. I feel like my life has been improved by seeing The Wild Robot. It’s the kind of art that I love to find, to enjoy, to experience. It’s a movie anyone of any age could see, and I suggest that they do.  

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