It doesn’t seem to matter if the movie is horrible or excellent; Will Smith is just box office money. Every movie he does just seems to generate mountains of cash. I, Robot is no exception. A summer blockbuster when released theatrically, I, Robot grabbed the attention of Sci-Fi fans around the world. The question remains though, even if the movie makes a ton of cash, is it worth you time? In the case of I, Robot, absolutely!

It is the year 2035 and Chicago police Detective Del Spooner (Will Smith) is investigating the murder/suicide of Dr Alfred Lanning (James Cromwell.) Dr Lanning worked at USR (US Robotics), a company that produces and distributes Robots to families and companies.

During his investigation, Spooner encounters Dr Lanning’s robot, Sonny. Sonny (Alan Tudyk) is implicated by Spooner as the one who killed Dr Lanning. No one believes Spooner due to the three laws for the Robots. Those laws forbid a robot from committing harm to any human. However, Sonny is not like the other Robots. Sonny claims to be able to dream, feel and have most of the normal functions that humans have.

As Spooner investigates further, strange things continue to occur between him and robots. Little does he know, things are about to get much worse.

Video

If I wanted to, the transfer for this Blu Ray could be summed up in one word, WOW! Yes, it is that good. One of the best transfers I have ever seen. I only noticed one brief instance of some shimmering and that was only noticed because I was sitting pretty close to my TV at the time.

The 2.35:1 transfer comes in 1080P High Definition from Fox. Fox really did a bang up job on this 50 Gig disc. I remember watching the standard DVD and remember it being very good as well. But of course, with High Definition, everything looks much better, at least to my eyes.

As stated earlier, a small glimpse of shimmering was noticed and some very mild grain as noticed but I am sure that was part of the picture to begin with. I didn’t notice anything else wrong. No edge enhancement or softness to be seen. This is really how Blu Ray should be.

Audio

The DTS HD 5.1 Master Lossless Audio is also fantastic. The bass definitely gets a workout here and it is pretty wonderful. If you have the D-Box chair, you are in for a real treat I am sure. Sadly, I do not have that and cannot experience it. However, my chair was rumbling enough so that will just have to do.

The surrounds also do their job here and do it well in keeping up with this aggressive track. I, Robot is easily considered one of the top audio tracks on Blu Ray to date. If you live in an apartment, this is sure to tick off the neighbors.

Spanish and French 5.1 Dolby is also available, along with 4 choices for subtitles (English, Spanish, Korean and Cantonese.)

Special Features

The extras on the disc are pretty cool and even though some of them might not pertain right to the movie, all that I was able to watch were pretty interesting.

The special features can be accessed throughout the film by hitting any one of the four colored buttons on your Blu Ray remote. With each chapter, and sometimes each scene, a new feature can be watched. There are so many extras; it is almost hard to catch them all. If you want, you can leave on the feature and when a new feature happens, you are notified on screen.

Also available is the D-Box feature if you can afford it.

Here is just an example of what you get with each color coded button.

Red Button – Behind The Camera

• Day Out Of Days Production Diaries
• CGI and Design Featurettes
• Sentient Machines
• Robotic Behavior
• The Filmmakers’ Toolbox – VFX How-To Clips
• Deleted Scenes and Alternate Ending

Green Button - Commentary Guide

• 3 Full-Length Commentaries – Hear Director Alex Proyas, Screenwriter Akiva Goldsmith and more

Yellow Button – Annotated Guide

• Trivia Track

Blue Button – Search Index

• Explore all the disc has to offer
• Personal Scene Selection
  

Final Thoughts

I, Robot is with a doubt, a really fun film. Unlike other Will Smith films, this is definitely one I can watch over and over again. The special effects are off the charts and the sound is some of the best I have ever heard on any Blu Ray to date. Although for the most part, Will Smith plays his usual cocky self, it is bearable here because the focus isn’t solely on him. A nice cast of characters accompany Smith in making I, Robot one of the better Sci-Fi films of the past 20 years.