Originally published to 8 News Now on September 24, 2024.

“The Wild Robot” is a new Dreamworks offering with massive promise. An early preview at Cinema Con in Las Vegas indicated that the film had potential to channel Pixar with the emotional, poignant journey of Roz, a robot built to help but stranded in nature with wild animals, lacking the programming to exist in that environment.

It’s immediately clear that “The Wild Robot” owes much of its visual style and tone to Disney/Pixar’s WALL•E. It’s a welcome copy, as that masterpiece arguably still rests atop the list of best-animated movies of the 21st century. However, there are certain choices made by the filmmakers that stunt “The Wild Robot” and withhold it from a place among animated greats and settle it into simply “good.”

The first and most prevalent is the film’s pacing. Frenetic may be putting it lightly. Instead of allowing the audience to breathe and absorb the moments, “The Wild Robot” is already on to the next plot point before the current one has even set in. Clocking in at a brisk 102 minutes, the film certainly moves, but, at points, to its detriment. The choice to move at breakneck speeds often dulls the sharpest emotional beats, turning what could be devastating moments into papercuts.

A subplot exists in “The Wild Robot” about the other creatures encountered by Roz, acted by Lupita Nyong’o, and her acquired family, Fink, a fox voiced by Pedro Pascal, and Brightbill, portrayed by Kit Connor. It’s a “can they coexist” storyline that could be eliminated in favor of the more personal story of Roz and her adopted goose son. Instead, Roz’s learning of how to raise a child is given mere minutes of screen time before we move on. The choice undercuts the more emotional moments in “The Wild Robot.”

A bright point in the film is its visual styling. This element also takes its cue from WALL•E and makes for beautiful art. Once again, however, the beauty is kneecapped by a decision to incorporate Looney Toons-style slapstick comedy that feels wildly inconsistent when juxtaposed with the emotional story being told at such a rapid pace that the audience has virtually no time to adapt between tones. These wild swings never allow “The Wild Robot” to become more than children’s fare.

With that said, as a kid’s movie, it succeeds. “The Wild Robot” is wonderful to look at and creates characters compelling enough to enthrall younger people. There’s not much to dislike here, only the promise of what could have been if the filmmakers had slowed down and trusted their audience.