“The Wild Robot” starring Lupita Nyong’o is the heartwarming, touching family film we all need

It finally happened: DreamWorks Animation made a Pixar movie.

The Wild Robot is a lush fable about a robot unexpectedly grappling with motherhood in the midst of a larger evolutionary struggle. The simple story is enlivened by expressive CGI animation and big ideas that explore the process of adaptation on both an intimate and cosmic scale, coalescing into a plea for new, unconventional forms of coexistence in the face of extinction.

At its core, it is also a shameless tearjerker.

DreamWorks once proudly described itself as the opposite of films like Toy Story and Monsters, Inc. – sarcasm versus sincerity, entertainment versus artistry. But The Wild Robot is notable for recapturing the magic of that early Pixar era, despite its own quirks and modern packaging. True to the film’s message: adapt or die.

Lupita Nyong’o lends her voice to the titular android Roz, short for ROZZUM Unit 7134, in her latest Quiet Place prequel (itself a poignant survival story).

Equipped with extendable limbs, an internal processing unit, and all sorts of motorized bells and whistles, she’s an intelligent machine designed solely to assist humans with everyday tasks. Instead, she’s chased from her original home by a storm and left in the brutal wilderness with only the local wildlife for company.

The first act of the film feels largely like a silent movie, with Roz struggling to cope with the island’s various species, who defy her own strict programming and are initially incomprehensible. The entire ecosystem wages war against her in a series of delightfully slapstick sequences, while the hapless robot remains baffled as to why she cannot carry out her most important instruction to help the people around her.

With its dizzying explosions of color, tactile brushstrokes, and breathless kinetics, The Wild Robot takes cues from the modern aesthetics of the Spiderverse, but the film’s art style has a more painterly quality that suits its untamed natural landscape.

Roz herself is unforgettably alive, especially through the playful elasticity of her metal limbs and the twitching of her camera eyes.

When Roz dizzyingly falls upon a nest of unhatched goslings, she takes the surviving egg into her care. It soon hatches, and the gosling, Brightbill (Kit Connor; Heartstopper), immediately imprints on her – and gives her the meaning she’s been searching for.

The supporting cast includes Bill Nighy, Catherine O’Hara, Mark Hamill and Matt Berry (a truly powerful actor), with Pedro Pascal sharing most of his screen time with Roz as the wily fox Fink. (Side note: Are foxes making a big splash between Zootopia, The Bad Guys and Kung Fu Panda 4?)

Pascal delivers a generic, artificially sugarcoated portrayal of a selfish survivor who reluctantly supports Roz in her parenting efforts. Nyong’o, on the other hand, manages to be genuinely emotional while mimicking the stilted rhythm of a voice assistant.

I probably cried through a good third of this film; it’s no coincidence that a third of the film is devoted to a series of breathtaking flying sequences. Director Chris Sanders previously brought How to Train Your Dragon to life, and here he brings a little Toothless to Brightbill – as the family dwarf, he must find a way to fly despite significant physical limitations.

The film could have benefitted from a lighter touch, however. The dialogue is full of observations about parenting and growing up, as if the story of the ugly duckling required short notes. But if you strip away most, if not all, of the dialogue, you really have a classic on your hands.

Plus, Sanders can’t resist overdoing the film’s emotional crescendos, which are delivered so frequently and so loudly (be prepared to hear the same rousing musical interludes over and over again) that they end up feeling insincere.

Furthermore, the film seems aimed at an adult audience rather than children – an increasingly common problem (for which Bluey feels indirectly responsible). The Space Giant built a similar parenthood metaphor around its own titular robot, but crucially kept its perspective on its prepubescent protagonist. How to Train Your Dragon wisely ended before Hiccup became a father.

The Wild Robot has enough action, humor and heart to keep kids hooked, but the question remains as to how much younger viewers will understand a story that is primarily about the grueling challenges of parenthood.

Flaws aside, The Wild Robot is a much-needed respite after an otherwise disastrous year for mainstream family movies — just make sure you’re prepared for a cathartic, ugly cry.

The Wild Robot is in theaters now.