Robot Dreams (film)
Robot Dreams | |
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Directed by | Pablo Berger |
Screenplay by | Pablo Berger |
Based on | Robot Dreams by Sara Varon |
Produced by | Ibon Cormenzana Ignasi Estapé Sandra Tapia Díaz Jérôme Vidal Pablo Berger |
Edited by | Fernando Franco |
Music by | Alfonso de Vilallonga[1] |
Production companies | |
Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 102 minutes |
Countries |
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Budget | €5 million[3] |
Box office | $3.9 million[4] |
Robot Dreams is a 2023 animated tragicomedy[5] film written and directed by Pablo Berger.[6] A Spanish-French co-production, it is based on the 2007 comic of the same name by Sara Varon.[7] It is about the friendship between a dog and a robot in New York in 1984.[8] The film does not contain any dialogue.[9]
Robot Dreams had its world premiere at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on May 21, 2023, in the Special Screenings section.[10] It received critical acclaim and won Best Film in the Contrechamp section of the Annecy International Animation Film Festival as well as Best Independent Animated Feature at the 51st Annie Awards. It also won the Goya Award for Best Animated Film and the European Film Award for Best Animated Feature Film, and was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 96th Academy Awards.[11][12]
Plot
This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. (May 2024) |
In 1980s Manhattan, Dog lives alone. He sees a TV advertisement for a robot friend and immediately calls to order it. Dog receives Robot in the mail and assembles him. Dog takes Robot out to explore Manhattan and over the course of the summer the two become inseparable friends.
Near the end of summer, Dog takes Robot to the beach. After a long day of playing in the water, the pair fall asleep. Upon waking up well after all the other visitors have left, Dog realizes that the water has caused Robot to rust in place. Unable to move Robot, a disheartened Dog is forced to head home for the night. Dog returns to the beach the following day to discover that the beach has been closed until June 1st the following year and a large barbed wire fence prevents him from reaching Robot. After being denied access to the beach by the city, Dog tries to break past the fence illegally. However, he is caught by police and is arrested. Afterwards, a disheartened Dog relents to wait until he can go and rescue Robot, placing a note on his refrigerator as a constant reminder.
Sometime later, a trio of rabbits comes across Robot on the beach. They give him STP oil that fixes him and allows him to leave the beach. He returns to Dog's apartment only for it to be revealed that this was all a fantasy of Robot's. In reality, the rabbits chop off one of Robot's legs and remove one of its toes to fix their broken boat. They discard the leg and leave Robot alone on the beach once again. Meanwhile, Dog spends Halloween alone.
Winter arrives as snow begins to fall across the city and the beach. After having a dream of escaping the snow and returning home to find Dog having replaced him with a new robot, Robot becomes frozen in ice. Meanwhile, Dog goes to the Catskills to meet new friends after seeing a newspaper advertisement. This only leads to him breaking his arm in a sledding accident following a conflict with a pair of anteaters. As winter continues, Robot has another dream of returning home through a world inspired by The Wizard of Oz. Dog meets a magical snowman who leads him to a bowling alley. Dog bowls poorly but finds a new friend in the snowman, only for this also to be revealed as a dream.
Following the end of winter, Robot befriends a bird who winds up building a nest next to his arm. The bird lays three eggs that hatch, the youngest child instantly bonds with Robot. The bird's three children grow over a period of time with the youngest remaining the most attached to Robot. When the time comes for the birds to leave, the youngest is the most hesitant but ultimately relents following encouragement from Robot. Dog, meanwhile, finds a new friend in Duck during a kite outing and the pair also go fishing. Duck then suddenly moves to Europe, leaving Dog alone yet again.
A monkey sneaks onto the beach and finds a buried Robot with his metal detector. The monkey takes Robot to a junkyard to sell him. The alligator owner and his son promptly chuck Robot into the pile, where he breaks into pieces and shuts off. When June 1st finally arrives, Dog returns to the beach but is only able to find Robot's discarded severed leg. He is kicked off the beach after spending the whole day digging. A saddened Dog spends the night laying in bed with Robot's leg.
A raccoon named Rascal visits the junkyard and discovers Robot's head and remaining limbs. He buys the parts and takes them home. He rebuilds Robot with a boombox as a new body. Meanwhile, Dog buys a new robot named Tin. Over the course of the summer, Robot and Rascal form a close friendship as do Dog and Tin. Dog and Tin go to the beach and, learning from his past mistakes, Dog coats Tin with oil spray and keeps him out of the water.
Later, while getting ketchup for a rooftop lunch with Rascal, Robot looks out and sees Dog and Tin walking down the sidewalk. Racing out of the building and down the street, Robot manages to catch Dog and reunites with him. The sudden appearance of Rascal reveals that the reunion was yet another fantasy of Robot's. Instead of chasing after Dog, Robot uses his tape deck body to play "September". Dog hears the song and the pair (unbeknownst to Dog) dance together to it for the final time. Robot contemplates revealing himself. However, realizing that he and Dog have found meaningful new relationships following their separation, Robot continues to hide and lets Dog continue on with Tin. Tin notices Dog's sadness and promptly cheers him up as the two dance down the street side by side. Robot then happily returns to Rascal and the two proceed to dance together on the roof.
Production
In 2008, Sara Varon was approached by an unspecified animation studio to produce a film adaptation of Robot Dreams, which would have been done entirely using computer animation. This project never materialized.[13]
Berger first read Varon's graphic novel in about 2010 and was affected by it. After making his first two films, he went back to Robot Dreams and began visualizing how to make it into an animated film.[14]
Initially, Berger wanted to work with Cartoon Saloon to animate the film, but abandoned plans in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Eventually, Berger helped set up various animation studios across Spain to help to get the film made.[15] The animation process began in mid-June 2021 in Madrid, Spain, and later on Iruñea studios opened as well in Pamplona, working parallel to the Madrid team.[16]
Release
Festivals
Robot Dreams had its world premiere on 21 May 2023 in the Special Screenings section of the 76th Cannes Film Festival,[17] then screened on 12 June 2023 at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival,[18] on 23 July 2023 at the New Zealand International Film Festival,[19] and on 14 August 2023 at the 29th Sarajevo Film Festival.[20] It was screened on 7 September 2023 at the 48th Toronto International Film Festival[21] and in October 2023 at the 56th Sitges Film Festival.[22]
Theatrical
The film was first released in Spanish theatres on 6 December 2023 by BTeam Pictures.[23][24] It expanded to the French market on 27 December 2023.[25] Curzon released the film in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 22 March 2024.[26] Neon acquired the North American distribution rights and it was released on 31 May 2024.[27][28][29]
Reception
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 97% of 113 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.3/10. The website's consensus reads: "As heartbreaking as it is heartwarming, Robot Dreams is the stuff good animation is made of".[30] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 87 out of 100, based on 29 critics, indicating "universal acclaim" reviews and earning the "Must-See" label.[31]
Paula Arantzazu Ruiz of Cinemanía rated the film 5 out of 5 stars, deeming "[the relationship between] Dog and Robot to be the most amazing and beautiful friendship of the year".[32] Robbie Collin of The Telegraph awarded the movie five stars out of five, writing that "this wonderful tale of friendship will enchant and amuse children – and leave grown-ups in tears".[33]
Variety put Robot Dreams on its list of the 22 Overlooked Films of 2023.[34]
Top ten lists
The film appeared on a number of critics' top ten lists of the best Spanish films of 2023:
- 4th — El Periódico de Catalunya (critics)[35]
- 5th — El Español (Series & Más consensus)[36]
- 6th — El Cultural (critics)[37]
- 6th — El Mundo (Luis Martínez)[38]
- 7th — Mondosonoro (consensus)[39]
Accolades
See also
Notes
References
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- ^ "Director Pablo Berger Makes Animation Debut with 'Robot Dreams'". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on 2023-12-10. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "'Robot Dreams' comienza su producción siguiendo los principios del cine de Pablo Berger: "humor, emoción y un exquisito lenguaje cinematográfico"". Audiovisual451 (in Spanish). 2021-07-14. Archived from the original on 2021-12-02. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Robot Dreams". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
- ^ Jiménez, Jesús (2021-10-03). "Pablo Berger Me he pasado a la animación porque me enamoré de Robot Dreams". RTVE.es (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2023-08-17. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "PROYECTOS: El filme ROBOT DREAMS de Pablo Berger (apoyo MEDIA de desarrollo de contenido) presenta su teaser tráiler". www.oficinamediaespana.eu (in European Spanish). Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ Jiménez, Jesús (2022-05-11). "'Robot Dreams', el cómic de Sara Varon que Pablo Berger llevará a los cines". RTVE.es (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Primer avance de 'Robot Dreams', la primera película de animación de Pablo Berger" (in Spanish). 2023-07-21. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Fun Teaser Trailer for Dialogue-Free Animated 'Robot Dreams' Movie | FirstShowing.net". www.firstshowing.net. 2023-07-13. Retrieved 2023-12-28.
- ^ Leffler, Rebecca. "Elle Driver sells out worldwide on 'Robot Dreams' following Cannes premiere (exclusive)". Screen. Archived from the original on 2023-06-02. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "'Chicken For Linda!', 'Robot Dreams', '27' se llevan los máximos honores en el Festival de Annecy 2023". CafeToons (in Spanish). 2023-06-18. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ a b "96th Oscars: See the Full List of Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. 2024-03-10. Retrieved 2024-05-23.
- ^ ‘Robot Dreams’ Director Pablo Berger On Stepping Out Of His Comfort Zone To Create A “Dialogue-Free” Animated Film With A Touching Story With A Funky Beat - Deadline
- ^ Zahed, Ramin (October 20, 2023). "Exclusive: Pablo Berger Takes Us Behind the Scenes of His Acclaimed Movie, 'Robot Dreams'". Animation Magazine.
- ^ Radulovic, Petrana (May 29, 2024). "Robot Dreams' director founded an animation studio just to adapt a graphic novel he loved". Polgyon.
- ^ "Pablo Berger inicia la producción del filme animado "Robot Dreams"". GARA (in Spanish). 2021-07-15. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Robot Dreams: Pablo Berger's adaptation presented in a special children's screening at Cannes". www.sortiraparis.com. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "México invitado y animación española en competición en el Festival de Annecy". infobae (in European Spanish). 27 April 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ New Zealand International Film Festival: Robot Dreams, archived from the original on 2023-08-18, retrieved 2023-08-18
- ^ "Introducing the Summer Screen Programme of the 29th Sarajevo Film Festival". Sarajevo Times. 2023-07-27. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Robot Dreams". TIFF. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "Robot Dreams confirmada en la programación de Sitges 2023". Radix (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "La aclamada película "Robot Dreams" llegará a los cines de España este diciembre - TVLaint". www.tvlaint.com. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ ""Robot Drams" [sic], de Pablo Berger, Premio a la Mejor Película Europea de Animación". mundoplus.tv. 24 December 2023.
- ^ "Les line-ups s'ajustent chez les distributeurs - Boxoffice Pro". 2023-08-18. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ Dalton, Ben (25 March 2024). "UK-Ireland film cinema release dates: latest updates for 2024". ScreenDaily.
- ^ Saperstein, Pat (2023-05-17). "Neon Makes First Cannes Acquisition With Pablo Berger's Animated 'Robot Dreams'". Variety. Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (2023-05-17). "Neon Acquires Pablo Berger's Animated Feature 'Robot Dreams' Ahead Of Cannes Bow". Deadline. Archived from the original on 2023-07-01. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ Milligan, Mercedes (April 17, 2024). "'Robot Dreams' Boots Up NYC Theatrical Run Starting May 31". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
- ^ "Robot Dreams". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on 2023-11-27. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
- ^ "Robot Dreams". Metacritic. Retrieved 2024-03-25.
- ^ Ruiz, Paula Arantzazu (4 December 2023). "Crítica de 'Robot Dreams': un adorable relato sobre la importancia de la amistad". Cinemanía. Archived from the original on 5 December 2023. Retrieved 5 December 2023 – via 20minutos.es.
- ^ Collin, Robbie (21 March 2024). "Robot Dreams: this wondrous (and wordless) animation will emotionally destroy you". The Telegraph. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
- ^ 22 Overlooked Movies in 2023 Everyone Should See - Variety
- ^ Casas, Quim (22 December 2023). "Las 10 mejores películas españolas de 2023". El Periódico de Catalunya. Prensa Ibérica.
- ^ Prieto, Belén; Morillo, Valentina (24 December 2023). "Las 10 mejores películas españolas de 2023". Series & Más – via El Español.
- ^ "Las 10 mejores películas españolas de 2023, el año de 'Cerrar los ojos'". El Cultural. 21 December 2023 – via El Español.
- ^ Martínez, Luis (21 December 2023). "Las 10 mejores películas españolas de 2023, de 'Zinzindurrunkarratz' a 'La mesita del comedor'". El Mundo.
- ^ "Las mejores películas nacionales de 2023". Mondosonoro. 26 December 2023.
- ^ Pérez, David (2023-06-19). "'Robot Dreams' recibe el Gran Premio Contrechamp en el Festival de Annecy". No es cine todo lo que reluce (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2023-08-18. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
- ^ "56th Edition Award Winners". Sitges Film Festival. 2023-06-19. Archived from the original on 2023-10-21. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
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- ^ "Winners Cinekid Awards 2023". Cinekid.
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- ^ Anderson, Erik (December 10, 2023). "2023 Boston Society of Film Critics (BSFC): 'The Holdovers' Wins Best Film, Actor, Supporting Actress, Screenplay". AwardsWatch. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
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External links
- 2023 films
- 2020s French films
- 2020s Spanish films
- 2023 animated films
- 2023 comedy-drama films
- 2023 science fiction films
- Animated films about dogs
- Animated films about friendship
- Animated films based on American comics
- Animated films set in Manhattan
- Animated films set in the 1980s
- Films set in 1984
- Animated films set on beaches
- Animated films without speech
- Arcadia Motion Pictures films
- Films set on the New York City Subway
- French animated feature films
- French comedy-drama films
- French science fiction films
- Neon (company) films
- Animated films about robots
- Spanish animated feature films
- Spanish comedy-drama films
- Spanish science fiction films
- Tragicomedy films
- European Film Awards winners (films)
- Annecy Cristal-winning films
- Best Animated Film Goya Award winners
- Annie Award for Best Animated Feature – Independent winners
- Independent animated films