After The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Quartet confirmed the importance of the grey pound’ the older film fan no-one thought existed along comes what could be the best of the lot. It’s definitely aimed at the older market but it also deserves a wider audience it’s charming, witty, warm and just quirky enough to be engaging without tipping into sentimentality.
It’s a fairly simple tale. Set in the near future, retired cat burglar Frank (Langella) is living on his own in the suburbs and suffering from mild Alzheimer’s. He is forgetful, stubborn and just on the brink of being able to look after himself he still thinks his son Hunter (Marsden) is at Princeton and his local café is open it’s been closed for months. The only thing he has in his life to look forward to is popping in to see the dishy local librarian Jennifer (Sarandon) although she is battling to keep the old building open and a spot of petty thieving from a posh soap shop.
Hunter comes up with the answer, a robot helper who is programmed not just to clean and cook, but to help Frank start to exercise and take up hobbies to get his mind and body moving again. At first the stubborn old boy is appalled, thinking the robot is an invasion or, worse, a plant.
However he begins to warm to it when it encourages his hobby which in Frank’s case is picking locks. As the robot has no ethical views, Frank is free to use it to help him break into the library and steal a precious book for Jennifer. Now feeling more mentally and physically sharp than for years, Frank next plans a bigger heist, the diamonds of the appalling yuppies who have moved in next door and who seem to be plotting to close the library.
Robot & Frank has a huge amount going for it, and ultimately it’s a tale of raging against the dying of the light. Frank is a convincingly crotchety old man, but when he spies a heist, or the librarian, a glint comes into his eyes. Langella deserves a huge amount of credit for the success of the movie. He is totally convincing, never asks for sympathy and does physical comedy superbly.
He is helped by a script that is surprisingly pacy, and gets on with the story at a cracking pace within five minutes we know who Frank is and he has his robot to battle against. There is a twist before the end which borders on the sentimental, and there are a couple of moments which don’t quite ring true, mainly involving the yuppie couple who are cardboard cut-outs. Liv Tyler’s role as Frank’s annoying hippie daughter, travelling the world to do good deeds but uninterested in Frank, produces one funny segment but is otherwise slightly unnecessary. Minor quibbles though in a piece that is otherwise satisfying and enjoyable. Quite how Langella missed out on an Oscar nod is a mystery he’s quite superb. And Sarsgaard deserves some credit as the flat voice of the robot.
Overall verdict: Engaging, funny, beautifully played mood piece about ageing that deserves to appeal to a much wider audience than the silver surfers who should love it. Delightful stuff.
Reviewer: Mike Martin