RON’S GONE WRONG

UK/US, 2021, 104 minutes, Colour.

Voices of: Jack Dylan Grazer, Zach Galifianiakis, Ed Helms, Olivia Colman, Rob Delaney, Justice Smith, Kylie Cantrell, Ricardo Hurtado, Ruby Wax.

Directed by Sarah Smith, Jean-Philippe Vine, Octavio E.Rodriguez.

Ron’s Gone Wrong is the first animation feature from the British studios, Locksmith Animation. But, the setting is, it would seem, California. The voice talent, quite varied, is both British and American, with Jack Dylan Grazer (the 2 It films) as the central young character, Barney, and comedian Zach Galifianakis as the entertaining voice of the rather crazy at times robot, B*Bot, Ron. And it is a surprise to find that Olivia Coleman voiced the rather strong-minded plump Polish grandmother.

This is an animated entertainment for a 2020s audience, youngsters who are at home with all kinds of technology, in a US where every child has its own personal AI B*Bot, (visually akin in some ways to R2D2). They come in assorted colours and personalities, friends, playthings, companions at school, in games. So, that is the kind of technical world we will come to expect.

But the story is of Barney, his widowed father who makes rather useless novelty toys, his dominant grandmother. Barney wants his own robot and father and grandmother find one that has fallen off the back of a truck and bring him home to the delighted Barney. But, he does not work properly, which leads to all kinds of jokes, mistakes, even some riots at school.

In the meantime, there is Mark, the young creator of the B*Bots (African-American, voiced by Justice Smith) and the dastardly, profit-criminally ambitious to be CEO, Andrew (Rob Delaney), who continually reminds us how unscrupulous and greedy big business is (or can be). Which means then that Ron has to be recalled, crushed, but rescued by Barney and taken into the woods, and then an excursion into the enormity of the Cloud, to rectify Ron’s workings.

There are also a number of children from the school, once Barney’s friends, now either ignoring or bullying him. We can see where this is going towards a happy ending.

For adults watching this film, it offers a lot of time to think about our technological age, the growing dependence of everyone, and now children, on their own robots, on their own AI. Which may teach them a lot about relationships and companionship. But, the question lurks, why is it that the film is showing us how youngsters relate better to robots than they do to one another, the film belatedly urging some friendliness between the children themselves, but more on the with the robots. Already, children spend so much time in front of their screens. While the robots might get them out of the house, it is still a technological dependence rather than developing human relationships. While that may not have been the intention of the filmmakers, the question is do emerge.

The creator is called Mark, echoes of Mr Zuckerberg – and, was it in the filmmakers intentions to have Andrew, the profit-engineering CEO, to be the business after ego of Mark Zuckerberg? A thought!

1. The film for young children, especially boys, but for adults?
2. British animation, British and American voices, the California setting, the Californian way of life, technology, big business?
3. The style of animation, the visuals, the characters, the robots and their colours and characters, the adults, home, town, school, the woods? The plant, the crusher, the Cloud? The musical score?
4. Barney’s story, age, mother died, father and his work with the novelties, trying to make money, the dominant Polish grandmother? His birthday, wanting his own robot, his father going out to find one, the refusal of the store, the robot which fell off the truck, bring it home? Barney’s joy?
5. The robot, a companion for children,? To learn friendship?
6. Ron and his name, calling Barney Absalom, getting details mixed up, gesticulating on his face, mouth, nose, eyebrows? His voice? Friendship with Barney, the accidents, knocked over by the car, at school, the other robots, Rich and the bullying, the girls and their ignoring him, the science girl and her help?
7. Mark as the inventor, young, enthusiastic, the algorithms? Andrew, business only, profit-only? Shrewd with the staff, lying, discovering Barney and Ron in the woods? Humiliating Mark? Taking over as CEO?
8. Barney, desperate with Ron, going into the woods, their adventures, their fears? Coming back?
9. Ron, the threat of the crusher, Barney rescuing him? The meeting with Mark, the discussions? Saving Ron from the crusher? Having to go into the Cloud? The vastness, checking the data?
10. Andrew, being exposed, moving off, Mark taking over?
11. School, Barney and Ron, training him, the background of all the notes on the wall about friendship, Ron wanting only to see him as a friend rather than just his being a friend to Barney?
12. The reconciliation with the girls, with Rich and the other boys?
13. Themes of friendship, the highlighting of friendship with robots, the need for human relationships and friendship amongst the children?