Robots - Television Tropes & Idioms

Lavish CGI movie from the makers of Ice Age and illustrator William Joyce.

Ambitious young robot Rodney Copperbottom (voiced by Ewan McGregor) leaves his hometown for Robot City, hoping to show his inventions to his childhood hero Bigweld (Mel Brooks). To his dismay, Bigweld has been displaced by Ratchet, who is interested only in selling shiny upgrade parts to robots.

Rodney finds himself alone and broke in the big city. Luckily (or unluckily) for him, he falls in with motormouth and kleptomaniac Fender (voiced by Robin Williams), who introduces him to his little sister Piper and his misfit collection of friends: Lug, Crank Casey and Diesel (who needs a new voice chip and is The Unintelligible for most of the movie.).

Ratchet's factory stops producing spare parts, forcing robots to upgrade worn-out components. For bots like Fender and his friends who can't afford the upgrades, this means the scrapheap - a nightmare world beneath the city which just happens to be overseen by Ratchet's domineering mother.

Rodney, as The Hero, isn't just going to sit back and let this happen. With the help of Cappy, an employee of Ratchet's who's disgusted by the way things are going, he sets out to reinstate Bigweld and defeat Madame Gasket and her son.

The voice cast also includes Greg Kinnear, Jim Broadbent, Amanda Bynes, Jennifer Coolidge, and Drew Carey.

This film provides examples of:

Alternative Foreign Theme Song: Japan uses "Mawaru Sora" written by Hitomi Yaida. The European theme is "From Zero to Hero" by Sarah Connor.
Arc Words: "You can shine no matter what you're made of."
Ass Kicks You: Aunt Fan.
Big Bad: Arguably, not Ratchet, but his Mother.
- In more ways than one.
Big Good: Bigweld.
Big Damn Heroes
Piper: Did I miss the ~~butt~~ bot-whoopin'?
Boomerang Bigot: Ratchet's mother Madame Gasket, who wants to destroy all older "outmode" robots. While oblivious to the fact she is made of "outmode" parts.
By the Lights of Their Eyes: Justified because they're robots, and their eyes have built-in flashlights. It only happens in one scene for about five seconds, though.
Chainsaw Good: No actual chainsaws per se, but Madame Gasket's minions boast pretty impressive sawblade arms.
- Not to mention the one that Rodney and Bigweld use to destroy all the Super-Sweepers at once...
City of Adventure: Robot City, in contrast to Rodney's hometown, Rivet Town.
Color-Coded for Your Convenience: The bad robots tend to be chrome (or rust-coated...things) while the good ones tend to have chipped paint or a distinctly retro feel.
Crossdresser: Fender ends up in a skirt and heels. Fender gender bender?
- More like an Easy Sex Change.
- Also, at one point in his adolescence, Rodney's hand-me-downs are from his cousin Veronica.
Corrupt Corporate Executive: Ratchet
Creation Sequence: See Innocent Innuendo.
Dance Party Ending
Does This Remind You of Anything?: Again, see Innocent Innuendo.
Double Jump: The video game has the Wonderbot Trampoline.
Easy Sex Change: Fender
Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Inverted: Madame Gasket is even more villainous than Ratchet, but she still cares about her son.
Freudian Slip
Aunt Fanny: Well, hello there! What's your name?
Rodney: (mesmerized by her large derriere) I'm Rodney Bigbottom- No! I'm Rodney Copperbottom! Copperbottom.
Getting Crap Past the Radar: It should have been titled Getting Crap Past the Radar : The Movie.
- What'd you expect when Robin Williams is part of the cast?
- "You missed the delivery, but don't worry, making the baby is the fun part".
- In one scene, Rodney asks, "Who wants to get fixed?" to a group of robots. A robotic dog then covers up its crotch while whimpering.
- The hobo robot (Hobot?) towards the beginning has a sign that says "Got screwed". Not subtle. At all.
  - Well, he does have a screw-arrow-hat-thing.
- When Bigweld comes back and is walking through Bigweld Industries, a robot walks out of the male restroom, then, upon seeing Bigweld, goes back into the bathroom, but goes in the female restroom. The sign for the male restroom has a plug and the sign for the female restroom has an outlet.
- The British dub had Aunt Fanny's name shortened to "Fan" because of this.
- "Honey? What's that extra piece?" "Oh yeah, they always put in an extra... We did want a boy, right?". Wow. Just wow...
Glowing Eyes of Doom: The sweepers.
He Is Not My Boyfriend: Cappy and Rodney.
- Only once, and offhand.
Heroic BSOD: Bigweld, of all people.
Innocent Innuendo: "Making the baby is the fun part!" Rodney's parents then proceed to assemble him from a kit.
Rodney's Dad: PUSH!
Rodney's Mom: Uggghh!
Cut to them having difficulty putting two pieces of the robot baby together
Insult Backfire
Jerkass: Tim the Gate Guard, full stop.
Kill the Poor: Madame Gasket is revealed to be melting down lower-class robots into products for her son's company to sell.
Larynx Dissonance: Jim Broadbent, playing Ratchet's mother
Meaningful Name: Ample-reared Aunt Fanny (who became Aunt Fan in the UK, since 'fanny' in this country refers to a... nearby, yet different portion of the anatomy).
- Also Lampshaded:
  Fender: Aunt Faaaaaaannnnnny! We brought someone!
  Rodney: Are you sure your aunt won't mind?
  Fender: Relax, she's not my aunt. She just takes in bots who are...broke.
  Rodney: Well then, why is she called Aunt Fanny?
  Fender: *cuts to Aunt Fanny and her large backside* Couldn't call her "Aunt Booty"!
Mechanical Lifeforms
Misanthrope Supreme: Madame Gasket, who wants to eliminate all outmodes, never mind the fact that she is one.
Misfit Mobilization Moment
My Beloved Smother: Madame Gasket.
Nice Character, Mean Actor: In-universe; On TV, Tim the Gate Guard is a cheerful-sounding puppet-like robot who guards Bigweld's main gate. The real Tim... not so much.
Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The Rusties.
Ridiculously Human Robots: Like, for example, how they "grow up" exactly like humans (by getting larger), even if they have to use hand-me-down body pieces?
- ...and for that matter, are there any robots with personalities who have the same appearance? Wouldn't you expect a lot of robots to, you know, be based on the same model?
  - That most likely would have been a result of the plan the Big Bad had laid out, though more as a side effect than the objective. If the thing had succeeded, that is.
  - Actually, if they're hand-built rather than mass produced, it is likely that most would be physically unique.
  - And you have to take into account that the Robots might start as packaged, "basic" models, and a life time of dents, scrapes, repaintings and modifications might result in a varied population.
Robo Family: Since this is a world of robots, robots can have their own family units and even 'make' their own children.
Scenery Porn: With much Benevolent Architecture, like the tracks used at the very beginning.
This Is My Name On Foreign: Fender claims he was called 'Bumper' before he immigrated.
Urine Trouble: The fire hydrant is sentient and tells the robotic dog "Don't you dare!"
Wide-Eyed Idealist: Rodney
Wind-Up Key
Zeerust: Invoked. Countless robots have distinctly retro designs.