History Film / BicentennialMan

'''President Bota''': You have arranged to die?\\

* AwardBaitSong: ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYjqojwp2hQ Then You Look At Me]]'', by Music/CelineDion, a popular singer in America during UsefulNotes/TheNineties. It doesn't describe any specific moment in the story, but is used as the love song between Andrew and Portia (with Little Miss substituting for her childhood years). The official music video [[VideoFullOfFilmClips takes clips from the relationship]] and displays them in a monitor in the background.

* RoboRomance: When Andrew first sees Galatea it appears as though he has found the {{Fembot}} of his dreams, only for him to quickly realize she is just a [[PersonalityChip shallow personality program]] on a normal robot. In fact, within five minutes or so of having met her, he considers her too ''[[SubvertedTrope annoying]]'' to tolerate.

* TimeSkip: Several are needed if you're going to compress 200 years into 2 hours 12 minutes.

''Bicentennial Man'' starts with [=NDR114=]-series robot number 583625 ([[InSeriesNickname nicknamed]] Andrew Martin and played by Creator/RobinWilliams) being unboxed and introduced to the Martin household in 2005; "Sir" (Richard Martin, played by Creator/SamNeill), "Ma'am" (Rachel Martin, played by Creator/WendyCrewson), "Miss" (Grace Martin), and "Little Miss" (Amanda Martin). Andrew will be their RobotButler, taking care of the children and handling assorted housekeeping duties.

* NoNameGiven: "Ma'am", the Martin family matriarch is initially unnamed, [[AllThereInTheManual but external material]] lists her as Rachel Martin.

* ChickenJoke: When Sir attempts to teach Andrew about humor, a "chicken cross the road"-style punchline is the third joke he tries (Andrew's {{Literal Minded}}ness causes trouble).

* TheComicallySerious: Creator/RobinWilliams takes the concept of a robot who doesn't understand humor to exercise other types of comedy. Andrew's RapidFireComedy delivery after first learning how to tell a joke is a great example since he still doesn't understand humor. He is also LiteralMinded, which combines well with his "serious" comedy. Sir tells Andrew that he will have to learn timing, and Andrew announces that "It's 10:15, Sir."

* GenkiGirl: Galatea shows up halfway through the film. Her perky and pop-culture riddled personality initially suggests that she's like Andrew, but then she reveals that it comes from her "PersonalityChip", a program for human-like behavior. After Andrew meddles with it, she turns into a surly grump that yells at Rupert for treating her [[ServantRace like a robot slave]]. Her personality at the climax of the film is much more subdued, suggesting that the chip has been removed entirely.

* KnockKnockJoke: Sir attempts to teach Andrew humor, and the knock-knock format is the second type he tries (Andrew's {{Literal Minded}}ness causes trouble).

* LiteralMinded: Andrew doesn't quite understand certain behaviors. Mix that in with [[{{Malaproper}} occasionally getting words wrong]] and you have a person who objects "chickens don't have lips" when they're told that their dinner sucks. It causes him trouble when learning humor, especially with [[KnockKnockJoke knock-knock jokes]], leading to [[TheComicallySerious deadpan delivery]].

* PersonalityChip: All [=NDR114=] robots come with an optional "personality chip", with pre-programmed personality quirks. The first time we see one with the chip activated is Galatea, whose GenkiGirl behavior is the result of Rupert's choices. Andrew gives her an "upgrade", which makes her surly and uncooperative, but he lets Rupert change her back. Andrew's personality chip, however, was never activated, and his quirks are unique to him.

* RapidFireComedy: The movie isn't one of these, but it contains an in-universe example after Andrew has studied the concept of humor. His rapid delivery shows that he doesn't understand the importance of timing or delivery, simply reciting a bunch of jokes quickly. The actors in the scene didn't know what jokes would be told in advance, so Creator/RobinWilliams's mixed repertoire was challenged as he has to deliver jokes [[TheComicallySerious without Andrew understanding why they were funny]].

* {{Identical Grand|son}}daughter: The adult Amanda Martin (Little Miss) and her granddaughter, Portia Charney, were both played by Creator/EmbethDavidtz. Andrew is perturbed at this at first, but eventually warms up to it by [[DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest falling in love with Portia]].

* IHaveThisFriend: Little Miss tries asking if Andrew has feelings for him, by telling him about this friend she has who makes her much happier than her fiance does. Andrew, oblivious because she has disguised the question so well, bluntly tells her that she should marry her friend instead of her fiancé. The fact that she framed her question like this leaves out that the reason she's hesitant is because he's a robot.

* FantasticRacism: Fairly downplayed as Andrew does encounter some hostility from a few humans who snidely refer to him as "it", a "mere household appliance" or "the robot", and even the World Congress who refuse to recognize Andrew as human [[spoiler:at least until the end]]. Not all that uncommon in stories about sentient A.I..

* IJustWantToBeNormal[=/=]IJustWantToBeSpecial: Played with. A robot with superior capabilities (like downloading entire textbooks into his CPU) gains enough self-awareness to want to become an ordinary person capable of error as well as emotional and physical distress and so on. Unlike other NDR androids, he considers this an upgrade from being JustAMachine.

* IJustWantToBeNormal: A robot built to serve the humans around him gains enough self-awareness to want to become one of them.

* ChickenJoke: When Sir attempts to teach Andrew about humour, a "chicken cross the road"-style punchline is the third joke he tries (Andrew's {{Literal Minded}}ness causes trouble).

* TheComicallySerious: Creator/RobinWilliams takes the concept of a robot who doesn't understand humour to exercise other types of comedy. Andrew's RapidFireComedy delivery after first learning how to tell a joke is a great example since he still doesn't understand humour. He is also LiteralMinded, which combines well with his "serious" comedy. Sir tells Andrew that he will have to learn timing, and Andrew announces that "It's 10:15, Sir."

* DoubleVision: When Andrew meets Portia (played by Creator/EmbethDavidtz), he mistakes her for Little Miss, who shows up in the same scene (also played by Creator/EmbethDavidtz, but with ageing prosthetics). As Andrew is looking back and forth between the two women, Little Miss explains that Portia is her [[IdenticalGranddaughter granddaughter]]. Once Andrew realizes that she's Lloyd's daughter, it [[InnocentlyInsensitive explains the rudeness]] for him.

* GenkiGirl: Galatea shows up halfway through the film. Her perky and pop-culture riddled personality initially suggests that she's like Andrew, but then she reveals that it comes from her "PersonalityChip", a program for human-like behaviour. After Andrew meddles with it, she turns into a surly grump that yells at Rupert for treating her [[ServantRace like a robot slave]]. Her personality at the climax of the film is much more subdued, suggesting that the chip has been removed entirely.

* IdenticalGrandson: The adult Amanda Martin (Little Miss) and her granddaughter, Portia Charney, were both played by Creator/EmbethDavidtz. Andrew is perturbed at this at first, but eventually warms up to it by [[DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest falling in love with Portia]].
* IHaveThisFriend: Little Miss tries asking if Andrew has feelings for him, by telling him about this friend she has who makes her much happier than her fiance does. Andrew, oblivious because she has disguised the question so well, bluntly tells her that she should marry her friend instead of her fiance. The fact that she framed her question like this leaves out that the reason she's hesitant is because he's a robot.

* ItHasBeenAnHonour: Galatea's farewell to Portia and Andrew [[spoiler:on their deathbed]] includes a [[BorrowedCatchphrase quoting Andrew]]; "One is glad to be of service."

* KnockKnockJoke: Sir attempts to teach Andrew humour, and the knock-knock format is the second type he tries (Andrew's {{Literal Minded}}ness causes trouble).

* LiteralMinded: Andrew doesn't quite understand certain behaviours. Mix that in with [[{{Malaproper}} occasionally getting words wrong]] and you have a person who objects "chickens don't have lips" when they're told that their dinner sucks. It causes him trouble when learning humour, especially with [[KnockKnockJoke knock-knock jokes]], leading to [[TheComicallySerious deadpan delivery]].

* PersonalityChip: All [=NDR114=] robots come with an optional "personality chip", with pre-programmed personality quirks. The first time we see one with the chip activated is Galatea, whose GenkiGirl behaviour is the result of Rupert's choices. Andrew gives her an "upgrade", which makes her surly and uncooperative, but he lets Rupert change her back. Andrew's personality chip, however, was never activated, and his quirks are unique to him.
* PlayingGertrude: Creator/EmbethDavidtz (born 1965) plays Little Miss (Amanda Martin), while Creator/BradleyWhitford (born 1959) plays her unmarried son, Lloyd Charney. She's not wearing any ageing prosthetics until she's [[DoubleVision onscreen with her granddaughter]].

* PromotedToLoveInterest: In the [[Literature/TheBicentennialMan original story]], the closest Andrew gets to having a romantic relationship is whispering the name "Little Miss" while [[spoiler:on his deathbed]], a century after she's died. In the film, we're shown that she has [[ForbiddenLove a crush on him]], but chooses to marry Chaney instead, leaving Andrew as the RomanticRunnerup. Although Andrew seemed oblivious to this, his SecondLove appears in the form of Portia, Little Miss's granddaughter, [[CanonForeigner added specifically for this role]]. Her desire for [[RoboticSpouse their marriage]] to be seen as valid spurs Andrew to fight for his humanity against the [[OneWorldOrder World Congress]].

* WifeHusbandry: The Martin household's RobotButler, Andrew, loved helping Sir in raising Miss and Little Miss since they were young girls. When Little Miss was old enough, she asked him [[IHaveThisFriend indirectly]] about marriage, but [[SubvertedTrope chickens out]] and married someone else. Andrew goes away for a few decades, but when he returns, he meets Portia, Little Miss's IdenticalGranddaughter, and pursues a [[{{Robosexual}} relationship]] with her, eventually getting [[RobotSpouse married]], making this a ZigZagged example.

''Bicentennial Man'' starts with [=NDR114=]-series robot number 583625 ([[InSeriesNickname nicknamed]] Andrew Martin and played by Creator/RobinWilliams) being unboxed and introduced to the Martin household; Sir (Richard Martin, played by Creator/SamNeil), Ma'am (NoNameGiven), Miss (Grace Martin), and Little Miss. Andrew will be their RobotButler, taking care of the children and handling assorted housekeeping duties.

* IdenticalGrandson: The adult Amanda Martin (Little Miss) and her granddaughter, Portia Charney, were both played by Creator/EmbethDavitz. Andrew is perturbed at this at first, but eventually warms up to it by [[DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest falling in love with Portia]].

* InMemoriam: The film dedicates itself to the memory of Robin Eickman and Jeffrey Burks.

* MultiTakeCut: During the scene where Andrew is [[HarpoDoesSomethingFunny telling jokes]] to the family, the camera starts off as if it is placed on the table looking up at him, but {{Jump|Cut}}s around so that we can get [[ReactionShot everyone's reactions]] as they dissolve into uncontrollable laughter.

* ProductPlacement: In the [[Literature/TheBicentennialMan original story]], US Robots was the company responsible for manufacturing Andrew Martin. A real-life company [[{{Defictionalization}} named themselves]] "US Robotics" in 1976, based on Dr Asimov's fictional company. [[ZigZaggedTrope Instead of keeping the name]], the film [[AdaptationNameChange changed it]] to "North American Robotics".

** "That will not do." The first time he says these words, right after Little Miss passes away, Andrew memorizes every medical textbook available ''in the world'' to begin designing [[ArtificalLimbs artificial organs]] and DNA elixirs that mix the technological with the biological, making a profound leap in medical technology. When he says those words again after Portia tells him [[RoboticSpouse their marriage will never be accepted]], he goes on a campaign to earn full rights as a human being.

* PersonalityChip: All [[NDR114=] robots come with an optional "personality chip", with pre-programmed personality quirks. The first time we see one with the chip activated is Galatea, whose GenkiGirl behaviour is the result of Rupert's choices. Andrew gives her an "upgrade", which makes her surly and uncooperative, but he lets Rupert change her back. Andrew's personality chip, however, was never activated, and his quirks are unique to him.

* AdaptationDistillation: The court battles where much of the drama comes from in "Literature/TheBicentennialMan" are distilled to the very last legal battle; Andrew's campaign to be [[BecameARealBoy recognized]] a human. The courts don't show up until the last twelve minutes before the end of {{the film|OfTheBook}}, in order to make room for the [[PromotedToLoveInterest mandatory]] RomCom.

* RoboticSpouse: Portia Charney, great-granddaughter of Sir, decides to marry the [[GoodOldRobot family robot]]. This is many decades after he has been granted his freedom and he spent a lot of time trying to convince ''her'' that a relationship was possible. The relationship is subverted at the climax, [[spoiler: when Andrew is [[BecameARealBoy recognized as human]]]].

* AdaptationPersonalityChange: {{The film|OfTheBook}} expands the role of Sir compared to [[Literature/TheBicentennialMan the original story]]. He begins [[StandardFiftiesFather mentoring Andrew, providing personal guidance and social instruction]], In addition to [[AdaptationJobChange changing his job]], he also changes his reaction to Andrew's request for freedom, [[ShooTheDog banishing him from the house]] instead of taking him to court to make sure Andrew is legally recognized as a free robot instead of a member of the ServantRace.

* TheComicallySerious: Creator/RobinWilliams takes the concept of a robot who doesn't understand humour to exercise other types of comedy. Andrew's RepidFireComedy delivery after first learning how to tell a joke is a great example since he still doesn't understand humour. He is also LiteralMinded, which combines well with his "serious" comedy. Sir tells Andrew that he will have to learn timing, and Andrew announces that "It's 10:15, Sir."

* TheTheTitleConfusion: Because the original story is named "'''[[Literature/TheBicentennialMan The ]]'''[[[[Literature/TheBicentennialMan Bicentennial Man]]", it is odd that the title of the film chooses to remove the definite article. This also caused ''Literature/TheBicentennialManAndOtherStories'' to be republished with a cover [[{{Novelization}} from the film poster]] declaring the title to be ''Bicentennial Man''.

''Bicentennial Man'', or ''Andrew--[=NDR114=]'' in Japan, is a 1999 film starring Creator/RobinWilliams based on the well-known novella of the same name by Creator/IsaacAsimov (previously expanded into the full-length novel ''The Positronic Man'' by Creator/RobertSilverberg).

The film follows the evolution of the NDR series robot Andrew Martin (Williams) from his introduction into the Martin family and interaction with them through three generations: discovery of his emotional and creative abilities, development into an artist and inventor, evolution into an android, his fight to win legal recognition for his humanity, and ultimate destiny.

It also stars Creator/SamNeill as "Sir" Richard Martin, Creator/EmbethDavidtz as "Little Miss" Amanda Martin and Portia Charney, and Creator/OliverPlatt as Rupert Burns.

!!The original story provides examples of:

* ContinuityNod: The Three Laws of Robotics, established in Asimov's previous story Literature/IRobot, are referenced at the very beginning of the story and play a central role in its plot.
* CoversAlwaysLie: The Panther Science Fiction paperback depicts a giant robot attacking a spaceship, which is nowhere to be found in the story.
* ShortStory: Its only a few dozen pages long, and is included in anthologies with other Asimov stories.

!!The film provides examples of:

* AdaptationDistillation: The movie is ''far'' more sentimental than either Asimov's story or Silverberg's expansion.
* AdaptationExpansion: From a 200-year search for the meaning of what it is to be human to a multigenerational love story.
* {{Anticlimax}}: [[spoiler: Andrew dies shortly before being legally recognized as human, and never gets to hear it, nor have his marriage officially recognized either. The smile on his face indicates he really didn't care - he died, making him human in his own eyes.]]
* ArcWords: "That will not do." With those four words, first spoken when Little Miss passes away, Andrew memorizes every medical textbook available ''in the world'' and makes artificial organs and DNA elixirs that take a profound leap from the technological to the biological (and allow humans to essentially live forever). When he says those words again after Portia tells him they'd never be accepted, he goes on a campaign to earn full rights as a human being.
** And to a much higher extent: "One is glad to be of service."
* ArtificialHuman:
** Andrew starts out as a robot, but modifies himself with biological parts to this.
** [[spoiler: As does Galatea by the end.]]
* AwardBaitSong: ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYjqojwp2hQ Then You Look At Me]]'', by Celine Dion.
* BecomeARealBoy: Unlike most examples of this, Andrew's process of humanization takes decades. [[spoiler: Implied with Galatea as well.]]
* BigFancyHouse: The Martin family's ''large'' residence is shown to be this. This could justify why Mr. Martin was able to afford and maintain a then-new robot in the first place.
* BorrowedCatchphrase:
-->'''Galatea:''' As the great Andrew Martin used to say, [[ItHasBeenAnHonor "One is glad to be of service".]]
* BrickJoke: Grace makes Andrew jump out the window in a cruel attempt to break him. In his damaged state afterward, his eye keeps twitching. Later, her father asks Andrew to come and see the view out of a thirty-seventh floor window. Andrew's eye twitches, and he declines to come closer.
* CentralTheme: Time and mortality. It's not an accident Andrew becomes wealthy making ''clocks''.
* ChekhovsGun: Andrew's insistence of setting up a bank account early in the movie raises eyebrows even among the Martins. Fast forward several decades however and it's implied that the money he put in there is more than enough to fund research into biotech transplants, which soon extend to the rest of humanity.
* TheComicallySerious: Andrew is like this for most of the film.
* DeadPersonConversation: Late in the film, Andrew imagines Sir consulting him on what it means to be human.

* DeadpanSnarker: Andrew.
-->'''Andrew:''' ''(on Little Miss' bratty son)'' One understands why some animals eat their young.
* {{Determinator}}: Andrew. For a passive-aggressive robot, when Andrew sets his mind on something, he ''does'' it.
* DoppelgangerReplacementLoveInterest: As Andrew watches his family grow, Little Miss subtly reveals she has a crush on Andrew, though he is oblivious to what she is implying. Decades later as he has become more human, he meets and falls in love with her identical granddaughter.
* DramaticShattering: Andrew's accidental breaking of young Little Miss' favorite glass horse figurine leads to his first demonstration of creativity, as he carves her a new one out of wood.
* FaceDeathWithDignity: A TropeCodifier.
-->'''Andrew:''' I've always tried to make sense of things. There must be some reason I am as I am. As you can see, Madame Chairman, I am no longer immortal.
-->'''Bota:''' You have arranged to die?
-->'''Andrew:''' In a sense I have. I am growing old, my body is deteriorating, and like all of you, will eventually cease to function. As a robot, I could have lived forever. But I tell you all today, I would rather die a man, than live for all eternity a machine.
-->'''Bota:''' Why do you want this?
-->'''Andrew:''' To be acknowledged for who and what I am, no more, no less. Not for acclaim, not for approval, but, the simple truth of that recognition. This has been the elemental drive of my existence, and it must be achieved, if I am to live or die with dignity.
* FamedInStory: It's only ever hinted at, but Andrew has become famous enough that Rupert recognizes him. And that's before Andrew effectively doubles the human lifespan, if not grants immortality.
* GenerationalSaga: The film track's Andrew's growth as he interacts with multiple generations of the Martin family.
* GenerationXerox: Portia is the spitting image of Little Miss, to Andrew's confusion. Little Miss explains that genetic resemblance sometimes skips a generation.
* GenkiGirl: Rupert's favorite personality program for Galatea.
* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: It's made pretty clear that Andrew and Portia are HappilyMarried, and are still having regular sex well into old age. Of course, Andrew's medical inventions have made both of them very healthy for their age (Portia is a centenarian; Andrew is a ''bicentenarian'').
* GrowOldWithMe: Though he doesn't physically age, Andrew does this with Portia. [[spoiler: Eventually he even forces himself to grow old in appearance and become mortal so that he can die of old age along side her.]]
* [[TomboyAndGirlyGirl Girly Girl]]: Galatea's personality chip.
* HandshakeRefusal: The first indication that Andrew's manufacturer sees him as a machine and nothing more is that he refuses to shake Andrew's hand when offered.
** Averted with Sir's lawyer, who offers his hand to Andrew before Andrew can even offer his own.
* HumblePie: When Andrew asks for facial upgrades to help show emotions, the [=NorthAm=] CEO hands him an exorbitant price tag.
-->'''Andrew:''' That is roughly one's monthly salary.
-->'''CEO:''' ...It's more than I make in a year.
* [[IdenticalGrandson Identical Granddaughter]]: The adult Amanda Martin (Little Miss) and her granddaughter, Portia Charney were both played by Embeth Davitz. Andrew is perturbed at this at first.
* IHaveThisFriend: How Amanda tries asking Andrew about her feelings about him. It gets them nowhere because she's disguised the question too well and he can't tell she's talking about him.
* ImmortalityImmorality: As Andrew first petitions the World Congress to recognize him as a human, the President of the Congress cites this as the reason why it will not validate Andrew's request; since he still possesses an artificial brain despite having become a cyborg, he is effectively immortal. The President states that society can accept an immortal machine, but that it can never accept an immortal human, which would arouse too much jealousy and anger.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: When Rupert talks about how imperfection is the key to making a realistic face, Andrew makes numerous comments about how imperfect Rupert's head and face are. To his credit, Rupert only does minor double takes and chalks it up to Andrew's honesty.
* InterspeciesRomance: Andrew and Portia.
* IronicEcho: Dennis Mansky, the CEO of [=NorthAm=], dismisses any sign of self-awareness in Andrew and calls him a "household appliance." Years later, when Andrew is making more in a month than Dennis does in a year, Richard is sure to bring up this conversation again.
-->'''Richard:''' Not bad for a...what was it he called you?\\
'''Andrew:''' "Household appliance."\\
'''Richard:''' Ah, household appliance.\\
'''Dennis:''' ''[thoroughly humiliated]'' Household appliance, yes.
* ItHasBeenAnHonor: Galatea's farewell to Portia and Andrew [[spoiler:on their deathbed.]]
* ItIsDehumanizing: Andrew's manufacturer insists on referring to Andrew as "it" despite the fact that he shows things such as sentience, emotions, and creativity, and gets annoyed when Mr. Martin uses "he" instead, saying that is a common mistake to make since Andrew is built to resemble a human.
-->"...replace the positronic brain, then...put it...''him'' back together and return ''him'' to you, good as new."
** Grace and Lloyd also do this. ''A lot.''
* {{Jerkass}}: Three that stand out are: Dennis Mansky, the CEO of [=NorthAm=]; Grace Martin, Amanda's older sister; and Lloyd Charney, Amanda's son.
* JustAMachine: What many claim Andrew is. When arguing about Galatea, Rupert slips out that she's just a machine, much to Andrew's offense.
* LoveFatherLoveSon: A gender-flipped version. The Android butler, Andrew, comes back after making himself more human and falls in love with the granddaughter of the woman he loved in the past, who looks ''[[IdenticalGrandson exactly the same]]'' to the point that they are played by the same actress.
* MayflyDecemberRomance: One of the major plot points on Andrew's journey to humanity.
* MeaningfulName: [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galatea_%28mythology%29 Galatea]]. Almost certainly deliberate on Rupert's part. [[spoiler: It's hinted at the end of the film, Galatea became self-aware as well.]]
* MechanicalEvolution: The process by which Andrew becomes more human.
* MySensorsIndicateYouWantToTapThat: Andrew reads Portia's heart rate, body heat, and pheromones to detect that she is attracted to him, which she says is completely unfair of him to scan her like that.
** Andrew replies with the standard "All's fair in love and war" retort.
* NeverTrustATrailer: Per usual in the case of this film's main star. This is ''not'' a goofy Creator/RobinWilliams comedy about a family and their robot. The ads for the movie when it came out only showed clips of the first twenty minutes, along with the wacky dance sequence of Galatea when we first see her, trying to make us believe the movie was just a wacky situational comedy about a family with a pet robot. It doesn't help it is directed by Creator/ChrisColumbus, noted for his family friendly trifles like ''Film/HomeAlone'', ''Film/MrsDoubtfire'' (which also starred Williams), and ''Film/AdventuresInBabysitting''. Even now the movie is often put in the children's, family, and comedy sections, despite its profanity, sex, and being a romantic drama questioning the definitions of humanity.
** The trailer also gives the impression Galatea will become a love interest for Andrew. That never happens. Though initially intrigued by her, Andrew ends up finding her somewhat annoying. [[spoiler: Though she's not so annoying that it prevents him from hiring her as a hospice nurse later.]]
* NextSundayAD: The movie begins shortly in the future (2005 from a 1999 release date), and ends 200 years later.
* NoAntagonist: The story is about Andrew's 200 year journey towards becoming human and finding love. The closest people to any sort of antagonist in the story are Andrew's stubborn manufacturer, Amanda's obnoxious son Lloyd, and the contrarian first President of the World Congress, each of whom appear in 1 or 2 scenes each and are rather incidental to the plot.
* NoNewFashionsInTheFuture: Averted. Fashion does noticably change over 200 years, though jeans, tuxedos and suits remain remarkably unaffected. It's only towards the latter half of the movie however that the changes become most evident, although [[spoiler:Galatea's]] outfit in the last scene is reminiscent of a nurse from TheForties.
** TruthInTelevision: The tuxedo and jeans have remained largely unchanged since their inception with only minor variations through the years, mens' suits tend to change very subtly and very slowly, and fashion is very cyclical (the early twenty-first century saw a resurgence in the popularity of bellbottoms and tie-dye).
* OlderThanTheyLook: Andrew, duh. Portia as well; late in the film, she looks like she's in her late 40's, early 50's, despite being around 100, thanks to the artificial organs. Andrew strongly hints that she could be immortal, too, but [[WhoWantsToLiveForever Portia tells him she doesn't want to]].
* OldRetainer: Andrew.
* PersonalityChip: Subverted here, for while Galatea had a simulated personality, it was only by virtue of a set of added mannerisms. Robots in this universe develop true personalities the old-fashioned way, by experience and interaction. In the end it's revealed that Galatea does eventually develop a personality of her own.
* PickYourHumanHalf: Andrew, although he looks (and acts) increasingly human as the story progresses. Depending on your point of view by the end of the film Andrew [[spoiler: becomes a fully-fledged human.]].
* PinocchioSyndrome: Andrew's quest to be recognized as human, [[spoiler:even going so far as to replace his entire body with his self-invented artificial organs and become mortal.]]
* PlayingGertrude: Embeth Davidtz (born 1965) plays Amanda Charney (née Martin), the mother of Lloyd Charney, played by Bradley Whitford (born 1959). She's not wearing ageing prosphetics at this point.
* PositiveDiscrimination: {{Subverted|Trope}} with the leader of the World Court that not only denies Andrew his humanity but rubs salt in the wound by saying he is "a machine, and nothing more" is a white man. His [[WomenAreWiser far more reasonable and kind]] replacement is a black woman. The leader of the World Court makes a reasonable point: humanity will ''never'' tolerate an immortal human being, fearing the societal anger that might ensue if the Court acknowledged it.
* ProductPlacement: Averted in a weird way. US Robotics was the original company in Creator/IsaacAsimov's story, and a real-life company adopted the name. The film changes the company to North American Robotics.

** The female bot is named Galatea. However, [[SubvertedTrope it's never indicated that her owner is in love or in a relationship with her]], although he did reprogram her to display more "human" quirks.
** Andrew himself is closer to an [[InvertedTrope inversion]], as he's really a RobotMaid who develops sentience by accident and as he slowly becomes more human he starts to desire human love and eventually marries the great-granddaughter of his former owner.
* RapidFireComedy: The movie isn't one these, but it contains an in-film example. Andrew attempts RapidFireComedy to show that he has studied the concept of humor, but he doesn't understand anything about the importance of delivery and so he simply recites a bunch of jokes in sequence while speaking too fast to comprehend.
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: Averted twice. First, Andrew decides to sell the many clocks and sculptures he makes, which by the time of his first upgrade makes wealthier than the CEO of the company that built him. Much later, a by-product of Andrew's attempt to become more human leads him to create artificial organs so perfect that they can be used in actual humans, which he then begins to sell to hospitals. Its implied by the end of the film that Andrew has become ridiculously wealthy from all his endeavors.
* RidiculouslyHumanRobot: Andrew starts the movie as one, although it is a manufacturing glitch, and spends the rest of the movie becoming more and more human.
* RoboRomance: Averted. When Andrew first sees Galatea it appears as though he has found the fembot of his dreams, only for him to quickly realize she is just a shallow personality program on a normal robot. In fact, within five minutes or so of having met her, he considers her too ''annoying'' to tolerate.
--> '''Andrew:''' ''(to Rupert)'' Shut her off, or ''I'' will.
** Later in the film, he uses a pneumatic drill to shut her off. HilarityEnsues.
* {{Robosexual}}: Portia falls in love with Andrew and part of the reason he wants to be aknowledged as human was so he can have his marriage to her validated. It's also heavily implied that her grandmother, "Little Miss" had feelings for Andrew, but at the time couldn't even dare to think about such a thing.
* RoboSpeak: Andrew suffers from this in the beginning, but as he becomes more human, his speech becomes more natural.
--> "One is glad to be of service."
* RobotGirl: Galatea.
* RoboticAssemblyLines: The opening credits.
* RoboticSpouse: [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot Andrew Martin]] marries Portia, who was the great-granddaughter of his first owner. As ''he'' wooed ''her'' the {{squick}} factor is minimal. Eventually subverted, when [[spoiler:Andrew becomes fully human.]]
* SenseFreak: Andrew, once he has a central nervous system put in.
* ShooTheDog: When Andrew expresses he wants freedom, Mr. Martin tells him to leave, giving him ''total'' independence rather than pseudo-freedom. The trope is played super-straight, as Mr. Martin looks like he's cutting off his own arm having Andrew leave for good. He asks for Andrew on his deathbed and apologizes for sending him away.
* SmugSnake: The [=NorthAm=] CEO snidely remarks that he will get his hands on Andrew, because sooner or later he'll need repairs. When Andrew does need to be brought in for repairs for his severed thumb, Richard installs in an alarm that will alert the police if the [=NorthAm=] technicians try to access Andrew's positronic brain.
* SpaceClothes: Averted for the most part, although fashions do noticeably change over the 200-year timeframe.
* SpoilerTitle: Thanks to the title, we know that Andrew becomes a man and lives to be 200 years old.
* StandardFiftiesFather: Sam Neill's character fits this trope despite the film being set TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture.
%%* Soft Robot: Andrew starts out very mechanical but still human looking then starts adding things like realistic skin and artificial organs - Rogue launched trope
* ThatsAnOrder: This is also what [[spoiler:an old Portia]] tells Galatea by the end of the movie [[spoiler:so she can die with Andrew]].
* TheTalk: Andrew is given one by his master, and expresses sorrow over the millions of deaths of unfertilized sperm.
* ThirdPersonPerson: At the beginning of the movie Andrew, like all robots, refers to himself as "this one". It is a sign of his self-awareness when he first refers to himself as "I".
** However, Andrew will use it ''after'' he's self-aware to be passive-aggressive.
* ThreeLawsCompliant: Even through his entire 200-year journey to humanity, Andrew staying within the boundaries of Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics, until he makes the decision to become mortal and die (technically breaking the Third Law).
** The novel/short story has a short, simple and very sad speech on Andrew's part on whether he has broken the Third Law.
-->''"No. I have chosen between the death of my body and the death of my aspirations and desires. To have let my body live at the cost of the greater death is what would have violated the Third Law."''
** In the film, Andrew's FaceDeathWithDignity speech above strongly implies that he's a man, not a robot, and therefore the Three Laws no longer apply.
* TimeAbyss: Hinted at, especially later on. Given that Andrew's been around for quite some time, the past is bound to haunt him one way or another.
* TimePassesMontage: Andrew's "search for another," eventually leading to essentially his own backyard with Rupert's shop in San Francisco.
* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:The film ends with Portia shutting down her own life support so she can be reunited with Andrew, who passed away just moments before.]]

* TooDumbToLive: Rupert [[DeadpanSnarker deadpan snarks this]] at Andrew's decision [[spoiler: to become mortal.]]

* UnableToCry: Andrew is envious of Portia when she cries after Amanda ("Little Miss") passes away. She can express the depth of her sorrow, but he is unable to, even though he mourns her loss just the same.

* UncannyValley: Deconstructed in the film.[[invoked]]
* WeWantOurJerkBack: Inverted. After Andrew reprograms Galatea to stand up for herself and stop simply being a perky servant, Rupert demands that he fix her because she is not getting any work done, as she's more of a JerkAss. Andrew relents.
-->'''Galatea:''' Every day it’s "Yes, Rupert, sir", "No, Rupert, sir", "Can I get you another beverage, Rupert, sir?!" and it CHAPS MY ASS!!!
-->''(Galatea storms off.)''
-->'''Rupert:''' ''(puzzled)'' "Chaps my ass"?!
* WeWillHavePerfectHealthInTheFuture: Largely thanks to Andrew's quest to become human. He and Rupert design more and more advanced human parts and organs for him. They eventually make ones organic enough to be compatible with ''humans'' as well, and Rupert founds a large corporation where he manufactures them for the medical industry.
* WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove: Chronicling a robot's 200-year journey towards understanding what love means.
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: The saddest part of Andrew's existence is that he's forced to see his loved ones grow older until they die of old age one by one, which he becomes increasingly reflective on. He extends Portia's life significantly to prevent this, but since she doesn't want to live forever, he eventually arranges a way make himself mortal as well.
* WifeHusbandry: Downplayed. After Andrew the android helps to raise Amanda, she develops romantic feelings for him, but he's oblivious to her advances (not to mention that he doesn't even look human yet), so she marries someone else. Then he comes back after a century or so and falls in love with her [[IdenticalGrandson identical granddaughter]] Portia.
* {{Zeerust}}: Largely avoided, but "credit discs"?
** Although the iPad like devices seen being used, the concept is modern but the design of them are pretty bulky and 90's looking, though they could be the equivalent of a very powerful [=iPad=] (we don't know, say, the processing power or storage capability on those things.)

* SoftRobot:Andrew starts out very mechanical but still human looking then starts adding things like realistic skin and artificial organs

* PygmalionPlot: The female bot is named Galatea. However, [[SubvertedTrope it's never indicated that her owner is in love or in a relationship with her]], although he did reprogram her to display more "human" quirks.

* PygmalionPlot: The female bot is named Galatea.

* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: It's made pretty clear that Andrew and Portia are HappilyMarried, and are still having regular sex well into old age. Of course, Andrew's medical inventions have made both of them very healthy for their age.

* NeverTrustATrailer: This is ''not'' a goofy Creator/RobinWilliams comedy about a family and their robot. The ads for the movie when it came out only showed clips of the first twenty minutes, along with the wacky dance sequence of Galatea when we first see her, trying to make us believe the movie was just a wacky situational comedy about a family with a pet robot. It doesn't help it is directed by Creator/ChrisColumbus, noted for his family friendly trifles like ''Film/HomeAlone'', ''Film/MrsDoubtfire'' (which also starred Williams), and ''Film/AdventuresInBabysitting''. Even now the movie is often put in the children's, family, and comedy sections, despite its profanity, sex, and being a romantic drama questioning the definitions of humanity.
** The trailer also gives the impression Galatea will become a love interest for Andrew. That never happens. Though initially intrigued by her, Andrew ends up finding her somewhat annoying. [[spoiler: though not so annoying that it prevents him from hiring her as a hospice nurse later]]

It also stars Creator/SamNeill as "Sir" Richard Martin, Creator/EmbethDavidtz as "Little Miss" Amanda Martin and Portia Charney, and Oliver Platt as Rupert Burns.

* GenerationalSaga

* AwardBaitSong: ''Then You Look At Me'', by Celine Dion.