Meet the Robinsons (2007)
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An orphaned inventor's life is upended when he meets a time-traveler and must navigate the complexities of the past and future.
The story
Lewis, an orphaned 12-year-old inventor, seeks to be adopted but his erratic behavior and malfunctioning inventions often deter potential parents. While presenting his Memory Scanner at a science fair, he meets Wilbur Robinson, a boy from the future who warns him about a mysterious man in a bowler hat who stole a time machine. After a mishap during the fair, the Bowler Hat Guy steals the Memory Scanner. Wilbur takes Lewis to the future to help fix the time machine, where Lewis becomes acquainted with Wilbur's eccentric family while the mysterious man attempts to sabotage Lewis's fate and the future.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Lewis, an orphaned 12-year-old boy who is an aspiring scientist and inventor, wants to get adopted, but his energetic behavior and malfunctioning inventions frequently scare off prospective parents. He builds a Memory Scanner to find his birth mother. At a science fair, he meets Wilbur Robinson, a boy from the future who warns him about the 'Bowler Hat Guy.' After the Bowler Hat Guy steals the Memory Scanner, Wilbur takes Lewis to a technologically advanced future. They meet the eccentric Robinson family, who live by the motto 'Keep Moving Forward.' The Bowler Hat Guy, who is revealed to be the adult version of Lewis's roommate, Goob, tries to steal the technology. It is revealed that Goob and a rogue robot named Doris caused a dystopian future. Lewis confronts Doris in the past, undoing her existence and restoring the future. In the present, Lewis is eventually adopted by Dr. Lucille Krunklehorn and Bud Robinson, and he begins his career as an inventor.
- First release year
- 2007
- Runtime (minutes)
- 95
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Stephen Anderson
- Writers
- Jon Bernstein · screenplay; Michelle Spitz · screenplay; Don Hall · screenplay; Nathan Greno · screenplay; Aurian Redson · screenplay; Joe Mateo · screenplay; Stephen Anderson · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Daniel Hansen · Lewis; Jordan Fry · Lewis; Wesley Singerman · Wilbur Robinson; Angela Bassett · Mildred Duffy; Tom Selleck · Cornelius Robinson; Harland Williams · Carl; Nicole Sullivan · Franny Robinson; Adam West · Art; Laurie Metcalf · Dr. Lucille Krunklehorn-Robinson; Tom Kenny · Mr. Willerstein; Ethan Sandler · Doris, Fritz Robinson, Aunt Petunia, Cousin Laszlo, Uncle Spike and Uncle Dimitri, The unnamed CEO of InventCo; Don Hall · Gaston, Gym Coach
- Genres
- animated; science fiction; comedy
- Themes
- innovation; family; perseverance
- Tone and mood
- whimsical; adventurous
- Premise and plot tags
- time travel; orphan; invention
- Source material / true-story basis
- A Day with Wilbur Robinson by William Joyce
- Reception
- The film received generally positive reviews from critics and audiences but was a box office disappointment.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 61 · scale: 100 · review count: 27
- Production trivia
- The film was originally intended to be a live-action movie.; Nearly 60% of the film was scrapped and reworked after Disney acquired Pixar.; Jim Carrey was originally offered the role of Bowler Hat Guy but declined.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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