

BICENTENNIAL MAN
*** (out of five stars)
A review by Jamey Hughton

Starring-Robin Williams, Embeth Davidtz,
Sam Neill, Oliver Platt and Wendy Crewson
Director-Chris Columbus
Rated PG
Columbia Pictures

MOVIE VIEWS by Jamey Hughton
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You may assume “Bicentennial Man” is just going to be another
sentimental Robin Williams vehicle dripping with fabricated emotions and
melodrama. You would be mistaken. Although this Williams Christmas
offering has it’s share of problems, sentimentality is indeed not one of
the major offenders.

You may also be led to believe that “Bicentennial Man” is for children,
with Williams in permanent shtick-mode playing a goofy futuristic robot
who supplies various punch-lines to please the kiddies. Again, you would
be mistaken. For any youngster expecting a non-stop barrage of slapstick
humor, this film will seem monotonous and dull in it’s endless search
for dramatic depth. There is humor (and some of it is genuinely funny),
but “Bicentennial Man” will be best enjoyed by older viewers who are
more familiar with emotional tinkering. This age group may be more
appreciative of the few genuine aspects of the production. Others, I’m
afraid, may be lost in this awkward futuristic stew of special effects
and unrealized drama that “Bicentennial Man” has to offer.

The movie does have a few wonders of it’s own. When we are first
introduced to Andrew (Robin Williams), a NDR-114 prototype android
designed as a helpful household appliance, the effect is utterly
charming. Andrew is the new property of Sir (Sam Neill) and Ma’am (Wendy
Crewson), and he takes a liking to their youngest daughter, Little Miss
(adorable Pepsi spokes-girl Hallie Kate Eisenberg). Sir begins to notice
that Andrew is showing a number of human characteristics (*gasp*),
including his ability to grasp the idea of humor and friendship. A
greedy business executive (wonderfully played by Stephen Root) wants to
reprogram Andrew so this “malfunction” can be properly repaired, but Sir
stands up for his desire to become more human, insisting that Andrew is
unique. For these 45 minutes in the Martin household, “Bicentennial Man”
shows enormous potential, with emotions that feel genuine and solid
character development across the board.

But, unfortunately, the film opts for an approach that spans the course
of 200 years into the future. Andrew, with his positronic brain,
survives through several generations while he attempts to “become
human”. The film radiates so much heart in this section that apparently
every other function was abandoned to compensate. It is awkward and
uncomfortable to see certain characters exit at such a rapid pace, for
even if the screen reads ‘12 Years Later’, it has only been 12 minutes
for the audience. The film continues with this pattern until the
possibilities have been virtually exhausted, and director Chris Columbus
elects for a finale that is pleasant but completely under-calculated and
sappy.

Despite my disappointment regarding the film’s lost potential, I still
think “Bicentennial Man” is decent family fare. Williams delivers an
appealing performance as the machine who has aspirations of becoming a
man, and then later does - with the help of an out-of-work inventor
named Rupert Graves (Oliver Platt, playing the typical quirky supporting
role we have become accustomed to). In both robotic and human form,
Williams is a charming display of naive splendor, as Andrew learns
everything from the birds and the bees to carving miniature mammals out
of wood. Embeth Davidtz plays a dual role as grown-up Little Miss, and
later her granddaughter Portia, who becomes a romantic interest for
Andrew in human form. Sam Neill is terrific, as usual, playing an
understanding man who first encourages Andrew to find inner freedom. The
performances are all amiable, the James Horner score is lovely, and the
film is swift, honest and funny with a great majority of it’s humor.

The production values of “Bicentennial Man” are exceptional, with brief
glimpses of our future society presented with great imagination and
impressive special effects. There is an abundance of frank (but
well-handled) discussions about sex, and some mild coarse language
(Andrew calls a malfunctioning record player a “piece of fecal matter”,
and is lectured in the proper method of cursing). And so I offer a
delicate warning: “Bicentennial Man” is not the ideal family movie. A
few aspects are rewarding, but the film, like the title character,
becomes far too mechanical as it goes along.

(C) 1999, Jamey Hughton

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