In Writer and Director Chris Sanders’s The Wild Robot, robot Roz, voiced by Lupita Nyong’o, rescues an unborn gosling. The Wild Robot is based on Peter Brown’s beloved book. Roz’s spaceship accidentally crash lands on Earth, killing the mother goose. The gosling hatches and looks into Roz’s gentle round lensed eyes. He says, “Mama.” He touches his head against Roz’s head. Roz’s mechanical structure glows radiantly. Roz says, “I will protect him.” That’s mother’s love for her child. I cried.
Roz is a Universal company robot programmed to serve humans. Universal might be homage to Universal Studios that released this Dreamworks production. Roz’s program enables her to speak the languages of all the animals in the forest, including the gosling. After fumbling with code numbers names, Roz names the gosling Brightbill.
In Roz’s epiphany, she says, “Sometimes, to survive, you must become more than you were programmed to be.” Roz becomes the Mother who raises Brightbill to be the greatest than he can be. What a mother does for her children out of unconditional love. In their touching narrative arc, older Brightbill, voiced by Kit Connor, comes back to rescue Roz. Laying his head next to Roz’s, Brightbill says, “I love you.” Weakened Roz responds, “I love you, too.” The Wild Robot is about love. It always was.
Raising Brightbill, Roz enrolls the help of red fox Fink, voiced by funny kind Pedro Pascal, and opossum Pinktail, voiced by authentically nurturing Catherine O’Hara. Roz admits to Pinktail, “I don’t have the programming to be a mother.” Wise Pinktail says, “No one does. We just make it up.”
Roz and her crew need to develop and train Brightbill so that he can to join the geese on their winter migration. Roz’s mission: Feed Birghtbill; teach him to swim; teach him to fly. Although, most of the geese view Brightbill as a little freak and Roz as a horrible monster, geese leader Long Neck, voiced with gentle gravitas by Bill Nighy, knows better. He tells Roz that the runt Brightbill is alive, because of her. She must help Brightbill get ready for the journey. Using her artificial intelligence, Roz assesses Brightbill’s small size and gets hawk Thunderbolt, voiced by hilariously powerful Ving Rhames, to teach him to fly strong.
On winter migration day, Brightbill stands upon Roz’s mechanical shoulders and outstretched arms. Roz asks, “Ready?” Brightbill says, “I guess I have to be.” Roz runs like the wind with her boy. Brightbill soars free into the open sky. He looks back at his Mom as he flies away. Roz’s lit round eyes watch as Brightbill flies off into the sunset. She competed her mission.
Roz touchingly catches Brightbill’s lone feather in the air in her robotic hand. Chris Sanders and his CGI animators create such beautiful poignancy in that narrative arc. I cried again. As visually beautiful as The Wild Robot is, its heart is even more sublime.
Roz patiently awaits Brightbill’s spring return on the high cliff. She courageously protects the forest animals from the worst winter storm ever. They all become a family, because of Roz, because of the robot who is more than what she was programmed to be.
Believing that her mission is complete, Roz activates her transmitter to summon her makers. Her creators wish to extract Roz for her evolved sentience that is far beyond what she was designed. Universal sends a spaceship with combat robots to retrieve Roz and take her home. However, the forest is now Roz’s home. The animals that are her family, will fight to protect their own, Roz.
When you know your limitations, you can go beyond them and become as great as you can be. That’s Roz. That’s Brightbill. That’s what makes The Wild Robot something very special. Lupita Nyong’o eloquently voices robot Roz’s mathematical logic with a mother’s unconditional love. Kit Connor voices humanity, wonder, and grace in Brightbill. Lupita and Kit’s authentic partnership embody the Mother’s enduring love for her son. What my late Mom had for me. We’re only as strong as the size of our heart. The Wild Robot has the biggest heart. The Wild Robot is my favorite movie of the year so far.
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This Post is republished on Medium.
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Photo credit: Auhtor
