Star-studded cast can’t make ‘Astro’ interesting

Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing bad about the latest animated actioneer “Astro Boy.” There just isn’t anything great about it, either.

The film is about a robot made to replace an inventor’s dead son, and who has incredible powers and abilities and must use them to save the world. Nothing too original, right?
The voice cast is phenomenal, with Freddie Highmore, Nicholas Cage, Kristen Bell, Bill Nighy and Nathan Lane all doing really entertaining work – but in the end, the film falls into the dreaded range of forgettable mediocrity.

The animation is OK, the story is fine and the running time features a few truly laugh-out-loud moments, but nothing about “Astro Boy” struck me as worth paying nine dollars to see. Your little brother will probably love it, though – probably.

If the story shown in “Astro Boy” was a pilot for a new television show, I would be excited. But as a stand-alone movie, it just doesn’t feel like enough.