Why So Blu?

Robot Dreams (Blu-ray Review)

A lovely surprise from last year that wasn’t released in US theaters until the Spring of 2024, Robot Dreams is now available for everyone to enjoy, and it’s well worth the time. The tragi-comic journey of two characters (a dog and a robot) is very well done, touching, occasionally humorous, and inventive in its presentation. What could have been a simple story turns into something greater, and it’s now available on this nice Blu-ray package that adds plenty of additional perspective, along with a good enough audio/video transfer.

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Film:

Dog lives in Manhattan and is tired of being alone. One day, he decides to build himself a robot, a companion. Their friendship blossoms until they become inseparable, to the rhythm of 80’s NYC. One summer night, Dog, with great sadness, is forced to abandon Robot at the beach. Will they ever meet again?

This film is delightful. I just need to say that again, and right up front, as there’s a really nice core to all of this, even as the story takes turns that deliberately add tragedy to the good times being had. Writer/director Pablo Berger has adapted this story from a graphic novel by Sara Varon that I am unfamiliar with, but the results are immensely affecting. Stylistically, this is not the most ambitious animation I’ve come across, yet it’s vibrant and lively in creating a world resembling an 80s New York filled with only animal characters (along with some robots).

On top of that, everything conveyed has nothing to do with dialogue, as there is none. This is a non-verbal film, allowing us to only take audio in through Alfonso de Vilallonga’s score and diegetic music, such as a vital usage of “September” by Earth, Wind & Fire. Despite the turns made that affect both lead characters, this is a charming and very lovely film about bonding, loneliness, exploration, and love.

 

Video:

Encoding: MPEG-4 AVC

Resolution: 1080p

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Clarity/Detail: This is a very bright picture, which is mostly well represented with this transfer, as the vivid locations we see are great to look at, with our heroes being placed well within them. That said, there’s a bit of a compression issue that doesn’t let the video truly shine as it potentially could.

Depth: As a 2D animated feature, there’s only so much to really address here, but it comes more down to the work of the animators, which does well to create a living world with depth.

Black Levels: Black levels are mostly strong here. No sign of crushing, though this isn’t the inkiest I’ve seen in animation.

Color Reproduction: Colors are often quite strong here, representing all the primaries well.

Flesh Tones: N/A

Noise/Artifacts: Mostly clean with some banding.

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Audio:

Audio Format(s): English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio

Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Dynamics: This film is all music and sounds of the city, and it comes across great. There’s not a moment that feels false here, as so much work has been done to convey emotion through sound, and it comes through cleanly.

Low-Frequency Extension: Some music moments do well enough to add the sub-woofer appropriately.

Surround Sound Presentation: A lot is going on to help immerse the viewer into the film, thanks to the New York setting and the prominent music at play.

Dialogue Reproduction: N/A

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Extras:

This disc boasts several brief but interesting featurettes discussing all aspects of the film, almost all of which are presented in Spanish with English subtitles. It’s a rather nice collection for those intrigued by how this movie came together.

Features Include:

• From Reality to Animation (HD, 5:53) – Interviews with executive producer Sandra Tapia, writer/director Pablo Berger, animation director Benoit Feroumont, editor Fernando Franco, sound designer Fabiola Ordoyo, and art director Jose Luis Agreda.
• A Once-in-a-Lifetime Friendship (HD, 5:10) – Interviews with writer/director Pablo Berger, author Sara Varon, art director Jose Luis Agreda, and editor Fernando Franco, discussing the film’s themes.
• The Sound of 1980s New York (HD, 6:52) – Interviews with Pablo Berger, sound designer Fabiola Ordoyo, and music editor Yuko Harami, highlighting the use of sound in a dialogue-free movie.
• The Art Direction (HD, 7:05) – The interviewees discuss the effort to turn the 2D world of Veron’s book into an animated world.
• The Animation (HD, 6:43) – Berger and animation director Benoit Feroumont discuss the animation process.
• Soundtrack (HD, 5:22) – Berger, music editor Yuko Harami, and composer Alfonso De Vilallonga discuss the film’s music.
• A Love Letter to New York (HD, 4:06) – Berger, author Sara Varon, music editor Yuko Harami, and art director Jose Luis Agreda talk about recreating a certain time for New York.
• A Film Without Words (HD, 3:31) – Voice director Ivan Labanda talks about the unique nature of this movie.
• Interview (HD, 5:01) – brief Q&A discussion of “Robot Dreams” with writer/director Pablo Berger.
• Teaser Trailer (HD, 1:03)
• Theatrical Trailer (HD, 1:33)

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Summary:

Robot Dreams is a truly beautiful movie that really shows what animation can accomplish in a modern era, even with more limited means. Working with its own animation parameters and without dialogue, this film is funny and dramatic all in one, with plenty to offer viewers. On top of that, while the video isn’t the strongest, the sound is excellent, and the bevy of featurettes to help dig into the production only adds to what this Blu-ray set offers. Worth checking out.

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