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Real Steel | 2011 | PG-13 | - 3.5.4

In the not-too-distant future, giant robots take the place of men in boxing matches that are as popular at state fairs as monster truck matches. A human fighter (Hugh Jackman) loses his chance at a title bout when the robots come to the fore, so he becomes a promoter for the new sport. Unable to earn enough cash alone, he collaborates with his young genius son (Dakota Goyo) in building the ultimate fighting robot. Also with Evangeline Lilly, Kevin Durand, Anthony Mackie and Phil LaMarr. Directed by Shawn Levy. [2:07]

SEX/NUDITY 3 - A woman wears a tight bikini to announce each round of a fight, and the top is pointy and it reveals cleavage, bare arms and shoulders and full legs in black stockings. Several arena scenes feature women in tight, short skirts that reveal bare legs. Some women are shown wearing short shorts that reveal bare legs. Women wear tank tops and low-cut blouses that reveal cleavage, bra straps, bare arms and bare shoulders. Men in loose tank tops reveal bare shoulders and arms, along with bare sides and nipples through low-cut armholes. In a formal party scene, women are seen wearing tight, clingy dresses that reveal legs, bare arms and shoulders.
 A fully clothed man enters a bedroom, lies down beside a woman (she's wearing a slip revealing only bare arms and shoulders) and goes to sleep. A man and a woman wake up in bed together, they kiss twice and he leaves. A man and a woman kiss briefly twice.
 A man in a gym removes his shirt (revealing his bare chest and back) and asks a woman if she wants to take a shower (she declines). A man tells a woman that he cannot ever resist her eyes when she asks him for anything. A man says he does not remember an old girlfriend very well and vaguely remembers having a son with her. A man loses control of his remote controlled robot when be begins talking to a woman.

VIOLENCE/GORE 5 - Three men beat up a man and his 11-year-old son for paying off a bet late; the child is knocked to the ground and dirtied, and the father is seen with a cut above his eye and a bloody mouth (one assailant had a steel pipe as a weapon, but drops it before he can use it).
 Throughout the film, boxing is discussed and boxing training is shown with human and robot punches and occasional kicks. During boxing sequences, robots are knocked down and some are destroyed (even in sparring practice), losing their heads or a leg -- sparks fly and loud, creaking metal is heard. Humans shadow box, while robots (8 to 10 feet tall) shadow box and spar with other robots before matches.
 A robot fights a steer: we see the steer knocked down several times, then thrown and it lands with a loud thud; the steer rams the robot and gores it until it falls apart in puddles of green ooze and clouds of sparks. In a robot fight ring, one robot is smashed completely by another after several punches and loses its head and a leg among sparks; it falls to the floor where red fluid oozes out in a large puddle (it looks like blood). During a fight, a robot's leg is torn off and a green liquid oozes to the floor. A robot fights another robot that punches itself in the head and falls over. We see the top half of a broken robot, still punching as it is pulled away on a cart. A robot runs down a street at night, smashing crates in its way and a fire hydrant that spurts water into the air.
 Robot fight scenes include loud shouting by spectators, fireworks shooting up from stages and arguments among bettors and robot owners about winners and losers. Robot owners taunt one another and argue briefly. One scene features a man shadow boxing at ringside for the entire last round of the match. A robot owner punches through the glass of his control booth; no one is injured.
 A white Texan sarcastically calls a Black promoter "homey" and "home boy" as he makes a bet that he cannot meet; the promoter and one of his bodyguards pull the Texan out of an arena audience and a beating is implied (we do not see it). A boy punches his dad several times in frustration, but does not injure him.
 A boy falls over a cliff at night in a salvage yard and tumbles down a long incline, unhurt but muddied, as he ends up hanging from a robot arm over a deep gully. A boy digs a buried robot out of slimy mud.
 During robot fights, people yell, "Fight to the death!" A father and his son argue about robot parts and how to get them. An announcer calls robots "killers." We hear that a man's former girlfriend died.
 In a rural arena, we see male and female audience members with scars on their faces and arms; they are heavily tattooed and have greasy hair. Many fight scenes are staged in dark, industrial type settings that appear grimy. A robot fighter spits fluid into the face of another robot. A man spits six times. Two men spit on the ground.

LANGUAGE 4 - 7 scatological terms, 6 anatomical terms; 11 mild obscenities, name-calling (bum, failure, killer, kid, boy, homey, home boy, junk yard dog, idiots, genius, junk, knucklehead, little bum boy, baby boy, girl, robot, crazy, cocky, bed bet), stereotypical references to women, children, absentee fathers, divorce, Blacks, senior citizens, children, child prodigies, the Japanese, retired fighters, fight promoters, gambling, Texans, blue collar workers, exclamations (shut up), 4 religious exclamations.

SUBSTANCE USE - A man gathers empty beer bottles from his trailer floor early one morning and drinks from one of them, carnival and fair scenes show crowds of men and women drinking beer, arena scenes feature men and women drinking beer and liquor, men and women drink wine at a party, and men and women drink beer and liter bottles of gin and rum and we see many people stagger and hear them slur their words. An 11-year-old boy drinks 2 energy drinks and 7 cans of Dr. Pepper to stay up all night while using a computer and talks very fast.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - Relationships, family, boxing, money, gambling, determination, self-esteem, honor, conflict, reconciliation.

MESSAGE - Fight for your family.

CAVEATS

Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.

We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.

Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.


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