Real Steel is the latest entry into the cliche, over-the-top, underdog boxing story. Yet there’s a twist, unlike most films which rely on the human element to win over its audience, we’re looking at giant, remote-controlled robots doing the fighting. What’s left is a type of mindless entertainment, that while it’s sure to be a crowd-pleaser and looks great, lacks all soul, life and feeling.

The year is 2020, and boxing has been replaced by a new technology: remote-controlled robots. Only this can hardly be called boxing, instead it’s “see which huge brute can rip off the other huge brute’s head off first!” We meet Charlie Kenton, played by Hugh Jackman, who’s a washed-up boxer, drifting from county fair to underground boxing ring trying to make it big as a “controller” for these robots, but is instead forced to skip out of bets and debts. Yeah, he’s a bit of a loser.

Just when Kenton hits a low point, his life gets worse. His ex-girlfriend has passed away and he’s forced to take charge of their son, Max (Dakota Goyo), who he once abandoned. But wait, instead of redeeming his past errors, he sells Max to the boy’s aunt and uncle, played by Hope David and James Rebhorn, for $100,000 – with the catch that he has to take care of the Max for the summer. We get it, Charlie is a bad person.

So Charlie and Max leave for a road trip to try to get Charlie some money in the “robot-fighting” business where, as required, the father and son begin to slowly bond and grow fond of each other. After a bit of bad luck at a fight, Max finds an old beat up “generation 2” robot in a junk yard and beings to take care of it, where we find out that because he plays video games, he is now some kind of astrophysicist who can program and deal with the complex-looking mechanics of the robot – kids these days!

But wait, this robot appears to possess some type rare characteristics, including the ability to mimic Max and dare we say – understand him? In fact, while this concept is quite silly and is very ‘I, Robot’-esque, there is something intriguing here about the background of this robot, Atom. Unfortunately, for whatever reason they don’t delve into this particular plot line. Instead, this unlikely duo of 11 year old Max and his mean ol’ dad, Charlie, take the robot that could to unlikely heights. From grungy underground robot boxing rings they gain enough notoriety to quickly hit the main robot-boxing circuit: Real Steel.

I’ll stop spoiling the film here, although I’m pretty sure you know where this one is going. Director Shawn Levy, of such box-office successes as Night at the Museum, Date Night, and Cheaper By the Dozen, has crafted yet another film the studios are bound to love. It’s the type of mindless entertainment that seems to captivate audiences. It’s Rocky-meets-Transformers, only it lacks the humanity that made Rocky so great.

We’re left with a father/son story that wants and tries to be more meaningful than it is. But it’s more than a little bit naive or unclear on just how bad Charlie is as a dad, and no matter how hard Jackman, Dakota Goyo, or Levy can try, nothing can change that. When you throw in all the obligatory characters, the jerk rival, Ricky (Kevin Durand, Keamy from “LOST”), the love interest, Bailey (Evangeline Lilly, Kate from “LOST”), the likable confident/insider, (Anthony Mackie, The Hurt Locker), and the ridiculous “enemy” in the form of a genius Robot Programmer, Tak Mashido (Karl Yune, Memoirs of a Geisha) and his beautiful accomplice, Farra Lemkova (Olga Fonda, Little Fockers), the redundant nature of the plot and flat supporting characters is a recipe for disaster.

That all being said, I have to admit that given the characters and story, Jackman and Goyo salvage as much as they can in their chemistry together. The few all-human scenes between the two both confirm Jackman’s talents as an actor, as well as bright future ahead for Goyo, who looks and acts like a much better Jake Lloyd (Young Anakin, The Phantom Menace).

Ultimately, we’re left with a plot that makes me think it arose from the childhood fantasy one gets when they crash their two Transformer toys together. It’s a mindless attempt at a feel-good, crowd pleaser, although where it succeeds is in the sleek and exciting style of Shawn Levy’s direction, and when coupled with a few decent performances can at times make you forget the appalling nature of the film. Unfortunately, Real Steel can’t muster the consistency or any sort of relatable nature to be successful or enjoyable.

Grade: D+