It’s always fun to see the future, and I, Robot gives us that chance better than anything in recent history, including Minority Report. I, Robot provides a realistic picture of a world just 30 years away. The realism is highlighted by some amazingly realistic CG robots – robots which have now become a major part of everyday life in the world of tomorrow.

Everyone loves the new robots which essentially act as servants to the humans. They have a sort of artificial intelligence, which allows them to think for themselves, but hardwired into their brains are overriding commands which prohibit them from harming or disobeying humans.

The only one who doesn’t love the robots is detective Spooner (Will Smith). His suspicions about the robots are quickly verified and he tracks down the mystery of the evil robots with the assistance of scientist Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynahan) and a prototype robot, named Sonny (Alan Tudyk), that has emotions of some sort. There are some fun effects and some fun action sequences, but there’s nothing particularly compelling.

I, Robot is actually interesting as a strong indictment of utilitarianism though. The robots decide to take over the world in order to fulfill the first law – do not hurt or allow harm to human beings – because humans constantly seem engaged in self-destructive behavior. In order to do this, a few humans must be hurt or killed in order to accomplish the greater good. Sonny, the robot with feelings, resists the robots’ plan because, as he says, “It just seems heartless.”

Though the treatment of the issue is rather sparse, there’s something I like in one robot telling another robot, whose utilitarian logic is “flawless”, that it’s also “heartless”. There seems to be something in our moral sensibility that tells us that although the greater good is indeed greater, it’s not always preferable.

The issue also arises in a storyline that informs us of Spooner’s aversion to robots. Years before, when Spooner was in a car accident, a robot saved him instead of a little girl because, according to the robot’s calculation, Spooner had a greater chance of survival. Spooner detested the fact that he was saved over “someone’s little girl.” The implicit argument here is that humans have a sensibility towards what is right that defies practical utility. There’s a mercy that defies justice.

There isn’t much of a critique beyond the basic plot structure, however. Though the finished product isn’t much more than a simple sci-fi story, it's still a fun ride into the future.

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