Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
Curmudgeonly old Frank lives by himself. His routine involves daily visits to his local library, where he has a twinkle in his eye for the librarian. His grown children are concerned about their father’s well-being and buy him a caretaker robot. Initially resistant to the idea, Frank soon appreciates the benefits of robotic support – like nutritious meals and a clean house – and eventually begins to treat his robot like a true companion. With his robot’s assistance, Frank’s passion for his old, unlawful profession is reignited, for better or worse.
Robot & Frank earns genuine distinction through its clever high-concept premise — a retired cat burglar bonding with a care robot — handled with quiet wit and surprising emotional depth rather than sci-fi spectacle. Frank Langella's performance is exceptional, carrying the film's heart and delivering a nuanced portrait of aging, dignity, and memory loss. The novelty is real: the film finds a genuinely fresh intersection of genres (heist comedy, character study, near-future SF) with a tone unlike anything else. Cinematography is competent but unremarkable, fitting the intimate scale. The ending, while emotionally resonant, relies on a memory-loss twist that somewhat deflates the caper energy built up beforehand, landing as bittersweet but slightly anticlimactic.