I have vacillated over reviewing The Wild Robot for the past few weeks, as I try to separate my thoughts on this 2024 animated feature from director Chris Sanders. The problem stems from my personal expectations for the film and the blunt reality. Any critic or reviewer worth their salt will tell you to review the text for what it is, and to never compare it to what you wanted it to be. It is a tenet that I have considered multiple times as I have gone back and forth, because the bottom line in The Wild Robot‘s case is that it is a very good animated film with which I was deeply disappointed.

Chris Sander is, of course, the creative force behind animated classics Lilo & Stitch (2002) and How to Train Your Dragon (2010), and that sets up expectations that The Wild Robot simply fails to meet. The concept, based on Peter Brown’s novel, is pretty great: a robot designed to serve its owner is abandoned in an isolated wilderness, and instead of serving humans its programming leads it to obey the local animals instead. Specifically it accidentally kills a goose, and then spends several seasons supporting its orphaned gosling. The film’s trailer gave the impression of a dialogue-free adventure told through action rather than words, and it is a shame this does not eventuate. Instead The Wild Robot is far more conventional slice of family entertainment, with talking animals akin to any number of earlier animated features.

While this all makes the film feel rather over-familiar, it is well-developed and animated with a distinctive visual style. “Roz”, as the robot comes to call itself, is a charming and likeable protagonist, and well performed by Lupita Nyong’o. Other character are perhaps less well drawn, but amiably performed, such as the fox Fink (Pedro Pascal) and the veteran goose Longneck (Bill Nighy).

Really it is the story itself that shines, involving Roz’s sense of duty to the orphaned Brightbill (Kit Connor) as well as the inevitable arrival of Roz’s creators – come to retrieve and reprogram their property. Alongside themes of duty, responsibility, and free will, there is also a welcome sense of environmental allegory. The story clearly takes place in some post-climate crisis future, with visible damage and transformation of the Earth as well as a changed human society that has adapted to it.

Viewers who particularly adore The Wild Robot certainly are not wrong to like it, and it does maintain Sanders’ reputation for high quality works. It also stands out as a particularly strong film for DreamWorks Animation, who have often struggled to match the quality of their American competitors. At the same time, there is an unavoidable sense that greater innovation would have led to a greater film: not just an entertaining family spectacle, but a genuine classic film as well.