Real Steel (2011)

Real Steel is a 2011 American science fiction sports film starring Hugh Jackman and Dakota Goyo, co-produced and directed by Shawn Levy for DreamWorks Pictures. The film is based on the short story "Steel", written by Richard Matheson, which was originally published in the May 1956 edition of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and later adapted into a 1963 Twilight Zone episode, though screenwriter John Gatins placed the film in U.S. state fairs and other "old-fashioned" Americana settings. Real Steel was in development for several years before production began on June 24, 2010. Filming took place primarily in the U.S. state of Michigan. Animatronic robots were built for the film, and motion capture technology was used to depict the brawling of computer-generated robots and animatronics.

Real Steel was theatrically released by Touchstone Pictures in Australia on October 6, 2011, and in the United States and Canada on October 7, 2011,^[4] grossing nearly $300 million at the box office. It received mixed reviews, with criticism for the formulaic nature of the plot and the fact that elements remained unresolved or were predictable, but also praise for the visual effects, action sequences and acting performances. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects at the 84th Academy Awards, but lost to Hugo.

In 2020, human boxers are replaced by robots. Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman), a former boxer, owns "Ambush", but loses it in an arranged fight against a bull belonging to promoter and carnival owner Ricky (Kevin Durand), who sees Charlie as a joke, partially because he beat Charlie the last time they competed in the ring. Having made a bet that Ambush would win, Charlie now has a debt to Ricky—which he runs out on.

After the fight, Charlie learns that his ex-girlfriend died and he must attend a hearing deciding the future of their son, Max (Dakota Goyo). There, Max's aunt, Debra (Hope Davis), and her wealthy husband, Marvin (James Rebhorn), request full custody, which Charlie concedes for $100,000, half in advance, on the condition that Charlie retains Max for three months. Thereupon, Charlie, Max, and Bailey Tallet (Evangeline Lilly), the daughter of Charlie's former boxing coach, acquire the once-famous "Noisy Boy" and arrange a fight, where he is destroyed by "Midas". Attempting to scavenge parts of a new robot from a junkyard, Max discovers "Atom", an obsolete but intact sparring robot designed to withstand severe damage, and capable of mirroring its handler's movement due to its rare "shadow function" module.

At Max's behest, Charlie pits Atom against "Metro", whom Atom overcomes. Max convinces Charlie to control Atom, resulting in a series of victories and culminating with the offer of fighting "Twin Cities", a national champion in the World Robot Boxing. The fight starts with Atom on the attack, landing multiple punches guided by Charlie, who is using Noisy Boy's voice recognition programmed in Atom by Max. Twin Cities then gets on the offensive and corners Atom. Their opponent having no blind spot, Charlie notices a hitch whenever Twin Cities throws a right punch. Charlie is able to get Atom out of the corner and eventually win by knockout. Elated by their success, Max challenges global champion "Zeus", with the audience squarely on their side. After the fight, Ricky and his two henchmen attack and rob Charlie of his winnings, which prompts him to return Max to Debra.

This upsets Max, and when Charlie tries to convince him that living without him is better for Max, Max then says he always wanted Charlie to fight for him and be there as a father. After Max leaves, Charlie returns to Tallet's Gym. While talking with Bailey about the events, the two kiss, revealing their attraction to each other. Persuaded by Bailey, Charlie arranges the challenge offered by Max and convinces Debra to allow Max to witness the fight.

Zeus starts the fight by knocking Atom down with it's first punch, but to the surprise of the audience and Zeus' camp, Atom gets up. Zeus continues it's assault and knocks Atom down multiple times, but each time Atom gets up. Late in the first round while Atom is cornered, Charlie somehow is able to get Atom to land his first punch, a right uppercut. Atom survives the first round,stunning the audience. The two go back and forth through the fight, Atom landing multiple punches but also getting knocked down many times, getting up for each of them. Late in the fourth round, Atom's vocal-respond controls are damaged, forcing Charlie to activate its "shadow function" to make it mimic his boxing skills. Zeus's programmers are unable to compensate, forcing the designer to take control like Charlie has. Zeus is given a sound beating, but wins the match since Atom couldn't beat it within the limit of five rounds. Zeus remains "undefeated", but with the shame that it came from a technicality. Atom is labelled the "People's Champion".