Blogocentric Formulations

New Friends

"The Soundtrack of Your Life"  | Day 2

"New Friends"
by Henry Jackman & Dave Bayley

This pop-inspired song from the Ron's Gone Wrong soundtrack just makes me smile. It's been a regular feature on my playlist since the movie came out last October, and almost always cheers me up or inspires me to keep going with whatever I'm doing.

While the general premise of the story is reminiscent of Hiro's relationship with Baymax in Big Hero 6 (lonely kid is befriended by a white, awkward robot and they eventually become friends), I was actually really impressed with the story in this movie. The idea is that Bubble (the movie's equivalent of Facebook/Google) invents Bubble Bots (B-Bots) which become kids' best friends, mirroring all their interests and helping them navigate social cues with others. Barney is the one kid who doesn't have a B-Bot and his dad gets him a cheap one (unknowingly defective) named Ron that isn't connected to the Bubble network and therefore doesn't have any of the algorithms and other software that his counterparts do.. so he's actually a blank slate and he and Barney learn how to develop a friendship the old fashioned way, by spending time together and learning about one another.

         

What I really liked about the movie, though, was that it really shone a light on social media culture and how, in a desperate attempt to fit in, kids will obsessively cultivate their image and end up feeling more alone and depressed than someone who doesn't have many real-world friends. It comments on how you can spend enormous amounts of time and energy building an audience who will turn on you the minute you make a mistake. It illustrates how addiction to social media stunts actual real-world social skills. And it highlights the importance of quality friendships being a two-way street rather than someone who just likes all the things that you do, and who agrees with you all the time.

The movie also had a subplot about how technology companies claim to be doing things for the greater good ("connecting the world!") but are also, ultimately, capture user-data for profit-driven reasons more than altruistic ones.

It was, of course, a funny animated movie and my kids loved it for all the usual reasons (amusing jokes, physical humor, etc.), but it was also a surprisingly sophisticated commentary on modern technology and relationships in the digital age. Those are my favorite kind of family movies, where both kids and adults can get something out of it.

This is the first released feature film from UK-based Locksmith Animation. The film was acquired by 20th Century Studios and subsequently released by Disney after their merger. They have a number of other projects currently in development and a new overall distribution deal with Warner Bros. through their Warner Animation Group label. If Ron's Gone Wrong is any indication, I'm really excited to see what Locksmith comes up with next.