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CU Boulder | Culture > Entertainment

The Wild Robot: Another Animated Movie That’ll Make You Cry

Rodayna Eissa Student Contributor, University of Colorado - Boulder
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at CU Boulder chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Here I am bawling my eyes out over another “kids movie.”

Broken Down Ratings: 

  • Characters: 1000/5 stars 
  • Acting: 1000/5 stars 
  • Visuals: infinity/5 stars
  • Score: 6/5 stars
  • Story: 5/5 stars 

The Wild Robot is the newest installment in DreamWorks Animation’s arsenal of incredible films. Based on the bestselling book of the same name by author Peter Brown, this movie is worthy of every bit of praise it has received since release and has Oscar-nomination potential. The movie follows a robot named Roz, who wakes on an island with nothing but the knowledge that she must find a task and see it through to completion in order to fulfill her purpose. Unexpectedly, she is left with the ultimate task: motherhood to a young, orphaned gosling. What follows is a heartfelt, laugh-out-loud story that will have you crying like a newborn baby (I haven’t heard an entire theater cry together like that since Infinity War and Endgame). This is an incredible story about love, found-family, and discovering your true purpose outside the expectations of others. 

@dreamworks

Get Tickets to experience #TheWildRobotMovie in theaters on September 27. Watch the final trailer now!

♬ original sound – DreamWorks Animation

Though the movie is not a perfect page to screen translation, the heart of the book remains intact and shines through every second of the movie, making it a great adaptation. I would personally love to see books two and three in the series adapted as well. Directed and adapted for the screen by Chris Sanders, who worked on the unforgettable How to Train Your Dragon movies, this movie features a script that with every line and every camera movement makes it clear the movie was a labor of love. Lupita Nyong’o, Kit Connor and Pedro Pascal shine in their respective roles (I think I emotionally bonded with Fink) and as does the rest of the cast. The characters all felt incredibly real and raw, leaving me hanging onto every word they said. The cast did a wonderful job bringing out the emotion in every scene, and made it impossible for the audience not to connect with the characters as they navigated the challenges of surviving on the island. 

With stunning visuals, as is to be expected from the incredibly talented team of animators at DreamWorks, an emotional and unforgettable score by composer Kris Bowers, and a star-studded cast, this movie is one that will be spoken of for years to come. If you get a chance to meander on down to your local movie theater, I promise you won’t regret going to see The Wild Robot. 

@dreamworks

The Wild Voices behind TheWildRobotMovie. See Lupita Nyong’o, Kit Connor, Catherine O’Hara, Matt Berry & Stephanie Hsu in theaters on September 27.

♬ original sound – DreamWorks Animation – DreamWorks Animation
Rodayna Eissa

CU Boulder '26

Rodayna Eissa joined the Her Campus CU Boulder chapter as a contributing writer in the Fall of 2024. Her areas of interest as a writer include entertainment and media–particularly in regards to the movie industry–mental health, creative writing, and politics. As a reader and writer, she is a staunch defender of the oxford comma. She has worked as a bookseller and barista for over three years now. Rodayna is in her final year at the university where she is pursuing a pre-law degree in International Relations with a focus on the region of the Middle East and Africa.

When she’s not writing, Rodayna can usually be found indulging in one too many cups of coffee while hiding with a book, building legos, spending time with her family and friends, or rewatching Star Wars for the millionth time.