Robots

The movie Robots is a propaganda movie for paternal Capitalism. The enemy to be overcome is the ruthless Capitalism where profit rules over all. A political revolution lead by an alliance of the petite bourgeois, elements of the labour aristocracy, and the paternal faction of the large bourgeois lead the workers and the lumpenproletariat to victory. The leading elements of the petite bourgeois are then co-opted in the restored power structure.

Rodney Copperbottom grows up believing in the propaganda put out by Bigweld Industries through the weekly television program, and through the annual parades. Mr. Bigweld, the owner, is portrayed as a benevolent being who encourages everyone to achieve their best. He is always open to new ideas. Everyone in Rivittown worships him because he is seen as the source of their prosperity. I was reminded of the large company towns like Flint, Michigan, where General Motors provided most of the jobs and social benefits. Other examples would be the large Japanese firms. These are prime examples of paternal Capitalism where the bosses knew best and looked after their workers. This was a carryover of the feudal relationship between serf and lord.

Encouraged by this propaganda, Rodney works day and night to create his invention so that he could present it to Mr. Bigweld and be amply rewarded. Here, we have the personal ambition and drive that is typically unleashed in a Capitalist society. It is people like Rodney that help drive the intellectual and technological ferment that propels a Capitalist economy. In many ways, this also describes the dot com boom: people with big ideas hoping to be brought out by large companies for obscene amounts of cash.

As Rodney grows older, he sees his invention more as making his father's life easier. The money and glory are no longer the prime motivators. He sees his invention as solving a social need. By improving his father's productivity as a dishwasher, his father will have more time to enjoy life. This conflict in motivation causes conflicts in a Capitalist society.

Rodney tries out his invention in the restaurant where he works with his father. The invention goes haywire and Rodney is fired from his job. Later on, Rodney decides to go to the big city in order to see Mr. Bigweld whom Rodney hopes will put everything right. Rodney arrives in Bigweld city and immediately encounters the lumpenproletariat when he is confronted by Fender who tries to con him out of $50.

Rodney reaches Bigweld Industries where he is refused entry because times have changed. The reason for this is that Bigweld Industries is now run by Ratchet instead of Mr. Bigweld who has mysteriously disappeared. Because Bigweld Industries is a monopoly, Rathchet has decided to stop making spare parts for the robots and make upgrades instead because of the greater profit margin. Self-image is now to be exploited to drive the purchase of upgrades whether the robots need them or not. A definite criticism of the current economy of which Hollywood is a part. Talk about biting the hand that feeds it. I was surprised that the employees were not sent off to seminars on how to deal with change. I was waiting for copies of "Who Moved My Cheese?" to appear.

The farce of the board room democracy is exposed when Ratchet quells any dissent by getting rid of the one robot who raises an objection. The other robots in the board room appear to be members of the labour aristocracy - workers who have privileges and incomes far above that of other workers. These workers are lulled into complacency by the pretense that the bosses listen to them. One of the labour aristocrats, Cappy, is the victim of sexual harrassment.

Rodney manages to find a way into the board room where Ratchet rebuffs Rodney's ideas. After Rodney escapes from Bigweld Industries, he finds Fender again and falls in the Rusties who practise primitive Communism. They have a benefactor in Aunt Fanny who has no visible means of support.

Rodney is appalled by the lack of initiative of the Rusties as all petite bourgeois are of the lumpenproletariat and proletariat. He "... finds a need and fills a need ..." when he starts his own business of repairing robots thereby threatening Ratchet's market share of 100%. So Ratchet reacts, as all monopolists do, by seeking to destroy Rodney.

The only other capitalist in the movie is Madam Gasket who recycles robot parts into ingots. She must be Bigweld's supplier. She is using her son, Ratchet, to achieve vertical integration and to increase the amount of raw material her factory processes.

Rodney, as the petite bourgeois, takes leadership in restoring Mr. Bigweld to his rightful place. He drags along a reluctant labour aristocrat (Cappy), and the even more reluctant lumpenproletariat (the Rusties). His hopes are crushed when he discovers the crushed spirit of the isolated Mr. Bigweld. But Mr. Bigweld is awaken from his torpor by Rodney, and joins forces with Rodney and his allies. Their attempt at a palace coup fails when the police side with Ratchet. Only the climatic battle between the workers led by Rodney and those led by Madam Gasket decides the issue. With Mr. Bigweld restored to his place, Rodney surrenders his independence by being coopted as Bigweld's successor. And so, all dissenting elements are assimilated into the system.

The message of the movie seems to be that raw Capitalism is an aberration, and that the paternal Capitalism is the comfortable norm.