The iconic Japanese anime character makes his Hollywood debut in this sweet-natured and colourful futuristic adventure. Brilliant scientist Dr Tenma (voiced by Nicolas Cage) is devastated when his equally brilliant son Toby (Freddie Highmore) is accidentally killed during an experiment. Tenma builds a robotic replacement, but abandons him when he doesn't live up to expectations. Left to fend for himself, the robot becomes Astro Boy and discovers the true extent of his powers when an evil force threatens the world. The film presents some fairly adult themes in an understandable way, and it's also less cheesy and sentimental than a lot of animated fare. But it still packs in some exciting action sequences and impressive comic relief in the shape of the hapless Robot Liberation Front (whose leader is voiced by Little Britain's Matt Lucas).

Set in the futuristic Metro City, Astro Boy (Atom) is a young robot with incredible powers created by a brilliant scientist in the image of the son he had lost. Unable to fulfill his creator's expectations, Astro embarks on a journey in search of acceptance, experiencing betrayal and a netherworld of robot gladiators, before returning to save Metro City and reconcile with the father who rejected him.