Go-Bots

While not as widely known or as critically acclaimed as his My Little Pony duology, Victor Dal Chele's update of the 1980's cartoon "Go-Bots" has quite a few memorable moments. Many have questioned Dal-Chele's decision to reinterpret the show as a broad, raunchy comedy, but the fact is that the jokes work. The humor is very much in the vein of the Zucker/Abrahams spoofs, at times even directly referencing "Airplane!", and there are lots of tongue-in-cheek references to the much more popular "Transformers" series. The main problem with this film is its uneven nature. The studio, worried that audiences wouldn't appreciate Dal Chele's subtle sense of humor, as well as his rebellious nature, fired him from the project after principal photography was completed, and hired John Grusd, a studio employee who they felt would toe the line, to finish the film. Because he'd already filmed about 70% of the movie, and because the footage was so expensive in the first place, the studio realized they couldn't scrap Dal Chele's footage completely and start over from scratch, so they hired a script doctor to "retool" the script, re-shot the scenes they felt were the most objectionable, and tried to integrate it with existing footage. It didn't quite work. Dal Chele has tried to distance himself from this film, he even requested to be credited as "Alan Smithee" in the credits, a request that was ultimately denied, as the film didn't end up being released until My Little Pony: The Princess Promenade was released, and the studio kept Dal Chele's name in the credits to try to cash in on the later film's success. Of the film "Go-Bots", Dal Chele has said, "I'm proud of what I shot on that film, and I think if the studio had not intervened, it could really have been something special." In the end, Dal Chele says that only about 40% of what ended up in the film was his, and that he wouldn't be opposed to doing his own cut of the movie, if the studio would give him the rights and resources to finish the film his way, but he's not holding his breath, and neither, he advises, should the fans. We can only hope that someday the studio will see the light. In the meantime, the film, as it is, is quite enjoyable and has a few moments of brilliance. So get this movie and enjoy a fun film partially told by a great cinematic storyteller.