Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) is a two-bit trainer traveling the state-fair circuit in a not-too-distant future. His line is robot fighting, a sport that has absorbed the audience for boxing, MMA, and, apparently, demolition derby. After a tough match leaves Charlie ’bot-less, he gets news that his ex-girlfriend, with whom he had a son 11 years ago, has died. Charlie’s relationship with the boy is summarized in the unconcerned, offhand way that he asks “Is he dead, too?” when he gets the news.
Feckless Charlie gets stuck tending son Max (Dakota Goyo) until the boy’s rich relatives are ready to pick him up. Touchy though things are between father and son, Max is a quick study and helps to refurbish a salvaged old sparring robot into a legitimate contender.
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