Robot Dreams

On one hand, Robot Dreams — about the various adventures that a dog and a robot get into in a version of 1980’s New York that’s populated entirely by animals — features entrancing traditional animation and an endearingly whimsical episodic narrative. It has no dialogue and its storytelling is entirely visual, which never comes off as a gimmick; it really works. On the other hand, the film feels incredibly slight and, given that there isn’t particularly any plot (other than a very loose narrative involving the two main characters being separated), it overstays its welcome at 102 minutes. As delightful as the film can be, there just isn’t enough going on here to even remotely justify that running time.

**1/2 out of ****