Now that nearly every school-going teen has their own smartphone, 20th Century Fox’s Ron’s Gone Wrong, comes out with all guns blazing.

A sweet and engaging animated movie, it addresses the issues of youngsters, who surely are missing very many things in their lives, and the internet is not one of them.

The movie is set in the future, when B-Bots, by tech giant Bubble, are something kids can’t live without. In the town of Nonsuch, B-Bot, droid forms of smartphones are a necessity for kids. They know ‘everything’ about their user, help them in making friends, as well as change their appearance as desired by the master.

The adventure begins when Barney Pudowski, a loner who lives with his widowed father and a fun-loving grandmother, receives a defective B-Bot on his 11th birthday as a gift.

Slowly and gradually, Barney befriends Ron and he gets the friend he always wanted. Brilliantly voiced by teenage prodigy Jack Dylan Grazer, Barney and his B-Bot (voiced by actor Zach Galifianakis) show what friendship is about. They save each other’s lives in their own ways, fight the bullies, wreak havoc at school and have heated discussions, but the feeling of togetherness surely brings tears of joy to the eyes of the viewers.

Written by the same writer who penned Hotel Transylvania, the proliferation of social media and the way it controls actions is wisely tackled in the movie. The moment when kids, in recess time, interact with their B-Bots rather than mingling with their schoolmates, surely is an eye-opener for the parents of today.

It is also a message for the kids who seem to have no clue regarding what they are missing due to their B-Bots. Yes, it might be their lifeline, but the company which gave them B-Bots, actually use them for their own gains, shocking all.

The 107-minute movie stresses the importance of real-life friendships, teamwork and family values. The silly humour with cute characters makes the movie fun for the entire family. The movie would surely remind the parents of Steven Spielberg’s classic E.T. (1982), and children of Disney’s Big Hero 6 (2014), where a young boy is joined in his adventures by ‘another’ being.

After watching this movie, you will realise that human interaction is being replaced with technology. It may not be the first animated movie that addresses the issue of how technology is creeping into the lives of kids, but it surely delivered the message.

Published in Dawn, Young World, November 13th, 2021