In Mattel's Bob The Builder Movie, Bob Has An Existential Crisis About Building
Last summer, Stereotypical Barbie admitted on the dance floor that sometimes she thinks about dying, and in part because of her brutal, relatable honesty, "Barbie" was the biggest hit of the year. Now, Bob the Builder is apparently set to endure the toy company Mattel's next on-screen existential crisis, as star Anthony Ramos says that the movie will follow a version of Bob who has "kind of lost his sense of what it is, to build," per Total Film.
"In the Heights" and "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" star Ramos spoke to Total Film for the magazine's latest print issue, in which he tried to explain the weirdly emotionally complex plot of the upcoming "Bob the Builder" film. The movie was previously described by The Guardian as being about Bob traveling to Puerto Rico, where he "takes on issues affecting the island and digs deeper into what it means to build."
The Barbie follow-up is another mix of nostalgia and grown-up angst
"It's a story that's set between two places, and Bob — his name is Roberto, but everyone calls him Bob — he comes from a family of construction workers, and Bob is one himself," Ramos explains. "But it's about a guy who has to go... He leaves, basically, from where he's from, and moves to another place." This move is, apparently, what facilitates Bob's sense of ambivalence. "He's still building these beautiful buildings. He's responsible for some of the most amazing skyscrapers. But...He doesn't really understand why he's building," Ramos tells the outlet.
It's hard to read this and not think of parody scenes from shows like "The Other Two" and "30 Rock," jokes about simple, kid-friendly franchises being turned into something grittier or more complicated in an obvious yet logic-defying cash grab. Mattel's post-"Barbie" strategy seems to be to continue combining nostalgic properties with darkly funny adult angst, and it's not clear that they'll be able to capture lightning twice after that worked for "Barbie." The one promising aspect worth noting here, though, is that the "Bob the Builder" movie will reportedly be animated, which means it may end up coming across more like a surprisingly clever riff on the original 1999 kids' TV show as opposed to an overly-ambitious, potentially cringe-inducing attempt to mimic the success of "Barbie."
The animated movie will feature nods to the original series
As for nods to the original series, Ramos says there will definitely be a few. "There are things in the story, for sure, that we pay homage to — the original characters, and character names, and Pilchard the cat," he tells Total Film, referencing the blue striped cat owned by Bob. "But obviously I'm different to the Bob that people were watching back in the day," he adds. It's true that the film's focus on Puerto Rico will be entirely new, and the movie will apparently raise some big questions about community and culture. Ramos says the plot involves Bob coming into an awareness that his building on the island might be "hurting the community," and describes "a change in Bob" in which he "starts to tap into his roots, and he starts to tap into those old machines he grew up with, that his grandfather left behind."
It's tough to tell from these descriptions just who the "Bob the Builder" film will be intended for, but it seems likely that it's hoping to appeal to kids and adults alike. A previous statement from Mattel president Robbie Brenner confirms as much, as he told The Guardian that the film "will capture this beloved character in a manner that audiences who grew up with Bob will recognise, and all-new audiences will enjoy." Jennifer Lopez will produce, with up-and-coming genre writer-director Felipe Vargas penning the screenplay. The movie does not yet have a release date.