Big Hero 6

There’s a soft and cuddly center within the crusty shell of Big Hero 6, which otherwise feels like a transparent attempt to cash in on the trend of all things superhero.

What the makers of this fast-paced, action-packed animated adventure don’t seem to realize is that children these days can be drawn in by original storytelling that doesn’t involve their peers dressing in costumes and fighting crime with magical superpowers and giant robots.

They might find appeal in, say, a gentle comedy about a giant inflatable nurse and his influence on the grieving younger brother of its teenage creator — in other words, the film that Big Hero 6 starts out to be, instead of the one it eventually becomes.

The film follows a young robotics prodigy named Hiro, whose creative abilities rival those of his nerdy brother, a student at a prestigious science school in the fictional city of San Fransokyo. After a tragedy, Hiro forms a reluctant friendship with Baymax, a bloated robotic “health care companion” — physically, he resembles a giant marshmallow — built by his brother to perform simple medical tasks.

But the youngster also has vigilante justice on his mind, which is why he assembles some classmates together, re-programs Baymax into a giant ninja of sorts, and begins trying to solve the mystery behind his brother’s death — before considering the ethics behind his actions.

As directed by animated veterans Don Hall (Winnie the Pooh) and Chris Williams (Bolt), the computer-generated 3D visuals are colorful and sharply detailed. It’s a visually ambitious project that incorporates its urban hybrid of San Francisco and Tokyo almost as an extra character.

There’s an emphasis on slapstick, but the film also makes clever use of Baymax’s physical and vocal characteristics, such as his monotonous delivery and his charming oblivion to impending danger.

Some of it might be too dark for young kids, but at least there are some cool robots and high-tech gadgets on display, along with themes of teamwork, acceptance and imagination.

Yet the stereotypical and thinly sketched human characters aren’t as compelling, and the resulting superhero saga steers toward an obligatory finale filled with mass destruction and the future of humanity in the balance.

Big Hero 6 is amusing for a while, but ultimately doesn’t have much narrative substance beneath the spectacle, opening a wound that even Baymax can’t heal.

Rated PG, 102 minutes.