And so, EnglishPatient - as a standalone entity - is no more. This account will self-destruct within...
And so, EnglishPatient - as a standalone entity - is no more. This account will self-destruct within approximately 24 hours. I can now be found under the name of DoubleTrouble - a collaboration with fellow Ciao user Broksababe. See you there!
Member since:30.07.2000
Reviews:132
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Director Paul Verhoeven's reputation was made on the basis of this slice of ultra-violent near-future science fiction. It arrived between the two Terminator films, evoking the explosively visceral approach of 1984's first while predating the corporate corruption plotline of the 1991 sequel T2:Judgement Day.
That is RoboCop's place in modern cinema history, yet like Cameron's original baby, this is a film which transcends its era and even the technical limitations imposed on anything created before the mid-1990s, making a virtue of the latter rather than being hampered or dated by it.
Overlook the terribly-'80s trappings, and the slightly muddled opening gambit which piles on the exposition a little too much, and underneath lies a concise, adrenalin-fuelled 90 minutes of pumping action - all backed up with a decent story and relatively cliche-free script. It takes a while to really find its stride, but after 30 minutes it's already left you exhilarated, fascinated and shocked in almost equal measures.
First-person viewpoints - thanks to some accomplished camera-work and inventive application of the plot's potential for seeing the world through the eyes of a once-human robot - make the "RoboCop"s transformation, creation and emergence absolutely compelling.
The violence is brutal (for its time) - few punches are pulled or concessions to audience frailty made. It's a film which loves guns. Hundreds of them ; firing, firing, firing until there is simply nothing left to shoot at. However, it also knows exactly when to crank up the ammunition-driven scenes, and when to focus instead on the character-based elements of the story. This balance works so successfully, that the impetus of the film is never lost.
Peter Weller's job here in the title role is admittedly not that demading from an artistic point of view, but the beauty here is how the movie is modelled in a way that it is others (including, cleverly, the audience themselves) who sense his pain, feel his anger and want his revenge. It's not rocket science, but the effect pays huge dividends.
Weller - as new-cop-in-town Murphy - is merely serviceable, eminating a sufficiently cool charm in the short while before his life takes a major turn for the worst. The rest of the movie he is largely unseen behind layers of metal and armoury, save for a memorable "unmasking" moment which is so often a part of these type of films, yet the power of his character is in his struggle to reconnect to the memories lingering from his human incarnation, memories which hold the key to a grand-scale web of boardroom double-dealing.
Most of the other partcipants in RoboCop are there to serve the needs of the story, with little interest given to their deeper personality traits or motives. They are stereotypical movie characters, and in this case it is not a problem. Only Nancy Allen - as Murphy's partner Lewis - is given the scope to invest anything approaching emotions or heart. Even then, it's not a lot to work with, but she gets more out of the role than the script deserved. Granted, it's quite a comedown from the heights she scaled as part of Carrie just a decade previously, but on this form her talents and her underlying sexy appeal never deserted her.
Rapturously received on its release, two subsequent installments would follow, neither of them - common knowledge will report - coming close to matching the splendour, thrills and narrative integrity.
In truth, RoboCop's journey in this first film covers all the ground which could be of dramatic interest. It's all here, so the sequels' failure to emulate is hardly surprising.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Production Year: 1977 - Action/Adventure - Director: Clint Eastwood - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring:Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle, William Prince, Bill McKinney
I couldn't agree more - although clearly a product of its time, Robocop combines very black humour with a high degree of action. It is never liable to win any awards for dialogue or charcterisation, but its primary purpose is surely mindless entertainment - in this it succeeds brilliantly. If I had a quibble, it would be that Ronny Cox/Kurtwood Smith (Dick Jones/Clarence),although playing very monodimensional characters, do invest them with a considerable degree of menace. I'm splitting hairs - great op.
Howiemon 01.03.2001 01:41
RoboCop is one of those films (along with Die Hard) that turned me into the movie-nerd that I am today and it's a pleasure to read such an accomplished review. Many thanks.
When it arrived on the big screen in 1987, Paul Verhoeven'sRoboCopwas like a high-voltage ... more
jolt of electricity, blending satire, thrills, and abundant violence with such energized gusto that audiences couldn't help feeling stunned and amazed. The movie ...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
When it arrived on the big screen in 1987, Paul Verhoeven'sRoboCopwas like a high-voltage ... more
jolt of electricity, blending satire, thrills, and abundant violence with such energized gusto that audiences couldn't help feeling stunned and amazed. The movie ...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
He's RoboCop. And in the near future he's law enforcement's only hope. A sadistic crime ... more
wave is sweeping across America. In Old Detroit the situation is so bad a private corporation Omni Consumer Products (OCP) has assumed control of the police fo...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
There's a new law enforcer in town...and he's half man, half machine! From the director of ... more
Total Recall and Basic Instinct comes a Sci-Fi fantasy witha sleek, high powered drive about an indestructible high-tech policeman who dishes out justice at ever...
Advantages: A classic - touching, shocking, funny, - a different kind of action movie. Disadvantages: A bit too violent for some - and lots of swearing.
DanClegg 07.02.2001 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Robocop (DVD)
![Robocop [1988] [DVD]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78519459.jpg "Robocop [1988] [DVD]")
Jan 22nd, 2001
very helpful by (100%):
![Robocop [Special Edition]-DVD](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/103203131.jpg)
