There's good films and then there's good films that defined a genre. Along with The Terminator, Robocop is considered to be one of the most definitive movies of Cyberpunk, a subgenre of Science Fiction; an exploration of man with machine. Paul Verhoeven's film is brutally violent, funny, and thought provocative. A classic.
It's a scary thought living in the future. "Old Detroit", as it's called, is all about Capitalism and the media, with little regard for the people's lives. The Police Department has become privatized due to financial ruin, and crime on the streets is getting out of control. Enter "Robocop" (Paul Weller) a cyborg police officer built from the remains of slain cop Alex Murphy, by Capitalist big-shot Bob Morton (Miguel Ferrer).
Though, what the authorities didn't count on was Robocop regaining memories from his previous life. Going beyond the confines of his programming, he begins hunting down the gang of drug dealers responsible for his brutal execution, as well as bringing justice to the greedy company bosses that created him.
And that is indeed one of the main points of the film: the proclaimed "Robocop" appears more humane than a majority of the big company bosses do; forcing us, the audience, to examine the values within our own lives. Peter Weller does a great job at convincing us that he's half-human, half-cyborg. He appears almost chivalrous in his liberal stance on humanistic values and the economy, and the audience grow to love him.
Primarily through its satirical news reports and commercials, the film becomes a social commentary on the media, and general capitalist, ideals. Although these appear quite humorous, they have a serious intent in outlining the cheap sales pitches of the greedy corporate officials attempting to increase profit margins. One of the running phrases is "I'll buy that for a dollar!" denoting that the people will buy any old rubbish.
Then there is, of course, the violence. Robocop was remarkably bloody for its time, which prompted the MPAA to give it a X-rating. Scenes were deliberately over-the-top in their attempt at making the audience flinch (a style Verhoeven would continue to use in 1990's Total Recall). Particularly, Murphy's execution scene, where we get to see his hand blown to pieces by a shotgun blast, has been fully restored for the Special Edition DVD. This scene isn't just effective in its violent appeal to bloody thirsty freaks, such as myself, but to allow the general audience to feel some compassion for the main character, as well as presenting a very dark concept of the near future.
Indeed, Robocop's concept of the "soon-to-be" is so plausible that the film could be considered more fact than fiction. Paul Verhoeven's style in Robocop offers a unique blend of comedy, though still maintains a respectable level of intelligence, as it builds the film around mangled Capitalist theories.
Having witness the fully-restored version and the inferior sequels that followed, it's difficult to imagine how Robocop could've been any better than it was. That's a compliment to how good it [still] is.
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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 piece of sci-fi - still relevant after almost 15 years, with little of its impact faded by time Disadvantages: Extremely voilent (perhaps too much so for some), the distinctly 80s feel
EnglishPatient 22.01.2001 ·
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Review of Robocop (DVD)
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Mar 29th, 2009
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