Robocop Review
I'll admit right up front: I've never seen the original Robocop. And, after all my dad has told me about it, I'm glad. Now, after seeing reviews online, I was just expecting a fun action movie. And, that's exactly what I got, with a little more brains than I was expecting. I warn you, though, whatever you're expecting the beginning to be, it's not it.
The plot of Robocop is simple: the world is being policed by robots instead of cops everywhere except America. The senate is trying to pass a bill that would allow robots to go on the streets. They're not moving fast enough for the supplier company, however, and so they search for a human cop that they could make a cyborg and put on the streets to show machine efficiency. It just so happens that a good cop, named Murphy, is hit with a car bomb by a couple of corrupt cops who work for a mobster who wants Murphy off his trail. His wife volunteers him for an operation to save his life. So, Gary Oldman and a bunch of other scientists revive Murphy as Robocop, a cyborg who's been wiped of all his humanity and is the perfect crime fighting machine.
After that, he regains his humanity over time but that's actually what you pay the least attention to. It's interesting and everything and they establish pre-Robocop Murphy very well so you actually care what the rest of his family is going through. But, what you're really focused on are some of the coolest fight scenes I've seen in a movie like this since The A-Team. There IS some shaky cam here and there, but it doesn't take away from these extremely enjoyable action sequences. Granted, they are scattered around the movie but, all in all, they make up about 50 minutes of the total not-even-90 minutes of the film. What makes these action scenes so enjoyable are the visuals, which is where the movie excels best. When he's fighting, you see it through his "eyes". He scans the area, computes a scenario and carries it out with awesome, action-packed efficiency.
But, visuals aren't all this film has got to offer; the actors also do very well in their parts. Robocop himself gives a very convincing performance and so does Gary Oldman. I only mention them because, really, they're the only really interesting characters. There is Michael Keaton as the Omnicorp CEO but, they don't do his character as well as they could have. Gary Oldman's character has a surprisingly welcome redemption story arc, by that I mean that it isn't annoying or forced and you're actually invested in it. For being a remake of one of the most sadistic movies of all time, this film actually has a lot of heart and humanity behind it without it feeling forced. When the movie is supposed to be touching, it works it in perfectly.
Now, remember how I said they could have done Michael Keaton's character better? Well, this fact is amplified by the fact that he's the villain in this movie. This is conveyed so poorly that I didn't even get that he was supposed to be the villain until, like, 10 minutes before the movie ended (the ending isn't much to speak of either). Michael Keaton is a great actor, but his talents were wasted on this cruddy villain role. I don't understand why they didn't just have Ian McShane in the movie. At least he would've been picked out as the villain right away.
Synopsis: Despite the bad villain aspect, this is one of the best action films I've ever seen. Fueled by a star-studded cast, great visuals and a whole ton of heart, Robocop is definitely worth checking out. If you're just looking for a fun time and want something extremely ADHD with a little more brain than you'd expect, this is your movie. Oh, and if old school Robocop fans tell you that they hate the film, don't listen to them. They're lying. They just enjoyed the movie more than they're willing to admit.
Score: 7/10
The plot of Robocop is simple: the world is being policed by robots instead of cops everywhere except America. The senate is trying to pass a bill that would allow robots to go on the streets. They're not moving fast enough for the supplier company, however, and so they search for a human cop that they could make a cyborg and put on the streets to show machine efficiency. It just so happens that a good cop, named Murphy, is hit with a car bomb by a couple of corrupt cops who work for a mobster who wants Murphy off his trail. His wife volunteers him for an operation to save his life. So, Gary Oldman and a bunch of other scientists revive Murphy as Robocop, a cyborg who's been wiped of all his humanity and is the perfect crime fighting machine.
After that, he regains his humanity over time but that's actually what you pay the least attention to. It's interesting and everything and they establish pre-Robocop Murphy very well so you actually care what the rest of his family is going through. But, what you're really focused on are some of the coolest fight scenes I've seen in a movie like this since The A-Team. There IS some shaky cam here and there, but it doesn't take away from these extremely enjoyable action sequences. Granted, they are scattered around the movie but, all in all, they make up about 50 minutes of the total not-even-90 minutes of the film. What makes these action scenes so enjoyable are the visuals, which is where the movie excels best. When he's fighting, you see it through his "eyes". He scans the area, computes a scenario and carries it out with awesome, action-packed efficiency.
But, visuals aren't all this film has got to offer; the actors also do very well in their parts. Robocop himself gives a very convincing performance and so does Gary Oldman. I only mention them because, really, they're the only really interesting characters. There is Michael Keaton as the Omnicorp CEO but, they don't do his character as well as they could have. Gary Oldman's character has a surprisingly welcome redemption story arc, by that I mean that it isn't annoying or forced and you're actually invested in it. For being a remake of one of the most sadistic movies of all time, this film actually has a lot of heart and humanity behind it without it feeling forced. When the movie is supposed to be touching, it works it in perfectly.
Now, remember how I said they could have done Michael Keaton's character better? Well, this fact is amplified by the fact that he's the villain in this movie. This is conveyed so poorly that I didn't even get that he was supposed to be the villain until, like, 10 minutes before the movie ended (the ending isn't much to speak of either). Michael Keaton is a great actor, but his talents were wasted on this cruddy villain role. I don't understand why they didn't just have Ian McShane in the movie. At least he would've been picked out as the villain right away.
Synopsis: Despite the bad villain aspect, this is one of the best action films I've ever seen. Fueled by a star-studded cast, great visuals and a whole ton of heart, Robocop is definitely worth checking out. If you're just looking for a fun time and want something extremely ADHD with a little more brain than you'd expect, this is your movie. Oh, and if old school Robocop fans tell you that they hate the film, don't listen to them. They're lying. They just enjoyed the movie more than they're willing to admit.
Score: 7/10
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