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Robocop (1987) - Directed by Paul Verhoeven
"Dead or alive, you're coming with me!"
The 80's was a wonderfully estranged time for children. Mecha anime, sports cars, superpowered police, and early furry mascots were the hip-and-happening plague that stormed the 80's. And of course, the adult 80's action movie fad had to grab a piece of that action now, didn't it?
Following in the footsteps of Arnold Swartzeneggar (Terminator, The Running Man), Robocop is an 80's classic about a policeman in a world always shooting for the future. While bullets are not yet a thing of the past, Detroit's tech companies are looking for new ways to enforce the law. When our aformentioned policeman is killed in action, he is rebuilt into Robocop.
I expected a semi-pleasant cheese party. I was also a bit weary of the film beforehand, because I knew it had gotten edited 11 times before the MPAA finally changed their rating from a X to an R. But the violence didn't disgust me as much as people let on (these are the same people who told me The Exorcist was scary). In fact, it wasn't even as cheesy as I thought it would be. Under Paul Verhoeven's direction, Robocop entertained me a lot more than I thought I'd be.
The best thing about Robocop is the realism. The movie has a few "advertisement" scenes that show you the basics of the world around you, and let you know through news reports the major events that affect the whole city of Detroit. Not to mention, the costume design was exactly what was needed for Robocop himself and not outlandish in any way in my opinion. And while this sense of realism is tainted by cheap robot CGi for about six onscreen minutes, the way the handled the motions of that robot was perfect. And while the action was occasionally over-the-top, it was quite thrilling.
While any chances of character development are killed by focusing solely on Robocop himself, the film's story and evolution of the titular character only gets better and better until the very end, where a not-so-surprising but very satisfying plot twist awaits. Roocop's journey of self-discovery acts as a way to see Robocop as a person and as a robot.
The music was very good. The score was exceptionally well-placed throughout the entire movie and carried the drama, action, and emotions of the film with it. The music was one of the best things in the movie. And the acting was wonderful, especially on Weller's part. Weller played an excellent robot, emotionless but wondering about his true self.
Robocop is an 80's classic that acts as a tough-guy movie while acknowledging its science fiction action figure roots, turning both sides of the film into one spectacular comination that makes Robocop one of the most important movies of the 80's. I had little interest in watching the remake before I saw this, and now I'm certain there's no way the remake could overpower the original film.
"Dead or alive, you're coming with me!"
The 80's was a wonderfully estranged time for children. Mecha anime, sports cars, superpowered police, and early furry mascots were the hip-and-happening plague that stormed the 80's. And of course, the adult 80's action movie fad had to grab a piece of that action now, didn't it?
Following in the footsteps of Arnold Swartzeneggar (Terminator, The Running Man), Robocop is an 80's classic about a policeman in a world always shooting for the future. While bullets are not yet a thing of the past, Detroit's tech companies are looking for new ways to enforce the law. When our aformentioned policeman is killed in action, he is rebuilt into Robocop.
I expected a semi-pleasant cheese party. I was also a bit weary of the film beforehand, because I knew it had gotten edited 11 times before the MPAA finally changed their rating from a X to an R. But the violence didn't disgust me as much as people let on (these are the same people who told me The Exorcist was scary). In fact, it wasn't even as cheesy as I thought it would be. Under Paul Verhoeven's direction, Robocop entertained me a lot more than I thought I'd be.
The best thing about Robocop is the realism. The movie has a few "advertisement" scenes that show you the basics of the world around you, and let you know through news reports the major events that affect the whole city of Detroit. Not to mention, the costume design was exactly what was needed for Robocop himself and not outlandish in any way in my opinion. And while this sense of realism is tainted by cheap robot CGi for about six onscreen minutes, the way the handled the motions of that robot was perfect. And while the action was occasionally over-the-top, it was quite thrilling.
While any chances of character development are killed by focusing solely on Robocop himself, the film's story and evolution of the titular character only gets better and better until the very end, where a not-so-surprising but very satisfying plot twist awaits. Roocop's journey of self-discovery acts as a way to see Robocop as a person and as a robot.
The music was very good. The score was exceptionally well-placed throughout the entire movie and carried the drama, action, and emotions of the film with it. The music was one of the best things in the movie. And the acting was wonderful, especially on Weller's part. Weller played an excellent robot, emotionless but wondering about his true self.
Robocop is an 80's classic that acts as a tough-guy movie while acknowledging its science fiction action figure roots, turning both sides of the film into one spectacular comination that makes Robocop one of the most important movies of the 80's. I had little interest in watching the remake before I saw this, and now I'm certain there's no way the remake could overpower the original film.