Movie Review: Robocop (2014)

Posted By on February 4, 2014

RobocopFeaturedImageRebooting Robocop was always going to be a tough sell, even for a dollar. The original 1987 movie is such a classic. Such a perfect product of its time and the crazy genius mind of director Paul Verhoeven that makes it almost impossible to imagine where to even begin with any remake.

The original high concept of “Part man. Part machine. All cop.” could have easily been consigned to the dustbin of 80′s direct-to-video trash if not for the great humour, satire, performances and over the top violence that have helped it stand the test of time. Robocop (2014) director José Padilha has chosen to go back to the bare bones of the idea and examine what it would be like to be the actual cop inside the “Robo” as the focus of his film, including and remixing elements of the original while scrutinising other aspects that were glossed over or simply ignored in the original.

The set up is pretty much the same: Detroit Police Officer Alex Murphy is horrifically injured in the line of duty and thanks to the efforts of scientists at Omnicorp, becomes the cyborg Robocop. However, this time he is the vanguard of Omnicorp’s drive to convince mainstream America to allow totally autonomous drones, used elsewhere in the world for “urban pacification”, to operate on American streets and boost Omnicorp’s profit margins.

RobocopVersion1

Robocop Version 1.0

Unlike Weller’s Robocop, Joel Kinnaman’s Murphy is fully conscious of the horror of his new situation as soon as he is “activated” as Robocop, instead of being buried under software and prime directives. This new Robocop has a much harder time coming to terms with his new condition, literally running away from his problems at one point. Once it is revealed, in a very harrowing scene, just how much man is left in the machine by Gary Oldman’s Dr. Dennet Norton, Murphy and the movie move on to training (or “quality assurance”) with Jackie Earle Haley’s Maddox and getting Robo out on the streets and into the papers and public consciousness.

Murphy’s family, only briefly alluded to in the original, take much more of a part in this reboot. With Murphy’s wife consenting to the procedures that made him Robocop, she desperately tries to reconnect with Murphy,along with their son David, as he settles into his new “life”.

The rest of the film deals with Murphy investigating his own “murder” and corruption in the Detroit Police Department, how this new man-machine interface changes the future of law enforcement, Robocop’s conflict with his corporate overlords, Omnicorp’s CEO Raymond Sellars’ (Michael Keaton) machinations to win over the American public to allow drones to operate on US soil, and Robocop’s own struggles with his family and the “fixes” that are gradually applied to him by Omnicorp in order to make him more efficient, at the cost of his humanity.

The film tries to fit in so much from Tehran to Detroit, sterile labs to family homes, police corruption to corporate and political shenanigans that the third act feels a little rushed and elements that you know must be coming, like a run in with Robo’s cousin ED-209, joined in the film by their more human sized  sibling EM-208, feel slightly short changed, as does the final, emotional climax of the film.

RobocopDeadorAlive

Dead or Alive…

Fans of the original will still find plenty to enjoy here. Old lines like “Dead or Alive, you’re coming with me” or the infamous “I’d buy that for a dollar” are used sparingly in new, unexpected contexts that avoid feeling cheap. The media satire of the original is also retained in the form of Samuel L. Jackson’s political commentator Pat Novak & his “The Novak Element” TV show, which handily fills in the background detail of the world and provides some of the funniest moments of the movie. Jackson’s opening “lines” serve to nicely shatter expectations going in to the film and provide one of the best laughs of the movie, as does his expletive filled exit from the film. Murphy’s partner from the original, Lewis, is also introduced early on, now portrayed by Michael K. Williams and is now his long time partner rather than the new assignment of the original. There are more nods to the original throughout.

Basil Poledouris’ theme from the original makes a welcome return at certain moments as well, although it’s a strangely tinny version that is used and is perhaps used a little too sparingly. Even during the final credits, a generic, forgettable theme is played with only snatches of the old theme used (FYI, there’s nothing after the credits either).

Fans worried over the new Robocop‘s PG-13 rating needn’t worry too much. Yes, some of the violence has been toned down, thanks to a new gun that fires taser rounds, however, this hasn’t resulted in  “Robocop For Kids”.

Robocop's sweet new ride

Robocop’s sweet new ride

Performances are solid all round. Keaton not being quite as manic as may be expected from the early trailers. Jackie Earle Haley provides a suitable foil to Murphy as robot wrangler and Robocop trainer Maddox, getting his fair share of humorous moments, usually from constantly picking on the “tin man”.

Padilha’s direction is confident and competent, although some of the early action scenes do suffer from an over-abundance of shaky-cam to the point that it can be difficult to see what’s going on. Some of the final confrontations could have also done with a little more wow factor.

Robocop (2014) fits a lot into its just under two hours running time and may have benefited from some judicious pruning of some elements, but it’s still a worthy, enjoyable take on the Robocop concept. A fair companion piece to the original that looks at very different themes but could never achieve the impossible in outshining the original.

 

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About the Author

Iain McNally
Iain McNally loves movies, games, tv, comics and books with a passion, especially sci-fi and fantasy, but anything that entertains, pushes boundaries and makes you feel. Iain is a contributor to Starburst Magazine and co-presents the (allegedly) humorous McYapandFries movie news and review podcast providing nonstop action talk AT VIDEOGAME SPEED! An avid Gamer Iain can be found on Xbox live as McNastyPrime, usually mid-to-low table in any online leaderboards. Hailing originally from Ireland, Iain now lives in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where the weather is always warm, the drinks always cool and the jungle is only a short drive away. You can also find Iain on Twitter @mcnastyprime