Released in 1987, RoboCop went on to span two sequels, RoboCop 2 (1990) and RoboCop 3 (1993), two TV series in 1994 and 2001, plus a (God awful) reboot in 2014, starring Joel Kinnaman, Michael Keaton, Gary Oldman, and Samuel L Jackson. How in the hell do you get that so wrong with such an A list cast? I mean really, it was an absolute shambles…sorry, losing focus.
Where was I? Oh, yes.
A direct sequel to the 1987 original was in development as of 2020. However, one can only assume that due to COVID, there’s been no update to speak of. If it were still to be released, it would follow the Halloween franchise in releasing a direct sequel to the original, ignoring all its other iterations over the years.
Directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner, RoboCop is considered a cult classic in the sci-fi genre and for good reason; with its social commentary on everything from foreign relations to corporate greed, it’s a story that couldn’t be more relevant in today’s climate.
Initially Paul Verhoeven dismissed the script as he didn’t understand it, before being convinced by his wife to take it on. Before casting Peter Weller in the title role, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Michael Ironside were among those considered but it was thought that their body mass would have made them look too imposing for the character that had been envisioned.
Nancy Allen, who portrays Alex Murphy’s partner Anne Lewis, specifically took up police academy training and Kurtwood Smith, who gave us one of the most badass performances as the film’s antagonist Clarence Boddicker, was only known for his TV work at the time of casting.
Paul Verhoeven is also known for the likes of Starship Troopers, Total Recall, Showgirls, Basic Instinct, Hollow Man and most recently Benedetta, which caused quite the stir amongst religious communities.
RoboCop, however, is without doubt his masterpiece.
The Story
For those of you unfamiliar with the story, RoboCop is the tale of a futuristic version of Detroit City whose police force has been occupied by the OCP (Omni Consumer Products), a mega corporation whose fingers are in many pies, including the navy and military. Old Detroit is set to be demolished to make way for Delta City, as it’s become the worst part of the city, with crime rates and drug distribution spiking.
In an attempt to combat this growing threat, OCP Senior President Dick Jones creates a fully functioning droid named ED209, who is supposed to be a living breathing 24/7 police presence in the city as a counter measure to the district’s upcoming strike proposal. However, a botched test demonstration sees an executive shot to death by ED209 at the board meeting, which allows young cocky executive Bob Morton to jump in and offer his RoboCop program as an alternative to the clearly defunct ED209.
Following a chase which sees them arrive at the gang’s hideout, Anne Lewis and recent transfer Alex Murphy corner them, only for Lewis to be knocked out and Murphy shot to pieces (quite literally) by shotgun shells before Clarence Boddicker places the killing blow in his head. Paramedics are unable to save him after he’s airlifted to the hospital, and thus Bob Morton sets about making him OCP property by creating RoboCop.
Why I Love this Film
There are several reasons why I count this film amongst my top 10 favourite films of all time.
Firstly, the script writers took influence from Alfred Hitchock’s 1960 film Psycho to kill off their main character so early on within the film, and I applaud any film that is such a bold risk.
The fact that RoboCop’s whole reveal is taken from his point of view up right up until he’s being brought into the police station itself is impressive. His whole construction and appearance, except for one of the arms, is shrouded in mystery as his primary features including tracking and playback are tested from a POV perspective. Even when he’s unveiled to the crowd, there’s a blink and you’ll miss it moment where he’s shown off in one of the TV monitors, but if you miss that, even when he’s being brought through the police station, it’s through translucent glass so you only see a blurred image whilst hearing the heavy, deliberate footsteps of doom.
It’s not until he’s sat down going, through final testing and then at the firing range, that we get the full look at him in all his glory. And I just love how there’s such a build up to this moment; it was just such a joy to watch on a cinema screen.
As mentioned earlier, the world in which RoboCop is set isn’t too distinguished from what the world looks like now, even down to the adverts within the film for board games like Nukem. In fact, following Detroit’s bankruptcy in 2013, as well as the city being labelled as one of the most dangerous places in America, writer Edward Neumeier said in an interview:
“We are now living in the world that I was proposing in RoboCop…how big corporations will take care of us…and how they won’t.”
The film explores greed, looking at how these big corporations come and try to take over and take control of every little detail, of anything they can get their hands on and put a price on.
I also love this film for the story it tells.
While the set pieces are fantastic and watching RoboCop may strike fear into the thugs of Old Detroit as he stops the robbery of a local store and walks through the flames of a burning petrol station (long before Robert Pattinson did it as Batman), at its heart, this isn’t a story of a machine whose invincible and completely void of any and all emotion.
Murphy can feel the memories of his wife and child, who’s conscience and moral compass to do the right thing is still in there within that stainless steel frame he now calls a body. I’m not sure if the anniversary screening was a 4k restoration, but it looked bloody fantastic and very crisp on the big screen.
RoboCop remains an influential part of sci-fi film history and it is clear that even 35 years on, the film is as relevant as ever.
Written by James Oliver | BanterFlix Contributor