ROBOCOP (MOVIE REVIEW)

In 1987, director Paui Verhoeven brought us RoboCop starring Peter Weller and it was a raw, graphic and hardcore film experience. It very much symbolized an era that was the 80’s. Twenty-seven years later… sigh, yes I said 27 and we now have a new and improved so to speak RoboCop, this time starring Joel Kinnaman (AMC’s The Killing).

There are elements to the original story and a wink or two in the form of characters and dialogue like “I’ll buy that for a dollar” or “dead or alive, you’re coming with me.” that surface throughout the film. They even included the theme which I thought was a cool touch. But this is where the nostalgia ends.

Because this reboot (not a remake) is very different from its predecessor, it has to be judged on its own merit. For the most part this 2014 version of RoboCop works well. It lacks the rawness of the original let alone the hardcore graphic nature but the underlying morality and human interest is very much present.

Set in the not so distant future, this version of RoboCop tells the story of a law enforcement conglomerate called OmniCorp who serves as an overseas military arm of the United States and their quest to bring their drone technology here to

America

. But because most Americans “identify” with robotics that have no feelings or a sense of humanity, OmniCorp looks at creating something or someone the public could embrace. Enter police officer Alex Murphy.

When officer Murphy (Kinnaman) is severely wounded, OmniCorp CEO Raymond Sellars (Michael Keaton) seizes the opportunity and enlist the help of scientist Dennett Norton (Gary Oldman) to give

America

a hero and a face they can stand and rally behind. They do this by putting a man inside a machine. But when the human side of Alex Murphy starts to override the software, he proves to be more problematic than a simple marketing tool for Sellars and his company.

Unlike the original, this version really hinges its bets on the Murphy family as a whole. You see things through the eyes of his wife Clara and their son. They are the very people who are very much directly affected by the “lost” of Alex as they know and remember. I like that aspect and addition to the story. You only get a small glimpse of that from the Peter Weller original. Having that be the moral compass here made it more real and with it, more personal.

Overall, RoboCop is an entertaining action film that is usually reserved for Summer time. I think given the upcoming slate of films due out the producers were wise to have it come out now and potentially win the box-office race for the week. If it makes enough money a sequel is almost a given. If not, well than it’s the second best film of the franchise behind the original. I’ll buy that for a dollar.

RoboCop **1/2 (out of 4)

May the Dork be with you,

JPB

The Dork Knight

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