Robocop 1987 and 2014 Review: Let Battle Commence.


I loved 2012’s Total Recall remake in fact I think it may possibly be the best action movie I have ever seen so when I heard there was going to be a Robocop remake I was more than excited hoping it would be 2014’s Total Recall.

But I heard from a lot of people that their experience of the new Robocop was hindered by not seeing the original, making them feel lost in the first 30 minutes of the film as it expected you to have a full knowledge of the original. Fearing the movie being ruined by my lack of knowledge the day before I saw the remake I watched, for the first time, the original Robocop. This definitely has changed my view of the remake and I could not help but closely compare the two, so here’s my comparative review on the classic and the reworked.

The story for both iterations are pretty similar with the same through line of the outstanding cop, great family man and all round good guy Alex Murphy being the subject an horrific murder and then his life is ‘saved’ by the ominous cyber company of Omnicorp. Whether its riddled with bullets or blown up by a car bomb he’s out for revenge and rearing to go take down whoever killed him in style with his new cybernetic body as…Robocop.

One factor the remake has definitely improved on is the main character, Robocop. In the original Robocop felt like a chunky, clunky and slow machine that I never believed could take on a room of drug dealers without taking even a scratch, but in the remake he is a badass. This is a Robocop I wanted to be; with cool fast paced fluid movement, that really shone through in the action pieces of the movie but didn’t take away from his robotic movements in the more relaxed portions of the movie, and a sleek new model in jet black with a razor sharp red visor that can instil fear into even the most hardened criminal; did I mention I really want to be this guy. 

However while Robocop himself has been improved upon the rest of the cast hasn’t with their counterparts bringing a lot more to the original, creating more interesting characters such as the ambitious businessman Bob Martin whose presence I missed throughout the new Robocop. Another example of this is the very weak portrayal of the drug lord Clarence who in the remake was a hardly notable generic bad-guy but in the original was a crazy, sadistic, psychopath who was a real match for the man trapped in steel.
One very welcome addition to the reboot is the quite different news segments placed throughout the movie much like in the original. The news programmes gave the world a lot more personality than the ones featured in the original though, letting the audience have an insight into the workings of the world that surrounds Robocop through some very entertaining monologues that were masterfully delivered by the very opinionated news anchorman played by Samuel L. Jackson.

Whilst the action in the remake is a fast paced spectacle there are too few of these actions scenes within the movie making the new Robocop feel more like a drama looking into the ethical issues and struggle of Murphy coming to terms with basically only being a robot now. While this is interesting the film spent way too much time on the subject neglecting other arks such as the drug dealer story line which was so prevalent in the original but under utilized in this re-imagining.
The new Robocop action compared to the original is really no competition. With authentic blood splats creating a river for Robocop to trample through the action scenes of the 1987 classic are explosive and in some cases shocking. While it is a little hard to believe this heavy armoured brute can take down a room of drug dealers in such quick succession; the effect of Robocop’s impressive side arm is truly a sight worth seeing over and over again and this film both recognises and embraces this fact earning its 18 certificate and giving the audience satisfying action pieces laced throughout the movie without compromising any of the story’s integrity or deeper meaning. Overall this created a more balanced film that could juggle action with drama conveying, in my opinion, a more interesting and fun tale.

In the fight of the Robocops it is clear that the original stands tall in victory. Whilst the remake has improved upon all my issues with the original; the elements the original did brilliantly the remake didn’t, creating a slow paced film with only a finish of cool.

Robocop (1987) = 7.5
Robocop (2014) = 6.5

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