Film Review | RoboCop 2 (1990)

RoboCop 2 in many ways exhibits the hallmarks of the "difficult" sequel. Known for being Frank Miller of Sin City fame's first big opportunity to break into Hollywood as a writer, the script was doctored to the point of Miller's original story being almost unrecognisable. The film also attempted to recreate the razor-sharp satire of RoboCop through the hallmarks of Paul Verhoeven, despite the director having no involvement in the film with the sequel helmed by Irvin Kirschner. The question upon RoboCop 2's release was whether or not the film could win through on screen despite the turmoil behind the scenes.

We return to Detroit in the not-too-distant future. OCP is now even stronger, tightening its grip on the city and forcing the police department to strike, meaning that crime is running even more rampant than ever. Meanwhile, RoboCop (Peter Weller) heads up the fight against a new drug, "nuke", pushed by a criminal with a Christ complex, Cain (Tom Noonan).

RoboCop 2's positives are largely carried over from the first film. Weller as Murphy/RoboCop is just as strong, bringing as much of the humanity and cybernetic charm seen in the original to the role here as he can. Nancy Allen, returning as Murphy's partner Lewis, is also strong, as are many of the returning cast such as Robert DoQui. Kirschner's attempts at Verhoeven's satirical and blackly comic news reports and advertisements used throughout the film also work at least some of the time, although often without the subtlety or panache that their originator brought to them.

Less successful is the film's ultra-violence. In RoboCop, the use of extreme gore and violent scenes was a key storytelling device, punctuating the film's message through both shock and satire. Here, much more often than not, it just comes across as violence for violence's sake. There's no message, just blood and death. Ironically, this key feature which raised the first film above many other action flicks actually helps to cement RoboCop 2 as never anything more than a meatheaded kill-fest.

So far, so forgivable. What drags the film down further is its haphazardly episodic structure. It's very hard to see any clear thread running through what's going on throughout the film. What are initially introduced as key plot elements are either quickly disposed of or just forgotten completely. In one scene near the beginning of the film, Murphy's wife is given a heartfelt scene confronting the cyborg created from her husband's dead body. After this, she's barely given a mention. There's nothing here to latch onto, which ultimately makes everything presented seem all the more vacuous.

Where the film falls down almost entirely is in the characters it introduces. Cain never feels like any genuine threat, and Belinda Bauer as the new head of OCP's RoboCop program is just irritating. Worst of all is Gabriel Damon as Hob, Cain's juvenile right hand man. Grating in a typically "annoying kid in an '80s movie" kind of way in the first half, Damon takes things to a whole new level when his role is expanded in nauseating fashion as the film hobbles towards its conclusion.

RoboCop 2 is therefore at best a wasted opportunity that seemingly couldn't overcome its troubled production. Whilst there are aspects here that genre fans will likely enjoy to a point, ultimately this is a shallow husk of an action film and a shadow of the enjoyable and smart original. Weller refused to return for RoboCop 3 after his negative experience throughout this first sequel; undoubtedly, many audience members did, and will continue to do, the same.

4/10

Film Review | RoboCop (1987)

RoboCop has always felt somewhat in the shadow of its slightly older '80s cousin The Terminator. Both deal with a dystopian future, both obviously centre around the idea of a human-machine hybrid, and both have no problem dishing out extreme violence and high body counts. But whilst The Terminator is regularly held in high regard as an action sci-fi classic, RoboCop never quite managed the same, at most managing the respectable status of a solid cult classic. With a remake well into development, returning to the original film as it celebrated its 25th anniversary was something I relished, albeit with an edge of wariness as to how well RoboCop had aged.

In Detroit in the near future, where crime is rampant and the police have been privatised by Omni Consumer Products, Officer Alex Murphy (Peter Weller) is brutally murdered by a gang led by the brutal Clarence Boddicker (Kurtwood Smith) on his first patrol after being transferred to the city. However, after being pronounced dead, Murphy's body is used by OCP to create "RoboCop", a law enforcement cyborg intended to be the first of many.

Even a quarter of a century on, RoboCop stands up as a very sharp and well-made entry into both the action and sci-fi genres. Even though some of the special effects now seem dated - ED-209's stop-motion belonging to a bygone era of film-making - the impact is not muted; Verhoeven's slick use of ultraviolence at key points in the narrative hitting home with as much impact as it always has.

Neither is the cutting satire of the film's narrative any less effective. The key themes of humanity, corporate society and morality that permeate RoboCop resonate still, maybe even more so today than when it was released. OCP is a evil corporation for the ages, simultaneously lampooning and holding a mirror up to the way in which big business works. And yet RoboCop never feels preachy. The well-constructed news reports and advertisements that crop up throughout the film demonstrate just how creatively and proficiently the film gets its message across without making you choke on it.

The central performance from Weller is also key to the film's success. As Murphy the man, the actor brings a charming humanity in the character's short incarnation on screen; this humanity is skilfully translated to Murphy's cyborg form, making the character both believably robotic and authentically human.

The film isn't perfect; some aspects feel somewhat formulaic with several tropes of '80s action flicks apparent throughout. But whilst RoboCop is a satisfying if somewhat conventional action film throughout, what raises it from being a very good film to a great one is the way in which it uses the conventions of the genre to produce satire both dark and sharp that still hits home today in a thoroughly entertaining way.

8/10