By JOHN CARTER JR.
Tiger Media Network
Indiana Jones, First Blood, Bloodsport, Die Hard, Predator, Full Metal Jacket, Top Gun, Scarface, The Terminator and more. What do all these films have in common? The ’80s were filled to the brim with iconic action films that still affect popular culture today.
Characters like Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones, Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo or Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator have all gone on to attain iconic status after their debut in this jam-packed era.
There is one film that stands out as an odd installment that recently had a resurgence in popularity, and it is none other than the 1987 Paul Verhoeven cult classic RoboCop starring Peter Weller as the titular cop, Ronny Cox as evil OCP executive Dick Jones, Kurtwood Smith as the crime lord Clarence Boddicker and Miguel Ferrer as upcoming OCP employee Bob Morton, Nancy Allen as Officer Anne Lewis, and last but not least, Daniel O’Herlihy as Highest OCP executive “The Old Man” who may be known from his role in Halloween 3 Season of the Witch as its main antagonist.
The film centers on a dystopian version of the city of Detroit, where in a company called Omni Consumer Products or OCP has been given control of the police force and is attempting to resolve city-wide crime through robotics projects. This is so they can build a New Detroit city where they seem to promise a utopia.
When Dick Jones’ Robotic option leads to the death of an OCP executive, Bob Morton tries to sell the Old Man on his RoboCop project — a project that takes cops and converts them into the ultimate crime-fighting cyborg. Their first attempt at this project is Officer Alex Murphy, a new transfer to the Detroit police department who had his body blown to bits by a shotgun at the hands of Clarence Boddicker. The real question is whether RoboCop is better off dead or alive.
The film excels in a few key areas. First, the costume design for RoboCop is excellent. It makes his inclusion in 2019’s Mortal Kombat 11 standout as that interpretation of the character was taken directly from this movie and even had his original actor. We can see all of the guest character’s references being taken from this film. This even further establishes RoboCop as iconic. RoboCop’s poses and skills with a gun are perfectly executed, with these aspects even being important to the character.
Next, the world-building here allows for a feeling of oppression and a need for something like RoboCop to permeate throughout the whole film. While there might be some moral questions to be considered as to whether or not it is OK to bring someone back like they do in RoboCop, we lose sight of that question in the action sequences or his interactions with the villains of the film. Speaking of which, last and not least, this film’s fighting and action scenes are top-notch. A few of the highlights included RoboCop’s first run-in with common criminals, the gas station scene, RoboCop (Officer Murphy) getting his revenge on Clarence, and all the scenes featuring RoboCop or ED-209 Robot in the OCP buildings.
Overall what RoboCop serves is heart. The environments are cold or oppressive. The corporate powers are numb to the pains of the world (even when one of their own fellow executives is shot in front of them). Most of the OCP characters in the film are opportunistically greedy and the darkness of the crime inflicted on the law-abiding citizens of this dystopian Detroit are untamed. It is the cold product of that city’s people and its oppressive overloads that is the heart of this film. RoboCop has been given the tools to fight all manners of crime not only through OCP’s robotic augmentation but through his experiences as a cop and as a father. When RoboCop begins to understand his human origins it allows him to overcome the crime he was programmed to stop — corruption.
In conclusion, RoboCop is among the most iconic action movies from the ’80s. It stands among the best franchises that to this day remain relevant. The film excels at excellent character and costume design. Its environments, props and stop-motion blend together to make something uniquely RoboCop. The fight or action scenes are well-done, making RoboCop practical effects a signature of this iconic film. Explosions, faces melting off, robots drawing guns like cowboys and way more add to the film. Moreover is the heart of the movie: Officer Murphy or “RoboCop’s” humanity is the emotional core of this film.
Without such humanity, he would simply be a tin man with an ax and no heart.
John Carter Jr. is a member of Tiger Media Network with a love for movies and music.