SPOILERS:
We live in a world where technology is advancing faster than society’s comprehension of all the ethical ramifications that come with it, and with films such as Her and Wally Pfister’s upcoming Transcendence tackling the subject, the time is ripe for a film that blends those prescient moral dilemmas with great CGI and lots of action. Cue Robocop, a movie that may draw comparisons with certain baffling recent 80s remakes such as The A-Team or Red Dawn, but what sets it apart is the fact that it’s a reboot that makes sense. In fact, the most surprising thing about this project is that the powers that be didn’t pump out a new Robocop movie sooner.
It’s 2028 and we are introduced to a world where robots and cyber technology have replaced the common soldier in America’s international peacekeeping efforts. And the big debate now stirring at the home front then becomes: why not bring that same technology to safeguard the streets of America’s crime-infested cities? Enter Raymond Sellars (Keaton), the egotistical and greedy Omnicorp CEO who is keen to cash in on the potential windfall the American market represents. Facing stiff resistance to his plans to use robotic police officers from certain cautious elements within the government, he needs a gimmick, some kind of marketing ploy to sway public opinion in his favor. This is where undercover cop Alex Murphy (Kinnaman) falls into the equation. After Murphy is brought to the brink of death while investigating corrupt cops and illegal arms dealers, Sellars and Dr. Dennett Norton (Oldman) use him as a guinea pig for a new kind of police officer: one with a soul and free will, a robot that can tell the difference between right and wrong. Caught in the middle of a political battle and struggling to reconcile his humanity with his new stark and unsettling reality, Murphy must also get revenge on those responsible for destroying his life.
Before we get into the flaws of this movie, of which there are many, the film-makers should be commended for not going the same exact route as the original. This is a revamped version that won’t remind you of its predecessor; this new Robocop stands, and falls flat, on its own two feet. While the original film by Paul Verhoeven gave us a darkly comedic satire about the overabundance of violence in our media and culture, the new Robocop arrives as a flaccid cautionary tale for modern day America. Instead of opting for a chaotic and dystopian future, director José Padhila chooses to ground Robocop’s world within more realistic territory. Aside from the flashy technology on display here and there, it all feels and looks the same as the world we live in. The film also decides to focus more on the human element of Robocop as well as on Murphy’s family, something that the original neglected to do (perhaps intentionally). This works well for the most part; we get into some interesting and compelling territory when Dr. Norton struggles with the realization that he can improve Murphy’s capabilities as a killing machine at the price of stripping away his humanity piece by piece, a trade-off that makes the initial experiment of creating a robot with a soul a redundant failure. As the reluctant and torn Dr. Norton, caught between trying to do the right thing and the immoral realities of what he is actually undertaking, Gary Oldman is great as always and elevates proceedings considerably.
Now on to Robocop’s many problems: Padhila shot to fame with the critically acclaimed Elite Squad and Elite Squad: The Enemy Within, films that are noted for their stark and gritty realistic style. And while some of that style comes through in his latest effort, much of the personality and panache that was evident in his earlier work is nowhere to be seen here. Coming with such a big budget and all the risks entailed in that, Robocop is a great example of a case where the design by committee approach fails miserably. Put simply, Robocop plays things way too safely in the hopes that it won’t provoke too much or offend the audience’s delicate sensibilities. Pushing boundaries are a big no-no and priority number one is to appeal to as many people as possible. Period. Such an approach will never make for a great movie and Robocop is simply one in a long line of Hollywood action films that don’t give its audience enough credit. Case in point: throughout the film, parallels between Robocop’s fictional future and America’s current use of drone warfare are drawn in an obvious and unsubtle way by the loud-mouthed and belligerent TV presenter Pat Novak (played with over-the-top campiness by a wig-donning Samuel L. Jackson). There’s nothing better than starting a movie, a primarily visual medium, by having a character just directly tell the audience everything, and after Novak spoon-feeds us the basic lay of the land, the debate is polarized nicely and neatly for us simpletons to easily understand. Sellars is a guy who likes robots and random Senator is the guy who doesn’t. Got it? Done.
And the problems don’t end there. There are a number of visually impressive action set pieces throughout the film but they fail to be compelling or engaging whatsoever. We know that Robocop will survive through all these scenes, because he’s Robocop. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing in action movies and it’s usually part of the fun, but when there’s very little innovation or creativity going on besides sidekicks duly and predictably sacrificing themselves (but he only gets a shoulder wound because he’s a good guy), or Robot 1 pile-driving into Machine 2, it becomes very hard to be invested in anything that’s going on. The same can be said for most of the movie. Things move at a good pace and time passes by quickly but none of it engages the audience. When every scene begins, we already know what’s going to happen next and we already know what’s coming up. We have arbitrary emotional connection scene with the child, and then we proceed to arbitrary sex scene with the wife. Ironically, much of the character development in this movie is done in such a soulless robotic way. Social commentary on subjects such as free will or the intangible and unquantifiable nature of the human spirit emerge every now and then, but it all feels undeveloped and incredibly simplistic. Eventually, the film ends by showing us how the human spirit can triumph over any obstacle. It would be inspiring if it wasn’t so lazily and shoddily done.
Verdict: Half-hearted in its message and approach, Robocop is a serviceable reboot that does the bare minimum with its story and characters. Fans of the original will definitely be left less than satisfied. Let’s just say that I wouldn’t buy that for a dollar!
C
Movie info:
Runtime: 108 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Cast: Joel Kinnaman, Abbie Cornish, Gary Oldman, Michael Keaton
Director: José Padilha
Screenplay: Joshua Zetumer
Cinematography: Lula Carvalho
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