Like it or not, \u201cRoboCop\u201d is here\u2026 again.<\/p>\n
Offering far more humanity than I had expected, this 2014 \u201cRoboCop\u201d is nowhere near the colossal clunker I had feared. Having said that, I couldn\u2019t find anything distinguishable about the remake that I hadn\u2019t seen before in \u201cIron Man\u201d or played in \u201cCall of Duty.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you\u2019ve seen Paul Verhoeven\u2019s 1987 original, you pretty much know the story here. <\/p>\n
Detroit police detective Alex Murphy (\u201cThe Killing\u201d\u2019s Joel Kinnaman replaces the iconic Peter Weller) is both an honest cop and a devoted father. After an important sting operation goes wrong, Alex and his partner Jack Lewis (Michael K. Williams, replacing the offbeat female dynamic that Nancy Allen brought to the original) find themselves in over their heads with some local thugs.<\/p>\n
One thing leads to another, and before he knows it, Alex has become a futuristic \u201cTin Man\u201d \u2013 a science experiment spearheaded by Raymond Sellers (Michael Keaton), head of multinational robotics conglomerate Omnicorp and his resident technician Dr. Dennett Norton (Gary Oldman).The story is diverting enough, and there is some emotional depth lent to Murphy\u2019s character that wasn\u2019t present in the original.<\/p>\n
I enjoyed watching him grapple with his physical situation while trying to maintain his commitments at home and to the police force. Some of \u201cRoboCop\u201d 2014\u2019s finest moments come between Norton and Murphy when the latter reacts abnormally to corporate protocol. In these moments, I discerned a very Shelleyan quality in their relationship which feels like one between Dr. Frankenstein and his high-tech monster.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s just so sad that these amazing plot devices wear thin with Joshua Zetumer\u2019s humorless script. At least \u201cIron Man\u201d was zippy.<\/p>\n
The updated CGI and lack of gore in \u201cRoboCop\u201d 2014 remove any semblance of the \u201cso bad it\u2019s good,\u201d B-movie feel that made the original a classic. I say this, save for one extended scene which showcases all the pieces left of Murphy when the suit is removed. It\u2019s so graphic that it\u2019s not even fun to laugh at, let alone watch. <\/p>\n
For a watered-down, PG-13 remake, this \u201cRoboCop\u201d takes itself way too seriously. It feels twice as long as its modest 108-minute run time would suggest.<\/p>\n
At least a handful of the supporting players try having some fun with the material. Samuel L. Jackson has a field day as Pat Novak \u2013 a loud, Wolf Blitzer-type character which allows the actor to don his finest hairpiece since Jules Winnifield\u2019s Jheri curl in \u201cPulp Fiction.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jackie Earle Haley (\u201cWatchmen\u201d) plays Rick Mattox, head of Omnicorp\u2019s weapons division and quarterback of the company\u2019s overseas operations. It\u2019s diverting enough watching his character spar with Murphy.<\/p>\n
The two hate each other, and that dynamic makes for some of the film\u2019s lighter moments. Jay Baruchel (\u201cThis Is the End\u201d) is miscast as marketing executive Tom Pope.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s as ancillary as characters come and serves no purpose except to butt in with douchey one-liners like, \u201cOh! He looks like a billion dollars!\u201d and \u201cWe are going to make a loooooot of money!\u201d<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t really enjoy watching Abbie Cornish (\u201cLimitless\u201d) mope around either. Something about her display of emotion just feels artificial. Not as fitting as one might think for a movie about a robot.<\/p>\n
\u201cRoboCop\u201d is the first American movie from Brazilian filmmaker Jos\u00e9 Padilha, who is famous for the critically-acclaimed \u201cElite Squad\u201d films. With as strong an action pedigree as Padilha has, it\u2019s a shame in its own right that this remake just feels like another reassembled video game. At least it\u2019s not buried as far down the scrapheap as I had feared.