Robocop (2014)

Genre: Crime/Sci-fi

Directed: Jose Padilha

Starring: Joel Kinnaman, Gary Oldman, Samuel Jackson and Michael Keaton.

Running: 118 mins

At the hands of greedy Hollywood and lazy ideas, no movie is safe from being thrown into that big pile of remakes that cinemagoers know all too well. It is fair to say that modern directors in most cases, the up and coming, are the most gutsy when it comes to revisiting a cult classic such as Robcop. There are many reasons a director may pick up such a poisoned chalice but the legitimate reason is money. For fans of the original it is quite nonsensical but for the neutral and more importantly the younger demographic it is destined to find, it is clever and ultimately extremely rich. Way before remakes and Gothic robots was a time when director Paul Veroeven challenged James Cameron’s Terminator in 1987. Paul crafted his own futuristic tale of a dystopic Detroit bowing to the presence of a man in a machine who, considering the era and rating of the movie, it wouldn’t hesitate in blowing your head off – the violence was ripe and that is what signified 80′s cinema.

Twenty seven years down the line Jose Padilha directs a Robocop movie that is clearly modernised to suit the criteria of 21st century blockbuster; it’s visually teasing, not very action packed but sticking with the original plot respectively.

The year is 2028 and technological conglomerate Ominicorp is fighting for robotic protection on the streets of Detroit. At the centre of this debate is Raymond Sellars (Michael Keaton). Having inherited billions from his military robots overseas, for Raymond, America’s fight against such prospect is a hard pill to swallow. He is hell-bent on altering a machine based authority that citizens can look up to with trust and support. We are consistently reminded of the need for such placement through Pat Novak (Samuel Jackson) who asks the question; “Why is America so Robophobic”? This is supposed to create a giggle or two.

On the other side of the not-so gritty city is our protagonist Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnamen). Murphy is a family man and a respected cop. Unfortunately for Murphy his eagerness to put certain criminals behind bars results in a car bomb which explodes at close range. Shattered and burned to a crisp, the decision of Murphy’s last breath is down to his distraught wife Clara (Abbie Cornish). She is given a life changing decision by Omincorp; seek benefit in society by creating a robotic hero, or let Murphy die a hero’s death. Thanks to Dr. Dennett Norton (Gary Oldman) Raymond Sellar’s vision for a safer city pays off as Murphy awakens inside robotic armour.

This is a remake with little evidence as to why the city of Detroit is so ridden with scum that it needs such authority. I mean Detroit has never looked so clean. It is weak in its story, lacking any such motive as to why the town needs a saviour. It depends on the monologue from Samuel Jackson’s Pat Novak to keep you informed and to remind you why America needs this and how pro-American his own status is. Pat Novak, like Tom Pope (Jay Bruchel) and the arrogant Rick Mattox (Jackie Earl Haley) are the comedic twist to this drunken CGI fest. For instance Rick, who continues to call Murphy Tinman, plays the Wizard of Oz favourite “If I only had a heart” over a training montage.

Joel Kinnamen as Robocop can do no wrong. The scenes which show him interacting with his family are almost sympathetic. Murphy is aware of his new body from the second he awakens which opens the door for some quality time as Robodad. I cannot help but be appalled as to why Robocop’s suit is black? And what felt more ironic is that a former Batman requested it! We are teased from the beginning with the vintage metal outlook but hey, as a remake is the poison chalice, if you steer too close to the original or too far, you’re criticised. So yes, Robocop’s transformation to gothicbot should be criticised. He looks and moves more like the robotic ninjas from Robocop 3.

The overall movie is lethargic and timid with its characters. This underwhelming story involves more crocodile tears than The Notebook. It bleeds us dry with attempted emotion forgetting the purpose of the franchise; it lacks the action necessary to support its title and very little can be said for Joel Kinneman other than he played a robot. But hey, it is better than Robocop 3

Nitpicking aside, Robocop is entertaining in parts with a little bit of nostalgia. It lacked the necessary action that the original gave us, along with the grit and the memorable villain. I enjoyed the last 15 minutes, not because it ended, but because Robocop finally grows a pair of metal ones!

The Original Nightmare Returns

Fans of Robert Englund's Freddy Krueger will get the opportunity to embrace the original Nightmare on elm street this Halloween. Coming to UK cinemas (no word regarding us Irish), A Nightmare on Elm street (1984) will re-emerge to celebrate both the creepiest night of the year, as well as the movie being regarded as one of the best horror movies to date.

Fans of the horror genre were left bitterly disappointed in what was quiet an obvious, yet bluntly dissatisfying remake that saw Jackie Earl Ray play the scarred child slasher in the remake of 2010. While I for one saw it as nothing other than entertaining, the majority of fans will want to quickly forget the attempted re-creation directed by Samuel Bayer.

For one night only, on October 31, Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street will darken cinemas with ultimate frightfulness in order to give audience a satisfying scare, something that is very rare in modern horror.

A new HD trailer is available to support the release, in which you can see over on Empire. In the meantime, check out one of the many iconic scenes involved with this horror classic.

John Rambo: An Origin of Violence

Action movies supporting the most iconic actors in the late 80s early 90s shared a particular, yet similar concept to one another; a straight forward survival premise, or a rescue mission that would inevitably lead to chaos at the highest order.

Sylvester Stallone was involved in the rise and rise of dead body counts in an era that supported many trilogies to broaden a statement of unlimited violence. There is an argument that I have ear-wigged and sometimes created that would go something along the lines of "Action movies just ain't as fun to watch now as they were in the 80s". The difference in movies now is that we see a lot more focused on a logical plot, and not so much the will to entertain the mindless. Although modern day blockbusters are evidence to show it could be the opposite way around - thanks to CGI.

Let's take a look back at a movie trilogy that signifies the actor for what he was and inevitably, what he can never walk away from. No not Rocky(an argument for another day), Rambo; which felt the need to extend and prolong the use of violence in its movies by doubling (and at times) trebling the body count.

Sly Stallone was at his best in 1982 with First Blood (before Rambo, before a name that represented violence at the highest). A simple yet effective story of survival in the woods caused by the ignorance of the towns sheriff.  John Rambo - a soldier tormented by war is up against it, making use of his tactics in the back yard of a town on full alert. Those who have seen the movie may remember that through-out the manhunt for John, one man was killed in the movie. one. Now, the movie promoted violence, just like many that followed it and although it was physical, it was necessary. Rambo turns himself in for the sake of the idiots who consistently continued to come after him. Did he do the right thing? no, but he slightly makes up for the men he could have killed in the sequel that followed.

3 years later, George P. Cosmatos directed a sequel. Rambo: First Blood 2 (1985). Freed from prison, Rambo is sent on a mission by his colonel to help rescue a bunch of POWs. Forced to team up with a female lead this time around, Rambo infiltrates a Vietnamese war camp only to find himself set-up by the authority who sent him there. The poster showcases Rambo with a rocket launcher the size of himself; automatically telling you what you are in for with the sequel - chaos. The body count goes as far as 67. Rambo is responsible for 51 of those. The sequel really expresses the killing mentality within Rambo, with his guerrilla warfare background coming back to haunt him. Sequences on the river result in 10 killings, while scenes on the camp is a laxi-daisy of 4 with the rescue mission itself adding a total of 29.

My year of birth (1988) saw the release of Rambo 3; directed by Peter McDonald. Rambo is en-rout to Afghanistan to rescue colonel Trautman who is being held captive by soviet forces. Apart from Stallone's body count rising to 72 third time around, the overall film survives on a body count of 127, with Colonel Trautman getting in on the fun with 5 kills. This one was quite weak but it's what the fans wanted. The drama we got in the original was long dead. Rambo had reached a new stage of chaos. By the time the sequel had wrapped up I think people knew where Sly and co were taking this character.

Yep, a modern day Rambo still lurks. Instead of hanging up his knife and bandanna, his age is ignored in the fourth movie.

Sly reinvented Rambo in 2008 with a fourth in the franchise. Lone hero Rambo is still surviving in his own company 20 years later; rough and ragged, with muscles just "screaming" to be pumped, as well as his murderous addiction (Don't worry Rambo, you will have your fun). Excluding Richard Crenna this time following his death in 2003, Rambo dedicates this bloody return to his former colonel and acting colleague. Located in Burma, Rambo is approached by a group of aid workers looking to be led through the jungle and into a Burmese camp. Rambo advises the "eager to die" group that;"Burma's a war zone". Like any bunch of uneducated imbeciles, they don't believe him. Although if Rambo told me he dived off a cliff and stitched himself up afterwards, would you believe him?

So they say "screw him" and go anyway, winding up hostage and slaved in a Burmese camp.

Rambo is informed by a church pastor about the capture of the group. Rambo could have said "I told them so"...but he does, and goes anyway.

Rambo travels the rivers of Burma with a group of mercenaries where death awaits and survival lurks. Rambo goes on to murder 87 people with the entire movie promoting a fatality of 247 bodies!!! (excluding fish, horses and dogs). They matter too you know? Movie insiders reckon Rambo potentially killed hundreds more when he blew up half the jungle on his way down! That's my boy!

While Sly has moved on to bigger and not so better things, he seems to always stay true to violence. Recent movies such as The Expendables and Bullet to the Head have continued to portray some epically violent sequences that are quite the entertainment if you leave your brain at home. Although Sly's gathering of iconic action stars with The Expendables (and sequel) are not enough to convince me that movies are still the same. Sure, you can throw in Arnold Schwarzenegger, Van Damme, Chuck Norris, Dolph Lundren (or some might know him as Drago), there is a level of comedic effort that has failed to work in modern day blockbusters. Plus, a 60 year old Arnie who got bored of governing California is just not the same (although he did have a kid with his maid so the Expendables might have taken his mind off things).

I do not want to see the end of iconic stars such as Sly and Arnie, and it thrills me to reflect on the Rambo franchise. But one can not ignore the illogical sense behind blockbusters today. They were not as creative in the 80s as they were today. Sure, they lacked CGI, which is not a bad thing either. They were gritty back then, almost believable and a hell of a lot more serious compared to the crap being released today. Don't believe me? Go and see Bruce Willis in A Good Day to Die Hard - a desperate attempt at reviving what was.

Actually don't bother. Do yourself a favour and watch First Blood again.

Robocop Review (1987)

The 80's was the epidemic of landmark movies. It was no doubt an era of heavy artillery supplied by Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. To name a few; Predator 87", First Blood 82", Aliens 86", The Terminator 84" and more would all go forward to rule the 1980's. Released in 1987, Robocop would have to bring something explosive to the table.

This futuristic sci-fi takes place in Detroit were crime rate is at its highest. The streets are crawling with Junkies, prostitutes while a global tech business, OCP (Omni Consumer products), over looks the city and controls the reign of law. It does not get more gritty than the portrayal we see at first hand.

OCP is known for its advanced technology and continuity in daily developments created and mastered to protecting the public from the scum. With not much belief in your average police department, it is when the giant company buys out the police task force in hopes to creating something stronger and less vulnerable as murderers and rapists pile the dark streets of Detroit.

It is when rogue cop Alex Murphy (Peter Weller) is blasted to death during a tense infiltration into one of Detroit's cold blooded gangs, (a gruesome scene that joined movie history) that sees Bob Morton (Miguel Ferrer) of OCP perform a body transformation. With adjustments to save the general organs of Murphy's remains, the staff at OCP construct a steel shell around the dead body of Murphy resulting in a ""Robocop",a programmed walking talking killing machine assigned to protect the innocent with the ability to sustain and arrest.

While Murphy's soul is nothing short of deceased, it is when former partner and witness to the crime Lewis (Nancy Allen) discovers the man behind the metal plates resulting in Robocop's reflection of memories, which is something OCP didn't want. The action packed plot sees Bob's Robocop create a kill list behind the death of his former self. The main target is indeed, in my opinion one of the biggest dirt bags to ever hit our screens, Clarence (Kurtwood Smith). If Satan had an apprentice, it was this guy. It delights me to witness the path of revenge that Robocop follows, leading to an all out war as Clarence and his men try ridding the streets of the only thing standing in their way.

Although OCP staff and second man on the managers board Dick (Ronny Cox) represents true justice, Dick has eyes on a different future for the advanced company, a future without Robocop, which leads Robocop on an investigation that connects dots between the criminals of Detroit and the rich that overlook it.

Ah yes, the nostalgic reflection of this movie still excites me. One year before my birth, Robocop was swarming cinemas global, estimating a total of 13,000,000 in budget. Just like a plethora of 80's action, Robocop was, and still is one of the best of that era.

Its concept was highly original then, and unfortunately could not have competed with The Terminator and T2, it did succeed in terms of Sci-fi action and joined a host of movies that showed the possible gruesomeness of real-life shootings.

Scene of Death: Upon the origin of Robocop, Murphy had to make a sacrifice. Not knowing he would become a protective cyborg of Detroit, he foolishly rushed in, disturbing a group of animals, resulting in a terrifying scene. Do you remember? He had his leg, arm, and eventual head blasted with shotguns, machine guns the lot. Clarence and his affiliates were a new breed of murders and rapists, which lead to a whole new direction in my movie history. The gore was frightening and the screams of laughter toward a dead cop is more haunting.

The overall cast consisted of some well known faces of that era, if not genre of movies. In my opinion, it was just as well Peter Weller had to play out the movie in a metal suit and robotic concept as I don't think I could have stuck his cheesy acting through-out the 100 minutes or so. Although he is the hero an lead star, he is the worst actor associated with this classic... sorry. Apart from a handful of low budget movies, Weller has done the voice for Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 & Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2...random?

Ronnie Cox, as we know from Eddie Murphy's Beverly Hills Cop, was then and maybe still an accomplished actor playing numerous roles of good and bad.  Kurtwood Smith made appearances in Deep Impact, Rambo 3, Broken Arrow and many more.

Apart from its cheesy one liners, Robocop is and always will be one of my Childhood favourites. I know, it was strictly 18's (strictly), there was just no way I wasn't watching this movie. Unfortunately I can't say the same for what was to follow. I am sure the majority of fans will agree if I say that  RoboCop 2 was mediocre, although it will never, NEVER be as bad as RoboCop 3!!!  It is hardly worth referencing, but I believe the situation was played out with Peter Weller witnessing a script that read Robotic Ninjas and immediately decided to shove the pen he was given up the writers ass!

For those who don't know, a re-make is set for release in 2013, with a cast Gary Oldman, Joel Kinnaman and Samuel L. Jackson.  At this stage I struggle to see how anything can go wrong when the legendary Gary Oldman is involved. Joel Kinnaman is the star of the murderous tv series, The Killing. As for Samuel Jackson?...

Overall: 80's Sci-fi action, 80's bloodshed, 80's acting = a damn good time!

8/10

A classic Movie, A classic trailer

Possibly up there with one of the greatest movies every made. They simply do no not make movies like this anymore, even trailers this disturbing don't exist in todays cinemas. This trailer frightens the viewer in to seeing the movie...something they lack in the movie industry in 2012.

BRING BACK THE TERMINATOR TO OUR CINEMAS!

Terminator Trailer: 1984