Robocop [Blu-ray] [Metal Packaging] [Only @ Best Buy] [2014]

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• Rated 4 out of 5 stars

  It's a good try at a classic

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  It's a good try at a classic!! but you gotta stick with the classics Robocop the original was the best.

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  This review is from Robocop [2 Discs] [Blu-ray/DVD] [2014]

  Posted 9 years ago by 13refad

• Rated 4 out of 5 stars

  Pretty good, was expecting worse

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  I came into this movie expecting to completely hate it because of my love for the original 1987 Robocop movie. Fortunately it's not a shot for shot remake and tries to make its own mark with an original story and take on the character. Granted I still dont think this remake holds a candle to the original but its a really good social commentary and an entertaining film. The main sticking point for me was the bump down from a hard R rating the original had to the safe PG-13 rating this new one contains. I'm not saying extreme violence is needed for a good story but for a story of a crime fighting robot in a place as dangerous as Detroit you're going to depict it in a way that's not safe for children in my opinion. The cast was also phenomenal with heavyweights like Michael Keaton, Samuel Jackson, and Gary Oldman bringing gravitas to the proceedings and really giving the movie legitimacy. I wasn't a big fan of Joel Kinnaman's portrayal of Alex Murphy. When he becomes Robocop he does just fine but pre-Robocop Alex Murphy is depicted as a very hard edge street talking cop, a far cry from the All American hero cop version of Alex Murphy from the original. I feel the original iteration of Alex Murphy worked better because it allowed for more sympathy for the character after he is brutally murdered and turned into Robocop. One thing I really liked was Abbie Cornish playing Alex's wife Clara in a much more important and fleshed out role than the original. It helped especially since I found the Alex character so lacking. The original Robocop had very dated special effects for things like the ED-209 and such but the visceral violence was very grotesque and gritty. It's a surprise with the advancements in computer generated special effects since then that I didn't find this remake's effects more convincing than the original. There's this quality to them that makes them obviously CGI and its very distracting and pulls me out. It reminds me how the effects in 'I Am Legend' made me feel. It's worth a definite check out but whether or not its worthy of a purchase or rent is dependent on how much of a sci-fi fan you are and whether you can get past the fact this is a very different Robocop from the original.

  This review is from Robocop [2 Discs] [Blu-ray/DVD] [2014]

  Posted 11 years ago by kitenai

• Rated 4 out of 5 stars

  Better than expected

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  I came into this with the gloves laced up, ready to annihilate this remake of a movie that I have loved dearly since I was a child. I came out respecting the effort put into this and actually hoping for a second installment in the future. This is by no means a great film. It lacks the biting, satire and audacity the original brought to the table. It does bring some new ideas to the table that were never really fleshed out in the original films. The first one being how did all of this effect his wife and son? We are given much more material devoted on the impact that this transformation has on his family and the implications of that. Second, the filmmakers weigh in on the ethics of bringing a human back to life as a machine. While these two topics are barely dabbled upon in Paul Verhoven's classic, this gives them quite a bit of time to be fleshed out. The PG-13 rating is a factor here and it draws attention to the fact that many things are toned down to make this a more lucrative, "vanilla" action film. I was heavily disappointed when I found out that Murphy's iconic gun is basically a stun gun in this film. Also, the city doesn't feel run down or overrun with crime. There are a few mentions about crime rates, but we are never allowed to see how the city has devolved into a distopian, gritty, violent place like it was in the original. I really enjoyed the performances, especially from Gary Oldman and Michael Keaton. Their presence adds a lot to the film and I'm glad they are given meaty, important roles. While Joel Kinnaman does fine as Robocop, I feel like any capable actor could have been placed in his shoes and the difference would be minimal. My hat goes off to Jose Padilha and crew for paying respect to the past, while trying to bring a new slant to the classic story. They injected very relevant themes about the media and corporations, much like in the 1987 film, and they brought them into the new millennium. While this leans a bit more on the "been there, done that" side of things, this is a solid action film that dives a bit deeper into ideas that made this character and this universe so memorable and ingrained them into pop culture history.

  This review is from Robocop [2 Discs] [Blu-ray/DVD] [2014]

  Posted 11 years ago by Trav606