ROBOCOP Review Leaked (Spoiler Free)


RoboCop  (2014)  hits screens February 7th, 2014.  This new version is directed by Jose Padilha, a Brazilian born director who cut his teeth making the movies The Elite Squad and The Elite Squad: The Enemy Within.  Both gritty drama thrillers that take place in Rio de Janeiro.  The cast is stellar and includes Michael Keaton, Gary Oldman, Jay Baruchel, Samuel L. Jackson, and Abbie Cornish; yes, this cast rocks out fellow fanboys and girls.  New-comer Joel Kinnaman plays our hero Alex Murphy (aka RoboCop).  Kinnaman is a Swedish actor who has appeared in the films Safehouse, Easy Money and The Darkest HourKinnaman also appeared in AMC’s TV show The Killing.  On paper this movie rocks; I can’t wait to put it to the test.  Which is exactly what one lucky fan got to do recently.

Well, one lucky fanboy was admitted to a test screening of RoboCop (2014), and he’s been converted to the Church of Rebooted Robo.   This unnamed fan had some interesting things to say about this modern take on a classic flick.  The mystery man writes,

I’m writing this to tell you to relax. Seriously, breathe, and stop wanting to hate this movie before you even give it a chance. This film does not have the hyper-violence of the original, nor the comedic quotability of the Verheoven classic. It won’t replace the 1989 film, and GUESS WHAT: It doesn’t try to. It’s a new interpretation of the character that is faithful to the essence of what the original concept of the character was.”  

This sounds to me like a good deal.  Violence is all well and good, but story and emotion count for a lot; and to remove some of the violence for the reboot in favor of character development and story seems like a good idea.  At the very least, it appeals to a wider audience (and we are always recruiting for the Nerd Herd).  By now I think we all have seen the trailer (if not click below).  I am very interested to see the relationships between RoboCop and his family and how it evolves upon his transformation.  The trailer also hints at the struggle between the man and the machine; if they went in a more dramatic direction than the original I can see nothing wrong with that.  It just exacerbates my need to see RoboCop (2014). 

I, for one, can’t recommend this movie enough to people. I feel confident in verifying that, personally, I think this is a SUPERIOR movie, when you take into account the score, cinematography, action choreography, editing, costuming, makeup, acting, directing and writing”  

That is a ringing endorsement if I ever heard one.  I can’t wait to put it to the test my own self!  Lucky Mystery Man goes on to finish, “.  .  .

I can say is that Kinnaman as Murphy provides much more depth and charisma than Weller did with his TJ Lazer impersonation, Samuel L Jackson is the lovable asshole he usually plays SO well, Gary Oldman is… best left unsaid at this point, Keaton makes us wonder why he isn’t in more movies, and Cornish makes us feel for the Murphy family. Have faith, this is one “reboot” done right.”

Interesting…I felt Weller was awesome in the original, but I will keep an open mind when viewing RoboCop (2014).  Everything about this review makes me want to see this movie more; and for the record I think the black suit rocks.  I will be in line early for RoboCop (2014) next February.

 Source: CBM