RoboCop (1987)

In a dystopic and crime-ridden Detroit, a terminally-wounded cop returns to the force as a powerful cyborg with submerged memories haunting him.

Director:

Paul Verhoeven

Writers:

Edward Neumeier, Michael Miner

Stars:

Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Dan O'Herlihy

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 11 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Weller	...	Officer Alex J. Murphy / RoboCop
Nancy Allen	...	Officer Anne Lewis
Dan O'Herlihy	...	The Old Man (as Daniel O'Herlihy)
Ronny Cox	...	Dick Jones
Kurtwood Smith	...	Clarence J. Boddicker
Miguel Ferrer	...	Bob Morton
Robert DoQui	...	Sergeant Warren Reed
Ray Wise	...	Leon C. Nash
Felton Perry	...	Johnson
Paul McCrane	...	Emil M. Antonowsky
Jesse D. Goins	...	Joe P. Cox (as Jesse Goins)
Del Zamora	...	Kaplan
Calvin Jung	...	Steve Minh
Rick Lieberman	...	Walker
Lee de Broux	...	Sal (as Lee DeBroux)

Storyline

Detroit - in the future - is crime-ridden, and run by a massive company. The company have developed a huge crime-fighting robot, which unfortunately develops a rather dangerous glitch. The company sees a way to get back in favour with the public when a cop called Alex Murphy is killed by a street gang. Murphy's body is reconstructed within a steel shell and named Robocop. The Robocop is very successful against criminals, and becomes a target of supervillian Boddicker.

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Plot Keywords:

robocop | gang | cyborg | future | partner | 

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Taglines:

Part man. Part machine. All cop. The future of law enforcement.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 July 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ilektronika Jasusa

Filming Locations:

Building One, Studios at Las Colinas - 6301 North O'Connor Road, Irving, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$13,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$53,424,681 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min 78 min (cut) 98 min (cut) 103 min (unrated director's cut) 91 min (heavily cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) DTS (special edition)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although Peter Weller is solely credited as playing Robocop, he did in fact have a stunt double for certain scenes. During the making of the crack house scene, Peter Weller, Paul Verhoeven, and the stunt double can be seen discussing Robocop's movements.

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Goofs

Just before Murphy has his right hand shot off his arm is beside his body and the man that shoots him stands on his arm, yet when we see Murphy's hand being shot off his hand is above his head, this is not possible because of the shooter standing on his arm

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Quotes

Roosevelt: The entire outer skin will be like this.
Tyler: Its titanium, laminated with kevlar.
Roosevelt: Go ahead, shake his hand.
Bob Morton: [the robotic arm extends to shake Morton's hand, he cringes as the robot hand grips his hand hard] Ahhh, he's got a helluva grip!
Tyler: It's 400 foot-pounds. He could crush every bone in your hand.
Roosevelt: Alright, attach it to his shoulder.
Bob Morton: [Looks right into Robocop's point of view] You're gonna be a bad motherfucker!

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Crazy Credits

There are no opening credits save the title "ROBOCOP".

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Connections

Referenced in Mi dulce (2001)

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Soundtracks

"Show Me Your Spine"
Music by P.T.P.

User Reviews

Underrated, Misunderstood, Ingenious

It's a shame that this movie is usually snubbed by shoving it into the "action" category. Sure, there are lot of legendary action sequences to be found, but RoboCop is a LOT more than that.

Next time when you watch it, try to shift your focus from the cyborgs, explosions and gore towards the writing. From the main theme of criticizing the modern money driven society (a topic still relevant today, and will most likely be so in the future as well) all the way to the smallest bits of dialogue, the writing is nothing short of outstanding. RoboCop is simply the most intelligent "action" film to come out of Hollywood, ever. Unfortunately, the cleverness is hidden "between the lines" of comic book action. No wonder so many people fail to see this film for what it really is.

Amazing cinematography, solid performances (especially from Kurtwood Smith and Miguel Ferrer), memorable musical score.. The list is endless. Granted, the stop motion effects of ED-209 look quite old today, but you have to remember we're talking about a movie made in 1987. RoboCop has its faults, like the rather embarrassing toxic waste scene, but they are easily forgiven compared to all the good things.

You must be thinking "What is this guy on? It's just a dumb little action flick about a cyborg!" .. Relax, take a deep breath and watch it again. I like obscure art films as much as the next guy, but I'm not going to dismiss such greatness just because it comes wrapped in cartoon violence. I'm not saying RoboCop is art, the best movie ever made or the most important film of the year/decade/millennium. But it definitely deserves to be regarded higher.

My only question is: How could Verhoeven succeed so well with this movie, and fail miserably in ALL other Hollywood titles he has worked on?