Demolition Man (1993)

A police officer is brought out of suspended animation in prison to pursue an old ultra-violent nemesis who is loose in a non-violent future society.

Director:

Marco Brambilla

Writers:

Peter M. Lenkov (story), Robert Reneau (story)

Stars:

Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes, Sandra Bullock

1 win & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sylvester Stallone	...	John Spartan
Wesley Snipes	...	Simon Phoenix
Sandra Bullock	...	Lenina Huxley
Nigel Hawthorne	...	Dr. Raymond Cocteau
Benjamin Bratt	...	Alfredo Garcia
Bob Gunton	...	Chief George Earle
Glenn Shadix	...	Associate Bob
Denis Leary	...	Edgar Friendly
Grand L. Bush	...	Zachary Lamb - Young
Pat Skipper	...	Helicopter Pilot
Steve Kahan	...	Captain Healy
Paul Bollen	...	T.F.R. Officer
Mark Colson	...	Warden William Smithers - Young
Andre Gregory	...	Warden William Smithers - Aged
John Enos III	...	Prisoner (as John Enos)

Storyline

Frozen in 1996, Simon Phoenix, a convicted crime lord, is revived for a parole hearing well into the 21st century. Revived into a society free from crime, Phoenix resumes his murderous rampage, and no one can stop him. John Spartan, the police officer who captured Phoenix in 1996, has also been cryogenically frozen, this time for a crime he did not commit. In 2032, the former cities of Los Angeles, San Diego and Santa Barbara have merged into peaceful, utopian San Angeles. Unable to stop him with their non-violent solutions, the police release Spartan to help recapture Phoenix. Now after 36 years, Spartan has to adapt himself to the future society he has no knowledge about.

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Plot Keywords:

year 2032 | totalitarianism | censorship | cryonics | pilot | 

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Taglines:

The future isn't big enough for the both of them.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for non-stop action violence, and for strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 October 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

El demoledor

Filming Locations:

Park Place Office Campus - 3345 Michelson Drive, Irvine, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$57,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$15,973,850, 11 October 1993, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$58,055,768

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$159,055,768

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Silver Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo (4 channels)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Peter M. Lenkov wrote the movie when he was a Production Assistant. His inspiration came as he would drive his salvaged car with a broken boom box chained to the backseat repetitively playing Demolition Man by The Police. The lyrics, "Don't mess around with the Demolition Man" would stand out. Also combined with his love for cop television shows, and his obsession in wondering if Walt Disney was frozen, would be his launching pad.

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Goofs

When Simon Phoenix is in the museum querying the computer about the "linear accelerator gun", the computer voice states that the gun achieves fusion in 2.6 minutes. However, the computer screen indicates "fission time 2.6 minutes" on the diagram of the weapon.

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Quotes

John Spartan: Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you back there.
Lenina Huxley: No need to make a de-hurtful retraction. I've just assimilated too much contraband. I fleshed you out as some blow-up-the-bad-guy-with-a-happy-grin-he-man type, but now I realize that you're the moody-troubled-past-gunslinger-who-only-draws-when-he-must type.
John Spartan: Huxley, stop.
Lenina Huxley: What?
John Spartan: I'm not any of that. I just do my job and things get...
Lenina Huxley: Get demolished.

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Alternate Versions

The TBS broadcast eliminates all references to Taco Bell, rendering several lines of dialog incomprehensible. Early in the movie, Sandra Bullock's character uses the word "asshole," but the TBS version replaces this with the word "eyesore." (She still gets fined for swearing, however!).

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Connections

Referenced in Private Film 20: Tower (1995)

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Soundtracks

The Love Boat Theme
Written by Charles Fox and Paul Williams

User Reviews

Weird, It's A Satirical Action Movie

Sgt. John Spartan (Stallone) is a tough cop for a tough age and Simon Pheonix (Snipes) is a nasty and violent criminal. When Stallone finally catches his man, he is found guilty of killing a group of innocent civilians at the same time; and they are both given sentences in the new cryo-prison. When Simon Pheonix escapes into a new world in the year 2032, the police have no way of dealing with such a vicious arch-criminal so they re-animate John Sparton, and so it begins.

I simply love the way the future is portrayed in this film, it is a wonderfully satirical crime free environment where the humans have become ultra-placid geeks under the new regime. Sandra Bullock and Nigel Hawthorne are the two main police-persons that we see and they are brilliantly funny in their performances.

Demolition man is as funny as it is action packed and although it's pretty shallow, it is still great fun to watch.

7/10