RoboCop is the remake of the 1987 film of the same name. RoboCop is directed by Jose Padilha. The movie stars Joel Kinnaman as Robocop, Gary Oldman as Doctor Norton, Michael Keaton as Raymond Sellars, and Samuel Jackson as Pat Novak. The film is a sci-fi action film that focuses on the morality of replacing men with machines, taking away free will, and abusing the power of the media.
For a movie named RoboCop the focus is not on Robocop as much. The focus is more on the chain of events and the other characters as well as the political statements. The first half of the film is all about the setup and the training of Robocop. The second half is the same as the original story but with more focus on the other characters and what they are dealing with. The story tries to be its own thing but tells the same story as the original. There are plenty of differences between the two stories but the differences are in the details.
Joel Kinnaman did a pretty good job playing Robocop; He manages to pull off the robotic characteristics of the original Robocop as well as adding his own touches to the character. He was enjoyable to watch and he fits the character well enough. The only downside is that even though he adds to the character he doesn’t add enough new things to his character.
Gary Oldman plays the doctor who saves Robocop after his accident. His character is the one who suffers the moral dilemmas in the film. He is one of the better performances in the movie.
Michael Keaton plays Raymond Sellars the man who builds machines for Law enforcement and occupation of other countries. He plays a businessman and a corporate big wig that only cares about making money. He makes a good villain for the movie. He does a good job in this role. Samuel Jackson is Pat Novak, a news broadcaster who spins the stories to support Sellars and his machines. He is a representation of the extreme of what media corruption is. He gives his usual performance. Jackson was entertaining to watch in the beginning but later on the things his character says and does gets kind of uncomfortable to watch in the sense of that the way he spins the media makes him the least likeable character in the film. Jackson did a pretty good job getting you to feel those emotions.
The cinematography was ok but the use of shaky camera shots during the gunfight sequences were not necessary and distracting. Some of the music tracks are nice to listen to, and they used some of the original film’s soundtrack that gave the movie the feel of the original. The armor of Robocop took a while to get used to and in the dark scenes you could barely see Robocop as he moves around in darkness. It was nice that he still walked slowly outside of fight scenes to show how heavy he is.
The movie is enjoyable to watch, the visual effects are entertaining. The first half of the film is slow but interesting, the second half is action filled but predictable. It is an entertaining thrill ride that does dive into the morals and politics of the world today. But you don’t have to take my word for it. Go see it yourself and decide.
