In honor of the new ‘RoboCop‘ being released, today’s Throwback Thursday looks at the original 1987 “RoboCop” otherwise known as Paul Verhoeven’s masterpiece (besides “Showgirls”, of course). Throwback Thursday is when ScienceFiction.com takes a look at some sci fi classics and explains why they are important today.
So, get ready with a lot of paragraphs ending with “I’d buy that for a dollar!”
Directed by Verhoeven, “RoboCop” stars Peter Weller as the titular character along with Nancy Allen, Dan O’Herlihy, Kurtwood Smith, Miguel Ferrer and Ronny Cox. The script was written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner
Taking place in the future, the city of Detroit is riddled with crime, corruption and a side dish of financial ruin. To keep the city from falling in upon itself, the mayor signs a deal with Omni Consumer Products to take over its police department. Omni Consumer Products, or OCP, has developed an experimental cyborg known as RoboCop that requires the body of a recently-deceased police officer in order for it to work.
Luckily for OCP, and unlucky for officer Alex J. Murphy (Weller), Murphy is killed by a gang run by the cold-blooded Clarence Boddicker. Murphy’s body is then chosen for the RoboCop program. Eventually, we all witness the birth of RoboCop, a fiercely loyal cyborg with three main directives: serve the public trust, protect the innocent, and uphold the law. However, could OCP have added a secret directive we don’t know about? I’m not going to give you any spoilers.
RoboCop is ridiculous in the best way possible. It’s bloody, cruel and remarkably funny. With over-the-top acting, a bonkers storyline, well-crafted cinematography, and characters as corrupt as corrupt can be, I would argue that RoboCop is clearly one of the best examples of modern art of the 1980’s. Then again, I’m no art historian. What do you think of the original RoboCop?
