Not a lot to recommend with Robocop

RoboCop is a complete re-imagining of Paul Verhoven’s violent, satirical 1987 cult classic, which memorably starred Peter Weller as the title character. In that regard, it does what every remake should strive to do; avoid being a point for point retread.
By The Newsroom
Published 28th Jun 2014, 10:00 BST
RobocopRobocop
Robocop

This time Officer Alex Murphy is played by Joel Kinneman. When Murphy is critically wounded in a car bombing, he is chosen as an experimental subject for Omnicorp’s new RoboCop program. Kinneman’s portrayal of Murphy is yet another case of a bland, brooding action hero.

He’s backed by a cast that includes Michael Keaton as the entrepreneurial owner of Omnicorp and Gary Oldman as the scientist who creates RoboCop. They are decent in their roles, but no-one’s intentions are straightforward; its difficult to know just who’s a villain and who isn’t. Samuel L Jackson shines as a conservative television host but wasn’t in it enough for my liking.

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RoboCop is a more conventional action film than its predecessor, one that falls in the same trappings of most other contemporary action films. It suffers greatly in comparison with the original and judged on its own merits, there isn’t a whole lot to recommend either. RoboCop is now available on DVD.

Related topics:Michael Keaton