RoboCop

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RoboCop is a 1987 science fiction action movie, directed by Paul Verhoeven. It spawned two sequels, a comic book, a video game, a novelty dance, a cartoon series, dozens of toys and four television series, all featuring a cyborg police officer. The film was produced by Orion Pictures.

The film is set in a near dystopian future, in Detroit, Michigan. Violent crime is out of control, and the city is in financial ruin. The city hires the megacorporation Omni Consumer Products (OCP) to operate the police department, in effect privatizing it. OCP is interested in rebuilding "Old Detroit" and replacing it with what they call "Delta City". Before this large construction project can begin, OCP wishes to end crime in the city, and creates RoboCop.

Plot

Set in the near future, the film opens with the broadcast of a short television news program called “Media Break”. The report explains that social conditions are worsening in the city of Detroit. Drug abuse is growing rapidly, the numbers of impoverished and unemployed people increases daily, and violent crime has nearly overwhelmed the Detroit police force, which has recently been taken over by a large, multinational corporation, Omni Consumer Products (OCP). There are also rumblings of a potential strike by the police, who feel they are being mistreated by OCP. They are also angry about the brutal murders of several of their comrades, particularly by a well-known crime boss, Clarence Boddicker.

At a meeting of OCP executives, Dick Jones, Senior Vice President, introduces a new law enforcement droid, ED-209. During the demonstration, ED-209’s programming fails and it brutally kills one of the executives. Seizing upon Jones’ failure, a young, opportunistic executive, Bob Morton, convinces the head of OCP that his own project, “RoboCop”, will be a more effective and less dangerous alternative. The “Old Man” gives Morton his blessing. Dick Jones is infuriated at Morton for going over his head.

Alex J. Murphy, a dedicated cop and family man, begins his new assignment in the Metro West precinct, a particularly violent section of "Old Detroit." Murphy is partnered with Ann Lewis, a tough, experienced veteran officer. On their first assignment, they engage in a gunbattle with Boddicker’s gang, who have just robbed a bank. Tracking them to an abandoned factory, Murphy and Lewis proceed inside without backup. Lewis is temporarily incapacitated and Murphy is viciously tortured by Boddicker and his gang. Murphy later dies in an emergency room.

Morton’s team goes ahead with it’s project of building a cyborg from Murphy’s corpse (as Morton had mentioned when pitching his idea to the Old Man, Murphy was selected as a "prime candidate" for the project and transferred deliberately to a more dangerous precinct in the hopes that he would be killed and made a test subject.) Programmed to follow a set of four Prime Directives, RoboCop deals with criminals using extreme methods (his programming seems to disregard Miranda rights). The project is a success and Morton is made a vice president of OCP.

RoboCop begins to experience dreams that recall his previous life. After meeting Lewis in a hallway where she tells him his real name, the cyborg apprehends one of Boddicker’s gang, Emil, who recognizes him. He accesses the main police computer and finds out that Murphy was murdered and that Boddicker is the prime suspect. In the meantime, Bob Morton is celebrating his promotion with two prostitutes when Boddicker appears and shoots him, disabling Morton's legs. He plays a recorded message from Dick Jones, who taunts Bob about going over his head. Boddicker leaves a live grenade in the condo and leaves. The grenade goes off as Bob struggles toward it, killing him.

RoboCop tracks Boddicker to a cocaine factory. The factory workers open fire and are all killed. RoboCop reads Boddicker his Miranda Rights while throwing him through several plate glass windows. He is about to kill him when the criminal reveals that he is working for Dick Jones and reminds RoboCop that he is a police officer, not a mindless killer. RoboCop arrests him instead.

RoboCop goes immediately to Dick Jones’ office at OCP headquarters with the intention of arresting him for "aiding and abetting a known felon." As he tries to arrest Jones, his system threatens to shut down. Jones reveals that the previously classified Directive Four states that it is illegal to arrest any senior executive of OCP and any attempt results in the disabling of RoboCop’s operating system. Jones also reveals that he had Bob Morton murdered because of the success of the RoboCop project and orders ED-209 to destroy RoboCop. A battle ensues and RoboCop escapes (mainly because of 209s inability to walk down stairs). He is met in the parking garage by a large police unit, who open fire, attempting to destroy the cyborg. Lewis arrives and takes her old partner to an old factory (possibly the same one where he was murdered.) RoboCop removes his helmet and sees the face of Murphy. He asks about Murphy’s wife and son and Lewis informs him that they started a new life after the funeral.

Dick Jones frees Boddicker and provides him with a tracking device and weapons to find RoboCop and destroy him. Boddicker gathers his old gang and they track their quarry to the factory. RoboCop, aided by Lewis, kills them all. He travels to OCP headquarters to deal with Jones and interrupts a high-level meeting where Jones is promoting the use of ED-209 (moments before, Murphy easily destroyed the ED-209 unit protecting the entrance to the building with one of the huge guns used by Boddicker’s gang, emphasizing the uselessness of the droid against criminals armed with this type of weapon.) Murphy reveals to the board that Jones had Morton murdered, having recorded Jones’ earlier confession. Jones takes the Old Man hostage and demands an helicopter. The Old Man fires Jones on the spot and Murphy, no longer having to abide by Directive Four, shoots Jones, causing him to fall out the window to his death. The Old Man congratulates RoboCop on his shooting ability and asks his name, to which RoboCop replies, "Murphy."

Equipment

RoboCop was equipped with a modified Beretta 93R machine pistol, called the "Auto-9", capable of (and used almost exclusively with) a three-round burst setting. When not in use, the pistol is stored in a retractable holster built into his right thigh. Before his death, Murphy would mimic his son's favorite television-show hero, "TJ Laser", by spinning his gun around his index finger and holstering it — a trait which he continued to use as RoboCop. RoboCop also had an automated targeting system, which made him an unparalleled sharpshooter.

RoboCop had several useful features such as thermal vision, voice recognition and an inbuilt video recorder which apparently was preapproved as admissible evidence in court. He could also access computers directly — such as the police department's computers and some of OCP's systems — using a retractable input/output jack built into his right hand. The jack was in the form of a sharp spike which also made it a suitable emergency weapon in hand-to-hand combat.

RoboCop also had a radio transmitter built into him. This enabled OCP, government officials, and anyone else with a specialized tracker to be aware of his location at all times. It also enabled computerized dispatching programs to communicate with RoboCop and make him aware of situations requiring his presence.

The Prime Directives

RoboCop was programmed to follow four prime directives (which may be compared with Asimov's Laws of Robotics):

1. Serve the public trust
2. Protect the innocent
3. Uphold the law
4. Classified

The fourth directive, which he was programmed to be unaware of unless it became relevant, rendered him physically incapable of placing any senior OCP employee under arrest ("Any attempt to arrest a senior OCP officer results in shutdown"). In the first movie, it made him unable to act against corrupt Vice-President Richard "Dick" Jones until Jones was fired by the chairman of OCP. In the third movie, the fourth objective was replaced with "Do not oppose an OCP officer," which prevented him from firing on Commander McTaggert, who killed Officer Lewis. The directive was eventually deleted.

Themes

Though it is presented as a special-effects-laden action film, RoboCop does explore a few themes.

In the Criterion Edition DVD commentary track, executive producer Jon Davison and writer Edward Neumeier both point to the decay of American industry from the 1970s through the early 1980s. The abandoned rust belt-style factories that RoboCop and Clarence Boddicker's gang use as hideouts demonstrate this theme. Massive unemployment is prevalent, being reported frequently on the news, as is poverty and the crime that results from economic hardship.

The concept of dehumanization is also represented in the title character. Murphy is killed in the line of duty and rebuilt as a cold, mechanized, and violent being. Although he later seems to regain some of his humanity, his ruthlessness in dealing with criminals is quite outside the boundaries of reasonable use of force employed by the police.

In contrast to the theme of dehumanization is the theme of regaining one's humanity. Although Murphy has become "RoboCop", during the last sequence of the movie we find that despite being a product of OCP, his basic core of individuality has not been lost. The president of OCP says, "Nice shootin' son, what's your name?" Murphy declares, "Murphy." It is now clear that he is no longer just a programmed and manufactured amalgam of flesh and robotics, but an individual.

Another theme is the sense of justice finally being brought to vicious and remorseless criminals. The criminals mercilessly execute Murphy as well as many other cops and innocent citizen and are involved in drug trafficking, murder, and prostitution which to them is merely a form of business. A key point is that lawyers, probably controlled by ruthless corporate executives, are able to release criminals within hours or days despite the severity and number of crimes they were charged with. This shows the inability of the judicial system to effectively contend with criminals, and the only way for the citizens of Detroit to be truly safe is when Murphy "deals" with them.

Illegal drugs, cocaine in particular, also take center stage; Clarence and his gang are cocaine entrepreneurs seeking to expand their empire, and Bob Morton cavorts with two prostitutes while snorting a large amount of the stimulant.

The movie is also a condemnation of Reagan's America, such as "free trade" movements and privatization of social services that allows a corporation like OCP to take over the police force. Also criticized is Reagan's Star Wars program, which causes the deaths of two ex-presidents in a firing malfunction. The media is also mocked for its perkiness and support of the corporate party line.

Trivia

• In several articles and interviews previously published and also on the DVD commentary to the film (in the scene where Murphy is tortured by Boddicker and a later scene in the film when Robocop confronts one of his original killers with the line "I'm not here to arrest you anymore"), Paul Verhoven revealed that, despite not being a christian, he was mostly inspired to make the film about a good cop getting killed and returning from the dead as a much stronger superhero come to judge those that killed him and/or comitt heinous crimes, because of the script's many delibrate parellels with the bible and the crucifixion story of Jesus Christ.
• RoboCop was heavily inspired by the success of Japanese live-action Metal Hero TV shows Uchuu Keiji Gavan and 8 Man. RoboCop influenced later Metal Hero shows such as Kidou Keiji Jiban and Tokusou Robo Janperson.
• Another source of inspiration for the title character, pointed out in the Criterion Edition DVD commentary track, is the Marvel Comics character Iron Man. In the scene where RoboCop stops the convenience store robbery, there is an Iron Man comic in the magazine rack, which can be seen right before the criminal arrives at the checkout counter.
• RoboCop was directed by Paul Verhoeven. This was his second American movie (Verhoeven is Dutch); however, when he first glanced through the script, he threw it in the garbage. Afterwards, his wife read the script more thoroughly and convinced Paul that the plot had more substance than he originally assumed.

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