RoboCop Reboot - Part 2

[TheBeastWithin]

Re: The visor.

When Murphy removed his visor/headpiece in the original, he was usually off duty.

I'm betting that more comes off and that there's more to uncover than just his visor retracting. I'm sure there will be "gruesome" elements to Robocop.

My memory isn't the best but I don't recall him removing it until after he had been damaged and his human side began to take over near the end of the movie. At this point it was permanently off and never put back on either. He had to get a drill and unscrew his visor revealing the gruesome underparts that were obviously not meant to be seen. This Robocop might very well remove it completely but there's less of a point since he has a retractable visor that allows him to see his own face and a part of humanity, which was what Murphy was doing when he removed it in the original.

 

[TheBeastWithin]

Spoilers!!!!!




I agree that the reveal of RoboCop’s face in the original was a ‘shocking’ scene in the original and one the best moments of that film. No doubt about it!

However, the direction this RoboCop is taking makes more sense for modern times. By allowing the public to see his face and another part of his body i.e. his hand, he isn’t has intimidating until his visor is down. Characters in the January 2012 script want him to be marketable while being intimidating and likeable at the same time. This plays into the theme of what makes us human. This company, OmniCorp, takes the life of a man, destroys him physically, and tinkers with his emotions and memories all to just sale a product! The script does stretch that point out in a good way as the script is not just a mindless action movie as this could have been. This could be Total Recall all over again but honestly, from what we have seen and read so far, this will NOT be a mess like Total Recall.

Yes, the new RoboCop is designed to be PG-13ish and that is suggested in the script by a character BUT...

Like the scene that revealed RoboCop’s face, there are two key moments in the scene that if filmed right, could live up to that raw emotion of that original scene: after Murphy is told he was gunned down and Norton with his crew are attaching a robotic body what’s left of him, he is shown what little left of him there is. All that’s left is about 75% of his head, his neck, about 35% of his chest and shoulders and his right arm and hand. Murphy is shocked and begins to tear up at the sight of him. He thinks he is a monster. He asks Norton to end his life but Norton convinces him that becoming RoboCop is the best thing for him.

The next moment is after RoboCop is revealed to the public Ellen Murphy finally gets to see her husband behind closed doors. When she sees him, Norton and his crew have taken off the robotic body. Murphy is hung up like a slab of dead meat. Norton has also screwed around with Murphy’s voice box. Ellen gets emotional from the sight Alex’s ruined body. She talks to him but when he opens his mouth to talk, all that comes out are twisted noises. She runs out crying.

Also, RoboCop does use a taser gun for a chuck of the script, but once he starts to remember who he really is again, he trashes the taser gun for a handgun with bullets. The script then goes into full R rated mode.

This movie isn't "watered down" but just different and this is coming from a big fan of the original!

SPOILERS!!!

Finally, a fellow fan of the original that sees and appreciates the reasoning behind all the major changes to this Robocop re-envisioning. I haven't read the script but from what other people have described as well as you, you understand how this can be powerfully different in a very positive way. The stuff that's ripped by most people like the exposed hand I see potential in. Also the bike, the exposed face, for the reasons you mention, and what Padilha has said in interviews regarding the advances in tech and science from 25 years ago. The more modern albeit polarizing armor, even the taser is lambasted but you give it proper perspective. Using a taser in the beginning gives even more impact when he switches to real bullets. It's part of the transition in his overall story arc. The scenes you described sound like they could be incredibly impactful.

 

[War Party]

A lot of the stuff in Dyson's post sounds pretty cool. Hopefully they stick with some of those ideas in the final movie.

 

[Lone]

Spoilers!!!!!




I agree that the reveal of RoboCop’s face in the original was a ‘shocking’ scene in the original and one the best moments of that film. No doubt about it!

However, the direction this RoboCop is taking makes more sense for modern times. By allowing the public to see his face and another part of his body i.e. his hand, he isn’t has intimidating until his visor is down. Characters in the January 2012 script want him to be marketable while being intimidating and likeable at the same time. This plays into the theme of what makes us human. This company, OmniCorp, takes the life of a man, destroys him physically, and tinkers with his emotions and memories all to just sale a product! The script does stretch that point out in a good way as the script is not just a mindless action movie as this could have been. This could be Total Recall all over again but honestly, from what we have seen and read so far, this will NOT be a mess like Total Recall.

Yes, the new RoboCop is designed to be PG-13ish and that is suggested in the script by a character BUT...

Like the scene that revealed RoboCop’s face, there are two key moments in the scene that if filmed right, could live up to that raw emotion of that original scene: after Murphy is told he was gunned down and Norton with his crew are attaching a robotic body what’s left of him, he is shown what little left of him there is. All that’s left is about 75% of his head, his neck, about 35% of his chest and shoulders and his right arm and hand. Murphy is shocked and begins to tear up at the sight of him. He thinks he is a monster. He asks Norton to end his life but Norton convinces him that becoming RoboCop is the best thing for him.

The next moment is after RoboCop is revealed to the public Ellen Murphy finally gets to see her husband behind closed doors. When she sees him, Norton and his crew have taken off the robotic body. Murphy is hung up like a slab of dead meat. Norton has also screwed around with Murphy’s voice box. Ellen gets emotional from the sight Alex’s ruined body. She talks to him but when he opens his mouth to talk, all that comes out are twisted noises. She runs out crying.

Also, RoboCop does use a taser gun for a chuck of the script, but once he starts to remember who he really is again, he trashes the taser gun for a handgun with bullets. The script then goes into full R rated mode.

This movie isn't "watered down" but just different and this is coming from a big fan of the original!

I'd buy that for a dollar!

Seriously, I hope it plays out as you have described. Here's hoping the studio has the balls.

 

[Wookie-Balls]

*****Spoilers*****


But it doesn't really go into full R-Rated mode sadly. In the final reel he picks up a revolver and even them just knee caps people and hits a few with an iron bar. Nothing anymore violent than a BayFormers movie...sigh

That's not to say that there aren't some great, fresh ideas in this script. Although I felt that the second time he's stripped down it didn't have the same impact.

The script (IMHO) seemed to suffer from patchwork quality like other recent re-writes (Prometheus I'm looking at you!)

I love the original Robo and I believe there is room for another take on the story - I just don't want it to be bland and soulless

 

[Dyson]

I'd buy that for a dollar!

Seriously, I hope it plays out as you have described. Here's hoping the studio has the balls.

[FONT=&quot]Spoilers![/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]After reading the January 2012 script, I am very hopeful for a great sci-fi action film with heart and emotion. That being said, I don’t think the January 2012 script is a perfect script. No, but I would say it’s quite good. If I had to rate that script out of 10, I’d give it a 7.5. There is a lot in that draft that I think works incredibly well and there are some things in the script I think could have been re-written.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Mind you, Zodiac scribe James Vanderbilt was brought in to do an additional re-write in March so I’m hopeful he made the script even better.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I can understand why some hardcore fans don’t like what they see so far. Understandable, but what makes me very hopeful for this remake is that the filmmakers are actually trying to go a different direction with the origins of RoboCop while keeping the key themes and messages intact. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Also, I think some of the changes in this version work and work quite well:

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Examples: [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Alex Murphy’s partner in the original is Anne Lewis but this time it’s Jack Lewis. Many hardcore fans say Lewis should not be a guy as Anne Lewis is a strong, tough as nails woman. Many think making Lewis a man is insulting the original character, but after reading the script, there is a reason Lewis works so well as a man this time; he becomes a surrogate father to Murphy’s son. Jack Lewis abandons Murphy just before Murphy gets shot. Lewis feels guilt over what happened to Murphy so he feels he can find redemption by becoming a role model for Murphy’s son. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The character Jack Lewis brings me to Murphy’s family. Murphy’s wife Ellen and their son play big roles in the version. In the original, we never got to know Murphy’s family. The raw emotion that Murphy feels over losing his family during the original still works great, no doubt. But here in the new film, his family isn’t just memories. In a sense, Murphy’s wife and son are the heart and soul of the film as we feel their pain as they first have to put up with OmniCorp restricting them from seeing Murphy and how they must deal with the cold, emotionless RoboCop later on. When they cry, we feel for them.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Murphy’s transformation into RoboCop is lengthy process here, but it works well. After Murphy is gunned down, he wakes up to discover he was shot down, most of his body is gone and the only way to continue “living” is to become RoboCop. Murphy is well aware of who he is here – he knows he is Alex Murphy. Norton begins the transformation sessions not to make Murphy a better man but to just make a perfect product to sale to the public. The different suit changes, his ability to run fast, being connected to security cameras and wi-fi shows how advanced a ‘cyborg’ can be in modern times but like how the original showed how a man was stripped of his humanity made into a product by a greedy organization, we are shown in detail how Alex Murphy’s humanity is slowly being taken from him and how he starts to gain it back. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]So there is some good stuff in the script. The story has a soul and some impact. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Will this new RoboCop be as violent and shocking as the original? No, I doubt it, but why does it have to be overly violent? This script presented some hard hitting violence but it doesn’t go over the top as it doesn’t need to to tell the story that is being told.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Paul Verhoeven brought his own style to the original film – the guy likes to show you violence it all its gory details and yes, it always work well. The violent moments in the original are still hard hitting, shocking and it works but just because this film may not be as violent doesn’t mean it’ll be some soulless film.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The point of storytelling is to just tell a story, not to show you gory images. Gory images work with the type of story you are telling with a specific tone and overall look. Jose Padilha, like Verhoeven, is an outsider who is bringing his own approach to this material. I say we should just wait and see what we will get. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]All I want from this new RoboCop is a good story with good characters and an overall good time at the movies.[/FONT]

 

[culver3vlr22]

I guess I just really love gore. And I will miss it but all that matters is if the film is good. But why not lots of gore like F&@# it if your worried about not making money movies make like the hangover make money prometheus just did $400 mill it's possible. Not in feb. tho lol

 

[DoomsdayApex]

looks like another "man-in-a-suit" movie to me... nothing unique or special about it.

You haven't even seen footage...

the 87 movie had something unique about it: it had the thought of trying to bring cybernetic technology and human body together.

that's what made it look actually real.

i look at this suit now, i dont see a human brain woven within a construct of cybernetic machinery... it's just another "iron man" to me. it's too human. it's not supposed to be user-friendly. that's what made the first robocop work. the mix between cybernetics and the human body has never been smooth, or user friendly.

That's sort of the point. The high-demands for tech are becoming common in modern times (it's only increasing year by year) and the advancements in medical science are progressing at an insane pace.

What won't be 'user-friendly' two decades from now?

 

[TheBeastWithin]

[FONT=&quot]Spoilers![/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]After reading the January 2012 script, I am very hopeful for a great sci-fi action film with heart and emotion. That being said, I don’t think the January 2012 script is a perfect script. No, but I would say it’s quite good. If I had to rate that script out of 10, I’d give it a 7.5. There is a lot in that draft that I think works incredibly well and there are some things in the script I think could have been re-written.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Mind you, Zodiac scribe James Vanderbilt was brought in to do an additional re-write in March so I’m hopeful he made the script even better.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I can understand why some hardcore fans don’t like what they see so far. Understandable, but what makes me very hopeful for this remake is that the filmmakers are actually trying to go a different direction with the origins of RoboCop while keeping the key themes and messages intact. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Also, I think some of the changes in this version work and work quite well:

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Examples: [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Alex Murphy’s partner in the original is Anne Lewis but this time it’s Jack Lewis. Many hardcore fans say Lewis should not be a guy as Anne Lewis is a strong, tough as nails woman. Many think making Lewis a man is insulting the original character, but after reading the script, there is a reason Lewis works so well as a man this time; he becomes a surrogate father to Murphy’s son. Jack Lewis abandons Murphy just before Murphy gets shot. Lewis feels guilt over what happened to Murphy so he feels he can find redemption by becoming a role model for Murphy’s son. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The character Jack Lewis brings me to Murphy’s family. Murphy’s wife Ellen and their son play big roles in the version. In the original, we never got to know Murphy’s family. The raw emotion that Murphy feels over losing his family during the original still works great, no doubt. But here in the new film, his family isn’t just memories. In a sense, Murphy’s wife and son are the heart and soul of the film as we feel their pain as they first have to put up with OmniCorp restricting them from seeing Murphy and how they must deal with the cold, emotionless RoboCop later on. When they cry, we feel for them.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Murphy’s transformation into RoboCop is lengthy process here, but it works well. After Murphy is gunned down, he wakes up to discover he was shot down, most of his body is gone and the only way to continue “living” is to become RoboCop. Murphy is well aware of who he is here – he knows he is Alex Murphy. Norton begins the transformation sessions not to make Murphy a better man but to just make a perfect product to sale to the public. The different suit changes, his ability to run fast, being connected to security cameras and wi-fi shows how advanced a ‘cyborg’ can be in modern times but like how the original showed how a man was stripped of his humanity made into a product by a greedy organization, we are shown in detail how Alex Murphy’s humanity is slowly being taken from him and how he starts to gain it back. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]So there is some good stuff in the script. The story has a soul and some impact. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Will this new RoboCop be as violent and shocking as the original? No, I doubt it, but why does it have to be overly violent? This script presented some hard hitting violence but it doesn’t go over the top as it doesn’t need to to tell the story that is being told.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Paul Verhoeven brought his own style to the original film – the guy likes to show you violence it all its gory details and yes, it always work well. The violent moments in the original are still hard hitting, shocking and it works but just because this film may not be as violent doesn’t mean it’ll be some soulless film.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The point of storytelling is to just tell a story, not to show you gory images. Gory images work with the type of story you are telling with a specific tone and overall look. Jose Padilha, like Verhoeven, is an outsider who is bringing his own approach to this material. I say we should just wait and see what we will get. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]All I want from this new RoboCop is a good story with good characters and an overall good time at the movies.[/FONT]

This makes me all the more excited to see the film. I like all the changes I'm hearing and that they make sense in context and fuel a different but no less powerful vision of the Robocop, potentially. I wish they'd hurry up and release some official images and teaser.

 

[TheBeastWithin]

You haven't even seen footage...



That's sort of the point. The high-demands for tech are becoming common in modern times (it's only increasing year by year) and the advancements in medical science are progressing at an insane pace.

What won't be 'user-friendly' two decades from now?

This is what I don't understand. I love the original Robocop but there's just no way with 25 years of technological and medical advancement that the new design doesn't make more sense than the old one. The vision of a cyborg now is more in line with a sleeker, faster machine than a slow, bulky one.

 

[RetrogradeOrbit]

I'm prepared to give this film a chance, the same as I did for Total Recall. Let's see what they do with Robo this time around.

What a lot of people are forgetting is that we actually only ever got one great movie, the first one of course. The rest got progressively worse and the less said about the TV series the better...

If these new people get anywhere near the quality of the original first movie in terms of visuals, storytelling and emotional connection with the characters, especially Murphy, then I will be satisfied.
If they take a somewhat different method of getting there, I don't mind that either. In fact in some ways I might prefer it, I don't want to see a blow by blow copy of the original.

 

[DoomsdayApex]

This is what I don't understand. I love the original Robocop but there's just no way with 25 years of technological and medical advancement that the new design doesn't make more sense than the old one. The vision of a cyborg now is more in line with a sleeker, faster machine than a slow, bulky one.

Exactly!

Robocop is a product of different eras. Is it truly any more contrasting than our tech in the 80s and 00s? We had bulky desktops with practically no Internet in '87. Nowadays, however...

 

[Mace Dolex]

That write up by Dyson totally makes perfect sense now, we fans simply want a good Robocop film, it doesn't need to have excessive violence to make it good (sure it helps) but we're talking about two different director's visions.

I'm interested in how this Jack Lewis character turns out and more insight into Murphy's family.

 

[marvelman2006]

I decided to adjust the new outfit and incorporate some of the old color design and heres the result:

 

[NickSox]

You made it worse me thinks

 

[TheBeastWithin]

I'm prepared to give this film a chance, the same as I did for Total Recall. Let's see what they do with Robo this time around.

What a lot of people are forgetting is that we actually only ever got one great movie, the first one of course. The rest got progressively worse and the less said about the TV series the better...

If these new people get anywhere near the quality of the original first movie in terms of visuals, storytelling and emotional connection with the characters, especially Murphy, then I will be satisfied.
If they take a somewhat different method of getting there, I don't mind that either. In fact in some ways I might prefer it, I don't want to see a blow by blow copy of the original.

That's right, every sequel, tv show and cartoon series that followed the original film was pretty terrible and pretty exploitative of the character. We have the first movie. There's no reason to re-do it but the character is compelling enough that I want to see him evolve.

 

[marvelman2006]

You made it worse me thinks

Bored at work and to be honest the costume doesnt lend itself to a whole lot of color creativity.

 

[so-tite]

On the subject of the follow-up entries, I felt both RoboCop 2 and the 80's cartoon were pretty decent myself.

 

[Wookie-Balls]

I too have a soft spot for Robo2 - it was the first 18 cert movie that I ever sneaked in to!

 

[uniqueweasel]

Do we know what the actual age rating is they are aiming for with this film?

 

[TheBeastWithin]

I stumbled upon this. It's not much but it's interesting. Padilha addressing the cast & crew reunion for the Robocop 25th annivery. Being from Dallas I was bummed I missed Weller & co when them came through earlier this year.

Starts at the 7:35 minute mark.
http://youtu.be/dHV_o21nyzg

 

[Pepsiguy2]

Do we know what the actual age rating is they are aiming for with this film?

Judging by the script, R is most likely but it could stretch PG-13 if they take out a couple things.

 

[Wookie-Balls]

TBH I think it will be a solid PG13 in the US and a 15 in the UK going by the Jan12 version of the script

 

[Mace Dolex]

On the subject of the follow-up entries, I felt both RoboCop 2 and the 80's cartoon were pretty decent myself.

I like the 80's cartoon too, I have only 3 episodes that were released on VHS by I like the cliche vibe that all 80's cartoons had.

 

[Verbal21]

I like the 80's cartoon too, I have only 3 episodes that were released on VHS by I like the cliche vibe that all 80's cartoons had.

The cliche vibe of being 22 minute toy commercials?t: