BEFORE: What happened to Robocop 2, you might ask? Well, I've seen that one, as well as the original "Robocop" from 1987. But I never saw the third one, which is a sequel to the first one and second one, but not the one I watched last night. Got it?
But in order to clear this one off the books, I have to resort to indirect linking tonight (and tomorrow) - which is a shame, because I just started Samuel L. Jackson week, and he's not in this one. Michael Keaton from last night's "Robocop" happens to link to three of tonight's actors, so that's the easiest way to go - let's choose co-starring with Jill Hennessy in "The Paper" to make it simple.
THE PLOT: Robocop takes on ruthless developers who want to evict some people on "their" land.
AFTER: I suppose in law enforcement, someone always starts out with the best intentions, then could find that some of the peacekeeping tasks they're required to do could be somewhat questionable - like here Robocop finds himself working for the law in dystopian Detroit (like there's another kind of Detroit...) which is removing people from their homes and relocating them elsewhere to further corporate interests. Which is ridiculous, that could never happen in an American city. (cough, Barclays Center, cough cough)
Until a group of America's greatest character actors - sorry, I mean patriotic residents - takes a rebellious stand and fights back against the guvmint, and eventually Robocop realizes he's fighting for the wrong side. Anyway, the Urban Rehabilitators, or "Rehabs", have taken over the police department (umm, I think...) so crime is once again out of control. But this is confusing, why not just let crime run rampant in that part of town, until all the criminals are dead or the non-criminals have chosen to move away?
Anyway, Robocop is once again reminded that his directive prevent him from arresting or fighting against his employers, the so-called "Fourth Directive", until he tracks down one of the scientists who created him, a Dr. Lazarus (ah, I see what you did there...) and gets that Directive removed. Damn, why didn't he have that done years ago?
Then there are some much more high-tech Japanese robots who look completely human, but you know what? It hardly matters....because by this point the franchise had become a shadow of its former self, because they'd toned the violence down to get a PG rating - and the original actor, Peter Weller, was no longer available - and the production company, Orion, was going bankrupt.
Also starring Robert John Burke (last seen in "2 Guns"), Nancy Allen, Rip Torn (last seen in "Welcome to Mooseport"), Bradley Whitford (last seen in "CBGB"), CCH Pounder (last seen in "Postcards From the Edge"), John Castle, Stephen Root (last seen in "The Conspirator"), Daniel von Bargen (last seen in "Amistad"), Remy Ryan, Shane Black, Eva LaRue, Robert DoQui, with cameos from Jeff Garlin (last seen in "Bounce"), Mako.
RATING: 3 out of 10 bullet holes
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