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Robocop 2
When Detroit's descent into chaos is further compounded by a police department strike and a new designer drug called Nuke, only Robocop can stop the mayhem. But in his way are an evil corporation that profits from Motor City crime and a bigger and tougher cyborg with a deadly directive: Take out Robocop. Containing the latest in gadgetry and weaponry as well as the brain of the madman who designed Nuke, this new cyborg isn't just more sophisticated than his predecessor...he's psychotic and out of control! And it's going to take everything Robocop has- maybe even his life-to save Detroit from complete and utter anarchy.
Manufacturer: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT
Price: $4.80
 Robocop 2
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| User Reviews |  | A good film, but the first film was better
rating: 3
Set one year after the first film, another crime-wave has hit Detroit, this time fuelled by the availability of the new designer drug, Nuke. Robocop (Peter Weller) is still on the job, but the rest of the police department is on strike because mega-corporation, OCP, who owns the Detroit police department, has dramatically cut their pay. Meanwhile, OCP is in the process of developing another robot-cop, Robocop 2, to replace Robocop.
Considered on its own, "Robocop 2" isn't too bad a movie. Its main problem lies in the fact that the original "Robocop" is just so much more fun. Whereas Ed Niumeier's script was a well-written, tongue-in-cheek satire of law enforcement, which was perfectly complemented by Paul Verhoeven's audacious directorial style, "Robocop 2" takes itself more seriously and is the victim of a more convoluted script that takes too long to get to the point, and uninspired direction. Both "Robocop" and its sequel are incredibly violent movies, but while the violence in "Robocop" was so over-the-top that I can't imagine it upsetting anyone, the violence in "Robocop 2" is nastier and even sadistic at times. One scene, in which Robocop is dismembered by the villains, although not all that bloody (he's a robot, afterall), is particularly unpleasant and made me wonder about the mental state of the writers and the director (oh, that's right, Frank Miller is one of the screenwriters - that would explain it).
Having said all of that, "Robocop 2" is not without merit. Although "Robocop 2" does take a long time to get going, when it does start moving, it gets pretty good. The final half-hour of the film (which is essentially a half-hour action-sequence) is great. Also, Gabriel Dave stands out as adolescent crime-boss Hob; John Glover's cameo is hilarious, and as in the first film, it's fun to see what OCP will do next (you've gotta love those evil corporations). Still, after watching this, I don't exactly feel inspired to keep going and see "Robocop 3" (I'd rather watch another Paul Verhoeven film, thanks), and I'd say there's a very good reason why Paul Verhoeven is still getting work and Irvin Kershner (who directed this film) is not.
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Rewiew of Robocop 2
rating: 3
Good movie, but as often happens the first is the better one. Haven't seen the third but i've heard that's a lot worse
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Reviews are for Robocop 2
rating: 3
Just wanted to say all the reviews below refer to Robocop 2. Not this chapter in the mini-series.
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Not all sequels are THAT bad people........
rating: 4
Okay, okay, we get it! This isn't the first film. It's not ever going to be the first film, nore can it ever match up to the first Robocop. All of you hardcore "elite" fans need to get a life. Robocop 2 is a good sequel that follows the original the best it can. What people don't seem to understand about some sequels is all the trouble they can go through during production. Robocop 2 does have it's flaws here and there but no more than any other movie sequel. For the most part, it follows up from the original better than expected. You just have to put aside your expectations and just watch the movie for what it is.
Plot wise, things haven't changed much from the events that happend in the first movie. The police have gone on strike and crime seems to have taken over the entire city. The evil business OCP has their fingers in alot of trouble here. Not only do they own the police force (and the cause of their strike) but they also seem to be the reason a new and more powerful drug called "Nuke" has hit the streets. The drug lord "Cain" is behind Nuke's creation and seems to think the people actually want the drug, calling it "paradise." OCP's attention seems to be more focused on making a new version of Robocop rather than putting an end to the police strike and shutting down Cain for good.
This all makes for a nice set up for the Robocop sequel. What makes the movie work best in my opinion is that the director seems to have captured the same evil, dark and brooding emotions of the original movie. I think it would even be safe to say that Robocop 2 actually has a more violent and disturbing tone than the first movie. This time around, the movie almost has a Horror movie feel to it. One example of what I'm talking about is a nasty little scene where Cain tortures an ex-cop who sold him out to the police. Cain has some underground "doctor" guy strap the cop down to a table and cut open his chest with a knife, while making a little kid watch the entire time. (The kid turns out to belong to Cain but is never truely stated if he was related to him in the movie. Obviously the sicko that Cain is, he wants to brainwash this little kid into being the next big crime lord if anything should happen to him in the future. Once again these are details that are truely never stated in the actual movie. Small problems if you ask me.)
Eventually the story takes a turn where Cain actually becomes the new "Robocop" creation from OCP. In my opinion, "Robo Cain" is one of the best movie villain's to ever grace the big screen! He just has to be seen to believe!
Over all, Robocop 2 is a good sequel that works pretty well if you watch it back to back with the original. It's not better than the original film but honestly, who expects sequels to actually top the first!?! Here's my main point people, not to mention a good example. FRIDAY THE 13th fans don't watch the original over and over again! They like Jason Voorhees the most, dispite the fact that he doesn't come into play until the sequel of FRIDAY THE 13th. Sometimes sequels give you a little something better than the original, dispite the obvious flaws it might have. Fans of the original now have something to follow up their enjoyment of the first Robocop. Is it better than the original? Nope! Does it really matter? Nope! Remember people, movies are ment to be fun! Kick back, relax and let the blood fly!
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"Patience, Lewis. We're only human."
rating: 3
Though Paul Verhoeven's original "Robocop" didn't beg for a sequel, or even ask for one, as a very successful science fiction film made in the 1980s it comes as no surprise that one (and later two) eventually popped up. Seeing as Verhoeven wasn't attached, it also comes as no surprise that "Robocop 2" is not the masterpiece that its predecessor was. "Robocop 2" has its strengths, in fact a good deal of them, but its flaws prove stronger.
At the helm is Irvin Kershner, unquestionably a seasoned director, who most famously directed the second "Star Wars" film (widely regarded as the best), "The Empire Strikes Back." The fact that "Robocop 2" was his last film doesn't bode well. But the thing is, Kershner does a fine job. He has a one-hundred-percent-sturdy style which holds up from start to finish, and thankfully he takes the material seriously rather than turning it into another cartoonish sci-fi film, which any other director could easily have done. However, he's lacking the crucial element, the approach through which Verhoeven made "Robocop" a masterpiece: vision. Kershner directs, and he directs well, but he doesn't see. He follows the script, and that is all, and unfortunately, that's just not enough.
But is the script worth being followed? It has certainly earned "urban legend" status. That's because it was written by Frank Miller, the man behind the brilliant "Sin City" comics as well as "Batman: The Dark Knight Returns," frequently hailed as the best comic ever written. Unfortunately, those damned producers deemed Miller's script unfilmable and, without his involvement, re-wrote much of it, resulting in a very different film. Regardless, Miller was so fascinated by the filmmaking process that he has an amusing cameo as a meek chemist. (Miller's script was recently adapted to the comic book medium as "Frank Miller's Robocop.")
The final script is jagged and more than a little messy. By far the most upsetting mistake is the writers' blatant disregard for the ending of the first movie. At "Robocop"'s end, Robocop had re-discovered his humanity, and his partner was in need of some major medical attention. Here, Robocop is still the lumbering cyborg he was through the majority of the first movie, though admittedly he's become a little more good-natured, and his partner is in top shape. These are the things which viewers will be thinking of all through the film, although they may stop when Robocop is dismembered in a pale imitation of a similar scene from the first film.
The one aspect of the movie which doesn't call for protest is the cast, which under Kershner's direction deliver straight-faced, strong performances. Three performances in particular stick out. Nancy Allen as Robocop's partner is inexplicably charismatic and deserving of more attention than the film allows her. Dan O'Herlihy as the head of evil organization OCP is a blast. Most excellent is Peter Weller, who is even more likable than he was before; it's this humanistic likability that renders his performance so powerful and his character so important to the audience. On a side-note, Belinda Bauer plays the part of the ambitious and insidious scientist well, while Tom Noonan's villain is completely flat.
You can add Basil Poledouris' perfectly bombastic, marching, and soaring score to the missing list. His theme doesn't even crop up once in the entire picture. Fortunately, the new composer, Leonard Rosenman, rises to the occasion and composes a score similar enough to sooth the agitated fan, but fresh enough to add something to the film. His theme, which includes a female chorus giving campy shouts of "Robocop!," is terrific.
After all the crucial elements that didn't make the transition from "Robocop" to "Robocop 2," what did? For one thing, the bizarre blend of no-holds-barred violence and laugh-out-loud satire, though here the satire is more silly, and without Verhoeven, the action is less grotesque. Nevertheless, there's still plenty of gritty action and dark humor which prevent the film from staleness. The most amusing of the film's humorous moments is a commercial which features the esteemed John Glover as a salesman advertising "Magnavox," a tool which, we are shown through a graphic demonstration, fries any car thief. And "it doesn't even drain my battery!"
"Robocop 2" isn't a complete failure, nor is it a bad movie. It's almost a good movie, but it lacks that one most important of ingredients: vision. With a more inventive script and a talented director not afraid to take some risks, "Robocop 2" would have been a far better movie, but it's a decent successor to Verhoeven's brilliant original. And that at least is enough to save it from the scrapheap.
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Robocop 2
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