A remake of Robocop?? WHY???

[kedrys]

...the horror...the horror...

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/36002

:shrug:

[leeroysphitz]

1. Why? Because originality no longer makes enough money.

The safer bet is to rip off something popular from twenty years ago. Why not? The target audience of teen boys wasn't even born when the first one came out. They'll barely notice that it's a hackey remake.

[kedrys]

3. Not necessarily true, but I concede the point

Makes me feel old, though. :D

[Catch22Dem]

6. You make a good point

There's a young guy at work talking about what a great movie "The Hitcher" was. I agreed, then wondered aloud what ever happened to C. Thomas Howell. The guy was talking about a remake I didn't even know existed.

[jmowreader]

2. Think "Robocop 4" instead of a remake of Robocop 1

Attempt to watch the horrific Robocop 3 and you'll see a perfect link to Robocop 4: the death of Officer Lewis at the hands of the Rehabs.

Obvious story line: Security Concepts grabs Officer Lewis' corpse, turns it into a female Robocop, and Murphy and Lewis become partners once again. You could even work a robocop sex scene into there--did they even remember to put a mechanical penis on Murphy?

And Robo3 meant well, but it came out as a slam against the Japanese. The parts about fighting OCP's takeover of Cadillac Heights were okay, but then they wove in the Kanemitsu bullshit (although there was one humorous moment in there--when the cute mad scientist sent the rebel back out to get Murphy a new heart because the first one he found was a Kanemitsu), the martial arts guy and the jet pack...you know, the exact device you'd need if you wanted to have a 600-pound cyborg jump the shark, like Robocop 3 did.

Anyone here could have done better...fortunately, the first two Robocop sequels are by now faded bad memories. They might be able to do a good one now.

[kedrys]

4. I've never seen Robocop 3

Peter Weller wasn't in it, and it got scathing reviews. I didn't even watch it when it came out on cable. From your description, I didn't miss much.

[jmowreader]

10. Three things that made Robocop 3 impossible to watch

1. The Japan slam. Omni Consumer Products, who of course made no consumer products whatsoever, was the embodiment of true corporate evil--Enron plus Halliburton don't equal OCP. Why throw this Kanemitsu shit into it?

2. The martial arts thing. Robocop movies have always featured Murphy getting the shit kicked out of him. Did we REALLY need the kung fu master robot?

and

3. The grating little "smarter than everyone else" eight year old.

(The head of Security Concepts was also really bad. In the Original Robocop, Bob Morton was truly great as a man who out-assholed his boss. "Hey! Let's find the best cop in Detroit, get him killed then sew his brain into a robot!")

Get rid of those three things, and Robocop 3 could have been the best one of the whole franchise...Murphy and the mad scientist figuring out a way to get around Directive 4 so he could focus his attentions on OCP.

[hobbit709]

5. Because in Hollywood

imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

[MicaelS]

7. Because the "rebooting" of a film franchise

Seems to work quite well ($$$$$) if done properly. Look at Batman Begins and Casino Royale.

[kedrys]

11. Fair enough

Somehow, though, I don't have high hopes for this particular instance. Batman and James Bond both had more head space to work with, IMO.

[Deja Q]

12. The 800 times or so batman has been revived, I agree... as for James Bond,

it's not a reboot as much as they are applying the grit and feel Ian Fleming put into his novels, having done "Roger Moore wannabe" throughout the 1990s and finally realized big explosive pablum is no substitute for cunning adventure. And in CR (2006) they got it absolutely and unequivocally correct.

Even Daniel Craig, who had a mountain to climb for many in that he has blond hair, instantly won me over because he knows who and how Bond is. (He also applauded Timothy Dalton's portrayal, which is only sauce for the goose.) I know others have their reservations, which is understandable as they are Bond fans from way back, but they are appreciative too...

And if "Quantum of Solace" continues the trend, Mr Craig will be top of my 'favorite Bond actor' list.

Edit: Whoops, wrong abbreviation . :blush:

[pokerfan]

13. ?

And in CS (2006) they got it absolutely and unequivocally correct.

CS?

[ghostsofgiants]

15. I think he meant CR, Casino Royale.

[Deja Q]

16. Sorry about that. I edited in the correction.

:blush:

And to think, with my lysdexia, I am gonna be a famous database administrator!

:scared:

[ghostsofgiants]

17. Is it sad that when I saw CS I automatically thought of...

Bond participating in epic, top secret Photoshop projects?

[DarkTirade]

8. Hell, does anybody else remember the Robocop TV series?

:)

[Danger Mouse]

9. I'm not going to waste a dime on that shit.

[ghostsofgiants]

14. "MGM will enter its new phase of evolution by focusing on its major movie franchises..."

Doesn't evolution usually indicate change?