Word: robocop
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Dates: during 1987-1987
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...superspy imitators: Matt Helm and Harry Palmer in movies, Maxwell Smart and the men from U.N.C.L.E. on TV. Later a young generation of filmmakers found inspiration in the series' success. The past decade of high-tech adventure movies, from Star Wars to Raiders of the Lost Ark to RoboCop, would be unimaginable without the brut effervescence and special-effects expertise bottled in Bond...
...Robocop is no vigilante. Unlike Dirty Harry, Robocop remains inside the law and kills only when attacked. Which is not to say that this cyborg lacks a thirst for revenge. Chance encounters with one of his murderers and with his former partner (Nancy Allen) bring back some of Murphy's memories. And in pursuing his killers, Robocop is led straight to the man behind his murder, Dick...
After many attempts to destroy Robocop, Dick sends his gang after Weller with space-age army rifles that can destroy Volkswagon vans in one shot. The climactic battle that ensues in a closed-down steel mill is exciting and original in a movie genre replete with a thousand cliches and tricks. In the end, Robocop tracks down Dick in his corporate headquarters, which is guarded by a hilariously inept robot-tank which looks like a sumo wrestler...
Like The Terminator, the action scenes combine a mix of high-tech special effects with good-old rough 'em up fighting. But this time, it's good to see all the mechanized firepower working on the side of justice instead of against it. And Robocop's combination of controlled force and execution of the laws puts Dirty Harry to shame...
...addition to fast action, a playfully cynical humor reminiscent of Buckaroo Banzai runs throughout the film. The storyline is periodically punctuated by a television news show--its slogan is, "Give us three minutes and we'll give you the world."--which charts Robocop's successes. The show is filled with such news items as the misfiring of a "Star Wars" defense system, killing three expresidents living in California. There is also a recurring commercial advertising a family board game called "Nuke 'em." And the scenes depicting the building and activation of Robocop combine humor with a biting commentary on modern...