RoboCop was a great movie. After earning critical success amongst both critics and casual moviegoers and earning a profit of around forty million dollars, it only made sense for Orion Pictures to follow up with a sequel. Does RoboCop 2 hold a candle to the original? In a way, yes.
RoboCop 2 takes place about one year after the events of the original film. The RoboCop project was a success, and OmniCorp, the creators of the project, begin research and development for a successor. Meanwhile, Alexander J. Murphy, also known as RoboCop, continues his duties as a Detroit police officer. However, a new addictive substance sweeps the city. Nuke. Created by Cain, a fanatical cult leader hopelessly addicted to his own drug.
The plot is interesting, but it's not perfect. A lot of plot points introduced near the beginning are all but abandoned. RoboCop's relationship with his wife and and the doubt of his own humanity are threads that would have held weight and kept the plot interesting. However, they are dropped rather quickly, instead focusing on OmniCorp's attempted purchase of Detroit. The movie still contains most of the comedy that made the original funny, but quite a few are rehashed from the original.
This film was made on a budget of thirty-five million dollars, a rather large upgrade from the original's, and it shows. Animations that seemed charmingly clunky in the original are smooth and get the job done. The use of CGI is done sparingly and doesn't feel awkward or out-of-place, and the practical effects, such as RoboCop's suit, continue to hold up today. However, that doesn't mean that it's flawless. The CGI used on RoboCop 2's digital "face" consists of low-quality, flatshaded polygons that look downright terrifying at points, and it doesn't even look remotely like the person it is trying to portray. It could have been much more appealing if they simply filmed actor Tom Noonan and superimposed his face onto the cyborg's facial screen. This film is still gory, but not to the extent of the original. They were holding back, with no real reason too.
Once again, the acting is great. Peter Weller slides back into his character like a knife into butter. The moments he expressed pain were especially impressive. Nancy Allen also provided a good performance as Officer Anne Lewis. Noonan was decent as Cain, but was a little too "hammy" at times.
Overall, RoboCop 2 is a good film, and a worthy, albeit flawed, successor to the original. It may be more difficult for people unfamiliar with the series to enjoy, but fans will have fun. It's above-average and better than a few of it's competitors. If you're a fan of the original, give it a try.
RoboCop 2 takes place about one year after the events of the original film. The RoboCop project was a success, and OmniCorp, the creators of the project, begin research and development for a successor. Meanwhile, Alexander J. Murphy, also known as RoboCop, continues his duties as a Detroit police officer. However, a new addictive substance sweeps the city. Nuke. Created by Cain, a fanatical cult leader hopelessly addicted to his own drug.
The plot is interesting, but it's not perfect. A lot of plot points introduced near the beginning are all but abandoned. RoboCop's relationship with his wife and and the doubt of his own humanity are threads that would have held weight and kept the plot interesting. However, they are dropped rather quickly, instead focusing on OmniCorp's attempted purchase of Detroit. The movie still contains most of the comedy that made the original funny, but quite a few are rehashed from the original.
This film was made on a budget of thirty-five million dollars, a rather large upgrade from the original's, and it shows. Animations that seemed charmingly clunky in the original are smooth and get the job done. The use of CGI is done sparingly and doesn't feel awkward or out-of-place, and the practical effects, such as RoboCop's suit, continue to hold up today. However, that doesn't mean that it's flawless. The CGI used on RoboCop 2's digital "face" consists of low-quality, flatshaded polygons that look downright terrifying at points, and it doesn't even look remotely like the person it is trying to portray. It could have been much more appealing if they simply filmed actor Tom Noonan and superimposed his face onto the cyborg's facial screen. This film is still gory, but not to the extent of the original. They were holding back, with no real reason too.
Once again, the acting is great. Peter Weller slides back into his character like a knife into butter. The moments he expressed pain were especially impressive. Nancy Allen also provided a good performance as Officer Anne Lewis. Noonan was decent as Cain, but was a little too "hammy" at times.
Overall, RoboCop 2 is a good film, and a worthy, albeit flawed, successor to the original. It may be more difficult for people unfamiliar with the series to enjoy, but fans will have fun. It's above-average and better than a few of it's competitors. If you're a fan of the original, give it a try.
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