RoboCop (2014)

RoboCop, surprisingly, is a movie of big ideas. The indestructibility of the human soul; the rise of robotic warfare; the control of America by corporations. The movie is not entirely successful in dealing with these ideas, but is quite entertaining in its effort to do so.

RoboCop is our hero. In his former life he was Alex Murphy, a married man, a father, and a police officer. And then, he is tragically wounded, paralyzed from the waist down. An omnipresent corporation (appropriately named OmniCorp) took advantage of this situation, inducing Alex's wife to consent to a procedure in which Alex is inserted inside of a mechanical body. OmniCorp's motives are not altruistic. They wanted to create a RoboCop so as to promote robotic policing and warfare, an idea to which Americans are apparently resistant. OmniCorp wanted a machine with the appearance of humanity. However, as the movie develops, RoboCop turns out to be a human with the appearance of a machine.

As RoboCop/Alex begins his policing duties, OmniCorp repeatedly tries to stifle RoboCop's human emotions and tendencies. Yet this humanity consistently re-emerges, ultimately to OmniCorp's demise. The movie plays well the theme of human free will. The movie appears to take the stance that the human soul, though weak, can ultimately triumph over mechanical impositions. The movie also addresses the fundamental difference between mechanical and human bodies. There is a powerful scene in which OmniCorp's scientist (Gary Oldman) encourages a man to play his guitar with his new mechanical hands. The man tries, and yet the mechanical hands are simply not the same.

The movie, with less success, also addresses issues of corporate governance and robotic warfare. OmniCorp and its leader become conniving caricatures towards the end, unconvincing as candidates for a future of corporate control. Moreover, the movie never reaches a conclusion on the issue of robotic policing, but just lays out the pros and cons – greater efficiency but less humanity, greater protection but less control.

The movie's greatest flaw is that it is simply too damn serious. This is a plot that could use a healthy dose of humor. But Joel Kinnaman, who plays RoboCop, simply slides between being morose and snide. His sidekick hardly makes an appearance and never develops into a fulsome character. But of course, there is always Gary Oldman to save the day. RoboCop is not a great movie. The action scenes are slick and efficient, but ultimately the movie lacks a human heart. This is odd, considering the movie's premise. Nevertheless, the ideas are intriguing and make this movie worth a watch.