Review of Robocop Trilogy (box set)

Introduction

Robocop

Much has been written about the original Robocop film. Often held up as a satire of 1980s America, or more accurately of Reagan`s America, it is often recognised as a low budget sci-fi classic. And for the first time, UK audiences can get to see the film fully uncut, as the director intended, as Robocop is another of those films that has fallen foul of the hatchet men and women of the BBFC. There is also the option to watch the full director`s cut, with footage that was cut from the US theatrical release in order to avoid the kiss of death that is an X certificate. The film is very violent, but it`s really so over the top as to have a different effect than most on screen violence.

In order to bring you both versions of the film on one disc, the producers have used what they describe as "integrated branching", which would appear to be different to the "seamless branching" seen on discs such as The Abyss and the region 1 Terminator 2 : Ultimate Edition. Personally I couldn`t spot the difference as the branching was totally invisible on my Sony player, but others that have seen the review disc have reported slight pauses - looks like it`s going to vary depending on your DVD player.

Robocop 2

The first of 2 sequels and things start to go downhill rapidly as the film descends into some cheap action set pieces and cheesy flashbacks as our main character starts stalking his former wife (it seems that you are no longer considered to be married if one partner is some form of cyborg). He gets hacked to pieces by some bad guys too (including one of the world`s youngest ever drugs barons) and has to be repaired (will the company pay or can they reprogramme him instead?) There`s some cheap torture and fake blood and it almost descends into total farce on many occasions. The film does sometimes try to copy the satirical style of the first, but it`s a rather hit and miss affair as Irvin Kershner is no Paul Verhoeven. All he really manages to do is be Mr Mackey from South Park telling us that "drugs are bad, m`kay?" Is this really the same person who directed The Empire Strikes Back? Unfortunately, yes, and this was his last big screen project too.

Robocop 3

Another film, another director, and this time another lead actor (scarred by the previous film perhaps?) Nancy Allen came back for her role, but she perhaps wished that she hadn`t. Peter Weller wisely passed this one up, as the film is really a bit of a stinker. An interesting fact is that that Fred Dekker hasn`t directed a film since this one, although he is involved in writing and producing the new Star Trek franchise Enterprise. I`m not saying much about the film as there`s not much that I want to say about it. It`s pretty bad and that`s all there is to it.

Video

Robocop

The video on the first disc is also the subject of much debate. The good news is that it is anamorphically enhanced and looks very good indeed. However, for some there is a cloud on the horizon, since it has been framed at 1.85:1, as opposed to the 1.66:1 ratio that the director preffered for the film. This means that we lose a little information from the top and bottom of the frame, but it`s not enough to spoil the film for me. Some purists are refusing to buy the disc for this reason, and that`s their choice, but I don`t think it`s enough to put you off the disc.

The print itself is good enough, with only minor print damage visible, and a little grain appearing now and again. I`ve not seen the much vaunted Criterion disc so can`t compare it with that, although everything I`ve read suggests that the video on this disc is better (if you can forgive the framing - remember that the Criterion disc is non-anamorphic NTSC).

Robocop 2

The video quality on the second disc is up there with the first, with a pretty good 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer. There`s some print damage, but it`s minor and infrequent and therefore forgivable. Some of the effects look a lot worse than the first film though with some rather laughable model shots.

Robocop 3

The video quality on the third disc is up there with the other two, as it features yet another pretty good 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer, with some print damage, but it`s not bad overall. Again, some of the special effects do appear to be rather comical.

Audio

Robocop

MGM have treated us to a full DD5.1 remix for the first film, and it deserves nothing less. The first thing that you`ll probably notice is the big stomping bass track, although it isn`t consistent throughout the film. There are some good moments with ED-209 and our hero, but some of the explosions aren`t quite as good as they could be. A reasonable enough job given the age though. Dialogue is clear and crisp throughout, and there are some good surround effects used along the way.

Robocop 2

A DD2.0 stereo mix, which has its moments when sent through a pro-logic mode on a home-cinema amp. Not as good as the DD5.1 remix on the first film, but as the film itself isn`t as good I wasn`t all that bothered. If you like the film more than me you might have wished for some equality and a DD5.1 remix as there are some action scenes that might warrant it.

Robocop 3

Another DD2.0 stereo mix, which also has its moments when sent through a pro-logic mode on a home-cinema amp. Nothing else of note about this soundtrack though. You can hear all the dialogue, although sometimes you wish you couldn`t.

Features

This set has several discrepancies when we get to the extras, in that one disc has loads and the other 2 have just trailers. Thankfully they put all the extras with the best film, so they are all on the first disc. The 2 sequels get nothing but trailers (and some would say that`s the treatment they deserve).

What do we get on the first disc then? An audio commentary featuring director Verhoeven (always interesting to listen to), writer Neumeier and producer Davison. It`s a great listen, and they all have plenty to contribute to the proceedings. There`s plenty of insight into the film and they talk at length about various issues surrounding the film. A great commentary overall. There`s another commentary on the storyboard feature too, featuring Phil Tippett.

There are also several deleted scenes for your viewing pleasure, along with some production footage which gives a good behind the scenes look and also features some scenes that you won`t have seen before. There are also 3 featurettes, 2 from 1987 and a newer one, and the combination of all of these gives you all the information you`ll ever need to know about the film. A comprehensive package indeed and about as much as we could have hoped for.

Conclusion

In summary you get a very special edition of the first film (which deserves the treatment), and two lacklustre discs for the two sequels. The first film is really the only one that is worth watching, and the cynic in me can see why the discs aren`t being released individually, since the sequels would never sell. It`s a shame that you can`t just buy the first film, but maybe you can buy the box set and flog the other films for £5 each? Then you`ll only have paid about £15 for a cracking disc of a damn good film. The Criterion disc on its own (if you can find a copy) is probably just as expensive as the box set, so if you think of it like that it`s not such a bad deal.

Recommended for fans of the first film (and of the sequels if fans of them exist). If you own the Criterion version you might not be so tempted to "upgrade", but everything that I`ve read suggests that this version is better. The decision is yours. My ratings are based mostly on the first film, since all categories would be dragged down by the sequels.