Robocop 2 – Blu-ray Review
The Film:
Paul Verhoeven’s 1987 Robocop has since been regarded as a classic science fiction film. Not only was it a hit with audiences, but with critics as well. And of course, that means the studio wanted to get to work on a sequel. And sadly, the sequel doesn’t live up to its predecessor.
Robocop 2 is set sometime after the original film with OCP (Omni Consumer Products) engineeringa police strike with the Detroit Police Department. That has left only Alex Murphy/Robocop (Peter Weller), Anne Lewis (Nancy Allen), and a handful of other cops to fight off crime. In the midst of all the madness, Drug Lord Cain (Tom Noonan) has risen and is taking over with his addictive “Nuke” substance. While Robocop and the few officers not on strike try to stop Cain, OCP plans to use the rise in crime to create a more efficient robot to handle crime and build a bigger, better city.
Unlike the original film, Robocop 2 seems to rely mostly on the action to carry the film. Verhoeven’s film was able to capture the difference between man and machine. While the sequel does delve into Murphy coming to terms with this issue, it’s lost within the first hour. There is a great scene with Robocop and with his former wife. While Murphy’s face is emotionless in that scene, you can really feel the pain he goes through. The action in the film is very entertaining, especially the final fight between Robocop and Robocop 2. The film does seem to go a bit overboard with the the comedy. It’s not a big problem, but it does seem a bit out of place.
What the film does a great job at is the villain. Cain is portrayed as having a Messianic complex, and sees “Nuke” as a way to paradise. Even going soo far to compare himself to Jesus. Noonan does just a terrific job at portraying the character, and even comes off as creepy in a couple of scenes. Dan O’Herlihy reprises his role as the OCP President running the whole operation, but comes off as more secondary villain than he did in the original. And who could forget how much ass Nancy Allen kicked as Anne Lewis.
Robocop 2 also feature alot more special effects than its predecessor. Mostly when bringing Robocop 2/Cain to life. And Robocop 2 itself does look absolutely bad-ass.
Overall, Robocop 2 is in no way as great as the original film, but still an entertaining sequel.
The Blu-Ray:
Audio/Video: The audio is presented in English 5.1 DTS HD, with with Spanish and French options.
The video does look sharp given the film’s age.
Unfortunately, there’s no special features to speak of other than a trailer.
The Film: Rating: 
The Blu-ray: Rating:
