RoboCop is one of those movies where I thought I saw it as a kid, but I either a) actually didn’t, or b) didn’t understand it at all. I’m going with ‘actually didn’t’ in this case. I knew it was rated R, but I assumed it was one of those things where ratings boards would be stricter in the 80s than in the Oughts. Since there’s a gratuitous shot of Murphy getting his hand blown off (and then executed) and a guy getting hit by a car and exploding, I’m guessing it’d still be rated R today. Of course, if it were released today, it wouldn’t have the fantastic claymation robot (If you don’t feel like watching RoboCop after watching that clip, you have no heart).
There’s a lot of social satire, mostly expressed in various newscasts throughout the movie. It reminded me of those “Would you like to know more?” scenes in Starship Troopers. I just looked it up, and both movies have the same director. Here’s the execution scene. The best thing is how well they cast goons back in 1987, the main one being Red Foreman, apparently falling into hard times and entering a life of crime after the events of That 70’s Show. All in all, RoboCop holds up and is a good way to spend a Wednesday night.