Pete and Sean return with more of their insight into the latest movie news!
Good Morning, Afternoon or Evening to all who have chosen to join us in the Asylum. Before we get cracking on this edition, please take some time and check out our last entry and Sean’s write up about what is next for Batman, it’s a great read and throws up some interesting theories on the direction of the cowls next big screen outing. Also I just want to take the time to thank everyone who has continued to read and support us since we started the Asylum, the feedback we have been getting on Facebook and Twitter has been fantastic and please continue to do so and we will continue to bring you some comic goodness. Also we have some plans over the next few weeks for a bigger and better Asylum so look out for that.
With all that said, my last entry was all about what to expect from The Guardians of the Galaxy movie that was announced back at San Diego Comic-Con. I enjoyed doing the research behind that and gathering the information that hopefully helped some people with their origins and what we can expect. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I’m gonna bring you a pre-view of another movie that has been announced and is currently further along the production in the Pre-Production stage. This one will be more familiar to most, it’s the world’s favourite cyborg (Because, lets face it, Davros is a bit of a bastard), the one and only……………Robocop! See, the title doesn’t seem so weird now eh? So let’s get to it and do a mother funking preview.
Because, lets face it, Davros is a bit of a bastard
The Plot: – ‘The year is 2028 and multinational conglomerate OmniCorp is at the center of robot technology. Their drones are winning wars around the globe and now they want to bring this technology to the home front. Alex Murphy is a loving husband, father and a good cop doing his best to stem the tide of crime and corruption in Detroit. After he is critically injured in the line of duty, OmniCorp utilizes their remarkable science of robotics to save Alex’s life. He returns to the streets of his beloved city with amazing new abilities, but with issues a regular man has never had to face before’
I first encountered Robocop back on my old Amstrad 64 that instead of disc based games you get now, it was a tape cassette (memorieeeees)
OK, so that doesn’t tell us a great deal of what’s gonna happen but that’s the official plot release for the flick. But we all know the origin of Robocop and how he comes to be what he is. The question I have is this and it’s two-fold. Do we really need this movie? And if the answer is yes, does this movie fall under the ever growing umbrella of a Comic book movie. Now if you’re a regular reader then you will know that here at the Asylum we do love a good comic book movie (check out our top ten list from a few months ago) and know that it takes a lot to impress us but to answer that question, I guess we need to go back to the roots of the character and if he can be truly classed as a comic book hero. I first encountered Robocop back on my old Amstrad 64 that instead of disc based games you get now, it was a tape cassette that if you wanted to play it, you would have to allow at least 2 hours for it to load and even then I got bored of playing after about 10 minutes, not because the game was bad but because I was a kid and my attention span was almost non-existent, much like it is now to be fair. Oh look a dog!
Oh look a dog!…..Oh sorry, so yeah, back on to the roots of the Robot.
Oh sorry, so yeah, the roots of the Robot. The 1987 film was what first brought the cyborg to our attention and from then on it has spawned many comic adaptations and games and of course, 2 other (less successful) movies. This new film is obviously a reboot of the franchise and I’m sure the movie makers are hoping for a successful feature to carry on the franchise and let’s not forget the merchandise potential of a successful move about robots. Transformers anyone?? So the main aim with this film is obviously to get it right and make sure that people want to see it again. In a major action movie like this, so many components need to be right so you end up with something closer to a Die Hard type franchise instead of something you hoped would spawn more films but probably won’t, like Green Lantern or John Carter. With a movie about a man that gets turned into a robot, the action side of things is kind of implied and to be expected but there are other key issues that have to be resolved. A leading man? A good back up cast? Good looking suit?
So let’s look at these things individually.
Starting with the man/borg himself. The original was played by a relatively unknown at the time called Peter Weller.
Starting with the man/borg himself. The original was played by a relatively unknown at the time called Peter Weller. As Murphy, his acting wasn’t very good but as Robocop he was very good. The voice, walk and mannerisms were what you would expect from a man who got shot to shit and somehow survived. This instalment will also see a relatively unknown called Joel Kinnaman (Who? Exactly!) Take on the lead role as Alex Murphy/Robocop. How much we will see of him as either is relatively unknown at this time, but with the set photos that have been released, they have all been of him in the suit, but more on that later. I personally have never heard of him before so with any unknown actor, I headed straight to IMDB to check him out and the only thing he has been in that I recognise is The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I haven’t seen that so couldn’t comment on what he was like but I don’t think it would make a difference unless he was playing a cyborg cop in that too. That’s the beauty of the role. It’s highly unlikely that as an actor, you have played this type of role before so he really is an unknown commodity at the moment until we see a trailer. But I agree with casting an unknown. When the film first was announced, I heard that Michael Fassbender and Russell Crowe were rumoured for the role and I thought that it could have been a big mistake to cast someone that well known, more Crowe than Fassbender but his star is rising quickly. So to summarise, I am looking forward to seeing what Kinnaman can bring to the well and if he will fall short of Weller or go all Heath Ledger on him and make everyone forget that there was a Robocop before him.
So how about the supporting cast, well to put it bluntly, it looks awesome! As well as Kinnaman, we have Gary Oldman who really has taken off recently thanks to his turns in the Batman trilogy and also an Oscar nod from Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. He will be playing Dr. Robert Norton (a role originally offered to but turned down by Edward Norton) his job is to take a battered, bullet-ridden, all-but-dead body of police office Alex Murphy and rebirths him as the cyborg future of law enforcement. There wasn’t much scope for this character in the original so it’s up in the air whether he will be friend or foe to Robocop. There is Abbie Cornish who is very easy on the eyes and she will be playing the role of Murphy’s wife. Again, not explored much in the original so expect a very family feel to this one. We have Jackie Earle Haley who will be playing Maddox, who is known to be the man who trains the cyborg during his recuperation, but considering that Haley’s previous includes playing the demented Rorschach in Watchmen and Freddie Kruger in the latest remake of Nightmare on Elm Street, don’t be surprised if he is up to no good. The last person to join the cast was the original Batman himself, Michael Keaton. His role is more closely guarded than the rest but when Hugh Laurie was circling the role, it was listed as the Head of OmniCorp which could mean bad news for our metallic hero. The part of Murphy’s partner, Lewis, in the original was played by Nancy Allen (A woman) but in this interpretation, Lewis, is played by Michael Kenneth Williams (A man) so it will be interesting to see the dynamic there but I seriously hope he doesn’t turn into a Chris Tucker type wise-cracking sidekick. The final piece of the puzzle I want to mention is the man who really hates mother fucking snakes on mother fucking planes! It is of course Nick Fury/Mace Windu himself……Samuel L. Jackson! Yeah the man who is entrenched in Sci-Fi/Comic folklore has signed on to play a character called Pat Novak, who is described as a ‘charismatic TV mogul’. Yeah I don’t know what that means either but who cares, its Sam ‘Fucking’ Jackson, the man who can do no wrong and let’s be honest, a man of his stature whose star has arguably never shone brighter has read this script and likes it enough to sign on. Now who knows whether he will make a very brief appearance similar to his (uncredited) role in Kill Bill or a more substantial role but for his name alone, I am excited for this film. Hell, if Warwick Davies was playing Robocop and Sam Jackson was in it then I’d still be excited.
The part of Murphy’s partner, Lewis, in the original was played by Nancy Allen (A woman) but in this interpretation, Lewis, is played by Michael Kenneth Williams (A man)
Cast looks good huh? Told ya!
Ok, so I couldn’t talk about this without mentioning one thing that has divided opinion so far, (not least amongst me and Sean) is the Robocop suit. To say it’s different is an understatement, but does different mean bad? I don’t think so, there have been many set pics of the suit released so far and they all seem to suggest that the approach is very different than the iconic 1987 suit. Set pics are one thing, but does that mean that it will look exactly like that in the film, no, of course not. With CGI being as it is and the fact that the suit is all black lends itself to the digital era that we are in. We all remember how poor it looked when ED-209 ‘fell’ down the stairs in the original and we can see from the cast that this is going to be big budget so I doubt they will skimp on the special effects. The suit itself is very much sleeker than the original, no silver at all and the visor looks to be done in the same concept as Ironman with a flip up front. Again these are just set pics so it may not work like that but I suppose it all depends on how badly Murphy gets shot up. One thing of interest however is that the right hand of the suit is still Murphy’s own hand and appears it will stay that way after he becomes Robocop. This of course could just be to add a continuous human element to the character (interacting with his wife, maybe?) but could also act as a potential weakness when fighting crime.
So I couldn’t talk about this without mentioning one thing that has divided opinion so far, (not least amongst me and Sean) is the Robocop suit.
All these questions will be asked in some sort when we see a trailer, which I’m led to believe, we will see a teaser around the New Year, and a full length trailer a few months after, then maybe T.V spots and so on. But none of these questions will be answered in full until the flick hits our screens next year. The U.K release is scheduled for August 9th 2013 and the U.S release will be around the same time although that is yet to be confirmed.
This film and the first two Terminator films are what started the whole robot/sci-fi craze in the 80’s and I caught up with it all about a decade later so I am looking forward to this film. I will admit, there is slight anxiety over it because I think it worked so well in the 80’s because of the crazes of the time, but I’m not sure whether it will fit in to the recent trends in Hollywood and with Man of Steel being released a few weeks earlier, then I am worried it will be overlooked so don’t be surprised if that date of release is moved. Whether I go to the cinema to watch it will depend on a few things, 1. What prices the cinema is next year because it’s just getting ridiculous, 2. Whether it will be in 3D or not? (Almost a certainty it will be) and 3. What the trailers are like! Those three things will decide it for me because I am a very simple man.
If you have reached the end of this then a winner is you!
Thanks for reading and as always please feel free to drop me a tweet at @Pete_the_red or as I’m led to believe, there is now a comment section below this so leave a comment there.
For now, Live long and Prosper (I watched Star Trek last night, sorry) and Stay Classy! (Anchorman too)
For now, Live long and Prosper (I watched Star Trek last night, sorry) and Stay Classy! (Anchorman too)
You can follow Pete on Twitter at @pete_the_red or catch him on the official Comic Asylum account @Comic_Asylum
Posted on October 15th, 2012
Category: NEWS & VIEWS, THE COMIC ASYLUM
Tags: Alex Murphy, Michael Kenneth Williams, Murphy, Nancy Allen, Pete Barrington, Peter Weller, Robocop remake, Sean Favager, The Comic Asylum