The problem with "Robocop 2" is that it doesn't adhere to the rigid, unwavering demands of the average movie critic who seems to expect the same things from every movie -- character development, following through with themes and ideas, each scene being directly relevant to the story, relationships, and so on. Thus, it's easy to see why virtually no movie critic out there liked this film. When measuring its quality by a set of criteria intended for films like "When Harry Met Sally" or "The Godfather", it's no surprise that "Robocop 2" would receive mostly lousy reviews. The reality, though, is that "Robocop 2" is a spectacular film. Here's why:
First and foremost, the plot is magnificent! (SPOILERS HERE).
Most of the police are on strike and the Detroit is in chaos. Crime runs rampant. The CEO of OCP wants to privatize Detroit and has swindled the mayor in order to make this possible. Meanwhile, a new designed drug called Nuke is being used throughout Detroit, and Robocop seeks to eradicate it. In the process, he nearly kills Caine, the drug-lord responsible for the Nuke epidemic. Concurrently, an ambitious researcher at OCP (Dr. Faxx, who is sleeping with the CEO for professional gain) is looking to design a second Robocop, and determines that the best way to do so is to use the brain of a drug-addict despite her colleagues' protests. When the opportunity presents itself, she reprograms Robocop to be utterly lame, and she murders Caine in his hospital bed and turns him into Robocop 2. The mayor, in order to prevent Detroit from being taken over by OCP, plans to strike a deal with Caine's second-in-command, a twelve year-old criminal named Hobb, who promises to pay all of Detroits debts to OCP in return for allowing Nuke to be manufactured unmolested by the Detroit police. OCP executives get wind of this plan, and together with Dr. Faxx, decide to utilize Robocop 2 to kill the mayor while he meets with Hobb. Many are killed, as you can imagine, including Hobb, but the mayor escapes.
Shifting gears, the CEO holds a press conference (which the mayor attends) to introduce to the public a model of the new and privatized Detroit as well as Robocop 2, the new version with the firepower to keep the public safe. Robocop enters the hall, Robocop 2 goes berserk, fighting ensues, many bystanders are killed, and ultimately Robocop kills Robocop 2. The CEO, of course, escapes and a plan is quickly formed to blame the entire catastrophe on Dr. Faxx in order to allow him to go Scot-free.
It's worth mentioning here that the description above is a simplified account of the story, and that the plot is indeed intricate, coherent, and downright interesting.
Moreover, you have to remember that there are movies with vastly more simplistic plots than this that have been awarded Oscars for best picture and/or best original screenplay in the past: "Gladiator" comes to mind, as does "Titanic", "No Country for Old Men", "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King", and many others. All of these films, while excelling in other areas, had almost childishly-simple story lines.
The problem with "Robocop 2" is that it's much more eccentric and satirical than its predecessor, "Robocop". Put differently: unlike its predecessor, it's a film that was meant entirely not to be taken seriously -- a task that movie critics simply cannot perform. Since "Robocop 2" is neither a serious drama nor a comedy, it is to most critics two hours of pure satire, and it was reviewed accordingly. Read any review of the film and you'll see that most of them consist of little more than harsh criticism of the film's eccentricities and satire.
The reality is that when you view this film with an open mind and without any expectations, you will find it to be odd, even corny at times, and incredibly entertaining! A great plot, interesting (albeit static) characters, decent special-effects, a little bit of comedy, and plenty of action to go around can all be found. "Robocop 2" has everything you'd expect from a good movie.
First and foremost, the plot is magnificent! (SPOILERS HERE).
Most of the police are on strike and the Detroit is in chaos. Crime runs rampant. The CEO of OCP wants to privatize Detroit and has swindled the mayor in order to make this possible. Meanwhile, a new designed drug called Nuke is being used throughout Detroit, and Robocop seeks to eradicate it. In the process, he nearly kills Caine, the drug-lord responsible for the Nuke epidemic. Concurrently, an ambitious researcher at OCP (Dr. Faxx, who is sleeping with the CEO for professional gain) is looking to design a second Robocop, and determines that the best way to do so is to use the brain of a drug-addict despite her colleagues' protests. When the opportunity presents itself, she reprograms Robocop to be utterly lame, and she murders Caine in his hospital bed and turns him into Robocop 2. The mayor, in order to prevent Detroit from being taken over by OCP, plans to strike a deal with Caine's second-in-command, a twelve year-old criminal named Hobb, who promises to pay all of Detroits debts to OCP in return for allowing Nuke to be manufactured unmolested by the Detroit police. OCP executives get wind of this plan, and together with Dr. Faxx, decide to utilize Robocop 2 to kill the mayor while he meets with Hobb. Many are killed, as you can imagine, including Hobb, but the mayor escapes.
Shifting gears, the CEO holds a press conference (which the mayor attends) to introduce to the public a model of the new and privatized Detroit as well as Robocop 2, the new version with the firepower to keep the public safe. Robocop enters the hall, Robocop 2 goes berserk, fighting ensues, many bystanders are killed, and ultimately Robocop kills Robocop 2. The CEO, of course, escapes and a plan is quickly formed to blame the entire catastrophe on Dr. Faxx in order to allow him to go Scot-free.
It's worth mentioning here that the description above is a simplified account of the story, and that the plot is indeed intricate, coherent, and downright interesting.
Moreover, you have to remember that there are movies with vastly more simplistic plots than this that have been awarded Oscars for best picture and/or best original screenplay in the past: "Gladiator" comes to mind, as does "Titanic", "No Country for Old Men", "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King", and many others. All of these films, while excelling in other areas, had almost childishly-simple story lines.
The problem with "Robocop 2" is that it's much more eccentric and satirical than its predecessor, "Robocop". Put differently: unlike its predecessor, it's a film that was meant entirely not to be taken seriously -- a task that movie critics simply cannot perform. Since "Robocop 2" is neither a serious drama nor a comedy, it is to most critics two hours of pure satire, and it was reviewed accordingly. Read any review of the film and you'll see that most of them consist of little more than harsh criticism of the film's eccentricities and satire.
The reality is that when you view this film with an open mind and without any expectations, you will find it to be odd, even corny at times, and incredibly entertaining! A great plot, interesting (albeit static) characters, decent special-effects, a little bit of comedy, and plenty of action to go around can all be found. "Robocop 2" has everything you'd expect from a good movie.