Robocop - Criterion Collection

Rating:
Summary: Robocop Rules
Review: Having seen it during its theatrical run in 1986 in the (R)-rated version, I was amazed by Paul Verhoeven's darkly comic and ultra-violent vision of the future. The unrated version on the Criterion DVD is even better. The transfer to DVD is fantastic. The sound and image quality are perfect.

Rating:
Summary: Ultimate cop movie
Review: Robocop took the street cop aspect, a few comic book elements and relentless violence and rolled it into one of the best movies ever. Those who like something of substance and violence will find this one worthwhile.

Rating:
Summary: Hilarious satire that could all come true...
Review: Paul Verhoeven came to Hollywood after making "The Fourth Man," and Hollywood promptly devoured him (look at "Showgirls" and "Starship Troopers"), but his first Hollywood film is so subversive that I consider it the ultimate SubGenius movie of the 1980s. Not only is "Robocop" a terrific action movie, it's also a wicked satire on the way a typical worker is caged in and controlled by the Conspiracy! Consider: Robocop has been created and programmed to do one thing only, namely the job assigned to him. As long as he does that job without thinking (and with commands and instructions constantly flashed to him through video screens - even his mind is turned into a video screen!) and sits in his cage without complaining, he is praised by his superiors. But as soon as he begins to dream and look for a life outside of his job, he is considered a rebel and an outcast, and THEY do everything possible to destroy him -- just like what happens to YOU in real life! Compare Robocop's plight to your own, and you'll see that this is a movie that not only bites the corporate hand that feeds it, it blows it off with a cinematic shotgun.

Rating:
Summary: a little short on features
Review: While not up to the standard of other dvd releases in terms of bonus features(i.e.director commentary)one can realize on other futuristic epics such as Dark City or Blade Runner,this version of Robocop is well worth owning for the unbridled brilliant satire and vision. Enjoy.

Rating:
Summary: Robo Classic
Review: Contrary to the previous post, Robocop IS presented in it's correct, original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 as the director filmed it.

Rating:
Summary: Could be better if they would show the rest of the movie
Review: I enjoyed every moment of the movie. With the Criterion version of the film, I had a chance to see several scenes not shown in the original theatrical version. So why the 1.66:1 aspect ratio? For anyone who prefers to watch a movie in the widescreen (letterbox) format, it is probably because one would want to see both the left and right quarters of the screen that are cut off when shown in the full screen (pan & scan) format. The people who are responsible for producing this version should have made a decision as to present it in the typical 1.33:1 aspect ratio to sell the movie to people who are normally confused as to why there are those black bars on the top and bottom of the screen or go all the way (as with movies like Terminator 2) with a 2.35:1 aspect ratio and show the movie like it was meant to be shown. The people in this world who really love movies (not just enjoy but really love) would like to see the entire film. Though this DVD is truly a wonderful film, I am disappointed in its presentation.

Rating:
Summary: The Only Real Version
Review: I loved it. I mean I liked the original version of this film but the director's cut really brought things into perspective. While heavy in the gore and violence department, there really are a lot of details that add to the story and the believeability of the acting in this movie. I can see why in 1987 they cut certain gory details out of the theatrical version of this movie. However, I would also like to point out that by today's standards, even with the excessivly violent footage restored, this movie is still only R rated by modern standards. If you are a true Sci-Fi Fan and hardcore collector, this movie is the only choice and well worth the little extra it costs.

Rating:
Summary: Robocop is AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Robocop has got to be the best one of the three. The second was ok, but the third one was very bad. I love the hard hitting humour and the excellent mix of black comedy and extreme violence. The other robocops had too much comedy and the violence was toned down and more slapstick. Robocop had a unique view of the future where the landscapes had turned into run-down cities infested with crime. An excellent film with a great performance by Weller - Weller being his no emotioned self... in a good way! To finish with I recommend that every owns a copy of this movie because it is a classic.

Rating:
Summary: The re-editing of this edition is seamless and fast-paced!
Review: The video transfer of this film was handled superbly. The audio commentary by Paul Verhoven gives you a very good insight as to the making of the film. Also there's plenty of behind-the-scenes photos on the construction of the full-size ED-209 as well as the animation model.

Rating:
Summary: This movie is still brilliant!!
Review: People who look at this film and just think of it as a gory action film really need to look deeper. It's probably the best parody of business ever created. The film has amazing characters (the Robocop character is one of the deepest characters ever created), great atmosphere and to boot, terriffic action scenes. This disc comes with a few more seconds of footage which doesn't really matter. But the extras are well worth it. This is the disc that made me an avid collector of the Criterion Collection.