Man, how long has it been since I wrote one of these posts? I guess if I have to ask, it’s been way too long. Today is a great day to come back here though. If I ignore the fact that I forgot to get lettuce for the tacos we were going to have for dinner tonight, and I ignore that my children are bored even though we’re only 2 weeks into summer vacation, it’s a fantastic day. The 1,000th review went up on The Film Reel this afternoon. After a lengthy period of trying to decide what to watch, I went with Robocop. What a great choice it was.
This brought up a problem that I had never thought about for my blog. What movies would be left after I watched all my favourites? Obviously, when you hit a milestone like 500 or 1,000, it would seem an easy choice to pick a film that you love. After reviewing 999 movies, I had pretty much watched all my favourites. Thankfully I had overlooked Robocop, one of the best movies to come out of the ’80s, and one that has always been a hit around my house, at least with me.
I’m a little surprised that I missed that one. I’ve been writing this blog for 1,281 days, managing to get 1,000 reviews in now. How is it that I almost skipped over one of the best films around? I’ve seen films great and small, hidden gems from years gone by and current hits that are sure to become classics. I’ve also had to watch some terrible films, and even more that were too generic and mundane to be interesting. I’m kind of glad that I missed Robocop in all that, because it embodies so many of the things that I love about film.
First of all, it was made in the ’80s. I’ve gone on about this before, but there’s something about films from the ’80s that I enjoy more than others. Maybe it’s the fact that I spent so much of that decade actually watching movies. Now, every time I sit down to watch something from that time, I’m granted an instant nostalgia boost.
It also happens to be a very violent film, even though it’s not a horror movie. The death of Alex Murphy before he becomes Robocop, that poor bastard in a suit that ED-209 fills full of bullets. What about the unlucky hood working with Clarence Boddicker who winds up in the vat of toxic waste, his skin melting off his body while he wanders around gurgling “Help me, help me!” Very bloody, and a huge bonus to a horror fan like myself.
There’s the fantastic design of Robocop himself. To this day, I still think he looks badass. They must have done something right, because my son agreed, and he’s a hard one to impress. He’s been spoiled by some of the incredible effects work they can pull off now, so for Robocop to get him excited, I know that they did a perfect job.
The acting work involved is also amazing. Kurtwood Smith, Peter Weller, Miguel Ferrer, Robert DoQui. Incredible. These guys help make Robocop the wonderful film that it is, especially Kurtwood Smith as the main villain. He’s almost disgustingly evil, and yet strangely charismatic.
Bringing together all those great elements makes an almost perfect film. The stop motion of ED-209 doesn’t quite hold up, and there are a few moments that start to drag, but it doesn’t hold the film back. I’m glad that I managed to make it the 1,000th review. Now I just have to start worrying about what the 2,000th review will be.
Here’s to the next 1,000, and to everyone out there that reads The Film Reel. I’d buy you all a drink, but I’ve only got enough for lettuce, and I need that for my tacos tonight!
