RoboCop Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

RoboCop Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 19, 2019

A good joke can be a kind of timeless entity despite any references that may become dated, and so, while now perhaps a bit past its “expiration date”, I’m offering a wonderful Conan O’Brien punchline that I’ve actually mentioned in a couple of other reviews. Years ago on a transcontinental flight I was watching some of O’Brien’s old “News from the Future” bits, where he intoned supposed prophecies (with a flashlight pointing up under his chin, campfire ghost story style). One of these jokes struck me as so funny I burst out into raucous laughter which actually made a bunch of other plane passengers turn around to stare at me (while my wife, sitting next to me, kind of shrunk down in her seat). So, without further ado, O’Brien’s joke: “In the future, robots will replace humans in dull, repetitive tasks like washing dishes and marrying J. Lo.” Now J. Lo is nowhere to be found in RoboCop, and it’s arguable whether policing is a “dull, repetitive task”, but otherwise O’Brien’s prognostication proves to be an apt description for the basic setup of this well remembered 1987 offering from Paul Verhoeven. RoboCop may be a so-called "high concept" film, but it's surprisingly visceral, with an unexpected amount of heart for what is in essence a kind of science fiction tinged thriller focusing on a Detroit cop (in a more or less unspecified "future") named Alex Murphy (Peter Weller) who is ruthlessly murdered by a gang but who is "resurrected" as a cyborg, albeit with vestiges of his human identity still troublingly intact.

RoboCop has had a couple of previous releases on Blu-ray. I'm not familiar with the pseudonymous writer who contributed our now long ago kind of brief RoboCop Blu-ray review, but there are at least screenshots showing what that release looked like included in the review. For a more thorough plot recap and analysis of the technical merits, Michael Reuben's much more recent RoboCop Blu-ray review of the remastered release is recommended, and it of course again provides screenshots for those wanting to do a side by side (by side) comparison.

RoboCop Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

RoboCop is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with AVC encoded 1080p transfers in 1.85:1. The nicely appointed insert booklet contains the following information on the transfer(s):

RoboCop was restored by MGM in 2013 and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with 5.1, 4.0 and stereo 2.0 audio.

The original camera negative was scanned in 4K and all grading and restoration was completed in 4K. The grade and final restoration was approved by director Paul Verhoeven, as well as executive producer Jon Davison and co-writer/co-producer Edward Neumeier. All audio tracks were remastered from the original mag sound elements.

As the original camera negative only corresponds to the original R-rated theatrical version of the film, at the time of MGM's restoration, additional print elements were sourced to make up the additional or alternate shots in the Unrated Director's Cut version. Since these inserts were scanned from lower generation positive elements due to the negatives for these sequences being lost, there is an unavoidable subtle shift in picture quality throughout these scenes. We sincerely hope these shifts do not affect your enjoyment of the overall film.

The original 4.0 and stereo theatrical mixes were remastered for this Blu-ray from the original audio stems at Deluxe Audio, in addition to the "Final Theatrical Mix" isolated score audio option.

Lastly, additional film elements of the TV Cut version supplied by MGM were scanned at EFILM and graded in 2K at R3Store Studios and are included on the RoboCop: Edited for Television featurette on this release. The full TV Cut presented on Disc 2 was transferred from an original DigiBeta broadcast master tape.

In terms of detail (and especially fine detail) levels, there's little question that this Arrow release more closely resembles the remastered Blu-ray put out by MGM in 2014 than the earlier lackluster release, but there is one aspect where the Arrow release is occasionally at least somewhat different from both of the previous releases — it is somewhat brighter, at least at times, as can be seen by, for example, comparing screenshot 14 from Michael's review with screenshot 9 accompanying this review (for those interested, the original review has a similar screenshot in position 4). That brightness may actually tend to point out what is at times a pretty grainy looking presentation, but that fact at least supports a contention that no over zealous noise reduction has been applied here. As with the previous releases of the Director's Cut, there are obvious quality variations between the (frankly pretty brief for the most part) inserts and the bulk of the presentation, and some opticals can look especially rough as well (the opening sequence is notable in that regard). Aside from some of the inserts and opticals, the palette is nicely suffused throughout, and I'd argue that the brightness factor increases the "warmth" that Michael mentions in his review of the remastered MGM release. Contrast is generally excellent (again granting a bit of slack for the lower grade inserts) and grain, while very heavy at times, encounters no real compression issues.

RoboCop Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

While this Arrow release doesn't offer the glut of foreign language audio that the remastered MGM release did, it at least ups the ante of the original MGM release by offering DTS-HD Master Audio tracks in 2.0, 4.0 and 5.1 (the original MGM release featured a lossy Dolby Digital 4.0 track, and the remastered MGM release had a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track as its only English option). While not the completely immersive experience that some may expect, the 5.1 and 4.0 tracks do feature regular engagement of the surround channels, though quite often with regard to discrete channelization of individual effects rather than "showier" offerings like huge pans and the like. There's still appealing directionality at times, often with regard to the distinctive sounds of RoboCop making his way through various environments. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout, and Basil Poledouris' engaging score is also offered with a full bodied and problem free sound.

RoboCop Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc One

• Director's Cut (1080p; 1:43:18)


• Commentaries

  Archive Commentary by Paul Verhoeven, executive producer Jon Davison and co-writer Ed Neumeier (originally recorded for the Theatrical Cut and re-edited in 2014 for the Director's Cut)

  
  

  New Commentary by film historian Paul M. Sammon

  
  

  New Commentary by fans Christopher Griffiths, Gary Smart and Eastwood Allen

• The Future of Law Enforcement (1080p; 16:51) is a new interview with co-writer Michael Miner.


• RoboTalk (1080p; 32:08) is a new conversation between co-writer Ed Neumeier and filmmakers David Birke and Nicholas McCarthy.


• Truth of Character (1080p; 18:26) is a new interview with Nancy Allen.


• Casting Old Detroit (1080p; 8:20) is a new interview with casting director Julie Selzer.


• Connecting the Shots (1080p; 11:06) is a new interview with second unit director Mark Goldblatt, who has a long history with Paul Verhoeven.


• Analog (1080p; 13:10) is a fun new featurette with Peter Kuran and Kevin Kutchaver discussing the pre-CGI "old school" special visual effects.


• More Man Than Machine: Composing RoboCop (1080p; 12:04) is a new piece which focuses on composer Basil Paledouris and includes comments from Jeff Bond, Lukas Kendall, Daniel Schwieger and Robert Townson.


• RoboProps (1080p; 12:50) is new tour of the collection of Julien Dumont, who has an insane amount of RoboCop memorabilia.


• 2012 Q &A with the Filmmakers (1080p; 42:37) features Paul Verhoeven, Jon Davison, Ed Neumeier, Michael Miner, Nancy Allen, Peter Weller and Phil Tippett.


• RoboCop: Creating a Legend (1080i; 21:10) is the first of several archival featurettes ported over to this release.


• Villains of Old Detroit (1080i; 17:00) is another archival featurette focusing on the bad guys.


• Special Effects: Then & Now (1080i; 18:21) is another archival featurette.


• Paul Verhoeven Easter Egg (1080i; 00:39) is another archival piece, but is it really an easter egg when it's out in the open like this? (That's a joking rhetorical question, for those who may not get it.)


• Deleted Scenes (720p; 2:50)


• The Boardroom: Storyboard with Commentary by Phil Tippett (1080p; 6:02)


• Director's Cut Production Footage (1080p; 11:34) offers raw dailies.


• Trailers

  Theatrical Trailer 1 (1080p; 1:38)

  
  

  Theatrical Trailer 2 (1080p; 1:23)

• TV Spots (1080i; 2:03)


• Image Galleries

  Production Stills (1080p)

  
  

  Behind the Scenes (1080p)

  
  

  Poster & Video Art (1080p)

Disc Two

• Theatrical Cut (1080p; 1:42:47)


• Archive Commentary by Paul Verhoeven, executive producer Jon Davison and co-writer Ed Neumeier (originally recorded for the Theatrical version of the film)


• Two Isolated Score Tracks offer the original score by Paledouris and his final theatrical mix, both presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0.


• Edited for Television Version (1080i; 1:35:16) has alternate dubs, takes and edits of several scenes.


• RoboCop: Edited for Television (1080p; 18:35) compiles alternate scenes from two edited for television versions, including outtakes that have been newly transferred in high definition from recently unearthed 35mm elements. This can be found under the Edited for Television Version menu.


• Split Screen Comparisons

  Director's Cut vs. Theatrical Cut (1080p; 4:02)

  
  

  Theatrical Cut vs. TV Cut (1080p; 20:16)

This is another beautifully packaged released from Arrow, housed in an attractive slipbox which includes the keepcase (with reversible sleeve), six collector postcards, double sided fold out poster, and an 80 page booklet with essays, stills and transfer information.

RoboCop Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A lot of people have pointed out that RoboCop had at least a few ostensible precursors, like the original comic series version of Judge Dredd, but RoboCop still has its own distinctive flavor, one that mixes a surprising amount of heart and even some relatively cheeky humor into its tale of out of control hooligans and rampant crime in a supposedly futuristic Detroit. This new Arrow release offers solid technical merits and a really engaging array of supplements, along with some very handsome packaging. Highly recommended.