RoboCop: 4 Things That Worked (And 6 That Sucked)
9. The Opening Sequence
The leaked RoboCop script mentioned a sequence that takes place in Iran. I have to admit that when I first learned that some of the film was to take place away from Detroit, I was one of the people who screamed sacrilege. But as it turns out, the scene in Tehran is one of the best in the whole movie.
According to Novak, the ED-209s and EM-208s are bringing justice and peace to the streets of Tehran. A blonde reporter on the ground beams back pictures of the Iranian citizens being ordered to put their arms up so they can be security checked. Novak spins it a positive news story and interviews an army general who comments that they have learned from the mistakes of Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan and thanks to the mechanization of the army, American blood will be spilt no more.
But like in real life, the other side of the coin tells a different story. The Iranians are less than happy to be aggressively ID-checked by a robot and a group of men decide to take matters in their own hand to make a point. Led by a father, the group put on suicide vests to take on the ED-209s and EM-208s with the goal to die in front of the TV audience. What follows is a pretty dramatic sequence that ends with an ED-209 shooting dead a child holding a knife.
With obvious comparisons to the controversies surrounding the use of drones, the current events in the middle east and the way filtered news that is fed to the American public; the whole scene highlights the relationship between the government and media manipulation. Just as the action kicks off in Tehran, the feed to Novak and the American public is cut, due to security concerns. The only news they want to show is what benefits their agenda, everything else is censored.
Tense and perfectly executed; not only does it demonstrate the weaknesses in the Omnicorp Robot program, but it does it in a way that is relevant to what is going on today. And as this all happens before the opening titles, it gives you an impression that the RoboCop reboot has brains behind it.