New Robocop Trailer: Addressing the Needs Of a “Robophobic” America

The second Robocop trailer actually shows some signs of life.

I haven’t been a big booster of the Robocop remake that’s in the works – the original is just too perfect to mess with – but I have to admit that this second trailer does show some potential. In the near future, the U.S. maintains orders in its overseas holdings with robots, including what is presumably a modernized ED-209 and humanoid androids that for the sake of convenience (and obviousness) I’m going to call Cylons.

Back home, however, something more palatable is needed on the streets – something more human. Thus, the new Robocop, who unlike his theatrical ancestor remembers who he is and what he lost. You can likely work out the rest of it from there: essential human goodness struggling against corporate imperialism in a man-versus-machine metaphor for our current troubled times.

Something like that, anyway, maybe – this is really more MovieBob’s bag than mine – but the relevant point is that it suggests the possibility that this might actually turn out to be a decent movie. I had extremely low expectations for the first Robocop, after all, and it turned out to be much smarter and more fun than I could possibly have guessed. Maybe this one will pull off the same surprise.

Robocop is slated to hit screens in the U.S. in February 2014.