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RoboCop

year 1987decade 80sdirector Paul Verhoevengenre Science fictiongenre Action
host Bill Simmonshost Kyle Brandt
All 38 categories

The film

RoboCop (1987)

Directed by Paul Verhoeven · Science fiction

102 minutes

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Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Peter Weller Alex Murphy / RoboCop
Nancy Allen Anne Lewis
Daniel O'Herlihy The Old Man
Ronny Cox Dick Jones
Kurtwood Smith Clarence Boddicker
Miguel Ferrer Bob Morton

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

27:20

Most Rewatchable Scene

The ED-209 boardroom demonstration

The ED-209 boardroom demonstration

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:27:20Read transcript
  • Murphy arriving at the chaotic police station is an opening choice. — Bill Simmons
  • ED-209 killing Mr. Kinney in the boardroom is the declared number-one scene. — Bill Simmons
  • Clarence Boddicker’s warehouse pursuit and Murphy’s murder are considered despite the execution being hard to watch. — Bill Simmons
  • RoboCop’s first day includes the convenience-store arrest and shooting through the woman’s legs. — Bill Simmons
  • RoboCop returning to Murphy’s house supplies the human core but is also a pee-break candidate. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob Morton’s apartment combines cocaine, sex, and Clarence’s grenade attack. — Bill Simmons
  • The cocaine-factory shootout includes falling gunmen firing as they collapse. — Bill Simmons
  • Toxic-waste Emil and Dick Jones’s final death are late alternatives. — Bill Simmons
  • ED-209 wins even though RoboCop is absent from the scene.
  • The recurring dollar-buying television joke is treated as a central satirical catchphrase in RoboCop’s first-day sequence. — Bill Simmons
  • RoboCop ending the Mayor Gibson hostage crisis is another first-day scene candidate. — Bill Simmons
  • Clarence leaving a futuristic video disc behind prompts a question about whether its evidence could be recovered. — Bill Simmons
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45:58

The most 1987 thing

Leza Gibbons

Leza Gibbons

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:45:58Read transcript
  • ED-209’s stop-motion effects are charming and linked to Phil Tippett. — Bill Simmons
  • Over-the-top street thugs and watching banks of televisions through a store window are very 1980s. — Bill Simmons
  • Falling backward out of a building is another period image. — Bill Simmons
  • Leza Gibbons wins as a defining 1987 celebrity presence. — Bill Simmons
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49:16

What’s Aged the Best?

The politics, dual villains, media satire, SUX commercial, Peter Weller’s committed suit performance, and a remarkabl...

The politics, dual villains, media satire, SUX commercial, Peter Weller’s committed suit performance, and a remarkable 1987 theater lineup

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:16Read transcript
  • The film’s future-crime and corporate-policing ideas are praised as unusually durable. — Bill Simmons
  • “Dead or alive, you are coming with me” works as a setup and callback. — Kyle Brandt
  • Clarence Boddicker and Dick Jones make the two-villain structure work. — Kyle Brandt
  • The futuristic gas price and Media Break news format feel current. — Bill Simmons
  • The 6000 SUX commercial makes fun of bigger-is-better vehicles. — Kyle Brandt
  • The name Dick and the pause before saying it are celebrated as period villain-writing. — Bill Simmons
  • Peter Weller endured heat, water loss, and a restrictive suit while insisting on being called Robo or Murphy. — Bill Simmons
  • A theater marquee with The Lost Boys, RoboCop, Predator, and Full Metal Jacket captures the strength of 1987. — Kyle Brandt
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56:18

The Great Shot Gordo Award for Most Cinematic Shot

RoboCop’s expanding alley-wall shadow during the rescue

RoboCop’s expanding alley-wall shadow during the rescue

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:56:18Read transcript
  • The crew had RoboCop walk backward so his shadow would grow against the wall. — Kyle Brandt
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1:03:32

The Butch’s Girlfriend Award for the Weakest Link in the Film

The movie being too short and its unexplored Murphy-family story

The movie being too short and its unexplored Murphy-family story

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:03:32Read transcript
  • One panelist wants five or ten more minutes, including a deleted chase and cemetery visit. — Kyle Brandt
  • The movie never establishes Murphy with his family before his death. — Bill Simmons
  • A scene where Murphy’s wife recognizes RoboCop at the station is proposed. — Bill Simmons
  • A competing theory says Murphy’s marriage may already have been bad, explaining how quickly his wife moved on. — Kyle Brandt
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1:07:03

What’s Aged the Worst?

The sequels and 2014 remake, police strikes, a WCW RoboCop tie-in, suit-production conflict, and Clarence Boddicker’s...

The sequels and 2014 remake, police strikes, a WCW RoboCop tie-in, suit-production conflict, and Clarence Boddicker’s name age worst.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:03Read transcript
  • The sequels and 2014 remake are rejected because the original remains available. — Bill Simmons
  • A police strike is questioned because the panel says none has happened in America since the 1910s. — Bill Simmons
  • RoboCop joining Sting in WCW is mocked for the collapsing jail-set bars. — Kyle Brandt
  • The suit conflict briefly led Verhoeven to fire Weller before rehiring him. — Bill Simmons
  • Clarence Boddicker is criticized as an implausible name for the character. — Kyle Brandt
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1:11:00

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

ED-209

ED-209

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:11:00Read transcript
  • Bob Morton is cited for dialing up his performance. — Bill Simmons
  • ED-209’s flailing and crying after falling down the stairs wins.
  • ED-209 is also interpreted as a Freudian projection of Dick Jones’s sexual insecurity. — Kyle Brandt
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1:12:36

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

The Dick Jones puppet fall nearly ruins the technical achievement; Kyle Brandt as RoboCop

The Dick Jones puppet fall nearly ruins the technical achievement; Kyle Brandt as RoboCop

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:36Read transcript
  • The Dick Jones puppet fall is called a terrible last-second special effect. — Kyle Brandt
  • The fall is compared unfavorably with Hans Gruber’s fall one year later. — Kyle Brandt
  • Kyle Brandt is proposed as an especially plausible alternate RoboCop. — Kyle Brandt
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1:19:17

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Ray Wise

Ray Wise

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:17Read transcript
  • Paul McCrane is identified as toxic-waste Emil. — Bill Simmons
  • Ray Wise wins after being mistaken for the actor who played Sosa in Scarface. — Bill Simmons
  • Alan Graff is praised as a recurring background presence in many movies. — Kyle Brandt
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1:20:29

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

Ed 209

Ed 209

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:20:29Read transcript
  • Ed 209 wins for making a large impression in three scenes. — Kyle Brandt
  • The “buy that for a dollar” performer is the other finalist. — Kyle Brandt
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1:21:55

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Craig argues RoboCop is slow, inflexible, easy to escape, and only about an 82 in Madden terms.

Craig argues RoboCop is slow, inflexible, easy to escape, and only about an 82 in Madden terms.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:21:55Read transcript
  • RoboCop has one handgun, moves slowly, and is never shown running.
  • Running around a corner or climbing stairs is proposed as an easy escape.
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1:27:43

Apex Mountain

Peter Weller, Detroit’s early-1990s sports era, Ronnie Cox, and Miguel Ferrer receive apex support; other candidates ...

Peter Weller, Detroit’s early-1990s sports era, Ronnie Cox, and Miguel Ferrer receive apex support; other candidates are rejected or debated.

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:27:43Read transcript
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1:30:18

Cruise or Hanks?

Tom Cruise as RoboCop

Tom Cruise as RoboCop

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:30:18Read transcript
  • Cruise is preferred for the helmet, bald-cap, and cop-role contrast.
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1:38:44

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

A video game, rather than another sequel or remake

A video game, rather than another sequel or remake

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:38:44Read transcript
  • A Murphy prequel and an all-Black remake are briefly considered. — Kyle Brandt
  • The preferred extension is a video game, a format that already produced many RoboCop games. — Bill Simmons
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1:39:53

Is This Movie Better With…?

The imagined Gus Johnson call of RoboCop’s alley rescue

The imagined Gus Johnson call of RoboCop’s alley rescue

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:39:53Read transcript
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1:41:50

Just One Oscar

Sound effects

Sound effects

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:41:50Read transcript
  • The panel selects sound effects and notes that the film won for sound. — Bill Simmons
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1:43:42

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

The Nuke ’Em home game and RoboCop’s mask

The Nuke ’Em home game and RoboCop’s mask

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:43:42Read transcript
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1:44:50

The Coach Finstock Award for Best Life Lesson

You can kill someone but cannot take their humanity; weapons demonstrations should use blanks.

You can kill someone but cannot take their humanity; weapons demonstrations should use blanks.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:44:50Read transcript
  • The return of Murphy’s humanity supplies the first lesson. — Bill Simmons
  • The robot disaster supplies the practical lesson to use blanks during demonstrations. — Kyle Brandt
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1:46:45

Who Won the Movie?

Paul Verhoeven

Paul Verhoeven

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:46:45Read transcript
  • Paul Verhoeven is the immediate winner for the film’s bloody, satirical direction. — Kyle Brandt
  • The closing response praises the film for hiding its message inside cheesy 80s science fiction.
  • The villains are praised as more vivid and genuinely terrible than the restrained leads.
Podcast choices
Speaker not identified
Paul Verhoeven
Speaker not identified
Paul Verhoeven
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