Austin Green

17 February 2019

“I’d buy that for a dollar!”

The 1987 science fiction film Robocop may have been dismissed beyond the popularity of the titular character when it was originally released, but over time certain real world events and elements have guided film critics and historians to refer back to the crime riddled Detroit depicted in the film series as a precursor to a present-day, real-world dystopia. Originally intending my research to focus on utopias found within the cyberpunk genre, I was struck by an overwhelming number of articles focusing on Robocop’s depiction of a dystopian Detroit becoming an accurate depiction of modern Detroit. The Robocop film series, especially the first two films, have always held a favorable position in my own canon of films. While the films are entrenched with all the tropes one might expect to find in an 80s science fiction or action film (for better or worse), Robocop moves beyond the norm and bends these tropes or expectations to essentially become a satire not only of the genre, but of American materialism and capitalism. The city portrayed in Robocop is mean, dangerous, lonely, and crumbling. Exploring the jump from Robocop the film to Robocop the reality seemed fitting for a Utopia/Dystopia course.

While reading and reviewing the different articles I was able to locate, the similarity between the articles was glaring. Some used a joking tone, while others were more serious in the presentation of information. The information provided, however, was similar in most cases. Author Sean Posey, in an article titled “From 'Old Detroit' to Delta City: Robocop's Dystopia in Detroit,” takes a more informative route in linking the film to modern-day Detroit. Posey begins his article with an interesting aside: a statue of Robocop himself has been constructed on Wayne State University’s campus. The university’s website describes the college as “A premier university in the heart of Detroit.” A statue of this character has been placed in the heart of Detroit, cementing itself as a part of the city and showing the impact the film has had on its residents. The article describes how in the film, a large corporation titled Omni-Consumer Products is “is planning to build a corporate-backed 'New Detroit,' dubbed 'Delta City,' to gradually replace the crime-ridden ruins of 'Old Detroit,' where most of the city's population lives. Privatization and gentrification are, of course, the main goals.” Posey continues on that while this may have been satire when the film was originally released, this same thing is happening in Detroit today: “Just as Omni Consumer Products (in the film) saw profit making opportunities where others saw nothing, so have the forces pushing privatization in the real city of Detroit. For years, the right-wing Mackinac Policy Center has advanced the idea of privatizing government services in Detroit and across Michigan. They have called for the sale of assets—like electrical utilities, water/sewer, and public electricity. Now the city's electrical grid is on its way to being sold to DTE Energy. The emergency manager will also put up Detroit's trash collection for private bidding.” Posey continues that Robocop takes place around a supposed 2043, but that the reality of Detroit becoming a match for the Detroit shown in the film is occurring at a much faster pace. The hope by these investors either in privatizing government services or in purchasing real estate in bulk is to bank on a change in city’s fortune. Much like the “New Delta City” Omni was promoting in the film, the hope of a better change for the city is promoted to make these changes appear beneficial for the residents, and not just something done for profits for the already wealthy or mega corporations.

On a lighter note, author Justin Westbrook’s article “It Sucks That We All Live In The World Of Robocop Now But The Movie Is Great,” uses sarcasm to drive his message to the reader. He begins, “Imagine a reality where the government is totally corrupt, the city of Detroit is desperately trying to get back on its feet, police forces have become overly militarized with weekly reports of unjustified authoritative violence, and the overwhelmingly negative news coverage is only cut by condescending ads for ridiculous products. Now put down your phone and settle in for a review of Robocop .” The author hits many of the same points Posey made in his article but also brings in the image that Detroit has in the public eye. Westbrook is playing on the reputation Detroit has of being either unsafe or uninhabitable. The main point Westbrook is getting at about Robocop’s portrayal of a Dystopian Detroit is that “everything this movie thinks is a ridiculous and over-the-top projection of the troubles of American capitalism and authority has pretty much become the standard by now.” This article delves into some unrelated aspects of the films but is included because of the author’s ability to summarize what many other articles were taking paragraphs to say.

Conflicting with my own opinion or enjoyment of the film as satire, Westbrook concludes his post with “It’s just bittersweet to realize this movie hardly plays as satire today. We’re all just biding time for a Robocop to come along and save us, I guess.” This movie strikes such a response from viewers precisely because of what is said here. When originally produced, the satire was used to represent truths, but in present day these ridiculous ideas taken to the extreme have become reality. Robocop shows up again and again when trying to search for information on utopias and dystopias in not just science fiction, but in film in general, because of how precise the details imagined in the original films have become the reality of today. The jump from satire to real, especially in the case of what is presented in Robocop, is a terrifying thought—one that makes the topic not only interesting to readers, but important. 

Works Cited

http://www.hamptoninstitution.org/robocop-dystopia-detroit.html#.XGmeAc17mUk

https://jalopnik.com/it-sucks-that-we-all-live-in-the-world-of-robocop-now-b-1826642201