‘RoboCop’ Reboot Review on Nerd Bastards

robocopWas there any chance I was going to rave about this one? Not really. The original RoboCop is a great example of the perfect accident, a low-budget, cartoonishly violent but social prescient Frankenstein’s story by a director making his first Hollywood film. In cold, calculating 21st century Hollywood though, RoboCop is a product to be exploited, and that seems to be the tact in the just released remake.

The review, upon reflection, may seem kind of negative, but I think there were times that the film justified its existence with an appropriate update on themes at play in the original. Mostly though, it seemed like they were changing things that worked in the original movie because we expected them to. That was my one big problem with The Amazing Spider-Man, the fact that it took liberties with the story to create something “different” only to miss the point of those story elements to begin with.

Overall, the film was very well made, and I think it had a good cast, but like the Hollywood production it is, the endeavour screams “assembly line construction,” built on the idea that the “RoboCop” name alone will pack the theatre seats. It’s not the first time and it certainly won’t be the last.

Check out my review on Nerd Bastards.

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Counting Down the Top 10 Nerdy TV Shows of 2013

game-thrones-red-weddingThe end of the year in the news business means lists. Lots and lots of lists. Over at Nerd Bastards I do an annual countdown of the Top 10 Nerdy TV shows of the year. What does that mean? Basically, any TV show that falls under the category of sci-fi, fantasy, horror, or obsessional is taken into consideration, be they comedy, drama or documentary.

So what made the cut this year? A lot of returning favourites actually, and a couple of new hits. Without naming names (obviously), the various candidates include a costumed hero, a group of nerdy scientists, a woman and her clones, a succubus, a serial killer, a team of interventionists, the various royal families of a fantasy kingdom, and about three different time travellers.

Check out my full list of the Top 10 Nerdy TV Shows of 2013 over at Nerd Bastards.

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