The Old Testament is full of examples of chiasmus, which is a figure of speech used in ancient times to emphasize balance. It lists a bunch of ideas or things and then repeats each of them in reverse order. It’s often not an identical repetition. It frequently uses the opposite of what came before or something similar to it.
Here’s a simple chiasmus I came up with to show you what it looks like:
A. The cat was heavy
B. She ate too much food
C. Something had to change
B. I gave her less food to eat
A. Now she’s less heavy
The first and last lines are similar, the second and fourth lines are opposite but related, and the third line is the turning point that links the ideas contained in the chiasmus.
Why am I giving a grammar lesson? Because I’ve noticed this same pattern used in films – a Cinematic Chiasmus, if you will. That shouldn’t be too surprising. Good storytelling involves setting up ideas and then paying them off over the course of the story. But some films have second halves that so closely mirror their first halves that it makes them truly breathtaking to behold once you notice their chiasmus at work.
RoboCop (1987) is the first film I reviewed on this website, so it’s fitting that it should be the first that I talk about here. Get ready to see how RoboCop is an almost perfectly symmetrical film.
Watch RoboCop:
The Chiasmus
First of all, I’ll write out the chiasmus in the film’s sequence of events:
A. Main title
B. Media Break 1
C. Main character identifies himself as Murphy
D. OCP Junior Executive Kenny is killed after holding a gun in a meeting
E. Bob Morton goes over Dick Jones’ head to initiate the RoboCop Program
F. Clarence Boddicker makes his debut
G. Car chase with Boddicker and his cohorts
H. Partners Alex Murphy and Anne Lewis separate to take on Boddicker’s gang
I. RoboCop is born and he tests his abilities at a shooting range
J. RoboCop causes property damage in the name of law and order
K. Media Break 2
L. Lewis reminds RoboCop who he really is
M. RoboCop visits the home where he lived
N. RoboCop hunts for Boddicker
O. Boddicker reveals he’s working for Jones
P. RoboCop gets shot at by a lot of drug dealers in a warehouse
Q. RoboCop arrests Boddicker
Q. RoboCop attempts to arrest Jones
P. RoboCop gets shot at by a lot of cops in a parking garage
O. Boddicker gets another assignment from Jones
N. Boddicker gets a tracking device to hunt RoboCop down
M. RoboCop hides at the steel mill where he died
L. RoboCop sees his own face for the first time
K. Media Break 3 (Note: This is the only thing that’s out of order. It actually takes place where O is)
J. The bad guys cause property damage in the name of chaos
I. RoboCop fixes his targeting system
H. RoboCop and Lewis split up to take on Boddicker’s gang once again
G. Car chase with Boddicker
F. Boddicker is killed
E. RoboCop plays a recording of Jones saying, “I had to kill Bob Morton because he made a mistake”
D. Jones is killed after holding the same gun Kenny held in a meeting
C. Main character again identifies himself as Murphy
B. Media Break 4 (Note: Deleted scene)
A. Main title
Now let’s go through each of these points to see their similarities in greater depth.
A. Main Title
This is pretty straightforward. The movie is bookended by its title. “RoboCop” is the first thing we see. No “A film by Paul Verhoeven” or “Orion Presents” preceding it. And “ROBOCOP” is the last thing we see before the end credits roll.
B. Media Break
In the first Media Break, we learn that a police officer is in critical condition after a gun battle with Clarence Boddicker. Plus, OCP Senior President Dick Jones says of the cops who are threatening to strike, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.” In the final Media Break, which was deleted from the final cut of the film, Officer Anne Lewis is shown to be recovering after a gun battle with Boddicker. She repeats Jones’ line from her hospital bed.
C. Main Character’s Identity
When Alex Murphy arrives at his new precinct, he tells the Police Chief, “Hi. Murphy, transferring in from Metro South.” At the end of the film, when the Head of OCP asks for his name, he replies, “Murphy.” It’s a subtle thing, but it’s meaningful because it shows how RoboCop has regained his humanity by returning to his level of self-identity from the start of the film.
D. OCP Executive Killed During a Meeting
In the first demonstration of ED-209, a junior executive on the OCP Board points a gun at the giant robot and is promptly shot to pieces, landing on a scale model of the planned Delta City. In the final scene, a desperate Dick Jones uses that same gun to take the president of OCP hostage. However, RoboCop soon shoots Jones many times until he falls outside the building.
E. Bob Morton and Dick Jones
An ambitious junior executive named Bob Morton literally goes around Jones to pitch his idea for RoboCop to the Old Man after Jones’ ED-209 demonstration fails spectacularly. Jones gives Morton a murderous look as Morton walks off. Later, when RoboCop is asked for evidence that Jones is guilty of murder, he simply provides testimony from Jones himself saying, “I had to kill Bob Morton because he made a mistake.” His mistake, of course, was making Jones look bad in front of the Old Man.
F. Clarence Boddicker’s Introduction and Farewell
The first time we see Clarence Boddicker, he’s angry at his cohort for frying the money they stole, and he gets violent. The last time we see him, he’s angry at Lewis for frying his last henchman, and he again gets violent.
G. Car Chase with Boddicker and His Cohorts
Murphy and his new partner Lewis engage in a high-speed pursuit of Boddicker and his henchmen. Boddicker kills a wounded member of his team by throwing him out of his van, bringing the chase to a sudden halt. Later, Lewis pursues Boddicker in another car chase. Boddicker accidentally kills one of his wounded team members, which leads to an unexpected end to the pursuit.
H. Partners Split Up
After finding Boddicker’s abandoned van, Murphy and Lewis go in different directions to try to find his gang members. Lewis is wounded and unable to help Murphy until it’s too late and he’s been killed. Later, Lewis drives a car while RoboCop draws the bad guys’ fire on foot. She gets shot by Boddicker and she’s unable to warn RoboCop in time to prevent him from getting crushed by falling metal beams.
I. RoboCop at the Shooting Range
One of the first things RoboCop does after being created is test his aiming ability at a police firing range. He hits dead center with every shot. After taking heavy damage, his targeting system is off by a few inches. Lewis helps him correct it so he’s perfectly accurate once more.
J. Causing Property Damage
His first night on the job, RoboCop causes a lot of property damage in the name of serving the public trust and protecting the innocent. On the night that the Detroit Police Force goes on strike, the city’s criminals cause a lot of property damage in the name of chaos and self-gratification.
K. More Media Break
The second Media Break focuses primarily on RoboCop and how he is on his way to eliminating crime in Old Detroit. The third Media Break focuses on the Detroit Police Force’s impending strike, which will cause crime to skyrocket in the city.
L. “Murphy, It’s You”
At her first opportunity, Lewis stops RoboCop and says, “Murphy, it’s you.” This reveals his real name, which he had forgotten. Later, RoboCop removes his helmet, revealing his face, which he hadn’t seen since his death. Lewis says, “It’s really good to see you again, Murphy.”
M. RoboCop Goes Back and Tries to Remember His Family
After learning of his own murder, RoboCop visits the old home and finds it abandoned. He has a few flashes of memories of his wife and son, but nothing substantial enough to rekindle his old self. After surviving another attempt on his life, RoboCop hides out at the abandoned factory where Murphy was killed. He laments to Lewis about his family, “I can feel them… but I can’t remember them.”
N. Predators Hunting Their Prey
RoboCop goes to a night club to find a member of Boddicker’s gang who can lead him to the crime lord’s hideout so he can kill Boddicker. Later, Jones gives Boddicker a tracking device to lead him to RoboCop’s hideout so Boddicker can kill him.
O. Boddicker Working with Jones
Boddicker shows up at Morton’s home and tells his girlfriends to leave. Then Boddicker plays a recorded message from Jones, showing that he works for Jones. Later, he goes to Jones’ office and hits on his receptionist, who not so subtly tells him to get lost. Then he gets another assignment from Jones to take out Morton’s creation, RoboCop.
P. RoboCop Survives a Firing Squad
When RoboCop finds Boddicker, he’s greeted by more than a dozen bad guys all firing bullets at him. He’s unharmed by their attack and kills almost all of them. Later, RoboCop is heavily damaged by ED-209’s guns and then he faces more than a dozen cops who mercilessly fire on him. He’s weaponless, so he can’t fire back and he barely survives the ordeal.
Q. RoboCop’s Arrests
The turning point of the movie is when RoboCop arrests Boddicker. Up ‘til then, he’s been indestructible and able to handle anything that comes his way. But after throwing Boddicker through several glass windows, RoboCop is about to crush his throat when he’s reminded that he’s a cop. His programming takes over and denies him the ability to kill Boddicker. He arrests the criminal instead. Then, when RoboCop confronts Jones, he’s prevented from arresting him by his programming. And RoboCop gets knocked through several glass doors/windows by ED-209.
Seeing Double
I have no idea if the makers of RoboCop intended for it to be so symmetrical. The fact that they accomplished this feat while still making a fast-paced action film that never feels like it’s repeating itself is simply amazing. It shows that it’s possible to make a work of art, even when making a movie with a silly title and in a genre that usually doesn’t call for much depth.
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Not only a chiasmus, but what a breakdown of a classic movie! Kudos to you, Robert!
Feel stupid for not looking at movies this way before.
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Thank you so much. I’m so glad I could give you a new way to look at films. Now the next time you watch a movie, you’ll be on the lookout for depth like this. 🙂
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Good analysis! Although Ed Neumeier and I never discussed the “chiasmus” structure, our attention to detail, over-drive type plotting and set-ups and pay-offs were very high prioroties. The Media Breaks were act breaks, which also provided a kind of structural symmetry. A great literary example of a chiasmus is CLOUD ATLAS. Although the movie is a failure, the novel is composed of six chapters that start, are abruptly interrupted halfway through, ascend to one chapter in post-apocalyptic Hawaii, then each story is finished in descending chronological order. It’s a brilliant structure. All the best, Michael Miner
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It is an honor to have you comment on my article. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. There’s no better authority than one of the movie’s writers. You wrote an incredible story, and it’s a pleasure to find so much complexity in it, even if it may not have been completely intended in this particular way.
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Reblogged this on Brain Cage.
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It IS a classic movie; I can’t believe the remake can possibly match it. Like Carpenter’s ‘The Thing’ the movie reached a self-contained plateau of excellence that is pointless to try to emulate. Great breakdown, thanks
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You are definitely right. Some movies really don’t need remakes. But Hollywood wants to take less risk on big-budget films, so they like to attach a familiar brand name to them. Kind of sad.
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That’s America. grab onto those logos or familar items and just be that couch potato who is paying the American Warmachines at the top of the pyramids scheme.
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I agree but it is worth remembering that Carpenter’s the Thing was sort of a remake of Thing From Another World (1951).
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But both movies are adaptations of the John W. Campbell short story “Who Goes There?,” and Carpenter’s is the closer adaptation by far.
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This is great! As a classicist and a robocop fan, this delighted me 🙂
It’s not a word I’ve come across too often outside the realm of academia though
The origin of the word itself is quite interesting
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That makes my day that I could combine two things you love. 🙂 Thank you.
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For anyone interested:
eg: “One should eat (A) to live (B),
………………………………………………..
………………… not live (B) to eat.(A)”
Connecting the related terms (A to A, B to B) formed the letter X, which in Greek is called “Chi”..
See: http://www.kerux.com/doc/img/v17n1r1.gif
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This movie was very fresh and original and would still hold up today if it was released as is. Great review from a movie I saw during it’s original screening in the 80s.
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RoboCop was one of my favorite movies a kid.
Great article
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So badass
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Suggestion for a future symmetrical film: Eyes Wide Shut.
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Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve never seen that one. I do like some of Stanley Kubrick’s films, like Spartacus and The Shining, but I haven’t seen the majority of them.
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If you’re after a couple of articles about Eyes Wide Shut then I suggest Deep Focus Film Studies as a starting point: http://www.deepfocusfilmstudies.com/eyes-wide-shut-jewish-identity.html
We’re big fans of the Deja Reviewer! 😀
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Eyes Wide Shut is considered by some Kubrick fans to be a seamless blend of elements from his earlier movies.
In this regard, the symmetry in Eyes Wide Shut would originate from A Clockwork Orange, which shows the very same symmetrical structure. Here the turning point is when Alex undergoes the Ludovico therapy in prison.
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Is Clockwork Orange symmetrical, or does it more sort of go back and show the same sequence of events happening to Alex instead of being instigated by him?
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Interesting question. I’ve never actually seen that film, but, being the movie buff I am, I have read about it. I believe the main character meets everyone he harmed after receiving his “treatment” in the same order that he met them beforehand. I’m not completely certain, though, so that could be a fascinating one to explore.
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Nice article! Once you see it, it all makes sense!
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Don’t know if the filmmakers did this on purpose? I doubt this is the one thing ever in a Verhoeven film that wasn’t done on purpose. Just sayin’ …
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You’re probably right. I just meant I didn’t want to presume to speak for the filmmakers on their intentions. This chiasmus does appear extremely deliberate, though. I like how it complements the film’s theme of man and machine – two halves that form a complete whole.
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Noticed part of this, but not all of this. If you see this symmetry, my brain almost melts over Babylon 5’s symmetric story. Across 5 years of TV, not just a <2hr movie.
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That sounds awesome. I have to admit I never watched Babylon 5, but I have heard good things about it, on par with Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, if that’s not too galvanizing a comparison to make.
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This sparked a few thoughts. One, as a Shakespeare scholar: hooray for chiasmus (and its related rhetorical figure antimetabole, which I love even more)! http://rhetoric.byu.edu/
Apropos to the lamentation on remakes, have you watched Kirby Ferguson’s Everything is a Remix? Part 2 focuses particularly on movies. I used to show it to my students as a way into talking about adaptation, source material, and the skeleton of a good narrative. http://everythingisaremix.info/watch-the-series/
Lastly, the script for _In Bruges_ is the tightest ever. Every little (seemingly) throwaway joke in the entire movie comes back as an important element in the climax. Wonderful.
Great post!
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Nice breakdown, Robert! The blood-squibs deserved it.
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Thank you. There are certainly a lot of those squibs in this movie. 🙂
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Just when I thought I’d explored every breastplate, squib and famous line of RoboCop, my favourite film of all time, I stumble across this gem. Great stuff. Many people have highlighted paired moments in the past, such as Murphy saying his name upon arrival and whilst leaving, but never in this much detail.
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Some movies are just infinitely divisible and you can always find something new to appreciate about them. I’m so glad I could offer a completely new way of looking at RoboCop. It definitely deserves a detailed analysis.
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Die Hard is also extremely symmetrical, absurdly so. I wrote a college paper on it once.
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I hadn’t thought of that. I’ll have to re-watch Die Hard to see what you mean. Thanks for the tip!
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Great write-up! I had never heard of this concept before. Now that you mention it though, there’s a very good Russian movie called “The Return” that is also roughly symmetrical, and full of other hidden references. Definitely worth a watch.
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Sounds interesting. Thanks for sharing. I’m not too familiar with Russian films, but I’ll definitely look for that one.
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This is absolutely amazing. Makes me appreciate and now understand why it was released as a Criterion collection. Gotta find my original copy and watch it again. Absolutely love your analysis. You’re as geeky as I am with stuff like this. Brilliant and thanks for sharing.
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You’re very welcome. It makes me happy to help people gain a deeper appreciation for movies they already enjoyed. It takes their love of movies to a whole new level.
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Thanks Dejaviewer, good to see someone out there doing this brilliant and underrated masterpiece the justice it deserves.
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It’s my pleasure. I love giving great films like RoboCop the treatment they deserve.
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Great post. Loved reading it.
I would be obliged if you could also check out my blog DoubleThink. I’ll drop its link below!
DoubleThink is an up and coming blog that is extremely satisfying for every kind of a person, be it the thinker, the optimist, the pessimist, the poet, the musician, the couch-potato, the bookworm or the photographer.We are a bunch of people with different backgrounds, contradictory opinions but one voice. And this blog is our voice.
Come hear us at :
http://doublethinkhub.wordpress.com/
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Good luck with your blog. Thanks.
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Another parallel you may have missed: between the partners splitting up (H) and the shooting range (I), there is the scene where Murphy is on his back at the mercy of Boddicker, about to be shot to death, and the parallel scene where Robocop has just been crushed by the scrap metal, on his back at the mercy of Boddicker. I don’t have the movie in front of me to confirm, but I think he even reaches out imploringly with his right hand in both instances.
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To quote Emil, “I LIKE IT!” Thank you for pointing that similarity out.
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Dude! You drew a line from my fav-o-fav movie (well, before The Matrix came out) to the Old Testament! Unbelievable! I’ll never watch the movie the same again, or the good book :). Is this something screenwriters actually do or is this more like starting Dark Side of the moon on the 3rd lion’s roar in Wizard of Oz? I have a friend who writes screen plays and ask him if this is a device.
I’m going to have to go watch this again.
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I’m glad I could provide a little more insight into your second-favorite movie and show how a Biblical way of storytelling can still be relevant in a modern setting. I hope you get even more out of the film tonight. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to enjoy another viewing tonight myself. 🙂
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I think that between H and I, there are 2 references to baby food that can be inserted into the symmetry.
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You’re right! I forgot to mention that little detail. I love that there’s even more symmetry to notice in this film.
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I forgot to thank you for an amazing article.
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You are so kind. Thank you. You made my day. 🙂
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Buster Keaton’s The General is also a symmetrical movie. Great article by the way! 1926!
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I remember studying that film in college. I couldn’t believe how perfect it was, even traveling in opposite direction on the railroad to emphasize the symmetry even more. So awesome.
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This is a story telling structure I learned in NYC film school. It’s called by several names, but the one I was taught was “parenthetical structure”. For every plot point “parenthesis” you open, you later close, and the plot points “nest” just like parentheses do. So, the first open parenthesis plot point correlates to the last closing one, the second open parenthesis plot point to the second-to-last closing parenthesis, and so on. Not commonly used because it’s hard to pull off, but the symmetry supposedly adds a certain subtle something to the story. Nice breakdown!
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Thank you for pointing that out. That’s cool that there’s a whole structure dedicated to this kind of storytelling. It definitely makes sense.
It makes sense for RoboCop to have its two halves make up a complete whole. It adds even more meaning to the tagline, “Part Man. Part Machine. All Cop.”
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Nice analysis! It brought me an enhanced respect for one of my (already) favorite films!
If you’d like an example of this in the musical world, have a listen to Mozart’s 40th Symphony in G-Minor, K. 550, written in 1788. Listen to the patterns in the melody. It might take you a few listens, but the third and fourth movements mirror the first and second in melodic and rhythmic patterns. Mozart, ever the musical genius, was noted for his musical jokes; this one was a little more obscure – not everyone hears it.
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I love classical music so I’ll definitely have to check that out. Thank you very much.
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Nice! Amazing job analyzing and recognizing it. An advanced embedded application of Reflection Symmetry. I’ve personally experienced this pattern before and it’s pretty pure stuff. Curious how much was scripted vs organic. If they did consciously craft this this then there’s the answer why the film is so iconic. Must also have some natural connection to Palindromes and Ambigrams as it’s semi evident in the name ROBOCOP. What other interesting formulas have you discovered???
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I’m working on quite a few others, but like a good magician I think I’ll stay quiet about them until they’re ready to be revealed. I think you’ll be even more amazed by the one I’m working on right now. If you thought RoboCop’s symmetry was epic, just wait. 🙂
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The Shining is also symmetrical – perhaps not narratively, but definitely visually. A few years ago I saw an experiment in which the film was played backwards and forwards at the same time, one image transposed over another and the visual matches were crazy! You can see part of the video here: http://vimeo.com/53766925
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That’s amazing. Stanley Kubrick is in a league of his own among filmmakers. I think we’ll still be analyzing his films far into the future and finding new things to appreciate about them. Thanks for sharing that link.
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This is awesome. A great read. I always knew this film was well balanced, but didn’t really think about how well balanced it really was and why, especially the part with Robocop throwing Boddicker through windows and then later Robocop gets a taste of his own medicine by ED-209. The scenes rhyme like a poem, but it’s strangely subtle unless you lay it out just like you have — more than likely the screenwriter’s outline looked similar to what you created.
A friend shared this on Facebook and it was definitely a post worth reading. Keep up the excellent work. I’ll make sure to read more of your stuff in the future.
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Thank you for your kind comment. It’s amazing how some things hide in plain sight for so many years. I totally agree that RoboCop’s fight with ED-209 is really cool. I even deleted some other similarities, such as Boddicker falling through the ceiling when he tries to jump from the bridge and ED-209 falling down the stairs. Plus, RoboCop preparing to crush Boddicker’s throat only to be stopped by his programming, and then ED-209 preparing to blow RoboCop’s head off with his massive gun, but being prevented by RoboCop’s human ingenuity.
I’m excited to share even more interesting insights into films with you in the future. 🙂
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I’m not a literature major or anything but isn’t the whole symmetrical thing just a bi-product basic story telling too? I mean, the fact that you noticed all this within RoboCop is incredible…I’ve been watching the movie for 25 years and never caught on, but maybe that’s because it’s just so core to simple stories that it never called attention to itself. As much as I love RoboCop, it’s not complex storytelling. It’s pretty straight forward…as are many great movies (see Star Wars)…which is why I believe it is such a good movie that people still love all these years later.
Of course, you could probably go down the road of “humans want symmetry” and that the pattern is some how part of our DNA, but I’ll let someone else argue all of that.
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That could very well be. I tried to point out at the start that it makes total sense that movies could be symmetrical because that’s the nature of storytelling: setting up ideas and then having them pay off later. The interesting thing about RoboCop to me isn’t just that its ideas all pay off, but that they do so in such a deliberate order. I could be reading too much into it, but I think there’s more than meets the eye to this movie, which is why it’s always been regarded as more of a thinking man’s action movie.
Thank you for your awesome comment, by the way.
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Haven’t read all the comments, but my .02:
The film seems to follow a near perfect Bell curve, which is also one of the recommended ways of story-telling (as I learned in Lit. class- Exposition, Rising Act, Climax, Falling Act, Resolution) because it appeals to our love of symmetry (which the previous poster commented on).
I think it was absolutely deliberate on the writers/producers parts, and it is quite possibly why Robocop and other films like it stand the test of time.
I’m willing to bet many of the AFI top 100 films would stand up to this scrutiny.
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There are quite a lot of comments to go through, so I don’t blame you at all. I’d say you’re right that the filmmakers had this in mind when they were making the film. I just thought it’s so incredible that they never called attention to it, but let viewers figure it out for ourselves. I love how art works that way.
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Michael “Dorkman” Scott, of the (excellent) “What Are You Doing, Movie?” podcast, recently pointed out that the Harry Potter films do this as well.
Here is a site documenting the books, but the films follow roughly the same pattern:
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That is incredible. J.K. Rowling did some epic planning with that series, and it really paid off.
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One flaw: in “J,” RoboCop doesn’t cause any of the property damage, even though he’s pictured in front of the burning gas station. Emil shot through the fuel line, causing a gas spill, and threw his lit cigarette in front of the widening spill. That’s what caused the explosion- not RoboCop.
Other than that inconsistency, it’s a pretty well-thought-out article. Then again, you could make it consistent by changing the analysis for “J” into: in the earlier scene, part of Boddicker’s gang causes property damage to try and flee the police (as they fear arrest), while in the latter scene part of Boddicker’s gang causes property damage because they *don’t* fear arrest (due to the police strike).
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I was wondering when someone would point that out. Yeah, that gas station explosion was a more dramatic moment that mirrored the later explosion better than the other damage RoboCop does on his first night, so I cheated a little by including it.
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Also the death of Bob Morton does not have an opposite, does it?
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It sort of does. I pointed out that Clarence Boddicker reveals he’s working for Dick Jones when he kills Bob Morton, and then the other side of that is that Jones gives Boddicker the assignment to kill RoboCop, Morton’s creation. So they’re linked in that way.
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Ha! That’s great! Even the title is a chiasmus.
A. Consonant (R)
B.O
C. Consonant (B)
D.O
C. Consonant (C)
B.O
A. Consonant (P)
Thanks for an insightful, fun read!
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That’s certainly a lot of O’s. If I were on Wheel of Fortune, I’d tell Pat, “I’d buy that for a dollar!” 🙂
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The opening and closing credits of RoboCop always stuck out to me. It skips the usual preamble and bursts in there with the name. Then at the end it has the name again straight away. Who does that? Now it all makes sense.
Thanks.
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I liked this style. Seemed to fit with the film too. Some other movies have done it too (can’t think of them at the moment) and it worked for them as well. Oh, “Gangs of New York” did it. It kinda worked LOL.
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Excellent, excellent post. Enjoyed the reed, will enjoy RoboCop even more from now on!
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Reblogged this on Inspector Alvy and commented:
One of Dan Harmon’s favourites; and with good reason.
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The “Media Break 4” cut scene linked to on youtube at the end looks like its from Robocop 2, it mentions the strike – which was a major point of the film. Also, 2 was the movie were Anne Lewis was shot (but the film lets you believe she dies)
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Interesting. Anne Lewis does get shot at the end of the first RoboCop. I don’t remember her getting shot in the second film. From the fourth Media Break, the filmmakers definitely wanted to show that she’s okay after all, even getting a visit from the mayor for her heroism. But they cut that scene out because audiences reacted so powerfully to RoboCop’s “Murphy” line that anything else was unnecessary.
And it looks like the makers of the first film meant for the strike to be resolved in the first film and it was Dick Jones who was antagonizing the cops, not OCP as a whole. but RoboCop 2 threw that idea out the window, along with a lot of other good ideas from the first film. It’s too bad.
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Reblogged this on The Matt | A Blog About Stuff and commented:
I recently watched RoboCop for my first time in a very long time. Based upon the reviewer’s assessment of the film, I contend that I wholly agree with what they had said.
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Have you read this: INTO THE WOODS by John Yorke? (http://www.amazon.com/Into-Woods-Five-Journey-Story/dp/1468308092/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1402037025&sr=1-3&keywords=into+the+woods) Amongst many other things it focusses on exactly the same topic – but more so – the symmetrical nature of all narrative. I should know – and forgive the self-promotion – I wrote it! Your piece is brilliant – as was the original Robocop.
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Mr. Lockard, thank you for this. I want to add something that may indicate it was deliberate. In literature there is a concept of Christ type in literature. It refers to somebody who dies and is then reborn. I think it fits with the whole robocop thingy. You see what i mean?
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I guess you know what Christ-type is already: https://dejareviewer.com/2011/07/26/forgotten-film-gems-starman/
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Reblogged this on Video City: An actual shop.
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To be pedantic: chiasmus isn’t “grammar”; it’s rhetoric, I suppose.
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I must watch Robocop again. Love the article.
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It’s like it’s a whole new movie now. 🙂
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Reblogged this on Inklings and devlings and commented:
A great analysis and cinematic chiasmus. Love it!
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I hope you don’t mind I reblogged. I am spending a week looking at chiasmus, and yours was one of the most interesting articles I read.
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I don’t mind at all. Thank you. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Yeah, this is one I put a lot of thought and effort into, and I’m glad it paid off so well. It really resonated with a lot of people.
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This is one of the coolest articles I’ve seen in all my days on the internet. Pretty mind blowing, but considering the director and his comments on Robocop as an allegory for Christ, I’d say this was likely intended. Great read!
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Thank you very much! That was a pretty mind blowing experience to write that article and I’m so glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
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Here’s another mirrored symmetry in that scene – in the ED-209 demonstration ED-209 threatens to shoot the jr exec due to his faulty programming (done by Dick Jones’ team) and Dick Jones scrambles to prevent it and fails and the jr exec is shot and killed. In the mirror scene Dick Jones counts on the faulty programming that his team put into RoboCop to prevent RoboCop from shooting him. The CEO / Chairman scrambles to fix RoboCop’s programming and succeeds and Dick Jones gets shot to death.
Great analysis of a favorite movie.
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Redemption for Lewis: Murphy faces a firing squad and Lewis is unable to rescue him, later Robo faces a firing squad and she is able to rescue him
Murphy’s helmet is removed and is killed, losing his humanity. Later Robo removes his helmet to reveal Murphy, regaining his humanity
Elevation theme: Lewis is suckered and knocked off a railing by Joe. Later she kills Nash who is high above in the control tower.
Murphy faces a hail of lead shells, Robo faces a hail of steel girders
Joe knocks Lewis off the railing, later he is knocked off the railing at the cocaine factory
Boddicker gets in close to shoot off Murphy’s hand and taunt him, later Robo uses that same hand to kill Boddicker after he comes the same way a second time
Murphy is horrifically mutilated at the beginner, at the end it is Emil
Detroit’s death and rebirth as Delta City is like Murphy’s death and rebirth as Robo. It could be implied that the steel age is dead but America could be revitalized in the cybernetic age.
The last the Murphy remembers before he dies is his family at home, the first thing Robo remembers is his family when he visits his old home
Murphy loses his life and Robo finally regains and accepts his humanity at the steel mill. Murphy and Boddicker both die at the steel mill.
Moments before he is killed his entire arm is shot off, moments after he is reborn as Robo Bob Morton has his other arm removed.
Robo has the nightmare of Murphy losing his life at the steel mill, shortly thereafter Robo regains true consciousness of himself at the computer terminal. The atmosphere of the computer room is almost like a cybernetic womb, it contrasts with the harshness of the steel mill where Murphy died.
Robo’s armor looks like Murphy’s body armor
Early in the movie, Emil is explaining to Dougy the logic of buying drugs to make even more money. Dougy doesn’t quite get the concept and thinks it’s just better to steal it. Later, Emil is threatened by the intelligence of the gas station attendant.
First, Emil slows down the van and they successfully fight off the cops, at the end he accelerates towards Robo and his demise
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