Paul Verhoevens 1987 film Robocop is an ultra-violent sci-fi which blends over the top action with black comedy. For an 80s action film it tackles darker themes such as identity, consumerism, violence, religion and capitalism in a fantastic allegory on modern America. The film is set in a future Detroit, which is now owned by Omni-Consumer Products (OCP) after the city went bankrupt. Crime has become an epidemic and OCP is chasing a cheaper more efficient form of law enforcement. A police officer recently killed in action, Alex Murphy, becomes the first candidate for the future of law enforcement, Robocop. The violence in Robocop is big, bloody and over the top. But its completely essential to the films structure and tone. The violence is extremely bloody and horrific but to the characters in old Detroit and OCP its completely expected. In this city, violence is so common place its almost impossible to shock the inhabitants of Detroit. In the opening scenes we see ED 209 malfunction and horribly mangle an executive at a board meeting with a machine gun. But the characters are more concerned with the embarrassment of their product malfunctioning than the death of one of their peers. It's black comedy at its best and its a scene that sets the tone for the rest of the film. The setting of old Detroit fits the films theme since the city was once considered the industrial capital of America. Detroit was the heart of the U.S auto-mobile industry after WWII but suffered in the second half of the century. Old Detroit is a city living in the shadow of its own history, and its become a city unable to deal with rampant violent crimes or widespread poverty. Verhoevens depiction of future Detroit is dystopian. Its here again where the strong violence of the film really sells the idea of a city dangerously close to destroying itself. Paul Verhoevens Robocop was submitted 12 times to the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) before finally receiving an R rating. A lot of the films most graphic violence was actually toned down to avoid an X rating. The remake of Robocop directed by José Padilha has been rated PG-13 by the MPAA, in an effort to reach a wider audience. When it comes to remakes, I think film-makers should have free rein to reinterpret the original concept to keep it original. Films certainly dont need to be violent just for the sake of entertainment or because its expected. The Dark Knight was a PG-13 yet had some incredibly dark themes and sociopathic characters. But I completely disagree with a film disregarding violence as part of a narrative just to reach a higher box office intake. When violence in film is used as part of the driving mechanics of a good narrative, like Robocop, it works. Would the original film have worked as well as a PG-13? Absolutely not, the film works so well because everything including the extreme violence is essential to the story. Robocop is an adult film that dealt with adult themes; the remake intends to reach a younger audience but what will it lose to achieve this? The original Robocop is still a classic film; here are 10 scenes that prove a PG 13 rating for Robocop is just insane. Warning, spoilers ahead.