Demolition Man (1993) Review

 

Demolition Man (1993)

Demolition Man follows John Spartan, a cop who after the apprehension of Simon Phoenix, is thrown in cryo-jail for the supposed death of over 30 hostages. John wakes up in the future though to discover Phoenix has escaped, and theres only one man that can stop him. 

On it’s surface, this is such a mindless, pack in as many cliches as possible, type of action flick (listen, I’m not complaining). In reality though, Demolition Man is an expertly crafted social satire and commentary that is fully aware that it is a corny action movie, it just doesn’t care. If anything it goes along with it, throwing in as many one liners, over the top explosions, and corny romance as it could muster up. Much of this film, is like poetry, it rhymes. Every thing wrong with the past is corrected. Every mistake Spartan makes in the past, is righted, especially when it comes to his showdowns with Phoenix. Don’t get me wrong, it is still an absent minded sci-fi action movie but it’s at the least, an intelligent one. 

What’s most hilarious about this movie, is I, just like Spartan, hate the future that’s presented. Everything is perfect and peaceful, there’s no cursing or violence, and all of the aspects that arguably make our society better (or worse technically) are absent. I practically jumped with joy when they go underground and find the dirty remnants of what used to be Los Angeles. It was refreshing and such a genius way of showing the stark differences between our reality and a perfect future. 

We get an excellent cast featuring Sandra Bullock, Denis Leary, Nigel Hawthorne, Wesley Snipes, and Sylvester Stallone. I gotta say, the supporting cast in this is just as entertaining as the leads, with Bullock and Leary standing out as excellent reminders to Spartan’s past. Bullock particularly brought such a giddy purity to her role that made her one of the best sources for humor. Snipes was also a really compelling villain, as he wasn’t inherently dark or evil, more just a young guy, hellbent on having fun. This is also a nice departure from the inspirational underdogs Stallone always plays, with his man out of time touching more on the annoyance and hard nosed qualities a badass 90s cop would bring. 

Demolition Man, directed by Marco Brambilla, is a fun as hell, meta-action thriller that fully buys into it’s namesake, practically destroying the ultra-placid future to meet us in the middle with the past, in this weirdly enjoyable satirical action flick. 

7.6/10