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FILMTRACKS.COM
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VIEW 
Review of RoboCop 3 (Basil Poledouris)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... if you want a taste of only the best music from the
RoboCop franchise, this third entry by Basil Poledouris
containing a nicely matured and melodically engaging evolution of his
material from the first film's score.
Avoid it... if you have no interest in hearing Poledouris stray deep into Jerry Goldsmith territory, the synthetics and orchestrations in RoboCop 3 not always remaining within the confines of Poledouris' own trademark tendencies.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
RoboCop 3: (Basil Poledouris) The RoboCop concept
was never designed to be a franchise, its initial film in 1987
containing the complete narrative arc of the lead character, and nothing
more was required. And yet, the property was seen as a comic book hero
made from an original screenplay, and struggling Orion Pictures
considered the franchise part of its last-ditch effort to maintain
financial solvency. Though the cyborg cob would eventually return in
multiple television series and a cinematic reboot in subsequent decades,
the two sequel films of the 1990's were particularly awful. The whole
point of 1993's RoboCop 3 was to shift the concept into the
children's superhero realm, the original vision of Paul Verhoeven and
the associated graphic violence of the first two films jettisoned for a
family-friendly PG-13 rating. Actor Peter Weller was conveniently
unavailable to reprise his role as Alex Murphy in the RoboCop suit,
forcing his replacement, a bigger man, to squeeze down into the smaller
costume, and you could feel the man's pain. Almost all the production
elements of RoboCop 3 were cheap, and the plot relied upon new
Japanese involvement with the corporate overlords seeking to run Detroit
to fulfill its need for new antagonists. Along with this ethnic influx
come Japanese ninja androids and new heroes in a "resistance" that not
surprisingly include a young girl who is a computer expert. In the end,
the lack of graphic violence and Weller in the suit, as well as the
death of Murphy's partner (Nancy Allen's requirement for appearing in
the movie at all) all made RoboCop 3 a pointless exercise. There
is one silver lining, however, and that was the return of composer Basil
Poledouris to the concept. Writer and director Fred Dekker recognized
that Leonard Rosenman's score for RoboCop 2 was a substantial
misfire because of its needlessly intellectual avant-garde approach to
the story. That Rosenman was publicly dismissive of Poledouris
personally and found the first RoboCop score to be "dopey, lousy"
and "absolutely dreadful" continues to annoy film music collectors
decades later, and Poledouris responded to Rosenman by writing a score
for RoboCop 3 that remains best the franchise has ever
received.
Poledouris' work for RoboCop remains respected but has always exhibited a rough demeanor in not only its character but its rendering. This raw sound suits the concept well for some enthusiasts, but the composer better refined his electronics in subsequent years, and RoboCop 3 benefits from this maturation. Because Murphy is more comfortable with his identity by this point, an emphasis is placed on the orchestral elements of the recording even though there are still plenty of electronics mixed to represent the future technology in the story. Interestingly, while some the rambling synthetic trademarks return from other Poledouris scores, his array here sometimes sounds far more like Jerry Goldsmith's applications in Medicine Man than Poledouris' own works, with the middle of "Sayonara McDaggit" strongly resembling The Shadow, too. The electronics in RoboCop 3 are far better engrained than those in RoboCop, and they rarely present distractions until the electric guitars in "Robo vs. Otomo" yield the one truly heinous moment in the work. The once raw brutality of Poledouris' brass and percussion is maintained and provided deeper resonance in this sequel as well, with the forceful performances of the main militaristic themes offering muscularity with better superhero appeal. Needless to say, Poledouris ignores the trite constructs utilized by Rosenman and returns to his own set of prior themes at the insistence of the director. Five motifs return from RoboCop, while another five are introduced here for the first time. Representing the core identity of the franchise is Poledouris' rousing main theme and its ballsy secondary motif of rhythmic force, both reprised extensively in this work. The main theme itself is afforded an extra woodwind and string counterpoint layer to keep it fresh, and that line of action sometimes even precedes the theme itself. With RoboCop not present early in the story, listeners first encounter the idea in usual form at 4:14 into "RoboCop in Pursuit/RoboCop Saves Lewis," recurring shortly thereafter at 0:46 into "Flame Job/Nikko Remembers/Kanemitsu Building" in percussive mayhem. Poledouris continues his technique of adapting the theme into more compelling variants, as in its fluid melodramatic form at 0:56 into "The Map/Unfinished Business." The aforementioned counterpoint lines engaging before the main theme's melody in RoboCop 3 become a highlight starting with wild flutes at 0:22 into "Robo Torches Rehabs/It's Not a Robo Knock/Robo Visits McDaggit," the same technique utilized at 1:38 into "Van Chase II." The composer diminishes the theme to tenderness on solo oboe at 0:47 into "Cops Help Rebels/Robo vs. Otomo" and allows it solemn nobility sans militaristic rhythms at 2:33 in that cue, shifting it again against the breathy Japanese synthetics at 4:07. Inspired by a cue from the first score, Poledouris offers the main theme at 0:24 into "Finding the Flight Pack" with more deliberate anticipation, moving into a slow tempo fantasy mode for the idea at 0:07 into "Robo Flies/Rehabs Chase Marie." The militaristic version reemerges at 0:36 with the anticipatory flute counterpoint, and the composer allows the theme a heavy dose of victorious finality at 2:57 into "Sayonara McDaggit." In the "End Credits" suite, the theme does its obligatory duty at 0:28 and 7:14. For some listeners, the true motific identity of RoboCop's righteous, ass-kicking tendencies is embodied by the main theme's secondary sequence that sometimes serves as its introduction. This pulsating series of three-note phrases with striking ensemble volume explodes with pounding force at the start of "Flame Job/Nikko Remembers/Kanemitsu Building" and returns with cymbal-crashing heroics at 2:34 into "Death of Lewis." Its use at 0:40 into "Robo Torches Rehabs/It's Not a Robo Knock/Robo Visits McDaggit" leads to a more determined performance with less volume at 2:11. Multiple performances of this idea occupy "Van Chase II" starting at 0:28, and Poledouris opens "Sayonara McDaggit" with this motif joined by flailing woodwinds. The "End Credits" suite offers this motif twice, at 0:45 and 4:40. The composer's somber theme for Murphy's former life, known as the "home" theme, returns as well, its soft woodwind and synthesizer alternation between two notes serving wider duties at 1:14 into "Delta City/Media Break/Nikko," 1:12 into "Flame Job/Nikko Remembers/Kanemitsu Building," and 0:53 into "Robo Recalls/Murphy, Is It You?," where secondary phrasing struggles to assert itself. As the theme comes to also represent the young girl in this story, Poledouris applies the "home" theme at the start of "Nikko at Station/Otomo Meets Resistance" for about half a minute and in its fullest renditions in "Nikko and Robo" and at 3:18 into "End Credits." A few other, lesser motifs carry over from RoboCop to this sequel score for Poledouris, including the "soul" motif first hinted on flute in "RoboCop in Pursuit/RoboCop Saves Lewis" and provided several massive performances in the last minute of "RoboCop in Pursuit/RoboCop Saves Lewis." The theme for the original villain of the franchise, Boddicker, is reprised in the middle of "Death of Lewis" to establish parallels with the new goon, and this cue is also joined by a return of the suspenseful nightmare material from the first score as well. An ascending woodwind fantasy motif is re-developed, too, at the start and end of "Death of Lewis," at 3:05 with larger scope in "Robo Torches Rehabs/It's Not a Robo Knock/Robo Visits McDaggit," at 0:29 into "Sayonara McDaggit," and at 0:16, 5:08, and the conclusion of "End Credits." The new themes by Poledouris for RoboCop 3 are a mixed bag in their continuity of application within the narrative, but they serve their purpose well enough in each case. The major new identity represents the civilian resistance force in the story, a noble and militaristic theme with tortured secondary phrasing. It receives a pleasant debut at 1:44 into "Main Title/The Resistance/The Searchlight" and returns in the middle of "Getaway" in slight shades. It's often pinpointed thereafter, as at 1:28 into "Police Alert/Robo Pack/Response/Armory Escape," at 0:39 into "Refuge" on far softer strings, and late in "Van Chase II." The idea receives full treatment at 0:49 into "Rehab Raid," a cue that remains perfect music for this concept: brutally dark and propulsive with ripping snare and frequent metallic percussion, the sinewy progressions recalling the composer's Conan the Barbarian. The resistance theme takes a more stoic and heroic stance at 0:13 into "Good Cops Revolt" on trumpets and horns, and fragments open "Cops Help Rebels/Robo vs. Otomo." A slower tempo awaits the theme at 1:00 into "Robo Flies/Rehabs Chase Marie," but the idea is largely supplanted by RoboCop's material at the end of the score, the theme only supplied at 1:47 into "End Credits." The other new protagonist material in RoboCop 3 belongs to the girl, Nikko, but Poledouris often applies his "home" theme to her interactions with Murphy. Otherwise, the rambling synthetics of this music joins with Goldsmith lyricism and a hint of techno savvy early in "Delta City," at 0:24 into "Police Alert/Robo Pack/Response/Armory Escape," throughout "Tracking Beacon," and most clearly in "Nikko to O.C.P.," where its nicely rendered, light synthetics are both techy and charming. The thematic identities by Poledouris for the villains in RoboCop 3 are sufficient but often confusing, as the motifs often cross-populate when the Japanese and American corporate baddies operate in unison. There are separate ideas for the Japanese corporation and its "Otomo" ninjas, as well as a more general theme for the new American villains, the "Rehabs." The Japanese flavor is decent but not frequent or exciting, introduced in "Kanemitsu Building" and a synthetically dominant, more ominous version in "Otomo/Otomo Exits." It consolidates at the end of "Otomo Meets Resistance" and adopts an even more menacing electronic posture in "Robo vs. Otomo" and at 0:57 into "Sayonara McDaggit" with extra timpani bravado and later percussive chaos. It dies off at the start of "End Credits" but repeats its "Sayonara McDaggit" performance at 5:35 into "End Credits." Meanwhile, the Rehabs theme builds momentum and development as the group becomes more prominent. Teased early in "Delta City" and "Main Title" with driving force, the idea begins its stomping routine at 1:01 into "Bertha to Base" and continues in the second half of "It's Not a Robo Knock/Robo Visits McDaggit." It's teased at 0:23 into "Van Chase II," returns in the middle of "Rehab Raid," and is twisted into a stately, positive march in "Johnny Rehab Commercial." The Rehabs theme interjects late "Nikko to O.C.P.," erupts with electronic guitar wildness at 3:16 into "Robo vs. Otomo" (a truly bizarre but unique technique), enjoys a last hurrah at 1:20 into "Rehabs Chase Marie," and is teased around the Japanese material late in "End Credits." The only other new motif of interest in RoboCop 3 is a chasing idea that is cyclical on brass and percussion with vaguely exotic winds, dominating the "Van Chase I" cue and reprised at 1:00 into "End Credits." These various melodic elements form a fairly robust narrative even if the attributions on the new themes aren't always crystal clear. More importantly, this is a RoboCop score at heart and supplies a dutiful attitude to the story. It's a superior evolution to the original, with even the prior headline news source motif returning in better sound. The typical 30-minute album from Varèse Sarabande in 1993 was replaced in 2016 by a "Deluxe" edition from the label with an attractive 70-minute presentation and fantastic sound quality. The latter album, re-issued in 2024, does great justice to the electronic choral tones as in "Death of Lewis" and the throat-singing effects later in the score. Ultimately, this music represents a muscular blend of Poledouris' and Goldsmith's mannerisms of the era, the most mature RoboCop score in existence. The only highlight of Pedro Bromfman's music for the 2014 remake was one brief reference back to Poledouris' popular theme. ****
TRACK LISTINGS:
1993 Varèse Album:
Total Time: 28:16
2016/2024 Varèse Albums: Total Time: 69:58
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert of the 1993 album contains no information about the film and score.
That of the 2016 and 2024 albums offer extensive details about both.
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