Robocop is a true cult classic film, combining a cool futuristic story line with some great acting and special effects. It was such a hit in 1987, that it spawned two sequels (and a third is in production) as well as a television series. And let’s not forget all the classic one liners that people continue to use at inappropriate times to this very day.

Robocop had a terrific cast, including Peter Weller of course, but several other folks that have had long careers as character actors like Ray Wise (currently the devil on Reaper) or Miquel Ferrer (currently on Bionic Woman). But it’s perhaps best known as an ultra-violent film, even by today’s standards, twenty years later. The death of Officer Murphy is not for the squeamish, and relatively unknown (at the time) director Paul Verhoeven made sure it wasn’t a scene you’d soon forget.

Robocop 3D Wall Art

McFarlane Toys started producing three dimensional versions of classic movie posters and album covers a few years ago. I’m not into vinyl, so the album covers didn’t do a lot for me, but I’m a huge fan of great poster artwork and have been picking up the majority of their ‘3D Wall Art’. The latest release is based on the classic Robocop movie poster, and is now hitting stores. Expect to pay around $20 or so, depending on the retailer.

Packaging – **
The package only covers the edges and back of the poster, not the front. That means that the poster can get damaged on the shelf fairly easily. I cut them some slack in this area in the past, but with all the complex three dimensional sections, scratching or damaging the paint is a real possibility.

Sculpting – ****
If you haven’t seen one of these in person yet, be prepared for a visual treat. They take the basic concept of the original iconic poster, and produce a sculpted, three dimensional version. This works much better for some posters than others, and the amount of the image that’s brought out varies, but the Robocop poster was an excellent choice.

They’ve managed to sculpt the small details with an appropriate level of accuracy, staying with the appearance of the original print and yet giving it a new life. There’s probably more here in 3-D than any of the other posters theyve’ done so far, including the entire Robocop, almost every aspect of the police car, and the main logo. By placing the rest of the credits on a flat surface that is actually brought out to the front of the box, they’ve provided the perfect step for Robocop’s left foot, and with proper paint work still given it a poster-like appearance.

These are actually fairly large, at about 8 1/2″ by almost 13″ tall and a couple inches deep. They’ve actually reused the basic exterior box from the Alien 3-D poster, and still have the battery compartment (glued shut) on the back.

Paint – ***1/2
The paint work here is solid, with almost no slop or poor definition. The choice of colors matches the original well, and in some cases they’ve even flattened some of the 3-D appearance of the sculpt with the paint. That creates an interesting effect, tricking the eye and making you not quite sure what you’re seeing at first.

There’s a few cut lines that aren’t quite perfect, but these issues are very minor compared to the overall exceptional appearance.

Design – ****
Obvioiusly, the design is based on the poster and follows it almost to an exact reproduction. That’s a good thing though, since the image is so iconic. They also created the three dimensional areas in sensible and attractive ways, bringing out the beauty of the poster.

Value – ***
These are about $20 each online, and that’s what I’m grading them at. The size of these is more impressive in person, and the price point is actually pretty good considering the varied licenses.

Things to Watch Out For –
Not much. Obviously, with no protection for the front of the poster in the package, you’ll want to watch out for any possible shelf damage that might have occurred to the paint or sculpt. But if you have a good one in your hands, what you see is what you’ll get once it’s out of the box.

Overall – ***1/2
This is one of the best of the posters they’ve done so far, and that’s saying a lot considering how well past releases have turned out. These make terrific decorations for a movie or home media room, or a ‘rec room’ for those of us old enough to remember what those were. They aren’t intended to take the place of normal posters, but to be their own unique entity, and in that they succeed quite well.

Where to Buy –
There’s a number of online options:

– Amazing Toyz has him listed at $19, and they have many of the past releases as well.

– Cornerstorecomics has him at $19 as well, with others available.

Related Links –
I’ve covered a number of the other releases as well:

– there’s my review of the Jaws and Friday the 13th posters, as well as the Rocky Horror Picture Show poster and Nightmare on Elm Street.

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