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Archive .
Joined: 17 Nov 2001
Post Count: 6538
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 11:38 am |
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We live in a world where it is easier to get a hold of people in the movie industry. Both Ed Neumeier and Paul Verhoeven are known to answer questions by fans and often say yes to longer interviews. I found that actors that are less known to the public, but loved by us Robo fans, tend to be even friendlier when it comes to talking about their roles. Often surprised their are contacted. Contacting some people, like Frank Miller, is impossible. At least if it is Robo related. Fred Dekker is somewhere in between. He is a known director but still down to earth enough to find the time to talk to fans.
Here is what I asked him:
Does RoboCop3 have any scenes that you had to cut? Either filmed or in the script. The first movie had a few, the second a lot, but I can't recall any mention of any deleted scenes in Robo3. Also "the old man" as a character is not in Robo3. Was it ever discussed what happened to him?
Believe it or not, we cut out a reel when we realized there was no significant plot moving forward. I wish I could be more specific, but I've developed a mental block as a defence mechanism against the fatal blow to my directing career. I do know the section occurred after Lewis's death but before the cops walk out on the Rehab takeover.
There was also a scene in the script that we never shot. The movie opened in Japan, where we reveal that RoboCop 2 was built by the Kanemitsu corporation, and an employee commits Seppuku in front of his boss as atonement for the debacle.
Daniel O'Herlihy decided the character we'd written was "weak," despite my attempts to convince him it was "Shakespearean" (Dan was a Shakespearean actor). In any case he opted out. We do make a reference to everyone at OCP being "expendable," and I believe Johnson says, "Remember the Old Man."
The O'Herlihy info is interesting, although not surprising. The official reason "scheduling conflicts" usually means that there were other things and events involved.
Fred Dekker can be reached at his facebook fan page. I suggest that if you have any questions you head on over and ask. I would encourage you to be respectful however. Starting with "robo3 sucks" is not likely to gain us any answers.
https://www.facebook.com/DirectorFredDekker/
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KidGoesWild L-L3
Joined: 27 Oct 2009
Post Count: 663
Comment: I type it, you think it
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 2:36 pm |
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First of all,how cool is that Dekker doesnt seem to have any big ego and freely admits that Oherlihy didnt do R3 because he didnt like the script? Thats really nice to see him telling how it was. Secondly, im really glad the thing about robocop II being built by kanemitsu wasnt included, i hate the idea. R3 shouldnt directly connect to R2 and should be more or less self cotained as it was.
Third, its great to finally find out some more about the sequels
___________________
http://robocopmovies.blogspot.com/
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Rick CH-L4
Joined: 10 Jan 2002
Post Count: 3733
Comment: I'm The No. 2 Guy Around Here
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:14 pm |
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Wow, two in the space of 2 days! Excellent!
I do remember seeing a promo photo of a scene where Robo and Reed (are on what looks like the porch of a house) shaking hands and with weird expressions on their face. Whether this is an outtake, some off camera joke interaction between the actors or a deleted scene is unknown.
It is really cool that we are able to get insight from the cast and crew of these movies. I wonder even if Tom Noonan would be a possibility as who better to describe the extra scenes his character appears in, but didn't make it into the production, than the man himself?
Maybe Jill Hennessy (Marie Lazarus), Gabriel Damon (Hob), Galyn Görg (Angie), George Cheun (Gilette), Remy Ryan (Nikko), John Castle (McDaggett), Bradley Whitford (Fleck) or Bruce Locke (Otomo).
On a side note, who is Debbie Dix in RoboCop 3? The character is listed and is played by Eva LaRue but I can't think of her off the top of my head and she doesn't look familiar enough for me to remember what scene she was in. _________________
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artuditu mio Cid
Joined: 10 Aug 2002
Post Count: 1446
Comment: Stay out of trouble!
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 4:40 pm |
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Hmm, maybe the rebel spy informing McDagget could have been a deleted scene/subplot? Right now I feel it is the only hole in the story I recall, just having McDagget hiding in a motel is a bit strange, but then he mentions he was informed by an insider Robo was coming after him, so the narrative worked more or less.
The opening scene in Japan is interesting to read about, I feel the whole Kanemitsu thing had a lot more of potential.
About the old man, with another company having taken over OCP I'm not surprised he was forced to retire. I wonder anyway how the script dealt with the character in that situation, since Rip Torn character took a completely different path (which I always liked by the way), he is no more the boss, he has another boss above him and then he also can't control McDagget, I enjoy how Torn brought some tragic comedy to his position, he was just a phony yes-man.
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Archive .
Joined: 17 Nov 2001
Post Count: 6538
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 5:06 pm |
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Paddy : | On a side note, who is Debbie Dix in RoboCop 3? The character is listed and is played by Eva LaRue but I can't think of her off the top of my head and she doesn't look familiar enough for me to remember what scene she was in. |
She is the female news anchor for mediabreak.
artuditu : | I wonder anyway how the script dealt with the character in that situation, since Rip Torn character took a completely different path (which I always liked by the way), he is no more the boss, he has another boss above him and then he also can't control McDagget, I enjoy how Torn brought some tragic comedy to his position, he was just a phony yes-man. |
The scenes and dialogue are pretty much exactly the same in the script before and after Daniel O'Herlihy bowed out of Robo3. The just switched OLD MAN to THE CEO. This could be part of why O'Herlihy didn't want to reprise the role. The character is pretty pathetic compared to the strong old man we know from Robo1 and 2. It works for Rip Torn, but it would have been depressing to see the old man like that.
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artuditu mio Cid
Joined: 10 Aug 2002
Post Count: 1446
Comment: Stay out of trouble!
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 5:24 pm |
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Archive : | The scenes and dialogue are pretty much exactly the same in the script before and after Daniel O'Herlihy bowed out of Robo3. The just switched OLD MAN to THE CEO. This could be part of why O'Herlihy didn't want to reprise the role. The character is pretty pathetic compared to the strong old man we know from Robo1 and 2. It works for Rip Torn, but it would have been depressing to see the old man like that. |
It would have been kind of tragic after R1, but just impossible after R2. The Old Man we know in R2 would've never turned into the puppet of another CEO.
I was just thinking, never realized the poetic contrast between R2 stressing the idea of "Made in America", and R3 going with the Japanese takeover. Maybe Miller did it in purpose when he divided the screenplay in 2 movies.
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Stan The Man Bah Concepts Division
Joined: 05 Jun 2003
Post Count: 7020
Comment: I'm the guy in Old Archive.
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 6:05 pm |
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More interesting stuff, thanks again Archive. And also thanks to Dekker. I know he's probably gotten a lot of shit over the years for R3 but I like his humbleness here. I do agree that after all this time some things might be easier to deal and talk on, especially if approached well.
Interesting about the deleted bits, indeed I wasn't aware there were any. I like the sound of the Japan opening but in practice I do think it might have been a bit out of place perhaps. The Old Man/CEO part is also good, even if it tells us little of anything new. I do agree in retrospect that it is better that went to another actor and character, especially one in the vein of Rip Torn - There is indeed a more tragic humor and lightness there that wouldn't work with the seemingly all-powerful and more Machiavellian Old Man character, especially after R2 where those traits were more pronounced.
Still cool stuff. I had seen Dekker on FB but I usually don't interact with those kinds of folks too much myself. Good for you to approach him and really good of him to take time for this. Well done yet again. _________________ I don't wanna pay that, PhotoBucket. Now maybe you haven't heard, but I'm the guy in old Archive. So hows about you just shit snow for a year and I'll figure out something else. Sayonara!
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ChAnOoD DC-L4
Joined: 29 Dec 2008
Post Count: 2763
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 8:43 pm |
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Nice to read that! Dekker looks like a good guy, I don´t think he deserved that fate after the whole R3 thing.
Paddy : | I do remember seeing a promo photo of a scene where Robo and Reed (are on what looks like the porch of a house) shaking hands and with weird expressions on their face. Whether this is an outtake, some off camera joke interaction between the actors or a deleted scene is unknown. |
I always saw it as a joke: Robo shakes hands with Reed; his metallic hand brokes Reed´s bones. That´s why Reed has that "painful look".
Archive : | Contacting some people, like Frank Miller, is impossible. |
Agree. I tried to get him for one of my fanzines. I reached his editors, but no luck. The far I got was a "he doesn´t accept interviews at this time".
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HOB888 O-L5
Joined: 17 May 2012
Post Count: 141
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 10:48 pm |
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I don't like R3 as a sequel but I do like some parts here and there throughout the movie.
- the return of Bixby Snyder
- ED209 (I liked to see it )
- when the rehab vilain throws the bills, in the suburbs
- the commercials and media breaks
- the guys who commits suicide in the OCP building
- when fleck says he'd do that privately and shows his gun
- and some more stuffs. _________________ http://robocop2directive5.blogspot.fr/
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RoboPimp PIMPY SUPREME
Joined: 10 Mar 2007
Post Count: 3124
Comment: "You dead wrong if ya think that pimpin' gon' die" - Snoop Dogg, P.I.M.P. (Remix)
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 10:51 pm |
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The scrapped opening sounds a little over-the-top but I do like the idea that the Robocop 2 unit was made in Japan. For one thing, it would give some more credibility to why the machine failed after the massive success of the first Robocop. It also is similar to a theme addressed in the remake, with Robo being outsourced to China. It would have also helped set up the themes of Robocop 3, making a more seamless transition between the two Miller scripts.
As for the Old Man / Chairman debate, I think Daniel O'Herlihy made the right choice. It would have been totally out of character for the Old Man to behave that way. However, I think the Chairman as a sort of OCP scapegoat works very well. It also makes sense that they'd give the Old Man the boot after the events of Robocop 2 and in preparation for the Japanese takeover.
It's always good to hear some behind-the-scenes info for these movies. And while many of us, myself included, have given Dekker a lot of shit for Robocop 3, as time goes on it seems like it wasn't really his fault. The decision to make it PG-13 and add in Nikko seem to be it's biggest failures. I don't think either of those things were up to him but he sure did suffer for those choices regardless. It's sad that he had to make a 'mental block' about the whole production, but it's understandable. I think another problem is he also just wasn't the right guy for the job, or maybe he was the perfect choice for a more child-friendly version of Robo which is itself the problem. Either way, at this point I have way more respect for him that Kershner.
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ChAnOoD DC-L4
Joined: 29 Dec 2008
Post Count: 2763
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Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 11:11 pm |
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RoboPimp : | As for the Old Man / Chairman debate, I think Daniel O'Herlihy made the right choice. It would have been totally out of character for the Old Man to behave that way. However, I think the Chairman as a sort of OCP scapegoat works very well. It also makes sense that they'd give the Old Man the boot after the events of Robocop 2 and in preparation for the Japanese takeover. |
I agree. Watching O´Herlihy doing that comical stuff as The Old Man wouldn´t work for me. And as for the change from him to Rip Torn´s CEO, I think even a guy with such power as The Old Man would get some troubles after the end of RoboCop 2.
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RoboFan_93 Would Buy You For a Dollar
Joined: 17 Aug 2007
Post Count: 4167
Comment: Scumbags see the judge on Monday morning
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Posted: Thu Jan 14, 2016 7:48 am |
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Great to hear some more insight, especially since it's on R3 and most people seem to try and forget it exists. Personally, I've always enjoyed it. Granted the fact that I hated Lewis' death, it always felt much closer as a sequel to the original than "RoboCop 2" ever did. It tried to be more emotional, but just like with R2, I guess it just wasn't completely ironed out before filming started. Then again, there's also all the cheese... I've said it many times - that as a stand-alone movie, I think it's great. Really captures the essence of many 80s and early 90s action flicks - robots, ninjas, guns, kid sidekicks and so on... It's as a sequel where it feels lacking a bit, but I feel the same way with R2.
With that being said, if the Old Man really had been written the same way as the CEO, then I'm actually glad they didn't use him. It really wouldn't have worked in my opinion. The CEO on the other hand feels like a guy who tries to do the best he can, but just makes a string of bad decisions and can't keep things under control. _________________ Anything you post can be used against you!
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Spectrum Scarlet Sgt-L1*
SIMPY 4 PIMPY
Joined: 16 Dec 2008
Post Count: 154
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Posted: Thu Jan 14, 2016 2:45 pm |
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I'm with RoboFan_93. I've always had a soft spot for RC3 since watching it in '94, and over time, appreciated it's filming and production. Dekker was a great director with the right material, and how he moved the camera is sublime. As 'third' films go, it's a damn sight better than "Superman 3", which I caught the other week for the first time.
Archive, since you've established contact with Fred, why don't we conduct a Q&A with him? Members submit their questions for him, the best ones are selected, then passed over to be answered. You (or I, if you wish) can edit and present them.
I'd like to ask him how he'd write the script today, and if he responds with going further with the martial arts side, challenge him by asking whether that would really work with the Robo concept. I've found doing this in a respectful way is fine. They respond to it.
It's telling O'Herlihy declined to work on RC3. Conveys that he was happy for the character to go down the cold, heartless route in "2". He essentially became Dick Jones, and found that worked better for him than being the wise, amicable uncle-type.
Paddy's got some good suggestions for further interviews. Gabriel Damon would be my choice. His involvement, more so the character's, was panned on 2's release. Belinda Bauer (Faxx) is another. She's doing the collector show circuit apparently, with an appearance at a Hollywood one this month.
What's this reel Fred refers to? Are those scenes in any drafts?
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Mindchamber DC-L4
Joined: 22 Mar 2003
Post Count: 2746
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Posted: Fri Jan 15, 2016 12:48 am |
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I always thought Monster Squad was incredibly raw for a childrens movie, and respected him for his choices in the way he directed that one.. Its pretty obvious there were too many cooks in the kitchen with robo3
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