Review of Demolition Man (1993) by Daniel B — 21 Jul 2014

An interesting, fast-paced action film with some reasonably thoughtful undercurrents, "Demolition Fan" is the sort of film that the likes of Sylvester Stallone are perfect at making.

The story follows a reckless cop who goes in to capture one of Los Angeles' most notorious crimelords in 1996. After complications that sees the criminal kill a group of hostages in an explosion, both the cop, John Spartan, and the criminal, Simon Phoenix, are sentenced to cryogenic imprisonment. When Phoenix wakes up in a utopian 2032, a world with seemingly no crime, and escapes, the ill-equipped police force have no choice but to awaken Spartan to deal with the repercussions.

The film stars Stallone alongside a A-list cast that includes Wesley Snipes, Sandra Bullock, Sir Nigel Hawthorne, Benjamin Bratt, Denis Leary, Bob Gunton and Bill Cobbs. It's also worth noting that you can find funnymen Rob Schneider and Jack Black in very small early roles in this film.

It's an aptly titled movie, with the explosions coming thick and fast, and sometimes with no real reason, but it's got all the hallmarks of a great Stallone film. The puns come thick and fast, the characters have a suitable amount of interplay, and Snipes' villainous Phoenix is perhaps one of his best performances (it sure beats out Blade).

It's plainly not a perfect film, and some may say 4 stars is generous, but dammit I had fun with this movie. 4 stars it is.