Demolition Man (film)

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Demolition Man
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Marco Brambilla
Produced by	Joel Silver Howard Kazanjian
Written by	Story: Peter M. Lenkov Robert Reneau Screenplay: Daniel Waters Robert Reneau Peter M. Lenkov
Starring	Sylvester Stallone Wesley Snipes Sandra Bullock Nigel Hawthorne Denis Leary Glen Shadix
Music by	Elliot Goldenthal
Cinematography	Alex Thomson
Editing by	Stuart Baird
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date(s)	United States: October 8, 1993 United Kingdom: November 12, 1993 Australia: December 2, 1993
Running time	115 min.
Country	United States
Language	English

Demolition Man is a 1993 American dystopian action film directed by Marco Brambilla, and starring Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes, Sandra Bullock, Nigel Hawthorne and Denis Leary.

The film is a story about two men, one an evil crime lord and the other a risk-taking police officer, who are cryogenically frozen in the year 1996 and reawakened to face each other in 2032, by which point Los Angeles, now called San Angeles, has become part of a planned city where violence has been eliminated from mainstream society. Some aspects of the film allude to Aldous Huxley's dystopian novel, Brave New World.^{[citation needed]}

Demolition Man grossed $58,055,768 by the end of its box office run in North America.^[1]

Contents 1 Synopsis 2 Setting 3 Props 4 Filming locations for Demolition Man 5 Cast 6 Soundtrack 7 Game adaptations 8 References 9 External links

[edit] Synopsis

In 1996, Los Angeles has fallen into chaos, with criminal warlords ruling various sections of the city. The most dangerous of these is Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes), who has just kidnapped a busload of people that strayed into his territory. The LAPD mounts a raid on his headquarters, with Sgt. John Spartan (Sylvester Stallone) – nicknamed “Demolition Man” for the extensive property damage that occurs when he apprehends criminals – going in first and alone. He captures Phoenix, but the latter sets off explosives to destroy the building; the bodies of the bus passengers are soon found in the rubble. Spartan is also arrested on Phoenix’s accusation, and both men are sent to “CryoPrison,” where they are cryogenically frozen in suspended animation to serve out their lengthy sentences.

Thirty-six years later, in 2032, Phoenix is thawed out for a parole hearing, whereupon he kills the warden and escapes. He begins to rampage through what is now “San Angeles” (a combination of Los Angeles, San Diego, and Santa Barbara), hacking into the city’s computer network and overpowering police officers with ease. Since San Angeles is a pacifist utopia, the police are helpless to deal with this sort of behavior. However, Lt. Lenina Huxley (Sandra Bullock), an officer fascinated with 20th-century culture, suggests that Spartan be brought in to stop Phoenix.

Spartan is revived and reinstated on the force, but he chafes at the enforced tranquility of this society and many of the people he interacts with find his behavior barbaric. Phoenix arms himself by breaking into an exhibit of now-anachronistic firearms at a local museum. Spartan tracks him down and fights him here, but Phoenix escapes and briefly encounters Dr. Raymond Cocteau (Nigel Hawthorne), the creator of San Angeles’ society. Cocteau suggests that Phoenix has a job to do: kill Edgar Friendly (Denis Leary), leader of the homeless “Scrap” people who live in the underground “Wasteland,” or the ruins of old Los Angeles.

Spartan and Huxley later witness Friendly leading the Scraps in an aboveground food raid, part of a resistance movement aimed at bringing down Cocteau’s paradise. They also determine that Phoenix was trained in all manner of violent criminal behavior while in CryoPrison, then allowed to escape so he could work for Cocteau. Meanwhile, Phoenix confronts Cocteau again and demands the release of several other criminals to help rebuild his organization.

Entering the Wasteland in search of Phoenix, Spartan and Huxley meet Friendly face to face. The reason for his defiance of the established social order, he says, is that he is a free-thinking individual who only wants to be left alone to live his life as he chooses. Spartan and Phoenix fight down here, leading to a car chase through the San Angeles streets. At this point, Phoenix reveals that the bus passengers he kidnapped in 1996 were already dead before Spartan arrived, so the latter went to prison for a crime he never committed.

Phoenix eventually gets away, but Spartan and Huxley pursue him into the CryoPrison. Along the way, they find the body of Cocteau, shot dead by one of Phoenix’s men, and learn that Phoenix is thawing out the prison’s worst offenders. Going in alone, Spartan battles him one last time and finally freezes him solid, then kicks his head off to shatter on the floor. Damage from the brawl causes the entire system to overload, and Spartan barely makes it to the street before the entire CryoPrison explodes. In the aftermath, he suggests that the surface dwellers and Scraps work together to build a better society, then departs with Huxley to explore life in the future.

[edit] Setting

The film depicts a future society in which crime and violence are rare and seen as remnants of the 20th century.

Hints are dropped throughout the movie that the United States underwent a period of anarchy before it was stabilized. In particular, Taco Bell is the only restaurant available, because it won the "Franchise Wars". In some versions in Europe and the Arab World this was changed to Pizza Hut, another PepsiCo (now Yum! Brands) franchise. In some television edits, the restaurant name was removed altogether.^{[citation needed]}

Several distinctive euphemisms and neologisms are used in the film: homicide is referred to as a "non-sanctioned life termination" and as "Murder Death Kill" or "MDK". A homicide has not taken place in 22 years, and the police are initially confused when the reports come in, having forgotten the code. In addition, even the mildest profanity is a violation of the Verbal Morality Statute, and punishable by police reprimand or a fine of one half to one credit per violation, which is automatically deducted from a citizen's finances. The perpetrator is dispensed a ticket by a machine. Perhaps to suggest the infantilisation of the 21st-century population, the favorite songs of the time are old 20th-century children's commercial jingles and many words have gained redundant, childish repetitions: to be happy is to experience "joy-joy" feelings, the policemen's stun batons are referred to as "baton-tons"; Edgar Friendly acknowledges, perhaps ironically, that Spartan has "ball-balls".

It is explained that anything deemed "bad for you" is now illegal, including alcohol, caffeine, contact sports, non-educational toys, meat, spicy and unhealthy food, table salt and tobacco. Firearms can only be seen in museums. Physical contact was recognized as causing the spread of disease and is now seen as unusual. "Sex" is no longer a physical act for the same reasons, and even kissing is not condoned. Instead, "Vir-Sex" is performed by using sex simulators worn on the participants' heads to replace physical intercourse. Procreation is carried out in a laboratory; abortion is illegal, but so is unlicensed pregnancy. Toilet paper has been replaced by a set of seashell-like items, though their method of use is left unexplained in the movie (though Stallone later revealed said method in an interview as told to him by one of the film's writers^[2]).

[edit] Props

• The particle weapon carried by Simon Phoenix is actually a Heckler & Koch G11, an experimental rifle made in the 1980s that used caseless ammunition.^[3]
• The futuristic police cars used by the SAPD are General Motors Ultralites.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Filming locations for Demolition Man

The new Los Angeles Convention Center is used in an establishing shot, with superimposed matting of futuristic buildings composited in the background. The Pacific Design Center, in West Hollywood is used for the exterior shot of Lenina Huxley's apartment building.

The police station in the background the first time Stallone goes outside as an officer is The Baxter building in Westlake Village, CA.

More filming locations can be seen here.^[4]

[edit] Cast

• Detective Sergeant John Spartan: Sylvester Stallone
• Simon Phoenix: Wesley Snipes
• Lieutenant Lenina Huxley: Sandra Bullock
• Doctor Raymond Cocteau: Nigel Hawthorne
• Alfredo Garcia: Benjamin Bratt
• Edgar Friendly: Denis Leary
• Erwin: Rob Schneider
• Wasteland Scrap: Jack Black
• Zachary Lamb (old): Bill Cobbs
• Chief George Earle: Bob Gunton
• Associate Bob: Glenn Shadix
• Boggle Guard: Trent Walker
• Tough Cop: Troy Evans
• Zachary Lamb (young): Grand L. Bush
• Helicopter Pilot: Pat Skipper
• Captain Healy: Steve Kahan
• T.F.R. Officer: Paul Bollen
• Assistant Warden William Smithers (young): Mark Colson
• Warden William Smithers (old): Andre Gregory
• Cryocon Ally: Jesse Ventura (non-speaking role)

Sandra Bullock's character's name 'Lenina Huxley' is a reference to Aldous Huxley, the author of Brave New World, and Lenina Crowne, a character in Brave New World.^[5]

Jack Black played one of the "Wasteland Scraps" in the underground scene, who flinches when Spartan shoves the gun out of his face and says "And Cocteau's an asshole!" ^[6]

Jesse Ventura, former WWE wrestler and later Governor of Minnesota, played one of Simon Phoenix's Cryocon allies.

Rob Schneider played Erwin, one of the operators in the San Angeles Police control room; he would also play opposite Stallone in the 1995 movie Judge Dredd.^[7]

Sandra Bullock replaced original actress Lori Petty in the role of Lt Lenina Huxley after a few days filming.^{[citation needed]}

Then-football player Bill Goldberg, who would later become a famous professional wrestling superstar, appears in the film in a cameo^{[citation needed]}.

John Spartan is seen, at one point in the movie, protecting an unknown female Scrap from Phoenix and his revived gang. Going by the novelization, this is likely his daughter (now the same age he is), who was mentioned several times in passing but never actually seen in the movie. In the novel, she reintroduced herself to her father moments before Phoenix's attack occurred. This would suggest that the scenes featuring her were filmed, but subsequently cut from the film.

[edit] Soundtrack

The theme song to the film is titled "Demolition Man" and is played over the end credits. It is a remix (heavier version) of the song originally written by Sting and recorded during his time as frontman for The Police. The song was first released in 1981, as the fifth track on the band's fourth album, Ghost in the Machine. Sting released an EP featuring this song and other live tracks, entitled Demolition Man.

Acclaimed composer Elliot Goldenthal composed the score for the film; it was his second big Hollywood project after the Alien³ score.

[edit] Game adaptations

Virgin Interactive released Demolition Man on various home video game systems. The 16-bit versions were distributed by Acclaim. The 3DO version of the game was a first-person shooter that incorporated Full Motion Video scenes, with both Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes reprising their roles as their characters.

In April 1994, Williams released a widebody pinball game, Demolition Man (based on the movie). It is designed by Dennis Nordman. This game features sound clips from the movie, as well as original speech by Stallone and Snipes. This game was part of WMS' SuperPin series (Twilight Zone, Indiana Jones, etc.).

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Demolition Man at the Internet Movie Database
• Demolition Man at Allmovie
• Demolition Man at Rotten Tomatoes

Preceded by Malice

Box office number-one films of 1993 (USA) October 11, 1993 – October 17, 1993

Succeeded by The Beverly Hillbillies