Stallone and Snipes buy into the concept completely. As a result, what could have been a dour experience ends up being quite fun.
In 1993, the year 2032 apparently seemed like it was far enough into the future for society to overcome violence and conflict. Somehow, society also forgot how to deal with someone if they became violent. That is the future where Demolition Man takes place, and such is the plot mechanic behind the film.
Opening in a 1996 where Los Angeles has erupted into full-blown urban warfare, an ultra-violent criminal named Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes) has kidnapped a bus full of innocent people. John Spartan (Sylvester Stallone) is a cop who has been pursuing Phoenix relentlessly for two years. It seems Spartan is nicknamed “The Demolition Man” because he usually causes a lot of property damage in the pursuit of justice. Spartan apprehends Phoenix but is wrongly blamed for the death of the kidnapped passengers. This time his out-of-control apprehension methods get him charged with 30 counts of involuntary manslaughter.
Spartan and Phoenix are each sentenced to cryogenic freeze as punishment/rehabilitation. In the 1996 of Demolition Man, it was possible to not only freeze someone and thaw them out later, but you could also program their minds to learn new skills to use upon release.
In 2032, society is now ruled by the philosophy of one Dr. Raymond Cocteau (Nigel Hawthorne). Violence, bad language, poor diet, and anything else that’s perceived as negative or bad for you is now illegal. When Simon Phoenix comes up for parole, he immediately escapes. The police of San Angeles — a supercity made up of San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Los Angeles — are unable to apprehend him as their training has never anticipated a criminal as wantonly murderous.
Police detective Lenina Huxley (Sandra Bullock,) an aficionado of all things 20th century, proposes thawing out John Spartan as he would be mentally and physically capable of handling a criminal like Phoenix. Against their better judgement, the SAPD does just that.
Taken at face value, this plot summary sounds like any number of typical science fiction action movies. Thankfully, Demolition Man includes generous helpings of humor and satire. Without ever getting too heavy, the script manages to comment on social norms and government overreach. It even does an admirable job of predicting some future (now present) appliances. And it pokes fun at some other stuff too. (Without spoiling anything, I’ll just say that you’ll never look at toilet paper the same way again.)
The heart of the film, though, remains a big, noisy action picture. Sylvester Stallone wields countless firearms and displays his hand-to-hand combat prowess. But, on the flip side, he and Sandra Bullock have a playful and humorous chemistry and the two share some great scenes together. Wesley Snipes makes for a great villain, and he chews through his scenes with an adrenaline-fueled glee.
For fans of 80s style action movies, Demolition Man serves up enough explosions and gun-play to entertain. (Although, I’m not sure who taught the characters how to aim because they’re less likely to hit anything than an Imperial Stormtrooper.) The satirical humor saves it from being just another dumb action free-for-all. Stallone and Snipes buy into the concept completely. As a result, what could have been a dour experience ends up being quite fun.
As long as you don’t think about the many plot holes — like how does a society with no guns have so much ammunition laying around — Demolition Man makes for a great Saturday afternoon movie.
3.5 out of 5.0 stars
