又见《机械战警》 炫酷外衣下的经典重现

Remaking a classic movie is a tricky business nowadays. Stay too close to the original and your work will be considered redundant; veer too far and you risk losing hardcore fans.

如今，翻拍经典影片是件很微妙的事。太接近原版会有“狗尾续貂”之嫌；与原版相差太远又有可能流失忠实粉丝。

After watching Brazilian director Jose Padilha’s reboot of RoboCop — the 1987 classic sci-fi movie by Dutch director Paul Verhoeven — it’s fair to say that the remake comes dangerously close to the latter. But while it may upset some of the faithful fans, it may well win over a few new ones, too.

1987年荷兰导演保罗•范霍文拍摄了经典科幻片《机械战警》。在看过巴西导演何塞•帕迪利亚翻拍的最新版本后不得不说，两部影片的高度类似不禁叫人替翻拍版本捏了把汗。尽管这可能会引发一些忠实粉丝的不满，但它同样会吸引一些新粉丝。

Some things remain the same. The setting is still a futuristic Detroit (in 2028), and the protagonist Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman) is still a good cop who gets seriously injured on duty and is put into a robotic suit to be the city’s cyborg peacekeeper.

新版影片保留了原版中的部分元素。故事依旧设定在2028年的底特律，主角亚历克斯•墨菲（乔尔•金纳曼饰演）仍然是名正直的警察。他在执行任务时身负重伤，后来披上机械战甲化身机械战警。

But that’s where the similarities end. Padilha’s remake is set in a world where multinational corporation OmniCorp, led by ruthless CEO Raymond Sellars (Michael Keaton), has become the US military’s major contractor.

然而，新版影片对原版的保留仅限于此。在帕迪利亚翻拍的影片中，由冷面CEO雷蒙德•塞拉斯（迈克尔•基顿饰演）领导的跨国公司OnmiCorp成为了美国头号军火商。

Overseas, its soldier drones are helping to “enforce” the peace; back home, its advanced robotics department is helping injured soldiers to walk again. But despite their best efforts, there’s one area of business they haven’t yet cracked — securing the US’ own streets.

在海外，该公司研发的无人战斗机身兼“维和”使命；在美国国内，该公司利用先进的机器人科技帮助受伤士兵重新站立行走。然而，尽管他们已倾尽全力，却仍未突破一个领域——维护美国本土大街小巷的安全。

Just like the 1987 original, the struggle between man and machine forms the movie’s backbone, though here the concept is upended. While the original concerned a machine that realizes that it is a man, this update basically concerns a man who comes to terms with being trapped inside a machine.

和1987年的原版电影一样，影片主题依旧围绕人与机器人之间的挣扎；不同的是，新片颠覆了老版影片的理念。在老版影片中，机械战警（挣扎过后）最终意识到自己本身是人类，而新版影片中，机械战警则甘心受困于机器之中。

That doesn’t mean Murphy, the new hero, gets all sentimental and soft. Along with much improved visual effects, there are some quite solid action scenes that make him reminiscent of Iron Man and Batman.

但是，这并不表示新版影片的主人公墨菲是个多愁善感、软弱的角色。除了视觉效果方面的改进，该片还展现了一些激烈的动作场面，让人不禁联想到钢铁侠和蝙蝠侠。

Of course, a common problem with action-packed sci-fi movies is their short on intellectual weight. Compared with the 1987 original, which was a smart satire of American culture, the new RoboCop resonates to some degree with its depiction of military drone strikes. Yet it sidesteps deeper questions about the intersection of technology, law enforcement and politics.

当然，科幻动作片面临的通病是缺乏深度。1987年的原版电影曾巧妙地讽刺了美国文化，新版《机械战警》则通过对美国无人机空袭场景的刻画，在某种程度上与前作产生了共鸣。但是，新版影片对科技、执法与政治等深层问题选择了回避。

But Padilha’s update still works, because it logically transports the core concept into a future that feels closer to our own. And the movie is different enough to exist on its own without ignoring or disrespecting its roots. Given the potential mistakes when re-imagining a classic, you can’t be fairer than that.

尽管如此，帕迪利亚的翻拍版还是成功的尝试，因为该片顺理成章地将电影核心理念转移到了一个似乎离我们很近的未来时空。在尊重原版的基础上，该片的与众不同足以为自己争得一席之地。翻拍经典难免出错，这是最公平的说法了。