Futuristic action classic Demolition Man turns 25 this year. The movie, directed by Hollywood first-timer Marco Brambilla, was released in November of 1993 and is often hailed as one of Sylvester Stallone's all time best movies.
The plot follows a punch-throwing renegade cop named John Spartan (Stallone) who is cryogenically frozen in prison following a botched operation to rescue a group of hostages from the clutches of evil career criminal Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes). Phoenix is released from cryoprison in the year 2032 and immediately causes mayhem, murdering his way out of custody with a new set of deadly skills subconsciously taught to him during his incarceration. Spartan is then brought out of cryo to track down and stop the maniac, as the police department have found themselves pathetically incapable in a society where crime is virtually extinct.
The film features an extraordinary (if a little mismatched) Cast. The role of John Spartan was originally offered to martial arts legends Jean-Claude Van Damme and Steven Seagal but both turned it down. Jackie Chan was originally cast to play Simon Phoenix but turned it down as he didn't wish to play a villain. Supporting cast members include Sandra Bullock and Benjamin Bratt as Stallone's police sidekicks. Antagonist and society leader Raymond Cocteau is portrayed by British actor Nigel Hawthorne, easily recognisable to many sitcom aficionados as Sir Humphrey Appleby in the early 1980's BBC series Yes Minister. Bob Gunton of The Shawshank Redemption is also thrown in the mix along with Denis Leary (The Amazing Spider-Man, Ice Age), Bill Cobbs (Oz The Great And Powerful), esteemed voice actor Glenn Shadix and even a little surprise appearance from comedy legend Jack Black before he was famous.
Warner Bros. afforded Demolition Man a budget of around $57 million. The film pulled down a modest $58.05m in domestic box office takings and $159m worldwide, ranking it at No.1 at the time. It was released on VHS in March 1994, on DVD in 1997 and eventually on BluRay in 2011.
Demolition Man remains one of the best action movies of the 90's and has aged extremely well. The contrast between the dark world of law enforcement in 1996 and the bright utopian/dystopian future has been the subject of so many sci-fi greats and this portrayal is undoubtedly the best. It's a top scoring card on the records of several key cast members as well as directors and writers. Give it a watch to celebrate its 25th birthday!
