Man, am I excited to talk about this one! If you asked me when I was 13 when I first saw Demolition Man to rate it, I would probably have given it a 20/10! I loved this movie as a kid and to this day I have the large big box copy VHS I got from the rental store somewhere in my house. Demolition Man is a classic 90s action movie…. For better or worse.
How to Download Demolition Man
Demolition Man was released on October 8, 1993. You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice. If you like Sylvester Stallone, check him out in such movies as Rocky, First Blood, or The Expendables.
The Movie Review
I was all in on Demolition Man as a kid, I had the game for the Super Nintendo and loved it, but I saw the 3DO version that had extra stuff recorded by Sylvester Stallone specifically for the game and I wanted it for Christmas. I am so glad that my parents were not willing to spend several hundred pounds on a 3DO for me as that console was average at best, but man did that Demolition Man game look cool.
Anyway, back to the movie. Stallone plays the role of a 90s cop in LA called, John Spartan. Spartan is known as The Demolition Man as while he gets results, he causes a ton of damage in the process. He is a rough, tough, old-fashioned kind of guy and he is a total badass.
Simon Phoenix – The Perfect Villain
The villain of the movie is Simon Phoenix, played by Wesley Snipes. Simon Phoenix is a total over-the-top villain who is just pure chaos. He lures Spartan into a trap with some hostages and to say this goes wrong is a massive understatement. The hostages all end up dead and Spartan is blamed for this.
Phoenix is caught, but Spartan’s reputation is in tatters as a result of this rescue mission he went on. It is decided that both Spartan and Phoenix will be cryogenically frozen as their punishment and they will be rehabilitated while they are frozen. This part of the movie is kind of weird, but you have to just roll with it as the real reason for them to be frozen is so that they can be awakened in the future!
Welcome to San Angeles – The Future in 2032
In the year 2032, LA, Santa Barbara, and San Diego have merged into San Angeles and it is a very different world. San Angeles is a there is no crime, no terrible diseases and it is a city where everyone is pretty much a nice person. Well, Simon Phoenix is due for parole and guess what happens when he is unfrozen, he breaks out, kills people, and starts a crime rampage in a city that has not seen a violent crime for decades. It is an absolute blast seeing Phoenix go on this rampage, especially when he realizes he is in the future and there may be laser guns!
Enter John Spartan
Despite San Angeles not being equipped to deal with a villain of Phoenix’s stature. There is a young cop called Lenina Huxley who has an interest in 20th-century culture and she suggests unfreezing John Spartan to track down and stop Simon Phoenix. Lenina Huxley is played by Sandra Bullock and she really was becoming an A-list star right around this time.
The Action and Humor in Demolition Man
Demolition Man is at its best when it is a straight-up action movie. They try to add more “story” to the action with Phoenix being released not being an accident and there is an underground group of people who do not live the same way they do in San Angeles. I liked how John Spartan was this rough and tough 90s cop, completely lost in this strange new world, I mean, he couldn’t even use the three sea shells in the bathroom! His having to swear to get fines so he has paper to wipe with is hilarious. Another neat thing is the future telling of President Schwarzenegger!
Demolition Man Limited Edition 4K Set
Before I bring this to a close, I wanted to talk about the awesome Demolition Man Limited Edition 4K set from Arrow Video which is fantastic! This is a very affordable limited edition set that comes with a movie poster and a few other cool extras. However, it has a fantastic 4K transfer, and the new audio sounds amazing too! If you are a fan of this movie for £30, you have to get this set.
Final Thoughts on Demolition Man
Demolition Man is 100 percent a product of its time and the enjoyment I get out of it now is probably down mostly to nostalgia. This is a very, very fun action movie that I adore, but I do wonder if someone seeing it for the first time today would be all that impressed with it. Hey, I still love it and after Blade, Simon Phoenix is my favorite character that Wesley Snipes has ever played!
