Hacker Cinema
Robot Jox
1990 · Film · 85 min
Directed by Stuart Gordon
50 years after a nuclear war, the two superpowers handle territorial disputes in a different way. Each fields a giant robot to fight one-on-one battles in official matches, each piloted by a man inside, known as robot jockeys or jox. The contest for possession of Alaska will be fought by two of the best. The conscientious Achilles fights for the Americans. Opposing him is a Russian, Alexander.
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8 comments on Hacker News
I agree, but I'm a bit disappointed it will probably come to this, instead of having a mano a mano like in the movie "Robot Jox".
I've watched "Robot Jox" countless times for its MST3K/RiffTrax vibe; I always really enjoyed the general world and the mech designs and now I know why. It's amazing to see it nestled between these sci-fi touchstones. I'd highly recommend watching it once if you're ok with (or love!) "bad" movies.
Robot Jox (1989) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102800/?ref_=nm_knf_t_1
>In the distant future, mankind has forsaken global wars for battles of single combat. The world has been divided into two opposing super powers, with each side represented by trained champions.
Mechwarrior boxing, more or less. The 5/10 imdb rating is well deserved. Mostly notable for a writing credit by Joe Haldeman, who managed to get an accurate depiction of a megawatt-class laser weapon on screen.
Reminds me of the film Robot Jox
Robot Jox is a great bad movie. I love it.
Have you ever seen the movie "Robot Jox"? it's about a future where conflict is settled using a match between two human piloted robots.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102800/
That's so cool looking, with the structures in so close for relative size comparison as well.
It happens that I was just watching Robot Jox today, the first movie that ever made me want my money back. It's grown on me a bit though. It's pretty fun to think about the possibilities with those fictional forms. Even if they aren't that "realistic" as force projection in real life, there's the possibility that they simply become a game with rules that make up for the weaknesses, and the game itself eventually elevates to customary warfare, in which formal gaps are filled by deference to tradition and honor. When war is seen as more of a privilege, maybe warmaking means are more easily designed to fit preference or subjective fancy...
Metaphorically I was a bit surprised to find that these forms easily associate with questions or dialog around internal security. Becoming as strong on the inside as you may project yourself to be on the outside. It's helpful to think about sometimes.
Or the "so bad it's good" movie Robot Jox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robot_Jox