Demolition Man Review: An Unlikely Movie for Preppers

Did you ever watch a movie simply for the pure enjoyment of it and think, “Wait a second – this applies to prepping!” One flick from 1993 was positively prescient when we look at it now. Our Demolition Man review discusses the uncanny similarities between our current situation and what once seemed outrageous and futuristic.

Here's a Plot Overview

Demolition Man was (at the time of production) a futuristic action-adventure movie starring Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes, and Sandra Bullock. A criminal and a cop frozen in the 90s only to thaw out in some dystopian pacifist future in which things like violence, mean words, physical contact, cursing, and crime have been all but eradicated. (Censorship and elbow bump greetings, anyone?)

Snipes' character, Simon Phoenix, escapes during a parole hearing and goes on a violent rampage. Due to the completely non-violent environment, law enforcement and citizens have no idea how to perform risk assessments and threat mitigations. So they thaw out Stallone's character to catch Snipes because they don't have the capability.

Citizens are constantly monitored and subject to a loss of “credits” whenever they commit one of the forbidden offenses. (Hmm…that sounds a lot like a social credit system, doesn't it?) At the same time, they are cheered on by computers and AI, which can always be counted on for a kind word to convince them of how special they are.

It's a world filled with video calls, teleconferences, self-driving vehicles, biometric implants, appliances you can command verbally, and isolation from your fellow man.

Sound familiar?

 And There's a Resistance Movement

Another lesson that the movie drove home is how the resistance movement against the prevalent and accepted culture forms and survives.

Those who refuse to abide by the rules of no profanity, no red meat, no physical contact, and other utopian/dystopian nonsense have been driven underground into a loosely organized group called the Scraps. Now the Scraps may seem familiar, too. Besides not participating in the politically correct culture of those who mindlessly accepted it, the Scraps have remained armed and self-reliant.  In fact, it's the Scraps who provide Stallone's character with the weapons he needs to take down bad guy Simon Phoenix.

Don't Want to Cooperate? You'll be Marginalized and Demonized

Dennis Leery has some excellent lines in the movie that really relate to the current day. This speech, in particular, may ring a bell for those who have felt the sting of cancel culture and unjust mischaracterization.

See, according to Cocteau's plan, I'm the enemy. Cause I like to think, I like to read. I'm into freedom of speech and freedom of choice. I'm the kind if guy who wants to sit in a greasy spoon and think, “Gee, should I have the T-bone steak or the jumbo rack of barbecued ribs with the side order of gravy fries?” I want high cholesterol. I want to eat bacon, butter and buckets of cheese, okay? I want to smoke a Cuban cigar the size of Cincinnati in a non-smoking section. I wanna run through the streets naked with green Jello all over my body reading Playboy magazine.

Why? Because I suddenly might feel the need to. Okay, pal? I've seen the future, you know what it is? It's a 47-year-old virgin sittin' around in his beige pajamas, drinking a banana-broccoli shake singing “I'm an Oscar-Meyer Wiener”. You wanna live on top, you gotta live Cocteau's way. What he wants, when he wants, how he wants. Your other choice: come down here, maybe starve to death. (source)

How far are we, really, from that? The government involves itself heavily in our medical choices, our “safety,” and our opinions. And chances are, if you're reading websites like this one, you're on the “wrong” side.

Have You Watched Demolition Man?

If you haven't watched Demolition Man in a few years, you might really enjoy it. Put your feet up and note the eerie similarities between that movie and life in America today. Thankfully, we still have dining options that aren't Taco Bell.

We're not quite that far down the path to totalitarianism. Personal choices are ripped from our hands daily. It seems only a matter of time until America has its own Dr. Raymond Cocteau, who lulls an unsuspecting populace into subjugation with the promise of no more violence, a life of ease, and glowing good health. Unfortunately, it seems like more people than not are happy to hand over the responsibility for their well-being to others.

Check out the movie for itself.  If you want, you can rent or purchase the movie here. Come back here to the comments and let us know what you think? How close to this dystopia are we really?