When THE TERMINATOR came out, it spawned a flood of films using the basic theme of killer androids / cyborgs (some films classify their robots as "cyborgs" when they are just androids). But the sci-fi genre received another completely original robot film, ROBOCOP, in 1987. So the makers of many science fiction / action films were spoilt for choice. In Texas, novice filmmaker Cullen Blaine created a film that can (in all honesty) be considered one of the worst films ever made. But at the same time, R. O. T. O. R. is not just bad, it is absolutely hilarious.<br /><br />Police scientist Barrett Coldyron is working on the R. O. T. O. R. (Robotic Officer Tactical Operations Research) project, with the aim of creating an invincible android police officer to combat the rising levels of lawlessness for the Dallas Police Force. Coldyron quits when forced by his superiors to activate the prototype within sixty days, an impossible timeframe. But in his absence, the android is somehow activated by accident. Soon the police are forced to call Coldyron back in to help when the robot begins chasing a female motorist across the Texas countryside.<br /><br />Most fans of classic 'bad' films usually consider films like ROBOT MONSTER & Ed Wood's classic PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE as the definitive 'bad' film. But I can add R. O. T. O. R. to this list. Unlike many other bad films, which can either cause you to end up feigning amnesia or rouse you to unintentional laughter, Blaine's unintentional masterpiece (to use the term loosely) will cause you to possibly die from laughing so hard.<br /><br />Everything about R. O. T. O. R. is hopelessly inept, from the script, which is chock-a-block full of ridiculous technobabble, to the dialogue (which is inane to say the least), to the visual effects, with a classic scene featuring a badly-made robot skeleton being animated by stop-motion (just watch it do karate!), to the titular android motorcycle cop who comes with a porn-star moustache. The weirdest thing I've seen in this film is the "Sensor Recall" device, which basically amounts to the robot being able to see into the past, something that belongs more into the realm of magic rather than science fiction.<br /><br />The acting is stilted to say the least. Richard Gesswein goes through the proceedings with a macho attitude & a poker-faced determination that proves to be very funny. There's even the rather inexplicable addition of a police lab robot which acts as a comic-relief (although we don't really need it since the film has enough comedy), even reading comics & being interested in a colleague's fries. But my favourite part is where the android cop takes on a trio of tough men, the first being a drunk who gets swept aside easily, the second being a karate expert who is outmatched by the robot, before leading to a real tough man being walked on by the robot.