Starship Troopers

Fast-forward to winter, 1997. I'm sitting in a theater watching Starship Troopers, and it feels like I've stepped into a time machine. This is possibly the best of all the big bug movies, and it's not afraid to show its roots. Sometime in the future, Earth is under attack by huge bugs from another planet. We follow the lives of a few of Earth's best and brightest, as they join the army and head off in different directions. What really struck me about this film is that they actually took the time to develop a three-dimensional world for the characters to inhabit. That's what makes the difference to me. Yes, the young actors are mostly pretty eye candy, and their performances, while not Oscar-caliber, are light years beyond their forebears of the 50's. The world of their future is seemingly fascistic (service in the military guarantees citizenship and other perks, such as the right to vote and the right to have children. Hmm - a future in which people's active participation in their country allows them greater freedoms, provided they take personal responsibility for themselves and their future? I've heard worse notions...). We follow the idealistic youths through basic training, all the way to several epic battles on other worlds and we see their progress as soldiers and as humans along the way. It's this kind of attention to detail and character development that sets this film apart from many others. And yes, everyone makes noise about the coed shower scene, but I have to say that is one of the more important scenes in the film. It shows that the cadets have grown as soldiers, that they are capable as seeing each others as parts of a team, instead of just a bunch of good-looking naked people. Those who have a problem with this scene - grow the heck up. It just adds to the sense of realism of the whole movie. Oh, yeah - there's the bugs, too...

As far as I'm concerned, the bugs are real. I don't know that I've ever seen the make-believe so realistically brought to life in any other movie. These are truly nasty creatures, devoid of compassion or humanity in every way. The effects work (courtesy of master Rob Bottin) is truly incredible. The beasts take apparent glee in tearing apart their human foes, and they do so in spectacular ways. The bugs are so magnificently realized that I literally found myself on the edge of my seat as the troops find themselves ambushed in a deserted fort, with the entire horizon blocked out by herds of thundering bugs.

Paul Veerhoven (Robocop, Total Recall) has a fanatical eye for detail, which is yet another aspect of this film that just compels the feeling that what is happening might just be real. He maintains a sense of humor throughout, which works brilliantly when contrasted to the raw, brutal carnage we're being subjected to. The primary actors, the pretty young kids, do the best they can within the limits of their youth and talent (the standout is Dina Meyer, who's just great), but the real stars of this movie are Clancy Brown as the quasi-sadistic Sergeant Zim, the cadet's Drill Instructor, and genre favorite Michael Ironside as Lt. Rasczak, the kids' teacher at home, and also out on the battlefield. These two guys deserve as much attention and credit as possible for always turning in great performances in character-driven roles. They, even more than the bugs, give this film its heart.

All in all, you just couldn't ask for a more fun Saturday afternoon monster movie. Just avoid any sequels, because invariably, they just can't live up to this fun, breathtaking achievement.

Looking at the technology of the Starship Troopers world, they have interstellar travel, but their ships are just glorified space taxis. They never bombard the planet before the invasion, and when the insects retaliate, they don't fire back. They just explode. Great. Also, they have fully articulate robotic limbs in this movie, but it nevers occured to the generals of Starship Troopers to create some kind of robotic exterminator to clear out invasion spots before the humans land, especially since the depletion of the human population is one of the themes of this movie.

Even if you weren't bothered by the military incompetence displayed, you should be troubled by the Fascist military government that rules this future Earth. In this world, people do not gain citizenship unless they serve in the military. Those who don't serve aren't citizens. The director treats this change in society lightly, so it has a really creepy feel. If you want to see a war movie, there are lots of other better choices. If you want to see giant bugs killing people who aren't sensible enough to at least ride in a tank, then you don't have much choice.