Starship Troopers

release year: 1997
genre: sci-fi/action
viewing setting: most recently, home DVD, 7/23/02

synopsis: In the near future, some high school friends enlist in the military so they can be sent to a faraway alien planet to kill or be killed.

impressions: It seems that everyone - big-time critics, Heinlein fans, and regular people - hates this film. Not me. I accept it for what it is: an intentional gorefest with numerous comedic elements. We get to watch a bunch of young, naive kids join the military and then learn that war is, indeed, hell. There is much death here, and it's sudden and violent. The sequence of events was broken up by over-the-top-funny newscasts depicting life and war in this future. The special effects and fighting action are plentiful and entertaining - and that's what movies are all about annyway: entertaniment.

things to watch for: The opening sequence of the landing on the bug world is good fun.

acting: There are two kinds of characters in this movie: young inexperienced kids and old, grizzled veterans. The Denise Richards character in particular bothered me; she was a flirt and she was annoying.

final word: Good gore-war action.

back to the main review page