Critical Film Condition

The release for the teaser trailer for this thing was one of those that has a countdown ticker that tries to generate some hype for the movie. Although I was excited because I liked the first “X-Files” feature, I felt a little disappointed with it because it was boring. It didn’t reveal much of the plot, but it’s “X-Files”, so it’s OK, but it did try to hide it’s premise a little too much, giving us nothing interesting to see.

This official trailer, on the other hand, is the real deal. Bleeding eyes, snatched bodies and other freaky things that only Chris Carter could provide fulfill this trailer with all the info that we need (along with the presence of our beloved agents Mulder and Scully) without revealing the plot. It promises to be the perfect balance between the supernatural and alien conspiracies, and if this trailer’s pace is any sign, it should be filled with action, horror and suspense. I, for one, am very very much looking forward to it.

http://movies.yahoo.com/summer-movies/X-Files-I-Want-to-Believe/1809953361/trailers/140/939

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To understand "Starship Troopers" the viewer must first understand Paul Verhoeven. The director has cult classics like "Robocop" and "Total Recall" under his belt, but personally apologized at the Razzie Awards (the anti-Oscars) for bringing "Showgirls" to the world. Last, but not least, he directed "Basic Instinct", one of the greatest "sex-thrillers" of all time. For those who have seen half his movies, you’ll know that he’s all about tits, sci-fi and hard-core violence, among other things. BUT, it is worth mentioning that these "other things" include brilliant photography and art direction, often innovative special effects (he IS known as Hollywood’s mad scientist) and an amazing sarcastic view of current society. And "Starship Troopers" might just be the epitome of that.

In short, the movie is based on a book, by renowned sci-fi author Robert Heinlein, about the future of human society. After failing in the continuance of democracy, the military takes over and forms one World order that manages to keep humanity in peaceful harmony for many years. Society is divided among citizens and civilians, which is a nice way of referring to those that went to military service and those who didn’t, respectively. The World (or the Federation) then goes to war with a primitive but powerful race of alien bugs and all hell breaks loose. The book, which I will NOT review here, has a much different approach to the subjects of hierarchy and society, mainly because trippy Verhoeven thought the original material was boring and depressive after the first pages. That, which is a big point of criticism by fans of the book, make "Starship Troopers" a bad book adaptation but NOT a bad movie in any way.

First of all, the meat of the social criticisms is there and Verhoeven, by choosing to give the future of society a semi-Nazi look, gives this movie a brilliant visual style. Every character has ideals and philosophies that might make sense to some, but are obvious inspirations of the mentality induced by the Third Reich back in the 1940s. Or maybe a mix between that and the mentality of the American troops during WWII. At one point, one citizen of Buenos Aires (that’s the tropical paradise of the future) says, on TV, that the only good bug is a dead bug… That’s an American saying about the Germans in the War, but it is said, LIVE, on a television network that strikes an amazing resemblance to Goebel’s propaganda movies of the Reich. One of the main characters goes to military intelligence and shows up in the last act wearing a suit that is IDENTICAL to that Hitler’s SS soldiers. Verhoeven’s choice in visual style is probably this movie’s greatest triumph. Even the actors, who SUCK, by the way, seem like the obvious choice since everyone looks like the poster child for public advertisement. Casper Van Dien’s Johnny Rico is the typical buffed up, wide-jawed blondie that wins Football championships while Denise Richards’ Carmen Ibanez is a big-breasted, innocent hottie who happens to be the quarterback jock’s girlfriend. The list goes on, and aside from Michael Ironside and a few other veterans, there isn’t a single actor in this joint that knows the difference between a smile and a grin. The acting is just that bad (to the point of hurting the movie for some). But the casting, is brilliant… It might be confusing for some to understand, but I won’t even bother trying to explain.

In come the effects: everything looks amazing, even by today’s standards. The bugs are probably the scariest creatures since the original Alien (you know, from "Alien") and they are so perfectly integrated into the scenery that you wonder what happened to the Academy when they decided to give "Titanic" the award instead. It’s the best display of digital effects since "Jurassic Park" and the only thing in recent memory that looks better is "Transformers". Even the bloody parts look amazingly cool (and disgusting, in Verhoeven fashion).

With a rather shallow script, though, it’s hard to explain why "Starship Troopers" is such an enjoyable experience. It depends heavily on Verhoeven’s style and skillful direction, Basil Poledouris’ amazing musical score (military tunes, anyone?) and the mind-blowing visual effects… And those are things that just can’t be put into words. "Starship Troopers" is a movie that has to be seen, but half the people will hate it while the other half will love it. I happen to fall into the latter category.

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