Force-Fed Fiction
Troopers Crams Tons of Story into Two Hours

Too often science fiction is watered down to make it palpable for the masses. Of the sci-fi movies to come out this year, only The Fifth Element dared to thrust the audience into an totally unknown world without spelling it out for them. Now Starship Troopers invites audiences to journey to a future where humanity stands on the brink of war with an alien race of "bugs" and where military service ensures citizenship. The special effects are guaranteed winners, the cast mostly unknowns. The big question is, "Can the audience keep up?"

The first part of Starship Troopers reminded me more of "Beverly Hills 90210" than any science fiction movie I've seen. The principal cast are all a little too pretty and very shallow. The story follows three high school friends who enlist in the armed forces after graduation. Carmen (Denise Richards) wants to be a pilot. Carl (Neil Patrick Harris from "Doogie Howser M.D.") gets pulled into military intelligence because of his psychic abilities. The main character, Johnny Rico (Casper Van Dien), has joined up to impress Carmen and ends up in mobile infantry. Soon Johnny discovers that another high school friend, Dizzy (Dina Meyer from Dragonheart) has also enlisted -- to keep close to Johnny, the man she loves.

Watching Starship Troopers, I wondered if the "Star Trek" movies would have been paced the same way if they couldn't have drawn their background characterization from the television series. I felt as if there were two episodes in this movie, one character-building and one action-packed. If nothing else, the screenwriters did a good job of pulling the audience into this world by overloading us with information.

There is a great deal to know about this world, too. From the history of hostilities with the alien bug race to the current political situation in which only Federation "citizens" can vote, we are forced to realize that this is nothing like our world. Trying to cram all this information into one movie does not do it justice.

On a positive note, the first half of the movie does a great job of introducing the setting through the classes the students take. Their biology teacher (an unidentifiable Rue McClanahan) discusses the advanced evolution of the alien bugs. In history class, the audience is informed that fascism -- not democracy -- has taken over the world. From high school through basic training, the lessons learned are important and often deadly.

The second half of the movie completely changes tone from the first. What had been a cross between "Melrose Place" and Top Gun becomes a war film -- pure and simple. Enemy engagements and ravages of war fill the screen. The shocking scenes of graphic violence are definitely not for the squeamish. Even I, a veteran of sci-fi/horror movies, winced at moments of gruesome bloodshed.

On a side note, veteran actor Michael Ironside does a wonderful turn as the history teacher, Jean Rasczak. As a war veteran he urges his students to think for themselves and consider the differences between civilian life and "citizenship". His little moments of Yoda-like wisdom continue when he reappears as the leader of the Roughnecks after war is declared. His is easily the finest performance in the movie.

Director Paul Verhoeven uses a series of propaganda breaks to introduce background elements and news items into the movie. While interesting at first, these "commercials" interfere with the pace and tone of the movie later on. The look of Starship Troopers is also uneven. Despite the beautiful computer generated images of bugs skittering across the landscape and hacking up troopers, the same attention to detail did not transfer to the ships and weapons many of which were low-tech by early Star Trek standards. It astounded me that the infantry still fought with machine guns and bazookas (although the latter could fire "nukes").

The costumes flashed back to World War II Germany with their muted gray and black colors. Evidently this was done to remind audiences of the fascist overtones. When Carl shows up to a funeral in his long, black coat and cap, I immediately realized that he was part of a future Gestapo. By the final scene of the movie Carl had even adopted a slight German accent. I guess clothes really do make the man.

Starship Troopers is based on the Robert A. Heinlein novel. Advance buzz on the Internet said that Heinlein purists didn't like the screenplay because it didn't faithfully adapt the book. Most importantly, they said, was the absence of the complex battle suits worn by the mobile infantry in the book. While this is true, the true failing is the inclusion of women in battle, something that undercuts Heinlein's entire statement about men waging war to protect women.

Starship Troopers carries an R-rating for obvious reasons. Shocking scenes of violence include decapitations, open wounds, and gruesome amputations. A short shower scene and bedroom scene show brief nudity. The movie also includes some mild profanity. Troopers is not a movie for the kids, despite the fact that much of it seems geared for a target audience of 13-16 year-old males.

MY RATING: 6 out of 10.

RATED:
RUN TIME: 129 min.

Force-Fed Fiction Troopers Crams Tons of Story into Two Hours

Force-Fed Fiction
Troopers Crams Tons of Story into Two Hours