Starship Troopers (1997)

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Director: Paul Verhoeven

Writers: Edward Neumeier, from the book by Robert A. Heinlein

Stars: Caspar Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Denise Richards, Neil Patrick Harris, Jake Busey, Clancy Brown



A group of high school friends (Caspar Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Denise Richards, and Neil Patrick Harris) enlist in the military and pursue their careers against the backdrop of mankind’s war with an alien race.

 


This film works best as sheer spectacle and it is easy to get swept up in its impressive action sequences. 



There are also some fun pokes at fascism, mostly in the occasional news reports and recruiting commercials that punctuate the action. 



However, director Paul Verhoeven and his crew seem as if they want to both have and eat their cake, as the film fetishizes militarism more effectively than it undercuts it.

 


Still fun, though.












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