Starship Troopers Reboot (3 Viewers)

[Tapxe]

Problem is, Verhoeven's Starship adaptation is a great example of Poe's Law--where an artist, filmmaker's attempts at mocking or satirizing major socio-economic, political issue seems more authentic, genuine in supporting these institutions then seriously mocking or criticizing them. In other words, he did a terrible job of making/creating satire.

If you watched that movie and did not pick up on the satire, it's not the movies fault.

 

[Sun Wukong]

Read the book, but don't watch Verhoeven's 1997 translation. He said then and has made it abundantly clear in interviews over the past 25 years he didn't like the original book and wasn't going to follow the novel more closely.

Problem is, Verhoeven's Starship adaptation is a great example of Poe's Law--where an artist, filmmaker's attempts at mocking or satirizing major socio-economic, political issue seems more authentic, genuine in supporting these institutions then seriously mocking or criticizing them. In other words, he did a terrible job of making/creating satire.

That movie is in no way an example of Poe's law.

 

[St. Widge]

It's a fun movie if I basically turn off my brain. Not saying that to be critical....there are plenty of non-comedic movies (or intended to be non-comedic) that are fun if you don't apply any common sense or critical thought.
It just gets more difficult when the movie depicts large scale military action and it is presented with such a shocking lack of consideration for anything resembling strategy or tactics.

I don't disagree. It's a great movie to watch on a lazy Sunday afternoon when you don't want to think about things and all you want to do is watch giant bugs get blown apart and over the top bad acting. It's like a MST3K movie except it's entertaining enough that you don't need the robots making the jokes for you.

And, I honestly know little about military tactics, at least modern military tactics, so maybe it's just easier to enjoy the movie for what it is. But, let me get this straight, going off with a small group of soldiers to hunt down a giant bug that has your girlfriend and then using a hand held nuke to kill it while you are only 30 or so feet away is not only not a great idea, but is also unrealistic?

And look, I love to watch a deeply meaningful French film about the existential angst of man as much, maybe more, than the next guy, but sometimes I just want something fun and stupid and Starship Troopers hits that spot. The absurdity of all is just fun in ways that Verhoeven never intended which makes it even more funny.

I mean, the book is a serious piece of hard Sci Fi. Been a long time since I read it, but I think it even goes into some of the military tactics that you talk about. So, I think a serious movie can be made out of the book. And it could even be a great movie with an important message that should provoke a lot of thought about our relationship to the government. But, it won't be as fun to watch as the Verhoeven movie.

 

[Saintman2884]

If you watched that movie and did not pick up on the satire, it's not the movies fault.

Their was some satire in moderate amounts but not enough to make one really think the alien bugs were the ones who conceivably who might’ve attacked Earth or that they weren’t as mean, vicious or nasty creatures as those Earth soldiers were actually fighting.



Over the top and satirical? In certain places and certain points but not enough really to be completely obvious and it still depicted Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards, or NPH’ roles as heroic, brave figures, not poor, misguided brainwashed idealogues sent off to fight in a meat-grinder war.

 

[Tapxe]

Their was some satire in moderate amounts but not enough to make one really think the alien bugs were the ones who conceivably who might’ve attacked Earth or that they weren’t as mean, vicious or nasty creatures as those Earth soldiers were actually fighting.



Over the top and satirical? In certain places and certain points but not enough really to be completely obvious and it still depicted Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards, or NPH’ roles as heroic, brave figures, not poor, misguided brainwashed idealogues sent off to fight in a meat-grinder war.

The only thing missing in that movie is Captain Obvious saying, "S2884, this is satire."

 

[Saintman2884]

That movie is in no way an example of Poe's law.

In that it wasn’t good satire or that it’s attempt at satire and absurdist humor came across as being too “genuine” and Verhoeven didn’t really try and make it seem like alien bugs were innocent or being scapegoated.


I’m sorry, Sun, but at certain points the movie’s satirical moments came across to many viewers as too genuine or straightforward.


I don’t say that as a criticism or from a lack of appreciation for Verhoeven’s work on other films, which are great and include great sci-fi allegories about militarized police, authoritarian governments and outer-space imperialism in Robocop and Total Recall and he made an outstanding film outside the Hollywood film industry structure with Black Book, but on Starship Troopers, it just didn’t land enough times for me to really strike me as satire. The “satire” you see in Starship Troopers is way too strait-laced, genuine and doesn’t have the same amount of BS “hokeyness” lets say Stripes or Animal House had.

 

[Saintman2884]

If you watched that movie and did not pick up on the satire, it's not the movies fault.

There's quite a few things Verhoeven tried to get across in his loose adaptation of Heinlein's sci-fi novel that weren't intended and kind of got lost in the shuffle.

But that's a conversation for another day and another thread. Or a past one on SR's EE board.