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Starship Troopers is a 1997 film directed by Paul Verhoeven, written by Edward Neurmeier, and starring Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer and Denise Richards. The movie is partially based on the novel by Robert Heinlein. The movie uses many of Heinlein's characters and settings, but both the plot and presentation differ enough that the movie is described only as "based on the book by Robert Heinlein." A report in an American Cinematographer article contemporaneous with the film's release stated that the Heinlein novel was optioned well into the pre-production period of the film, which had a working title of Bug Hunt at Outpost Nine; most of the writing team reportedly were unaware of the novel at the time. This explains both the vast divergence between the two, and the volume of the uproar amongst Heinlein's fans when the movie came out, on Usenet and in other places.
This movie polarised both popular audiences and critics, as did the original book. On one level, the movie tells a straightforward action-adventure science fiction story, with attractive stars, innovative CGI special effects, and an entertaining but - as some people interpreted it - clichéd and often ludicrous plot. However, beyond this, it attracted widely divergent responses. Fans of the novel often regarded it as a shallow insult to a great work. Others regarded it as a clever satire of what they saw as the book's endorsement of fascism, as well as propaganda films in general. Some even considered it an artistic experiment in evoking certain emotions (such as sadism, militarismMilitarism is the ideology that military strength is the source of all security. In its mildest form it is often stated as many more specific arguments for military preparedness, all of which tend to assume that to achieve " peace through strength" is the, and patriotismPatriotism is a feeling of love and devotion to one's own homeland patria the land of one's fathers). This article surveys the concept of patriotism from the viewpoints of history, politics, ethics, and biology. Ecole Polytechnique, Paris, 1814 Patriotic) greatly lacking in Western cinema. Still, many simply assumed that the movie was endorsing fascism and responded to this negatively or positively depending on their political beliefs.
The film depicts a future state that is broadly reminiscent of America, except that it is extremely militaristic and uncompromisingly warlike in its attitude to attacks from a species of bug that lives in a distant solar system. On one level, the movie encourages us to identify with the gung-ho antics of the Earthlings as they successfully destroy the bugs. Their attitude, combined with the unsuccessful first attack on the bugs' homeworldThe Battle of Klendathu was the first military engagement between the Terran Federation and the Bugs of Klendathu in the novel and movie Starship Troopers''. While the event is portrayed in both versions, there are distinct differences between the two., is similar to the Vietnam WarThe Vietnam War was a war fought between 1957 and 1975 on the ground in South Vietnam and bordering areas of Cambodia and Laos See Secret War) and in bombing runs ( Rolling Thunder) over North Vietnam. See also the timeline of the Vietnam War. Fighting on. At the same time, there is considerable moral ambiguity, as it is never stated that the bugs started the war. Furthermore, there are several scenes that appear to be deliberately reminiscent of the Nazi propaganda film Triumph of the WillTriumph of the Will Triumph des Willens in German) is a propaganda film by the German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, documenting the 1934 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg. It is one of the the best-known propaganda film in the history of the cinema, with wid, and some of the military costumes resemble those of Nazi Germany, particularly Neal Patrick Harris 's Colonel Carl Jenkins, whose costume apes that of the GestapoGestapo is a portmanteau contraction of the name of the official secret police force of Nazi Germany, Geheime Staatspolizei ( German for "secret state police"). History The Gestapo was established on April 26, 1933 in Prussia. With members recruited from. At the conclusion of the film, the main characters are depicted training new recruits barely in their teens, which may be a reference to the children and old men who attempted a last-ditch defence of Germany in the last days of the European theatre of World War II.
However, the society depicted in the film also contains notable differences from fascist ideology, and at times seems more reminiscent of liberal politics. For one, the society depicted in the film is very open about sex and sexuality. Men and women bath together, and they appear to feel natural about it. Second, humanity's army consists of soldiers of all races, sexes, and religions. Third, military service is not obligatory, and civilians that have not served in the military are well respected (as evident by the high-society status of Rico's parents). However, these civilians are not allowed to vote.
See the Gifford paper PDF noted at the entry for Robert Heinlein for (much) more depth on this issue.