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All that her less gifted boyfriend Johnny Rico (Casper Van Dien) can do is keep up, by aiming for the mobile infantry. Their overtly patriotic war veteran teacher Jean Rasczak (Michael Ironside) was in the MI so Rico figures that the grunts will be good enough for him. Unfortunately his parents Mr (Christopher Curry) and Mrs Rico (Lenore Kasdorf) don't agree, but that's just their hard luck. Rico wants to become a citizen far more that a college graduate, so the Federal Service is the way to go. Rounding off this small group of gung-ho converts is Carl Jenkins (Neil Patrick Harris), psychic powers making him a shoo-in for the secretive corridors of Intelligence. What they don't realise is that another of their classmates has signed up, Dizzy Flores (Dina Meyer); ironically enough in pursuit of Rico. Failing to be put off by a multiple amputee Recruiting Sergeant (Robert David Hall) she's possibly the best prepared of them all.
Based on Robert Heinlein's well-received science fiction novel, Starship Troopers holds true to the tone of his pro-war writings. In this period fascist rule is a way of life, the price paid for a safe and crime-free society. Only citizens are allowed to vote and, almost, the sole route towards achieving this status is by serving in the forces; perpetuating the plethora of uniforms worn by those in power. No longer is there individual freedom and the sense that resolution can come from discussion, here violence is the solution. Such a scenario fits director Paul Verhoeven like a glove. The force behind Robocop and Total Recall, he is familiar with the idea of taking conservative US tendencies to their furthest extent. The bait for these journeys was satire and Starship Troopers is no exception to the trend. Stuffed full of inspired and often sick humour, Verhoeven's film is an entertaining ride for those who share in his vision.
At the heart of the film stand four troopers plucked from school and turned into killing machines, handing Verhoeven the basis of two parallel storylines. In the thick of the action are Rico and Dizzy, dumped on alien planets with a minimum of organisation to back them up. Faced by uncountable hordes of bugs, their fellow soldiers are daily torn apart in new and surprising ways; if you survive then you'll get promoted. This is the butt end of Starship Troopers, brutish, gory and lethal; while the tone is too light-hearted for a serious anti-war statement, this is not a pretty conflict. Far away from the front line, however, Carl works on battle plans while Carmen falls in love with fellow pilot Zander Barcalow (Patrick Muldoon). Only when the bugs annihilate her hometown does Carmen get dragged into battle, finding it somewhat more unpleasant than the simulator.
A constant source of amusement throughout Starship Troopers is Verhoeven's perfect casting. For the cardboard characters of the story he has assembled a team of soap opera groomed performers, all stunningly shallow. These are the beautiful people, strong of jaw and white of tooth; even in the heat of battle they can have a "running down the beach" moment. It's a masterstroke, inspired by the realisation that a more skilled cast might have attempted to invest their roles with superfluous depth. Anonymity and two-dimensionality are crucial here, meaning that established stars would have disrupted this balance. That said, Van Dien doesn't embarrass himself while Richards and Meyer are quite adequate. The best lines come from a Verhoeven regular though, the familiar Ironside. Given the chance to be both a teacher and a hard-as-nails squad leader, Ironside displays a palpable enjoyment.
Soaking up around half of the film's budget, the efficacy of the special effects is a make-or-break consideration. Fortunately the insects are very impressively rendered, becoming genuinely scary as thousands cascade along narrow desert valleys. The clever twist in Starship Troopers is that you're not overly distracted by the computer-generated animation; the bugs are fluidly integrated into the environment. A greater variety in bug form would have been a bonus, though at least there's tangible creativity behind those that exist; the acid-flame spewing cockroaches and planetary defeence launchers are immediately memorable. Verhoeven skilfully conducts the action, incrementing the pace by notch after notch; Starship Troopers becomes ever more involving as the story flows, only stumbling slightly at the very end. Verhoeven knows exactly how to work with this material and he achieves what he wants to.
Now a word of warning is perhaps appropriate, since Starship Troopers is clearly capable of generating extreme reactions. If you're in the mood for mindless violence, a spiralling pace and vertiginous casualty rates then look no further. Starship Troopers entertains despite a few romantic interludes, alternately amusing, appalling and amazing. If you were, however, sickened and disgusted by Verhoeven's earlier efforts then this isn't the film for you. There are the many, many graphic dismemberment's, weak storyline (bugs vs. humans) and numerous inconsistencies to consider. So you either go with the flow or avoid like the plague; would you like to know more?
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