Starship Troopers

One of the best anti-war films ever as far as I’m concerned. Shiny happy people brainwashed by propaganda that even Goebbels would envy fight to the last limb against sneaky repulsive bugs. The film's main positives definitely include the direction, excellent costumes whose legacy is crystal clear, the endless enthusiasm of all the soldiers, the comedic propaganda shots with chilling subtext, and the great supporting characters of Clancy Brown and Michael Ironside. Verhoeven failed to disappoint me again. (06/25/2016)

An incredibly entertaining parody of everything that stood in Paul Verhoeven's way at that time. Brilliant internet interludes, brutal and unprecedented bloody action scenes that are almost flawless, likeable protagonists, excellent one-liners, Michael Ironside as the ultimate badass, and fantastic looking bugs. This is how an action-packed masterpiece should look, skillfully alternating suspense with light-heartedness. I admire the director, he truly wasn't afraid to use large amounts of blood and scored with that. If nothing else, even the skeptics will remember this movie because of all the severed limbs and heads. Brilliant fun and excellent score by Basil Poledouris. (05/07/2005)

If Paul Verhoeven had actually made the satire that so many of the reviews keep referring to, I would have enjoyed it; and yet the director isn't making fun of multiple genres at once. Instead, he's combining three genres together to occasionally try, sometimes awkwardly, sometimes decently, to engage the viewer. Still, I would like more than just oscillating between awkward dialogue, unimaginative training sequences, and the film's best aspect, namely the well-executed and action-packed fights with the enemy. I would like to delve deeper into the film, and the resolution of whether the main hero ends up with this one or that one, or pondering the different ways bugs can kill you, will never give me that. (08/14/2007)

A beautiful example of how it's possible to make a B-movie with significant depth. And also a demonstration of how critics mostly don't get it. The question is whether Verhoeven really made such a groundbreaking B-movie or if the critics are right. I'd lean more towards the first option because, by the way, even the visual aspect is great, and the battles with the bugs are fantastic. (04/03/2015)

Starship Troopers has on the one hand decent visual effects and a good dose of action, but on the other hand it has an incredibly dull script that makes you roll your eyes in all directions. Almost all of the characters are unlikeable to varying degrees, so I couldn't even root for them to survive – the only exception being Michael Ironside as Rasczak. (SPOILER!) Finally, I have to nitpick about the bizarre appearance of the bugs' main brain, which (not so) slightly resembled a certain body orifice. (08/01/2019)