Starship Troopers

Name: Starship Troopers
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Released: November 7, 1997
Duration: 129 min
Rating: 51
Cast: Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards

1997

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 506 Ratings

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8.7

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8.7	User Score Universal acclaim based on 506 Ratings

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Starship Troopers

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Movie Details & Credits

TriStar Pictures | Release Date: November 7, 1997 | R

Starring: Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards

Summary: From the bridge of the Fleet Battlestation Ticonderoga, with its sweeping galactic views, to the desolate terrain of planet Klendathu, teeming with shrieking, fire-spitting, brain-sucking special effects creatures, acclaimed director Paul Verhoven crafts a dazzling epic based on Robert A. Heinlein's classic sci-fi adventure. CourageousFrom the bridge of the Fleet Battlestation Ticonderoga, with its sweeping galactic views, to the desolate terrain of planet Klendathu, teeming with shrieking, fire-spitting, brain-sucking special effects creatures, acclaimed director Paul Verhoven crafts a dazzling epic based on Robert A. Heinlein's classic sci-fi adventure. Courageous soldiers travel to the distant and desolate Klendathu system for the ultimate showdown between the species. (Sony)… Expand

Director: Paul Verhoeven

Genre(s): Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Rating: R

Runtime: 129 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Mike Clark

This twisted space opera serves up carcasses in six-digit figures but is foremost a sendup for the ages. Read full review

Owen Gleiberman

The movie is sensationally exciting, but its hey-kids-let s-put-on-a-war! story line plays like Beverly Hills, 90210 recast as a military-recruitment film for the Third Reich. Read full review

James Berardinelli

Although none of the characters are fleshed out much beyond the comic book level, we nevertheless find our sympathies aligning with them. Read full review

Kenneth Turan

What Ed Neumeier's script provides instead is a cheerfully lobotomized, always watchable experience that has the simple-mindedness of a live-action comic book, with no words spoken that wouldn't be right at home in a funny paper dialogue balloon. Not just one comic book either, but an improbable and delirious combination of "Weird Science," "Betty and Veronica" and "Sgt. Rock and His Howling Commandos." Read full review

David Sterritt

Paul Verhoeven's movie takes more action than ideas from Robert A. Heinlein's 1959 novel, which is just as well, considering the book's goofy suggestion that military veterans should control society from top to bottom. Read full review

Dallas Observer Peter Rainer

What makes the claptrap in Starship Troopers so flabbergasting is that it's monumentally scaled. Read full review

Rita Kempley

It's exactly like "Star Wars" -- if you subtract a good story, sympathetic characters, intelligence, wit and moral purpose. Read full review

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User Reviews

frankspijker

Aug 27, 2012

Starship Troopers is one of the most misunderstood movies of all time. Its cheesy acting, its extreme violence, its incredible visuals. It does these things so well that people misunderstand it. It pretends to be an action movie while it's much more than that. What's so incredibleStarship Troopers is one of the most misunderstood movies of all time. Its cheesy acting, its extreme violence, its incredible visuals. It does these things so well that people misunderstand it. It pretends to be an action movie while it's much more than that. What's so incredible about the movie is that it suggests that Americans and Nazi's with their propaganda are just the same when it they are at war. They were/are both full of irrational hatred(''First comes sorrow, then anger'') when they are at war. This movie has a message, it's an anti-war movie. ''People seem to have this strange idea that films can influence people to be violent, but in my sincere opinion film only reflects the violence of society.'' a quote from the director himself. He did the same with Robocop, but in this movie it's harder to notice.

I find it very hard to explain it's message so if you think this movie is just a dumb action movie watch the film-commentary of the movie. It explains it all.… Expand

14 of 14 users found this helpful140

TomT

Mar 8, 2007

A thought-provoking, entertaining sci-fi action film based on Robert A. Heinlein's Hugo award winning classic sci fi military novel..that is not for the squeamish, the humorless or the knee jerk, politically correct.

2 of 3 users found this helpful

Tick

Dec 16, 2014

One of my favourite movies of all time. Some people went in to see some political revival of the novel series, but the director took a more light and satirical look at the premise. The technology simply wasn't there at the time to do bugs, power armour and realistic other races etc. ThereOne of my favourite movies of all time. Some people went in to see some political revival of the novel series, but the director took a more light and satirical look at the premise. The technology simply wasn't there at the time to do bugs, power armour and realistic other races etc. There was no point in having any of that being done half-assed. They went with the Core, the bugs, then built a story around that.

I can watch this movie over and over, and only 4 other movies have that same award, True Lies being one of those.

This movie was nothing like the book, and it wasn't supposed to be. I liked the book a lot, and I liked this movie a lot. They were different entities, anyone not getting that missed the point.

Sure, if they do a revival they can expand on some of it, but to capture the book they will need to make a trilogy or more films, and that is doubtful, as it isn't a recent Teen-bought novel series.… Expand

3 of 5 users found this helpful32

Dec 9, 2007

An honest attempt at adapting the book to the screen.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

Smoothrunner

Sep 13, 2016

Heinlein's "Starship Troopers", along with his "Double Star", "Between Planets" and "Orphans of the Sky", was one of the first books that began my acquaintance with the Science fiction genre. Then, at the first reading in adolescence, "Starship Troopers", as I now realize, had an oppositeHeinlein's "Starship Troopers", along with his "Double Star", "Between Planets" and "Orphans of the Sky", was one of the first books that began my acquaintance with the Science fiction genre. Then, at the first reading in adolescence, "Starship Troopers", as I now realize, had an opposite influence on me to that conceived by the author, although it caused an intense inner dialogue. Perhaps it is due to its peculiar "extremist" philosophy, conjugated with an idealized description of an army life and the nuances of the officers' service, I've remembered this book among hundreds and thousands of others which I've read at the same period. Although at the time it was seen by me more like an action adventure, and not as political manifesto of the author. Over time, of course, the book is perceived quite differently, and I fully agree with and support the decision of the publisher, who refused to publish the "Troopers" for young audience, because instead of novel of professional science fiction writer, young readers would've received novel of an unprofessional philosopher. Although, I must stress this again, at my teen age book had the opposite effect on me than what was intended by the author.

The irony is that the same story has happened with the adaptation of "Troopers" by Verhoeven - what the director intended as a vicious satire on militarism in general and in particular on Heinlein's book, which was almost forgotten, served as the book's advertising. Despite the different tones, narrative styles and incorporated ideas, in an artistic sense I would call the book and the movie to be equal. If the book is more sincere and deep, actual science fiction and social modelling, the film is more social satire, caricature and propaganda poster on the verge of trash. It is difficult to say which is better or worse, because they are completely different art expressions. And although to me either Heinlein's idealistic military meritocracy and Verhoeven's leftist pacifism are equally unsympathetic, I can not help but admit that aesthetically I like both the novel and the film - each in its own way. That, of course, does not negate the madness of the inflated to absurd ideas underlying both works. Actually, I would advise to watch a movie to those who are able to separate the ideological background from the artistic value of these works. After all, the movie has a fascinating story, there are intense action, beautiful actors, love melodrama, as well as an original, colorful cartoon aesthetic and political satire.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

drlowdon

Sep 7, 2017

Starship Troopers follows Johnny Rico through his training and eventual deployment in a futuristic interstellar war against an insect like species known as Arachnids.

Upon release back in 1997 it received a lot of negative reviews but has since gone on to be a bit of a cult favourite thanksStarship Troopers follows Johnny Rico through his training and eventual deployment in a futuristic interstellar war against an insect like species known as Arachnids.

Upon release back in 1997 it received a lot of negative reviews but has since gone on to be a bit of a cult favourite thanks to its biting satire of military propaganda (something a lot of critics either missed or apparently didn’t like!) and over the top comic book style violence. And of course Neil Patrick Harris always helps any movie or TV show.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

Delta_Assault

Sep 28, 2011

I gotta say... I **** hate this goddamn movie. It's sad, cause I remembering being a kid, sitting in a theater and first seeing the trailer for the movie back in the day, and thinking that this was gonna be the greatest movie ever made. Because it looked like everything a 12 year old boyI gotta say... I **** hate this goddamn movie. It's sad, cause I remembering being a kid, sitting in a theater and first seeing the trailer for the movie back in the day, and thinking that this was gonna be the greatest movie ever made. Because it looked like everything a 12 year old boy would like. It was a huge galactic war against hordes of giant vicious aliens and there were enormous military starships and marines with big guns and they use nukes and there's blood and guts and heroism. What's not to like, right? It basically looked like a 90s version of James Cameron's Aliens, with all the advantages of modern CGI (This was back in 1997, back before we learned how **** CGI could be). Also, I read the book, and really liked it. So... big big fan and uh, eagerly awaited the release.

And then it finally came out and... man, it was NOT a 90s version of James Cameron's Aliens. Not at all. It was this ****ty mess with horrible acting from terrible yet attractive actors and this silly comedic tone and idiotic tactics like parking your starships all together so they're sitting ducks and crashing into one another with the slightest provocation. And uh, Dina Meyers was flat.

Probably the most disappointing film I've ever seen.… Expand

0 of 29 users found this helpful029

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9	#9 Most Discussed Movie of 1997
18	#18 Most Shared Movie of 1997