Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Starship Troopers Blu-ray Movie Review

Fight the bugs! Lose a leg! Become a citizen! Buy the Blu-ray!

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 1, 2008

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In a future where humankind is ruled by a quasi-Fascist regime, where the right to vote is granted only to those who serve in the armed forces, where "service guarantees citizenship," and where only teenagers who could model for the latest fashion magazines seem to exist, humanity is at war with bugs. These are not your garden variety bugs, either. People are not enlisting to combat the mounds of fire ants that pop up in your back yard, the bees that sting when you rattle an unseen hive, the black widows that live in the darkest corners of your basement, or scorpions that visit Tucson's back porches. These are bugs the size of Volkswagen Bugs, or larger (in some cases much larger) and they're out to tear you in two. The drones can withstand a magazine's worth of ammunition or more, and keep coming. The larger ones possess posterior-positioned plasma-projection artillery that can devastate an entire fleet hovering miles above a planet. Their leaders can suck out your brains and glean your every thought. It's up to Hollywood's hottest teens of 1997 to save the universe, and you can be sure there will be plenty of ripped bodies (no, not the kind you get from years in the gym), severed heads, splattered brains, spent shell casings, nuclear explosions, destroyed cities, ravaged fleets, and Nazi-esque, well, everything, before all is said and done. Bring your .50 caliber rifle, leave the Raid, and join the Starship Troopers.

I said you should pick his brain, LT, but not literally!

Johnny Rico (Casper Van Dien, Sleepy Hollow) is an idealistic product of the system, eager to become a full-fledged "citizen" of the Federation by joining the armed forces and following in the footsteps of one of his high school instructors, Mr. Rasczak (Michael Ironside, Total Recall). He also has ulterior motives to join. The girl of his dreams, the intelligent and beautiful Carmen Ibañez (Denise Richards, Wild Things) has signed up and her high math scores have her on the fast track to becoming a pilot. Another compatriot, the intellectual and psychic Carl (Neil Patrick Harris, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle) is bound for "games and theory," the intelligence division of the service. Meanwhile, Dizzy (Dina Meyer, Saw), who has her eye on Johnny, joins up to stay close to him in hopes of winning him away from Carmen. The story follows each cadet's training as they grow further apart from one another and continue to foster an idealistic yet foolhardy view of the world, unaware of the danger they face both from the society in which they live, and from the bugs they'll be sent to destroy. Their wake-up call comes during their military training when a large-scale, interplanetary 9/11 scenario devastates Earth and their already tarnished view of the clean, utopian society in which they reside completely falls apart. Or does it?

If Starship Troopers seems to be some sort of convoluted Nazi Germany meets the future meets "Beverly Hills 90210" meets Full Metal Jacket meets Eight Legged Freaks on Major League steroids, you'd be on the right track, but like any good Sci-Fi Paul Verhoeven (RoboCop) film, there is much more to the film than violence and action. On the surface, Starship Troopers is a violent, gore-fest of a movie about a war with advanced arachnids and bugs not of this world, but director Paul Verhoeven leaves nothing to our imagination, either with regards to the brutality of the conflict or the plainly obvious social message the movie showcases. Known for both of the features so prevalent throughout the film -- social commentary and extreme violence -- Verhoeven has another futuristic Science Fiction masterpiece on his hands, and like RoboCop and Total Recall before, Starship Troopers is an amalgamation of vision, violence, and vigilance that, on the whole, entertains but also hearkens back to the times and trials of Nazi-occupied Europe where Verhoeven grew up and forewarns audiences of the dangers of embracing such a society that seems utopian on the surface but can just as easily disintegrate into a dystopian disaster.

Michael Ironside's character, Rasczak, may not be the film's central character, but his ideals are the driving force behind the film. Early in the film, using the classroom setting as an indoctrination center, Rasczak teaches that violence solves every problem, and says that pacifism solves nothing. "People that forget that always pay," he says. The rest of the movie will go about proving him wrong. Certainly Rasczak has paid a steep price, the loss of an arm, but the ideals he espouses seem to prove contradictory to his own life, evidenced by the stub that was once his arm, and the mechanical hand he employs later in the film. Rasczak's status as a severely maimed individual, still hanging onto the "violence solves everything" credo, shows the deep, pervasive brainwashing that permeates such a society. His character is the mouthpiece for the combined political and militaristic system seen in the movie, and he later says, "figuring things out for yourself is the only freedom anyone really has." Indeed, this future vision of Earth is one with few freedoms and no privacy, evidenced both by the co-ed showers at the barracks and by the 6-foot screen that so prominently displays your academic record for all the student body to see. Little do these young, still malleable minds truly know of the real world. When they meet a man who was also maimed in battle, he proclaims their idealism is for naught and that they are nothing more than "fresh meat for the grinder." "The Mobile Infantry made me the man I am today," he says, revealing not only an artificial hand but a torso with no legs. He serves as the foil to Rasczak, but his character is brushed aside as quickly as the passing "big deal" glances shared between the recruits when they meet him. Will the violence and despair of a seemingly futile war change these character's outlooks, or was the real damage done long before they were old enough to fire a weapon?

Starship Troopers Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Starship Troopers explodes onto Blu-ray with an exceptional 1080p, 1.85:1 framed transfer. The film has a wonderful grain structure that plays nicely with the bright, shiny environments we see throughout the movie, especially those on Earth. Detail in every regard is absolutely first-rate. Faces show every pore, mole, and blemish (yes, even these teens have a few blemishes). Clothing looks exceptional. Close-ups of the various gray military uniforms show every stitch and the texture of the fabric. Colors are bright but never overblown. "Natural" is the rule rather than diluted or overly bright. Many surfaces and locales, like the football field seen in chapter two, have a plastic, almost fake look to them, but that's the style of the movie -- the almost too perfect, clean, and handsome environments are meant to contrast with the brutal, disgusting, bloody hell that the troopers descend into on several occasions as they battle the bugs. Flesh tones are spectacular, and black levels are solid as well.

No review of Starship Troopers would be complete without mention of the brutality and gore strewn throughout the movie. The graphic violence in the film stands out as incredibly elaborate and with vivid, stomach-churning detail. The slaughtered Mormons whose settlement was devastated by arachnids shows excruciating detail in 1080p, and anyone without a doubly-strong iron stomach will not want to watch this film, especially on Blu-ray. Take a look at the two men who are burned alive at the end of the first battle on Planet P in chapter twelve. I noticed detail I never saw before on the DVD version. For example, one can see the eye dangling from the socket of the engulfed-in-flames trooper on the right. Granted, most of the gore is masked by the flames, but 1080p high definition reveals the little details like never before. The transfer does exhibit a few extremely minor blemishes that keep it from being perfect. Color banding was an issue in one of the "FedNet" commercials seen early on. The print also exhibits minimal and barely noticeable splotches, pops, and nicks, but so miniscule are they that the issue is hardly worth worrying about. A few effects shots stand out like a sore thumb here and there, evidenced by Rico standing in front of a star field around the 1:40:00 mark. Nevertheless, Starship Troopers looks absolutely marvelous on Blu-ray. It's always been a fine looking movie on DVD, and this Blu-ray edition is a remarkable upgrade. It also comes as close to perfection as you can get without receiving a perfect score.

Starship Troopers Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The weak link on this disc is the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It still sounds rather good, but compared to the rest of the package, it feels slightly underpowered. Dialogue is perfectly clear and discernible throughout the film, and ambience is excellent. When class is dismissed at the beginning of the film, we can hear the announcements over the school's speakers in the background, creating a seamless environment. Parts of the audio sound somewhat subdued, evidenced by the party the characters attend in chapter three. The music sounds wonderful, but is toned down to make dialogue audible. It might be a bit unrealistic, but it makes the scene more watchable and meaningful. Gunfire, too, seems somewhat subdued and reserved. It's not as ear-piercing and powerful as I expected it to be. A bombing run on the bugs in chapter 10 sounds good, with some solid bass and directionality from the fly over of the fighters, but the scene, and most of the track, still lack top-flight fidelity, dynamics, and punch. The subsequent attack of the tanker bug is exciting but fails to overly impress. The battle at the compound in chapter 12 may be the most entertaining listen of the movie. The heavy machine guns pack a punch, the flying bugs zoom in from the back to the front, and the excitement of the scene is elevated thanks to the aggressive sound mix. This is a solid, engaging listen, but one that felt somewhat reserved.

Starship Troopers Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Starship Troopers blasts onto Blu-ray with an amazing supplemental package that is one of the most comprehensive and technically advanced to date. We start things off with a feature called Blu-Wizard. Viewers can select the special features the want to see, play the movie, and have only those special features they chose interrupt the film and play at pre-designated timeframes. All of the features -- Screen Tests, Deleted Scenes, Scene Deconstruction, Storyboard Comparisons, FX Comparisons, Know Your Foe, Featurettes, and Death From Above -- are selectable from this feature and integrated into the movie watching experience. Of note is that all of these supplements are accessible further down in the special features menu to view in a more traditional manner. Two audio commentary tracks are included, the first featuring director Paul Verhoeven and writer Ed Neumeier. Verhoeven is always good for an engaging, exciting, and surprising commentary track. The director delves straight into the political and social undertones of the movie and Neumeier discusses how World War II propaganda films served as the visual template for the film's atmosphere. Say what you will about Verhoeven, his movies, or his politics, but the man is clearly highly intelligent and makes movies that perfectly express the message he's trying to get across, and in this commentary track, he does a superb job of defending this film. This commentary track is one of the top few I've heard, ranking right up there with the two tracks found on the First Blood disc. Rarely is a commentary so full of relevant and eye-opening information. Track number two again features Verhoeven, this time accompanied by actors Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer, and Neil Patrick Harris. With the actors in tow, this is more of a traditional commentary track that is less in-depth than the first one, but entertaining nevertheless. More standard-fare and throwaway comments rule the day with some rather long gaps of dead air, but this remains a recommended listen for major fans of the film.

FedNet Mode is a picture-in-picture feature that frames the image in a FedNet-style frame. A small box appears at the bottom right hand corner of your screen that features numerous interviews with cast and crew. Much of the information is similar to what we've heard in the commentary tracks, but with a fresh spin and more in-depth discussion and thoughts on the meaning behind the film, along with more typical information such as casting, special effects, and the like. Random facts about people, places, and things also appear to flesh out our knowledge of the film and make for an excellent feature. Recruitment Test is next. This 1080p feature asks various questions about pieces of information that can be gleaned from watching the film, sometimes intermixed with clips from the film. When the test is complete, you will be assigned a score and a military rank. Not having seen the film in some time and playing the game before watching the movie, I only managed to attain the rank of Corporal.

Put Yourself in the Movie allows users who have a Blu-ray player connected to the Internet to upload a photo of themselves onto the disc's BD-Live page and turn on the feature to see themselves in the film. Death From Above (480p, 31:57) is next, an excellent making-of piece that begins with a look at the life and novel of Starship Troopers author Robert A. Heinlein. The challenge of retaining the original intent of the novel while adding action, violence, love stories, and more is discussed, as are various elements deleted from novel to film for budgetary and practical reasons. The piece also delves into casting, director Paul Verhoeven's style, the involvement of military advisor Dale Dye, the film's score, and more. Three featurettes are included on this disc. The Making of 'Starship Troopers' (480p, 7:58) is an entertaining piece told in FedNet style and provides the most basic of information on the film that, if you have watched and listened to all the supplements already listed, is completely superfluous. The Spaceships of 'Starship Troopers' (480p, 3:26) looks at the design of the various spaceships seen in the film and the "orchestra" of lights and special effects that make the scenes and effects believable. Bug Test Film: Don't Look Now (480p, 1:13) is a fun early screen test of how some of the bugs look and move.

Moving along, Know Your Foe (480p) is an introduction to several species of bug -- Warrior (5:13), Tanker (2:17), Hopper (2:30), Plasma (1:03), and Brain (6:01). FX Comparisons (480p) is a series of nine sequences from the film that show the unfinished edition on your screen alongside the final, effects-filled version in a picture-in-picture window. Included are Fednet Klendathu (1:04), Censored! (0:13), Carmen Pilots Fleet Trainer (1:18), Asteroid Grazing (1:30), Klendathu (8:36), Rico Rides Tanker Bug (1:09), Whiskey Outpost (7:04), Wreck of the Rodger Young (2:55), and The Brain Bug (5:14). Three scenes are available with 480p storyboard comparisons, again with the storyboard on your screen with the final scene playing in a small picture-in-picture window. Included are Asteroid Grazing (1:51), Klendathu Landing (6:51), and Hopper Canyon (2:31). Scene Deconstruction With Paul Verhoeven features the director taking us into the creation of two scenes -- Tanker Bug Ride (480p, 4:06) and Rodger Young Destroyed (3:29). Five deleted scenes (480p, 8:00), two screen tests entitled Johnny & Carmen's #1 (1:49) and Johnny & Carmen's #2 (1:53), and trailers for Starship Troopers 3: Marauder, Men in Black, CJ7, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind conclude this exhaustive supplemental package.

Starship Troopers Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Starship Troopers is trademark Verhoeven with its take-it-or-leave-it, you either get it or you don't political undertone. He's one of the under-appreciated filmmakers of the past couple of decades, probably because of some of his more recent and less-than-well-received flops like Showgirls and Hollow Man. Nevertheless, when he was on his game with Starship Troopers, Total Recall, RoboCop, and even Basic Instinct, the quality of his movies and the satire contained therein was hard to beat. Starship Troopers is as good as any of his other classic works and is critical viewing for both intellectual audiences and action-oriented movie fans. Sony's Blu-ray release of Starship Troopers is astounding. With pristine video, a solid lossless audio mix, and a wealth of supplemental features, this disc needs to find a home in every serious Blu-ray collection. Highly recommended!