Starship Troopers
A+
11/8/1997 1pm Secaucus
One of Robert A. Heinlein's most popular novels is given the deluxe,
ultra-premium treatment in this superbly done cinematic rendition of
his coming-of-age tale.  Set in the future, our young hero, Johnny Rico,
signs up for Federal Service right after high school graduation, hoping
to impress his favorite Lust Object, Carmen Ibanez, who has signed up
for the service.  Their friends also sign up.  Carmen gets chosen for
astrogator pilot, thanks to her grades.  Their friend Carl, a genius, gets
military intelligence.  Our hero, full of heart, but with poor grades, is
stuck with mobile infantry.  In this future, only people who serve a term
in the Federal Service get citizenship.  Meanwhile, a war is going on,
against ugly bug-like creatures that slice of limbs and chop off heads,
making for very bloody scenes.  The movie is not so much about the war,
however, as it is about Johnny Rico, and how he matures into a man, and
learns the true meaning of citizenship.  The special effects in this film
are completely top-notch, among the best ever done.  This is partly thanks
to Industrial Light & Magic, which gives us a preview of what the upcoming
Star Wars films will be like.  Reading the credits is quite an experience,
as over half are concerned with computer people and special effects artists,
job descriptions that did not exist twenty years ago.  And for the first
time, which pleases me to no end, the systems administrators are listed
in the credits.  It's very interesting to see what the movie industry has
become, and to have people I know in the credits now.  The movie itself
is one of the best this year; definitely top-notch, and I could not find
any faults with it.  I loved it, it was an exhilirating experience, and
that may be partly due to the fat that Heinlein is one of my favorite
authors, and I can only hope more of this stories are given this treatment.