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Dean (6921 KP) rated The Toybox (2018) in Movies
Feb 2, 2019
It sounded like it had potential but this is a very low budget indie Horror offering that doesn't amount to much. Despite Denise Richards and Mischa Barton starring in this even they can't raise it to an average level. With a similar idea to Christine mainly but only the final 20 minutes were OK. One to avoid unless you like low budget stuff.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Starship Troopers (1997) in Movies
Sep 22, 2020
Do you know what? Starship Troopers is a 5 star film and there's nothing anyone can say to convince me otherwise.
It's 90s sci-fi at its absolute best.
It has a great cast - Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards, Michael Ironside, Clancy Brown, Dina Meyer, Neil Patrick-Harris, Jake Busey - none of them feel replaceable.
It has special effects that genuinely still.homd up over 20 years later, and also a fuck tonne of genuinely horrific practical effects - some of the violence in Starship Troopers is next level, in true Paul Verhoeven style.
It has a corny yet airtight script, it's suitably cheesy when it wants to be, and wonderfully satirical throughout.
It's also got a top tier score courtesy of Basil Poledouris.
I saw this film when I was in my early teens, a few years after it released and it has always stuck with me since. Starship Troopers is perfection, fight me.
It's 90s sci-fi at its absolute best.
It has a great cast - Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards, Michael Ironside, Clancy Brown, Dina Meyer, Neil Patrick-Harris, Jake Busey - none of them feel replaceable.
It has special effects that genuinely still.homd up over 20 years later, and also a fuck tonne of genuinely horrific practical effects - some of the violence in Starship Troopers is next level, in true Paul Verhoeven style.
It has a corny yet airtight script, it's suitably cheesy when it wants to be, and wonderfully satirical throughout.
It's also got a top tier score courtesy of Basil Poledouris.
I saw this film when I was in my early teens, a few years after it released and it has always stuck with me since. Starship Troopers is perfection, fight me.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Starship Troopers (1997) in Movies
Feb 22, 2018
Not so much an adaptation of Heinlein's novel as a parody of it, Verhoeven's SF spectacular works equally well as storming action movie and outrageous black satire. Johnny Rico (Van Dien) joins the army for the wrong reasons, finds himself rising through the ranks as Earth provokes a war with the invertebrate Arachnids and finds itself facing a much more dangerous opponent than expected.
Verhoeven displays his usual uncanny ability to turn a movie on a dime - one second this is a deliberately cheesy deadpan comedy about growing up in a fascist utopia, the next it's delivering a genuinely thrilling action sequence that pushes the boundaries of CGI. Much, much smarter than it initially appears - even the decision to cast good-looking but essentially wooden young people (e.g. Denise Richards) in the lead roles seems calculated to make a point. Michael Ironside is genuinely good as the grizzled old soldier; another belting score from Basil Poledouris. Also weirdly prescient of the way the US and its media reacted after 9/11. Thoroughly enjoyable on many levels.
Verhoeven displays his usual uncanny ability to turn a movie on a dime - one second this is a deliberately cheesy deadpan comedy about growing up in a fascist utopia, the next it's delivering a genuinely thrilling action sequence that pushes the boundaries of CGI. Much, much smarter than it initially appears - even the decision to cast good-looking but essentially wooden young people (e.g. Denise Richards) in the lead roles seems calculated to make a point. Michael Ironside is genuinely good as the grizzled old soldier; another belting score from Basil Poledouris. Also weirdly prescient of the way the US and its media reacted after 9/11. Thoroughly enjoyable on many levels.
David McK (3180 KP) rated The World Is Not Enough (1999) in Movies
Aug 21, 2022 (Updated Aug 19, 2023)
Brosnan's best Bond movie?
For me, the Pierce Brosnan era was the last time we had a 'proper' Bond movie - the Daniel Craig movies, for my tastes, are just too dour (even if they are probably closer to Flemings original creation)
Of the four Bond movies that Brosnan starred in - Goldeneye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World is Not Enough and Die Another Day - this is, generally, my pick for the best (although I keep see-sawing between this one and Goldeneye).
I'll freely admit that the fact that we're supposed to believe Denise Richards is a nuclear physicist is ludicrous (to say the least), but Sophie Marceau's Elektra King more than makes up for it, as does the presence of Robert Carlyle, and even Judi Dench's 'M' who seems somewhat softer, more matriarchal - but still with a backbone of steel - than her later appearances in the Daniel Craig era.
This is the one that also sees Desmond Llewelyn's Q finally bow out of the picture, handing over to John Cleese's 'R' and - for my money - is also the last time Bond was allowed to be, well, fun!
Of the four Bond movies that Brosnan starred in - Goldeneye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World is Not Enough and Die Another Day - this is, generally, my pick for the best (although I keep see-sawing between this one and Goldeneye).
I'll freely admit that the fact that we're supposed to believe Denise Richards is a nuclear physicist is ludicrous (to say the least), but Sophie Marceau's Elektra King more than makes up for it, as does the presence of Robert Carlyle, and even Judi Dench's 'M' who seems somewhat softer, more matriarchal - but still with a backbone of steel - than her later appearances in the Daniel Craig era.
This is the one that also sees Desmond Llewelyn's Q finally bow out of the picture, handing over to John Cleese's 'R' and - for my money - is also the last time Bond was allowed to be, well, fun!
Mike Wilder (20 KP) rated Starship Troopers (1997) in Movies
May 30, 2018
It is a great film and in the category of action Sci-Fi one of the best.
Contains spoilers, click to show
Starship Troopers is a great Science Fiction movie. It is based on a book by Robert A. Heinlein. In the future, mankind is exploring the universe and encroach upon the territory of alien bugs and war begins. The insects are only responding to a threat of their territory and are trying to fight off the invaders. The clever use of insects as the aliens makes this film stand apart from other space movies.
The cast is great. It is made up of great actors, many of who at the time were relatively unknown including Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Jake Busey and Denise Richards, mixed with established stars like Clancy Brown, Neil Patrick Harris and Michael Ironside, taking minor roles. The star of the movie is hard to choose between Dina Meyer, Casper Van Dien (both of who suffered injuries while making this, Casper broke a rib and Dina suffered a concussion) and the bugs! However I am going to have to say the bugs are the stars. The use of real and CGI in this film is great. The bugs are a formidable foe and a very creative one. They are numerous and relentless. Cleverly the use of different species of bugs makes for some great surprises.
The battles are epic and bloody. This is not a film for the squeamish, every battle is like a futuristic opening scene to Saving Private Ryan. People die in horrific ways, bodies and limbs are ripped apart and even main characters don't always survive, something I always appreciate in a film as it keeps the viewer guessing.
But it is not all about war, there is a good amount of comedy and even romance in this movie. It is a great film and in the category of action Sci-Fi one of the best.
The cast is great. It is made up of great actors, many of who at the time were relatively unknown including Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Jake Busey and Denise Richards, mixed with established stars like Clancy Brown, Neil Patrick Harris and Michael Ironside, taking minor roles. The star of the movie is hard to choose between Dina Meyer, Casper Van Dien (both of who suffered injuries while making this, Casper broke a rib and Dina suffered a concussion) and the bugs! However I am going to have to say the bugs are the stars. The use of real and CGI in this film is great. The bugs are a formidable foe and a very creative one. They are numerous and relentless. Cleverly the use of different species of bugs makes for some great surprises.
The battles are epic and bloody. This is not a film for the squeamish, every battle is like a futuristic opening scene to Saving Private Ryan. People die in horrific ways, bodies and limbs are ripped apart and even main characters don't always survive, something I always appreciate in a film as it keeps the viewer guessing.
But it is not all about war, there is a good amount of comedy and even romance in this movie. It is a great film and in the category of action Sci-Fi one of the best.
Darren (1599 KP) rated Starship Troopers (1997) in Movies
Jul 7, 2019 (Updated Nov 25, 2019)
Verdict: Instant Classic
Story: Starship Troopers starts in a world where humans are not at war with a bug planet across the galaxy, students and young people are expected to join the federal service to become citizens. Johnny Rico (Can Dien), Dizzy (Meyer), Carl (Harris) and Carmen (Richards) all have their sights set on enlisting, Johnny and Dizzy are mobile infantry, while Carmen has bigger sights of being a pilot and Carl has his sights set on military intelligence, with his mind reading ability.
While Rico is going through his training and constant battles with the flashy Ace (Busey) battling for squad leader, Carmen is flourishing in the flight academy, but this is just training, now they must go into combat against the giant deadly bugs.
Thoughts on Starship Troopers
Characters – Johnny Rico comes from a wealthy family that want to send him to Harvard, but he has other plans, he wants to become a citizen, which means he must join the military, here he excels in training until a mistakes sees him disgraced. He loses his family and will remaining fighting under a new squad leader, proving himself as one of the best soldiers in the infantry. Dizzy has spent her school life crushing over Rico, she follows him to mobile infantry, proving herself as one of the best soldiers. Carmen is the girlfriend of Johnny’s through school, she has set her sights on becoming a pilot in the Starfleet, something her grades could make easy for her, she proves an asset to the fleet rising up the ranks with ease. Ace is the rival of Rico’s in training, they both want squad leader and with the rivalry they become brothers in arms.
Performances – Casper Van Dien in the leading role makes himself remember forever with his character, this will define his career without question. Dina Meyer shines too, while this cast is fantastic and understands just what movie they are in. Denise Richard has been criticised before, but here she works in the modern future world and Jake Busey add more comedy as times to his role.
Story – The story here takes us to the future where humans are waged in a war with bugs from across the galaxy, we see how the soldiers and pilots are dealing with the increasing threat they are going to be facing. This story does present itself in a satirical look at the military behaviour and how it can become a propaganda machine forcing young people into joining under false promises, it also shows how humans will always look to conquer another area no matter how outnumbered or out of place they are in their invasion behaviour. Plenty of this story over accentuates the idea of what is going on, which will add moments of comedy.
Action/Sci-Fi – The action in the film is war style military attacks with laser bullets flying literally everywhere and the bugs ripping bodies apart. The sci-fi side of the film shows us just how far the human race has come with transportation across the galaxy, despite not giving them the brains when it comes to war.
Settings – The world created is fantastic with Earth looking futuristic without being all that different, while the bug planet feels like a battleground.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are also flawless, with a mix of practical and CGI which barely look like they have dated even after being over 20 years old.
Scene of the Movie – The first battle shows the scale of the war.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Nothing really.
Final Thoughts – This is one of the best sci-fi films you will see, it is wildly over the top and doesn’t miss a beat with style that knows just what the film is meant to be.
Overall: Fun, Brilliant and Entertaining.
Story: Starship Troopers starts in a world where humans are not at war with a bug planet across the galaxy, students and young people are expected to join the federal service to become citizens. Johnny Rico (Can Dien), Dizzy (Meyer), Carl (Harris) and Carmen (Richards) all have their sights set on enlisting, Johnny and Dizzy are mobile infantry, while Carmen has bigger sights of being a pilot and Carl has his sights set on military intelligence, with his mind reading ability.
While Rico is going through his training and constant battles with the flashy Ace (Busey) battling for squad leader, Carmen is flourishing in the flight academy, but this is just training, now they must go into combat against the giant deadly bugs.
Thoughts on Starship Troopers
Characters – Johnny Rico comes from a wealthy family that want to send him to Harvard, but he has other plans, he wants to become a citizen, which means he must join the military, here he excels in training until a mistakes sees him disgraced. He loses his family and will remaining fighting under a new squad leader, proving himself as one of the best soldiers in the infantry. Dizzy has spent her school life crushing over Rico, she follows him to mobile infantry, proving herself as one of the best soldiers. Carmen is the girlfriend of Johnny’s through school, she has set her sights on becoming a pilot in the Starfleet, something her grades could make easy for her, she proves an asset to the fleet rising up the ranks with ease. Ace is the rival of Rico’s in training, they both want squad leader and with the rivalry they become brothers in arms.
Performances – Casper Van Dien in the leading role makes himself remember forever with his character, this will define his career without question. Dina Meyer shines too, while this cast is fantastic and understands just what movie they are in. Denise Richard has been criticised before, but here she works in the modern future world and Jake Busey add more comedy as times to his role.
Story – The story here takes us to the future where humans are waged in a war with bugs from across the galaxy, we see how the soldiers and pilots are dealing with the increasing threat they are going to be facing. This story does present itself in a satirical look at the military behaviour and how it can become a propaganda machine forcing young people into joining under false promises, it also shows how humans will always look to conquer another area no matter how outnumbered or out of place they are in their invasion behaviour. Plenty of this story over accentuates the idea of what is going on, which will add moments of comedy.
Action/Sci-Fi – The action in the film is war style military attacks with laser bullets flying literally everywhere and the bugs ripping bodies apart. The sci-fi side of the film shows us just how far the human race has come with transportation across the galaxy, despite not giving them the brains when it comes to war.
Settings – The world created is fantastic with Earth looking futuristic without being all that different, while the bug planet feels like a battleground.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are also flawless, with a mix of practical and CGI which barely look like they have dated even after being over 20 years old.
Scene of the Movie – The first battle shows the scale of the war.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Nothing really.
Final Thoughts – This is one of the best sci-fi films you will see, it is wildly over the top and doesn’t miss a beat with style that knows just what the film is meant to be.
Overall: Fun, Brilliant and Entertaining.