Starship Troopers 3: Marauder returns the series to its action/war roots (after a diversion into horror in the first sequel) as Casper Van Dien returns as Johnny Rico back to kill more bugs. Jolene Blalock also stars.
Pros:
- It sure is nice to have Casper Van Dien back as Johnny Rico and I like that they've (somewhat) logically aged the character since the first movie's events. Van Dien is easily the best part of the movie.
- The story itself is silly but it's better to have the war against the bugs than the awful horror story of #2.
Cons:
- It's really a backhanded compliment to say that Casper Van Dien is the best thing about this movie...it's never a good thing if Casper Van Dien is the best thing about your movie.
- Jolene Blalock and all the supporting actors for that matter are simply terrible.
- Subtlety is not something one would often accuse Starship Troopers 1 director Paul Verhoeven of being good at, but Edward Neumeier (who wrote and directed this one) makes Verhoeven seem to have a master's touch. The film's politics are so blatant, and out of place, that it's hard to be anything but disappointed. The Federal Network 'news segments' intercut during the original film are the best parts of the movie, here they're nearly intolerable as Neumeier beats you over the head with his agenda.
Verdict:
- The original Starship Troopers is one of my all time favorite guilty pleasure movies (and I really don't think it's anywhere near as bad as its reputation) so I'm really disappointed at how this one turned out. The first sequel turned its back on the first film's formula, embracing a silly horror movie-esque scenario, and it turned out terribly. I was sadly disappointed that this 'return to form' failed to recapture really any of the magic of the first film. I can't really recommend this at all.
Overall Score: 3/10
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