I kept watching this vile little piece of fascist trash hoping that eventually it would reach some sort of understanding about the horrors of war and the evils inherent in a totalitarian police state. Instead we get the genuinely idolatrous glorification of lost limbs, wrecked lives and Hitler-esque ideology. What first appears to be a tongue-in-cheek poke at Triumph of the Will in the opening ends up seeming more like a loving tribute to Nazi cinema. Even the expensive special effects accomplish little besides cultivating sympathy for the bad guys (and considering that the bad guys were giant bugs, it took a good deal of unintentional doing to make them sympathetic). Many years ago, in a single page of poetry, Wilfred Owen dismissed this whole dulce et decorum est notion as an “old lie.” This shiny, new movie rings with that selfsame falseness. Wish I’d skipped it
[Though I don’t want to re-write reviews from years ago, I admit that I missed the point on this one. After re-watching it recently (2022), I see now that the whole thing appears to be a parody of fascist action movies. So my opinion has shifted from “offensive trash” to “a long way to go for a small joke.” It still isn’t an experience I’d recommend.]
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