Not long after military forces from Earth think they've defeated an alien bug infestation on Pluto, the insects return and threaten our scientific outposts. Mobile infantry forces are sent back to Pluto for what is believed to be a little mop-up mission. Rookie troopers Johnny Rico (Rino Romano), Isabelle "Dizzy" Flores (Elizabeth Daily) and Carl Jenkins (Rider Strong) make their first military drop with "Razak's Roughnecks," an MI squad let by Lieutenant Jean Razak (Jamie Hanes), a legendary soldier known for his heroism. Shortly after they arrive, the Roughnecks discover that this is not just a simple "hit and run" mission... but the first battle of what's to become the first interstellar war.
Special Agent Matti
Not the movie but the game. In movie form. Actually, TV-episode form, but joined together to make a movie. And as the game was based on the movie, it's a movie of a TV series of a game of a movie. Cool, huh?
Roughnecks: The "Starship trooper" chronicles takes the movie to the next level down. The writers try very hard to create believable and sympathetic characters, given that they will only have two dimensions for the characters to appear on screen, and they go a long way toward making it work. The believability is cut short by the American accents but that's something everyone has to live with for now. Hollywood will be first against the wall when the revolution comes.
The effects are damned good for an all-CGI show... er, movie... with the facial modelling in particular showing some very distinct characteristics for the various characters, even if they do all move the same way. With CGI time is money. Oh, hang on, that's everything. Ummm... with CGI motion is money.
The action is a bit much to watch all at once, even for an action aficionado like me, and you can see the repetition of scenes from episode to episode that you wouldn't watching one episode a week, but there're some good ideas that aren't in the movie as well as some stuff that is.
All up, it's not as good as the film but no-one dies in this version, making it more suitable for the children of parents with hang-ups about their kids seeing people die.
Remember: it's for fun!
PG (Medium level violence)
97 minutes (1:37 hours)
DVD rental: 23 May 2001