Iron Sky

The clamshell box for the sci-fi action comedy "Iron Sky" boasts that it's a "Worldwide Box Office Phenomenon." I'm unclear exactly what this phenomenon is, except for maybe the fact that like fifteen different countries helped finance it. I mean, when its initial UK theatrical release was only one day, you have to wonder how on earth this is supposed to be a phenomenon.

I will say that this film - about Nazis who live on the moon and attack earth in spaceships in the year 2018, yet don't know what an iPhone is - is a lot more fun in concept than it is watching it. The funny thing is, with a no-name cast and elaborate special effects that are both amazing and not-so-great in equal measure, it's not a terribly made film. The acting, while appropriately over-the-top, isn't awful either, mostly in part because they don't have to act super realistically. The trouble is, the filmmakers including director Timo Vuorensola think they are making something pretty clever, when in actuality, it doesn't live up to expectations. Sure, its budget looks massive, but the story is weak and without enough of the expected crazy shenanigans, it just ends up being sort of dull.

There are moments of "ahhh this is the type of lunacy we're gonna get" - like when two characters get sucked out of an airlock while in an enormous Nazi facility on the moon (shaped like a swastika). As they are gripping the edge so as not to be sucked out into the vacuum of space, the female character's clothes rip half off. It's a bit of silliness that the film needed. Stephanie Paul as the President of the United States does a humorous take on Sarah Palin and Peta Sergeant as a military advisor has her moments. But all in all, it's more interesting visually than an interesting plot or a send-up. That's disappointing, because with a tag line that states "The Reich Strikes Back," you should be in for something special. Unfortunately, the script needed a few tweaks to make it a true box office phenomenon.

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