Movie Review: Iron Sky (2012)

Iron Sky (2012) directed by Timo Vuorensola

Here's a little Bronte break for those who need it! It sort of follows from the 1940s weekend though, right?

MPAA rating

R for language and some violence

ZPAA rating

Teens and up

Gore level

2 out of 10--One instance of bloody coughing and one head shot with bloody spray.

Other offensive content

Lots of bad language; some sex references; unsympathetic portrayal of world leaders, especially the President of the United States (maybe that isn't so offensive!).

Synopsis & Review

What if the Nazis built a base on the far side of the moon and evacuated some people there just before the end of World War II? And they were finally ready to come back and take over the Earth in 2018? And the first American astronaut captured by them was black? This premise is the sort of crazy comedy that appeals to me. At the end of our LoveFilm free month, I watched this movie on their streaming service.

The movie starts well with many broad comic strokes. Astronauts are sent to the moon by the President of the United States (who looks and talks like Sarah Palin) in a bid to raise her profile and help her re-election. So naturally the black guy is a model, not an actual astronaut. He'll look good in political advertisements. The actual astronaut on the trip scans around for Helium-3, a mythic power source that the American government wants. He is killed almost immediately by the moon Nazis, whose base he has discovered. The Nazis grab the black astronaut (though they can't tell his skin color because of his helmet) and take him back for questioning. The guy who captured him is planning a coup so he can be the new fuehrer on the moon base. This wannabe Adolph also has a schoolteacher girlfriend who becomes involved in the plot. Hijinks ensue.

The comedy works pretty well for the first half, mocking the shallowness of both the Nazis and the American president and even the United Nations. Exploring the moon base with its odd mixture of retro and futuristic technology (they still have gigantic, room sized computers in 2018!) and the silly Nazi culture (they have a ten-minute version of Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator which is edited down to make it look like Chaplin admires Hitler). Some of the Nazis eventually sneak to Earth to get more advanced technology (e.g. cell phones) to complete their fleet of flying saucers.

The second half of the film runs out of steam. The Sarah Palin gags just repeat themselves and aren't funny anymore. The launch of the Nazi attack on the earth is pretty cool-looking but it peters out too. The movie becomes formulaic and uninspired, which is a shame since it showed so much promise in the beginning.

If you want, you could watch half the movie. About the time they go see The Great Dictator on earth is when you can switch off. Nothing more to see here!

Movie Trailer