“IRON SKY” Review

I saw a trailer for “IRON SKY” in 2008. What followed was about two hours of research and Facebook posting. How did I not know about this? When is it coming out? Who the hell is Timo Vuorensola? As it turned out, production started in 2006 and the trailer was made to help raise funding. It wasn’t until 2010 that the movie started shooting. Over 25 production companies contributed financing, along with fan donations which made up about 10% of the film’s budget. It may have taken 8 years, but I finally got to see the space-Nazi epic, “IRON SKY.”

“IRON SKY” chronicles a Nazi invasion of Earth from their secret colony on the dark side of the moon. They left Earth in 1945 to re-strategize and, in 2018, completed the ultimate weapon to conquer the inferior races. The only puzzle piece they are missing in their declaration of war is a suitable power source for their country-sized Nazi spaceship. As it turns out, iPhones (the no-need-for-corporate-licensing knock-off version) can supply the power needed. A mission to Earth to collect iPhones becomes the first step in their plan.

They retrieve the first iPhone from African American astronaut/model James Washington (Christopher Kirby). Then General Klaus Adler (Gotz Otto), the native ambassador Renate Richter (Julia Dietze), and recently dyed Arian James Washington head to Earth. Renate is confused by the Nazi mentality and believes it to be a message of peace to create a progressive nation by organized means. Adler knows better, but plays along. On Earth, the President of the United States (Stephanie Paul) finds out about the alleged space Nazis and uses their peaceful propaganda in her re-election compaign.

As you’ve probably assumed, “IRON SKY” is ridiculous. It stars a Caucasian black guy, displays a future with a Sarah Palin-like president, and hosts and invasion by fucking Moon Nazis. It’s hard to pinpoint its humor, because I think it has trouble deciding what kind of funny it actually is. There’s a fair amount of absurdism, political satire, slapstick, and self-awareness in its comedy. The variety of humor is pretty good in “IRON SKY,” but it was an overload on my mind. It’s just so crammed with tentative forms of humor and didn’t pull the trigger on one specific tone.

It seems that we’ve reached an age in cinema where small budgets can still produce massive SPX driven epics. The work load has increased for the smaller crew, but it’s possible to make movies like “The Mutant Chronicles.” “IRON SKY” looks sleek and never seems to scale back in scope just because of its budget. There’s a wide amount of locations with elaborate set and costume design, so all of the attention didn’t just go to CGI space battles. It was always distracting in the “Star Wars” prequels to see most of its non-action scenes to have two people not moving on a couch.

When all is said and done, “IRON SKY” does not live up to the hype I unfairly manifested from a trailer I saw in 2008. What it does do is deliver a solid comedic space epic with space Nazis. It’s a bit clunky in its pacing and could use some more decisive decisions on its tone, but it’s one hell of an accomplishment.

RANDOM THOUGHTS AND STUFF

- They’re apparently going through with a prequel and a sequel. I’m not sure how a sequel will work, but for a movie like this, they can do whatever the hell they want.

- I think my first comment when the movie ended was “delightfully racist.”

- SPOILER-Y ENDING THING: The credits pull back from Earth, to the moon, and then end on Mars. I didn’t see Mars occupied by any other country, but it did have a Sputnik-like satellite orbiting it. Space Soviet Union?

- Where’s Germany in the U.N. War Room?

- The asylum knock-off is called “Nazis from the Center of the Earth.”

“IRON SKY” Drinking Game:

- Take a shot when the president is on an elliptical.

- Take a shot when Wolfgang Kortzfleisch (Udo Kier) is called Hitler.