Review: Iron Sky

Year: 2012
Director: Timo Vuorensola
Screenplay: Michael Kalesniko, Timo Vuorensola
Starring: Julia Dietze, Gotz Otto, Christopher Kibry, Peta Sergeant, Udo Kier

When the film you're watching; begins with a group of school children explaining that a segment of the Nazi army, escaped to the Moon in 1945, and have lived there plotting a vengeful come back, you are clearly not watching for any emotional weight. In fact there is a good chance that you're watching this with the likes of Hobo with a shotgun in your cinematic collection.

Iron Sky's premise promises to be hit some fantastic B level heights. We start with a lunar expedition to promote re-election of a Sarah Palin type president. The tongue is embedded deep within the cheek here and for the most part it works. A plot strand which involves the films hero; a black model, being "whitefaced" to please the Aryan race is a button pusher, but the absurdity of the very notion and the context manages to coax a certain amount of humour out of the situation. When the film gets the tone right, laughs can be gained. And for me there were one or two loud ones.

Unfortunately the film seems to rely heavily on it's main conceit. Moon nazis are fine and all but the film needs more to be truly satisfying. I love the idea that Moon Nazis were given a shortened version of Chaplin's Great Dictator that coincides with their why of thinking. There's also the idea that the U.S president is willing to utilise nazis for speech making because quite simply, they are that damn good. But the film doesn't do enough with the ideas to keep the entertainment levels up.

I'm not too bothered about the films dubious plotting or hammy performances. As a B movie, that's part of the fun. The film also neatly references the likes of Dr Stranglelove for good measure. However, the likes of Black Dynamite and Hobo with a shotgun were happy to go in all guns blazing with their material and came up better. Iron Sky loses its edge by the second half and we are treated to dull space fights and weak conclusions. Iron Sky is mildly distracting, but far to often there is is the nagging feeling that more could be done with this. Moon Nazis coming back to reek havoc on the earth? I'm shocked they mined the well so shallow.