Ryan Shoots First: Iron Sky (2012)
Iron Sky has Nazis on the moon.
Are you still here? Was I not clear enough that Iron Sky has Nazi’s that fled to the moon after WW2? Ok, I suppose if you’re still here and not in a position to watch this film I’ll go ahead and give it a review.
In 1945 after the end of WW2, the Nazi’s fled Germany and headed to the Dark Side of the Moon. There they have slowly been biding their time before they can return to earth to take what is their glorious right. Iron Sky represents the best in what “B Movies” can be in today’s age. A subset of films where the team behind the CGI are immensely talented and can make quality graphics on a shoestring budget. With that take a ridiculous premise and quality overacting and much in the way Sharknado became a phenomenon Iron Sky is superior in every way.
The movie begins with a crazy marketing scheme by the Madam President of the United States, Which in a very 2012 thing, is a parody of Sarah Palin. She is up for reelection and thought sending a famous African American Supermodel to the Moon would be a great campaign move. But there is another hidden reason the Americans are on the moon and while there they encounter the hidden Nazi Moon base. Veteran actor Udo Kier ( he is the “I know that guy” anchor role) is the current Furer Wolfgang Kortzfleisch but the cast consists of primarily the African American Model/Astronaut James Washington (Christopher Kirby), curious Nazi schoolteacher Renate Richter (Julia Dietze) and future Furer Klaus Adler (Gotz Otto).
Iron Sky is entertaining and off the rails, it’s stylistic and you can tell actual care and thought was put into this “trash film”. The Nazi’s on the moon have a Steampunk aesthetic frozen in time from a technology standpoint, muted tones and gears, they are wowed by a modern cell phone’s computing power. Scenes shot on earth take on a more colorful palette. The acting is over the top but in a way in which the actors delivering the performances seem to be invested, They are having a ball and and are so committed to the project it becomes a joy to watch them on screen.
The movie also has most of Nazi characters speaking German to one another which is a nice touch even big Hollywood movies steer away from for fear of making the audience read subtitles.
Iron Sky’s best attribute is probably it’s CGI, Iron Sky was made for 10 million dollars and for that money it’s CGI is on par with movies with budgets 10 times that in 2012. I assume and hope most of these artists have been picked up by other studios as their dedication and talent deserves to be rewarded. The design of the Nazi UFO’s is a perfect mix of what a WW2 era tank might look like flying through space. The design of the various ships of the nations of earth are oddly realistic to actual space dynamics and how modern spacecraft are designed with thrusters, rotating simulated gravity bays and other elements. It’s shocking the amount of care and detail that went into their design.
After 6 years, multiple crowdfunding initiatives and trailers with zombie Hitler riding a dinosaur, Iron Sky will be getting a sequel this year with Iron Sky: The Coming Race and I look forward to seeing where the bonkers series goes. In the world of B movies Iron Sky is a resounding B+.
