The action adventure film Iron Sky: The Coming Race reaches out to audiences who have enjoyed the excitement of Guardians of the Galaxy, but doesn’t capture the finesse. Even though the movie does make a good attempt with all the CGI, sets and costumes, the film misses with an insipid script. Targeting the infamous scoundrels of the past for the comedy, the film features scenes with the likes of Adolph Hitler, Osama bin Laden, Genghis Khan, Caligula and Joseph Stalin to name a few.
Earth as we knew it took a nose dive after WWII and the nuclear war that followed. Those that could escape the destruction set up a colony on the dark side of the moon. Now an active community, the good guys are sharing with the Nazis who occupied the base during the war. Leading the Vril, the civilized people, is Commander Renate Richter (Julia Dietze). Her daughter Obi (Lara Rossi) has been keeping things running including the electric power and other survival elements.
Also in power are the Jobsists lead by Donald (Tom Green) who guides his minions that worship Steve Jobs and the iPhone. Arriving by surprise to their moon base is a Russian explorer Sasha (Vladimir Burlakov) who needs assistance. Also on the base in a secluded area is Nazi mastermind Wolfgang Kortzfleisch (Udo Kier). He is in possession of a special substance that could change humanity forever.
The film develops from there with the key players outlined above trying to save their moon base and possibly what’s left of the Earth as well. Director Timo Vuorensola moves his sequel along at a fast clip developing characters, setting up the trip to Earth, and putting the group in mortal danger. Unfortunately he leans a bit too much on a script mirroring a conglomeration Si-fi movies like Star Wars, some Star Trek, Journey to the Center of the Earth with a little bit Jurassic Park thrown in for good measure.
The cast does do a good job of working their characters, even if it is a campy script, and with all adventures like this there’s usually a pretty exciting ending. This one is no exception as there’s a lot of computer graphics to make the beasts look real, explosions that fill the screen, and space ships that resemble the Millennium Falcon.
The Iron Sky: The Coming Race has not been rated by the MPAA, but contains sci-fi action violence, crude language, sexual references and gore. I actually can’t see why Timo Vuorensola made this sequel as the first one flopped in the USA at the box-office making just over $120 thousand (worldwide $8 million). The production budget for this sequel was estimated at a cost of $15 million according to Wikipedia.
FINAL ANALYSIS: For the crowd that just has to have a dose of sci-fi adventure, go for it. (2 out of 5 Stars)
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Lara Rossi, Vladimir Burlakov, Kit Dale, Udo Kier, Tom Green
Directed by: Timo Vuorensola
Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy
MPAA Rating: Not Rated, contains
Running Time: 1 hr. 30 min.
Opening Date: July 19, 2019
Distributed by: Vertical Entertainment
Released in: Standard, Color
Released on: Theaters, VOD, Digital HD
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
