I'm a big fan of Basil Poledouris's soundtracks, which work perfectly as epic orchestrations and as ironic, even comical reflections of the subject matter. It's no wonder that Paul Verhoeven hired him for flicks such as Robocop and Starship Troopers, and the latter work is now out on vinyl for the first time.
2-LP Extended Edition features 29 cues from the cult classic, reimagined artwork, a fold-out poster, plus new liner notes from director Paul Verhoeven and musician Zoë Poledouris …
Poledouris' daughter, Zoë, adds that her father drew inspiration from Igor Stravinsky. "I remember him passionately talking about how the chaos of the alien bug swarms would be digitally rendered and choreographed like a sci-fi ballet of madness and carnage – perfect for a cacophonous, driving symphony-style score to be played by an extra-large orchestra."
While many of the score's recurring themes are centered around action-heavy
military scenes, there are also several emotionally charged cues, as the characters face personal drama, including breakups and even death
Come on, you apes, you wanna live forever? It's striking how politically illiterate movie critics were in the 80s and 90s, but I think most of them did in fact realize that Starship Troopers was mocking and not glorifying right-wing militarism. And its predictive, warning-alarm satire, its jocular contempt for the internet and cable TV and American media culture in general, is recognized now to the point of cliche. But the smartest thing about it (and the most ruinous to its quality as a movie) was forming it as a cheesy 1990s teen soap. Fascism is a youth movement, after all.
