Nazis go lunar in ‘Iron Sky’
The South by Southwest festival kicks off this week, and one of the most buzzedabout films heading into the Texas event is a quirky sci-fi parody that comes to Austin by way of Finland, Germany and, well, the lunar surface.
“Iron Sky” is a Nazis-onthe-moon story with aspirations to political satire that has grabbed the attention of international press and audiences as much for its creation mythos as its plot.
“Science fiction has been going around this idea for a long time — circling around Nazis in space. Why circle? Why don’t we just do Nazis in space?” Timo Vuorensola, the film’s Finnish director, said last month at the Berlin International Film Festival.
The Galactic Empire in “Star Wars,” he said, and several worlds in “Star Trek” are modeled on Nazi Germany. “Every sciencefiction TV series has its Nazis — and every sciencefiction film has more or less its Nazis.... This is taking that one step forward.”
Vuorensola, who also sings in a metal band, has just one other film under his belt: the 2005 low-budget space spoof “Star Wreck: In the Pirkinning.” It was released for free online, and has been downloaded millions of times.
For “Iron Sky,” Vuorensola tapped his online fan base, raising $1million of its $10-million budget via crowd-sourcing.
The plot, which grew out of a friend recounting a crazy dream during a sauna session, concerns a secret Nazi space program on the dark side of the moon, complete with a swastikashaped lunar station, and led by an officious “Moon Führer” played by Udo Kier (“Blade,” “Melancholia”).
In 2018, the U.S. president, who looks suspiciously like Sarah Palin (in an Oval Office filled with taxidermied polar bears), and her campaign manager decide a moon mission is key for reelection. Astronaut/male model James Washington stumbles upon the base and becomes a prisoner of the Nazis, including the optimistic teacher Renate Richter, who becomes his love interest.
Together with ruthless officer Klaus Adler, they return to Earth in advance of a major invasion. Along the way, Renate’s idealism and Klaus’ blood lust become translated into American political campaign rhetoric.
Add in a few galactic battles, fanboy humor, world leaders in fisticuffs over energy supplies, and a space vixen or two, and you’ve got yourself a film.
Though “Iron Sky” has no Finnish actors and its topic has given many pause, the Finnish Film Foundation backed it.
“I had a lot of discussion: ‘Does it have to be Nazis on the moon? Could it be communists?’” Vuorensola said. “As if it would be better!”
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