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Get it? Harharharharhar!

Look, I can laugh at myself. And even as a loyal American I am able to take this in stride. Iron Sky is a multinational production, and I'm aware that attitudes toward the US vary abroad. The problem is the spectacularly amateurish, uneven screenplay. For just a little while, Iron Sky finds the time to acknowledge some pretty crucial aspects of Nazi behavior. They're racist, they're genocidal, they conduct unholy medical experiments on their prisoners, they're good at holding a grudge and most interestingly, they know what they're doing is wrong.

And then the Panzer comes off its tracks.

Nazis are the easiest villains to write for - so why waste so much of the movie on how much you also hate Americans? Everyone already hates Nazis. You can make them as evil as you want, because no matter what you come up with it can't be half as bad as the truth. Nobody will sue you, nobody will picket your house and generate one of those stupid online petitions calling for your boycott. Nobody is going to get upset that you made Hitler look bad. And more than enough time has passed so that you can - up to a point - ruthlessly satirize them. But Iron Sky wastes all of these opportunities and more.

In fact, the most only truly effective subplot involves Renata. Initially, she's in charge of conditioning young children to what she believes is the Nazi cause. To her, it's all about inclusion, liberty and peace - she just doesn't realize that this is to be achieved by rubbing out all the "undesirables" and creating a genetic Master Race. Renata is portrayed as a forward thinking idealist who has been misled by her handlers. Similarly, Washington is made out to be the puppet of a cynical media state run by a megalomaniacal cowboy. What started out as a callow, moderately amusing dramedy suddenly turns into an insipid, campy space opera about what a shitty president Sarah Palin would have made.

Maybe that would have been funny back in 2008. But Iron Sky started production in 2006 - which means that a lot of the humor here is dated, to say the least. Did you know that many people around the world disagreed with George W Bush's policies? I know you do. I also know that he hasn't been president for quite a while now. I also know that Iron Sky is the product of many hard working people who clearly had more time than talent. The Nazi invasion is the best part, and is actually pretty engaging. The rest of the movie is sopping over with the kind of forced, obvious humor that makes Meet the Spartans look like Oscar fodder.

My advice is that if you want to see Hitler get what's coming to him, check out Raiders of the Lost Ark, or The Dirty Dozen. Or even Hogan's Heroes. Because if there's anything worse than a Nazi that's a short list, but I'd consider putting Iron Sky on it.

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