The film begins in 2018. An American astronaut, James Washington (played by Christopher Kirby), lands on the Moon as part of a publicity stunt for the re-election campaign of a Sarah Palin-esque U.S. President (Stephanie Paul). Washington is captured by the Moon Nazis, led by the fanatical Klaus Adler (Götz Otto) and his idealistic fiancée, Renate Richter (Julia Dietze). Mistaking the astronaut’s smartphone for a powerful computing device that can power their war machine, the Nazis realize the time to strike is now.
The film also satirizes the concept of "victory" in modern war. The final space battle is a chaotic free-for-all where every nation with a hidden spaceship (a sly nod to conspiracy theories) enters the fray. When the dust settles, Earth is "saved," but the resolution is cynical, nuclear, and leaves the viewer questioning who the real "monsters" are. For a film with a budget that wouldn't cover the catering bill on a Marvel production, Iron Sky looks spectacular. The visual effects, handled largely by Finnish VFX companies, are the true star of the show. iron sky 2012
There is a poignant moment where Renate Richter, the Nazi schoolteacher who has been fed propaganda her whole life, watches Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator on Earth. Her realization that her people are the villains is one of the few moments of genuine emotional weight in the film, effectively contrasting the clownish nature of the Third Reich with the reality of their atrocities. The film begins in 2018