I can believe that. I think it helps to understand where Verhoeven is coming from. He grew up in Holland during the German occupation, and it's liberation by the allies in the 1940s. He's seen the Nazi propaganda, the show and heroic aura of fascism right up close. He lived inside it. He also saw the bodies from summary executions of civilians lying by the side of the road. They're two very different sides of the same coin of fascism, one shiny and seductive, the other a twisted mirror image of ugliness.

A lot of his movies show you the heroic, seductive face of fascism for most of the movie, but every now and then through the movie he twists the coin just a little bit. You get a glimpse of what's on the other side, hinting at how what you think you're seeing isn't at all the whole story. But he leaves you to figure that out, the same way he did.

I totally get that. But.

He could have picked a different franchise (or created a new one) instead of hitching the movie's title to a book with a totally different message and atmosphere.

I wanted to see something darker, something about a kid growing up into an officer. I wanted to see Jonnie realize how much trouble he was in and feel lucky for only getting a few lashes, and I wanted to see Zim give him a microscopic bit of comfort just before that sentence. I wanted to see a father and son reunite for 45 minutes at the starport, and the proud father bounce off to his new ship. I wanted an exploration of morality in military service as a mirror for how we guide our own lives in the real world. I wanted to see the stupid powered suits, okay?

Instead I got a terrible political commentary with bad acting. He could have done that with his own story (wait, he did).

I don't know why the film was called Starship Troopers. Oh wait, I do; it was a money grab. Verhoeven didn't even finish reading the book.

Yep that's fair, a faithful adaptation would have turned out very different. However this is the script the studio green-lit, and Verhoeven worked very closely with the writer to realise his (the writer's) vision. I love it, I think it has merit in it's own right, but sure it's not at all what an actual Heinlein fan would want or expect. It's really more of a satirical commentary on the book.

Movie theory (not mine): the bad acting is intentional on the director's part. He may have intentionally cast pretty faces with little talent as a shoutout to fascist films who did similar.