It's subtle but that's because it's echoing Nazi propaganda films about their own false flags.
The system is far from earth (even if you assume it's warped there), the bugs have limited interstellar capacity, the asteroid is thrown against all odds straight into the patrol path of a starship. Iirc it's the ship political officer that says coms are down.
Buenos Aries is populated by Albert Speer capitalists who are critical of the fascist regime (while benefiting from it). The fash lieutenant is clearly isolated and sad (he's a retired field offier recommissioned in a collapsing army and he gets the rank of lieutenant ffs, he's pissed someone off or he's an incompetent, likely the latter since his unit gets sacrificed.)
You'll even note the reporter uses the fascist trick of mimic-ing liberal talking points in front of an audience from the city and guaranteed to be hostile to it.
The the recommissioned officer who was the teacher was just combining two completely different characters from the book.
Why do the bugs have limited interstellar capabilities?
The movie definitely takes some of the fascist ideas from the books and amplifies them effectively. I think Heinlein was really asking a what if in the original book, similar to a lot of his other (also, 'problematic') work.
None of this implies a false flag.
If they wanted to amp up the fascism they could have used the opening of the book which was nuking the 'skinnies' a bug ally.
It's subtle but that's because it's echoing Nazi propaganda films about their own false flags.
The system is far from earth (even if you assume it's warped there), the bugs have limited interstellar capacity, the asteroid is thrown against all odds straight into the patrol path of a starship. Iirc it's the ship political officer that says coms are down.
Buenos Aries is populated by Albert Speer capitalists who are critical of the fascist regime (while benefiting from it). The fash lieutenant is clearly isolated and sad (he's a retired field offier recommissioned in a collapsing army and he gets the rank of lieutenant ffs, he's pissed someone off or he's an incompetent, likely the latter since his unit gets sacrificed.)
You'll even note the reporter uses the fascist trick of mimic-ing liberal talking points in front of an audience from the city and guaranteed to be hostile to it.
The the recommissioned officer who was the teacher was just combining two completely different characters from the book.
Why do the bugs have limited interstellar capabilities?
The movie definitely takes some of the fascist ideas from the books and amplifies them effectively. I think Heinlein was really asking a what if in the original book, similar to a lot of his other (also, 'problematic') work.
None of this implies a false flag.
If they wanted to amp up the fascism they could have used the opening of the book which was nuking the 'skinnies' a bug ally.