{2jtab: Movie Review}

Battlestar Galactica 35th Anniversary - Blu-ray Review

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3 stars

Originally inspired by spacey Mormon theology concerning a planet named Kolob and the council of twelve, the original Battlestar Galactica movie (but really just the first three episodes of the series cut into a motion picture) arrives on Blu-ray this month courtesy of Universal Studios and the imagination of series creator Gary Larson.  If you are a fan of science fiction, the movie – released theatrically to capitalize on the success of Star Wars – there’s much to love and respect.

Larson’s show has always been ambitious and - on a larger screen – it really shows off its strengths.  Battlestar Galactica, while similar, is not merely another Star Wars knock off.  To the novice viewer, those feathery late 70s hairstyles and obvious model use might be hard to get past but the true lover of sci-fi will be thrilled by the interstellar heroics of Starbuck (Richard Hatch) and Apollo (Dirck Benedict) as they fight a 1,000 year war against the Cylons, a robotic race who seek to exterminate all of humanity.

That’s right, I’m suggesting that the mythos of Battlestar Galactica is darker than Star Wars; much darker.  There’s a smart story at its heart.  Unfortunately, the execution is just a tad uneven and not as polished as it could be.  You have a group of survivors – led by Commander Adams (Lorne Greene) and Colonel Tigh (Terry Carter) – as they make their way from failed peace negotiations with the Cylons to a distant planet (one called Earth) for asylum.

The proof that Battlestar Galactica is good science fiction can be discovered here in this movie.  The film completely embraces the Mormon-inspired weirdness it is selling as science fiction (the argument can be made to all religions) and makes everything a little more human while standing tall on a much bigger scale – especially for a television show revamped for its first (and only) big screen outing.

The battles are big and loud and full of loss.  Recall, in the opening moments of the film, the loss of Zack (Rick Springfield) as he flies his warship in a hair-raising space battle against the conniving Cylons.  Thanks to the strong saga-minded opening of Larson’s script, the science and the fiction are both strong in their relatability as Boxey (Noah Hathaway) and his mother (Jane Seymour) face the death of their daggit and his re-birth as the mechanical (and loveable) Muffy.

The visuals are also cool as hell.  Never super slick, mind you, but strong enough to be convincing.  Once again, Star Wars alum come through in that department; John Dykstra and Ralph McQuarrie are behind the scenes with the effects and production art.  Those shiny and post apolcalyptic Cylon designs are truly impressive and, yes, still frightening to me.

Battlestar Galactica is charming and a bit old-timey in its approach to adventure while it tackles some pretty heavy issues.  And it is all here, spread out for the masses and then layered into a 90-minute thrill ride through extinction and military attitude with the stars as its backdrop.   If you like this movie, you have about 19 more episodes to catch up on.

So say we all.

{2jtab: Film Details}

Battlestar Galactica 35th AnniversaryMPAA Rating: PG.
Runtime: 124 mins
Creator
: Glen A. Larson
Director: Richard A. Colla
Cast:
Lorne Greene; Dirk Benedict, John Colicos, Noah Hathaway, Maren Jensen, Jonathan Harris
Genre: Sci-fi
Tagline:
Battlestar Galactica
Distributor:
Universal
Official Site

DVD/Blu-ray Release Date:
August 6, 2013

Synopsis: The last major Colonial fighter carrier leads a makeshift fleet of human refugees on a desperate search for the legendary planet Earth.

{2jtab: Blu-ray Review}

Battlestar Galactica 35th Anniversary - Blu-ray Review

Component Grades
Movie

Blu-ray Disc
3 stars

2 stars



Blu-ray Experience
2.5 stars

Blu-ray

Blu-ray Details:

Available on Blu-ray - August 6, 2013
Screen Formats: 1.85:1
Subtitles
: English SDH, Spanish
Audio:
English: DTS-HD Master Audio Mono Sensurround .1; French: DTS Mono
Discs: 50GB Blu-ray Disc; Single disc (1 BD)
Region Encoding: A, B

The 1080p HD transfer is framed at a 1.85:1 aspect ratio approximating the original, matted, theatrical format, and the re-edited television episodes have never looked better.  Thankfully, a clean 1978 source print has been used for the transfer.  Colors are strong, vibrant and obviously re-timed/corrected, looking much better than the VHS and DVD editions.  While Dystrka’s effects show their age and the limitations of the 1970s process work, it still looks surprisingly good.  There is no evidence of extensive DNR or other digital tweaking. The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.1 with Sensurround.  Sit back and enjoy the ride through space!

Supplements:

Commentary:

  • None

Special Features:

  • None

{2jtab: Trailer}

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