Battlestar Galactica (2003 Miniseries)

Battlestar Galactica (2003 Miniseries)
by Michael Rymer

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DVD details

Actor: Edward James Olmos, James Callis, Jamie Bamber, Katee Sackhoff, Mary McDonnell
Director: Michael Rymer
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Miniseries, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 183 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-12-28
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Universal Studios

DVD Reviews of Battlestar Galactica (2003 Miniseries)

DVD Review: Don't Buy
Summary: 5 Stars

This was the start of what made this the best show on TV for four (long drawn out) seasons. However, as others have noted it is included on the Season 1 box set of the series. You will want that after watching this so save some money and just buy the box. Be alert, the world needs more lerts.

DVD Review: Great Content, But You're Better Off Buying SEASON ONE
Summary: 4 Stars

THE CONTENT
This miniseries is an epic and dramatic reimagining--and an utter, complete improvement--on an old science fiction show, Battlestar Galactica. It's our first taste of the reimagining of the show, which has been hailed by many fans as not only one of the best shows on television, but as the best science fiction show of all time. I've only seen the miniseries, so I can't really comment on the quality of the episodes that follow, but if it continues with the excellent writing, action, special effects, and directing, it just may live up to the hype. The first scenes go by in a blur, introducing so many characters and so much history that I began to feel a bit of trepidation that I'd bought into the wrong kind of show, but by the time I was fifteen minutes into it, I realized that not only was I enthralled in the story, but I already knew who all of the characters were. The writing is so subtle that it sucks you into the middle of events, and attentive viewers will hit the ground running, and enjoying every minute of it. It's exciting, it's sad, it's meaty (at over three hours), and at it's most base, it's a story about humanity. I'm definitely on for the ride.

THE PACKAGE
This section has no impact on the rating, and pretty much just serves as a warning to viewers. While the miniseries certainly stands on its own well enough... there is absolutely no reason to buy this. If you're interested in getting into BATTLESTAR, just buy the Season One set. The miniseries is included in that set, along with an entire season of greatness. So while the content of this DVD is exceptional, it would be best to pass on buying this separately and just go for the season set.

8/10

DVD Review: Probably the best space opera ever put on film.
Summary: 5 Stars

The reimagined battlestar galactica is without a doubt the best space-based SF ever put on the small screen, and easily rivals the best ever put on film. It thankfully departs from the hokey, cheesy 70s predescessor and gives us utterly realistic imagining of the future in space. As anyone who has watched NASA TV can attest, space travel is an untidy affair, and BSG delivers that look in spades.

The characters bring a realism and pathos that is unmatched in the genre. Olmos's war-weary Adama is award-caliber stuff, as is Mary McDonnel's increasingly cynical president Roslyn. The supporting cast delivers the goods, too, from start to finish. Richard Hatch, the lone representative from the old series, is kind of bland, but what do you expect?

All in great entertainment.

DVD Review: Battlestar Galactica
Summary: 4 Stars

I have never seen the original. This new version is fairly enjoyable. There are a lot of good action sequences and an interesting plot. This miniseries is 90 percent sci fi action movie and 10 percent pathetic tear-jerker. There are a few scenes stuck in there just to elicit some emotion, but most were incredibly heavy-handed.

There are a lot of good characters with one big exception. Dr. Baltar is whiney and annoying. (His "imaginary" friend doesn't help.) I prefer a bad guy to enjoy being bad, not whimper about getting caught and worry about how bad might be too bad.

Most of the other characters are fun early on, when Galactica is about to be decommissioned and turned into a museum and strong later when circumstances change. It is interesting to see how they handle it all.

DVD Review: Love it.
Summary: 5 Stars

As a non-TV person, I am weirdly addicted. Now I have the tool to spread the addiction to unsuspecting friends. Great show.

Description of Battlestar Galactica (2003 Miniseries)

Forty years after the Cylon Wars, humanity's deadliest enemies have reemerged with a vengeance. In a sudden, devastating nuclear attack, the Cylon robots - who have now taken human form - wipe out billions of people. Only a handful of Colonial forces are left to shepherd the few survivors to safety. Commander William Adama (Edward James Olmos), the highest-ranking military officer left alive, reactivates the Battlestar Galactica to once again face humanity's greatest nemeses.

Outnumbered and outarmed, Adama reluctantly concedes that the newly sworn-in President Laura Roslin (Mary McDonnell) is correct - this battle was lost before it had begun. With no choice but to flee, the ragtag fleet of survivors and humanity's only hope set out in search of the mythic 13th Colony of Kobol. a legendary planet known as Earth.

Despite voluminous protest and nitpicking criticism from loyal fans of the original 1978-80 TV series, the 2003 version of Battlestar Galactica turned out surprisingly well for viewers with a tolerance for change. Originally broadcast on the Sci-Fi Channel in December 2003 and conceived by Star Trek: The Next Generation alumnus Ronald D. Moore as the pilot episode for a "reimagined" TV series, this four-hour "miniseries" reprises the basic premise of the original show while giving a major overhaul (including some changes in gender) to several characters and plot elements. Gone are the flowing robes, disco-era hairstyles, and mock-Egyptian fighter helmets, and thankfully there's not a fluffy "daggit" in sight... at least, not yet. Also missing are the "chrome toaster" Cylons, replaced by new, more formidable varieties of the invading Cylon enemy, including "Number Six" in hot red skirts and ample cleavage, who tricks the human genius Baltar into a scenario that nearly annihilates the human inhabitants of 12 colonial worlds.

Thus begins the epic battle and eventual retreat of a "ragtag fleet" of humans, searching for the mythical planet Earth under the military command of Adama (Edward James Olmos) and the political leadership of Laura Roslin (Mary McDonnell), a former secretary of education, 43rd in line of succession and rising to the occasion of her unexpected Presidency. As directed by Michael Rymer (Queen of the Damned), Moore's ambitious teleplay also includes newfangled CGI space battles (featuring "handheld" camera moves and subdued sound effects for "enhanced realism"), a dysfunctional Col. Tigh (Michael Hogan) who's provoked into action by the insubordinate Starbuck (Katee Sackhoff), and a father-son reunion steeped in familial tragedy. To fans of the original BG series, many of these changes are blasphemous, but for the most part they work--including an ominous cliffhanger ending. The remade Galactica is brimming with smart, well-drawn characters ripe with dramatic potential, and it readily qualifies as serious-minded science fiction, even as it gives BG loyalists ample fuel for lively debate. --Jeff Shannon

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