Tim Allen (Big Trouble, Joe Somebody) heads an all-star cast (mostly-star cast?) that is a parody of, and yet a wonderful tribute to, Star Trek. Alan Rickman (Harry Potter, Die Hard), Sigourney Weaver (Alien movies, Ghostbusters), Sam Rockwell (Charlie's Angels, The Green Mile), Tony Shalhoub (Impostor, TV's Wings), Daryl Mitchell (Black Knight), and Enrico Colantoni (TV's Just Shoot Me) also star.
The premise, if you're one of the two people that hasn't heard of this movie, is pretty simple: The cast of a long-canceled TV series called Galaxy Quest find themselves playing their parts for real when a group of peace-loving aliens, who have seen the "historical documents" of their exploits, ask for their assistance against a hostile alien named Sarris.
Galaxy Quest is funny on a couple of levels. First, there's the blatant comedy aspect of it. Shalhoub steals that part of the show with his easy-going "chief engineer", deadpanning his delivery of news that should have been shouted with desperation. What makes Quest truly hilarious, though, is its lampoon of the entire Star Trek phenomenon. During the run of the original Trek's movies, egos and tempers flared, with William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy reportedly sniping at each other, and demanding equal camera time. Each believed he was the star. There is similar sniping between Allen's "Commander Taggart" and Rickman's "Lazarus". Women on Star Trek, despite creator Gene Roddenberry's vision of equality, often seemed to be relegated to incredibly minor roles. Weaver's "Lietenant Madison" also had a simple job: To repeat what the computer said. Trek rabid fans also get the mistreatment as Justin Long (Jeepers Creepers) makes an appearance as one of the "geek" fans, whom Allen lambasts for taking the show so seriously.
Special effects, which are such a major part in science fiction movies, are very good here. From the teleportation, to the rock planet's inhabitants, to the space vessel's exteriors, kudos to all the effects personnel.
Overall, it's a wonderful homage to a great television legacy -- and a pretty darn good parody, too.
This movie is rated PG for some action violence, mild language and sensuality.
SCORE: 9 -- Being a Star Trek fan, I could appreciate the humor in this movie. It's a well-written story with a good cast, and I have enjoyed it immensely every time I've seen it. Recommended, especially for Trek fans! Return to top
Michael Douglas stars as Nicholas Van Orten, the aforementioned tycoon. As is typical of Douglas's "rich" characters, he's an inconsiderate snob, treating people as if their sole purposes in life are to bow and scrape to his every whim. That changes when his brother Conrad (played by Sean Penn)shows up to give him a birthday present: A certificate to Consumer Recreation Services for a free game. Skeptically, Nicholas (that's Mr. Van Orten, to you!)visits the offices of CRS to see what they have to offer. Before he knows what's happening, his privacy is invaded, attempts are made on his life, and a mysterious waitress (Debra Unger) is caught in the middle with him. Throw in some twists and turns, simmer for 128 minutes.
A fair amount of disbelief must be suspended to be able to enjoy The Game as much as I did. Skeptics would skoff at the very existence of CRS, considering what it does for its money. Some continuity buffs would sneer at sequence of events.... How can CRS know precisely where Nick is going to be at any given moment? How can contingencies be planned for so exactly? (The answer to that one is in the tests he has to take during his initial visit to the offices... psychological profiles, etc...)
Douglas goes through the motions of the character as if he's wearing a glove he's had for many years. In a way, that's precisely what this is. This is the same type of character he's played in Fatal Attraction, Disclosure, A Perfect Murder, and probably even Wall Street: The rich, successful type. Even though events in each of these movies causes him to react in different ways, the "starting" point is always the same. What makes Douglas work for these roles is his ability to roll with the proverbial punches. When the character transforms, so does he.
I couldn't tell if Debra Unger reminded me more of Rebecca DeMornay, Olivia d'Abo, or Sarah Brown (who plays Carly on the soap opera General Hospital). Probably that last, because Carly is a lot like Christine (Unger's character in this movie) in that even when she's telling the truth, sometimes it's hard to believe her.
The writing team of John D. Brancato and Michael Ferris deserve some high praise for being able to pull this very complex plot off -- despite the unsatisfying resolution, as does director David Fincher for bringing it to life with such vivid anguishing clarity.
Are you willing to play The Game?
This movie is rated R for violence and language.
SCORE: 8 Nice writing, great suspense, involved plot... bottom line, if you want a movie that keeps you guessing until the end, you want Douglas and The Game. Recommended! Return to top
For a movie about a giant lizard, I guess it isn't TOO bad. It served its diversionary purpose and kept me semi-interested. Also, not being a fan of the big G to begin with, I didn't have any expectations for this film to uphold. So, in a sense, this movie was a success.
On the day it opened, I counted (in one theater) an unprecedented seven screens for it to show on! I guess Sony expected this big critter to draw a big audience.
What Sony apparently didn't predict, however, is that people want not only big explosions and mass destruction, they need the story to be believable as well. And that's where Godzilla failed.
Matthew Broderick stars as Nick Tatopoulis (named after G's designer), a scientist studying the environmental effects of nuclear testing. He's called upon when some gigantic footprints are discovered -- and they register as radioactive.
Suddenly Godzilla shows up in Manhattan, destroying everything in his path. He's attracted to fish. No one can stop him. The city must be evacuated.
Toss in a few minor sub-plots (thus taking some burden from the special effects team) and you have a... movie?
To be honest, there is so much wrong with this movie, I could take up 50 megs of web space and still not be done. From the question of why 'Zilla travelled so far to spawn, to Nick's sudden "expertise" on this species of lizard (considering he'd spent the last three years studying worms), to the coincidence of everyone knowing everyone else, there are holes. Some are mere pinpricks, like the lizard's sudden disappearance into the sewers -- forgive me, but everyone's eyes were on him, and no one saw him go in?? Others, like Godzilla's inability to chomp a cab after blowing up a helicopter with his jaws, were large enough to drive a tank through.
Plot holes aside, I found the suspense to be lacking. At no time did I ever get excited by anything I was seeing on the screen. (Sure, my breath was taken away the first time I saw the creature in his entirety -- kudos to designer Patrick Tatopoulis for his excellent work!) All of the action was telegraphed and cliched... the entire movie had been done before, and much better, in Critters, Gremlins, and even the King Kong remake with Jeff Bridges!
Skip this movie. Rent one of the Japanese movies instead.
This movie is rated PG-13 for some language and violence.
SCORE: 4 Though Godzilla's effects were brilliant and seamless, the bad acting, non-existent plot, and blatant rip-offs from other movies just made this movie a one-time only thing. TriStar's time would have been better invested in writing classes for Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich. Return to top