Stargate Prewatch: Stargate the Movie!

[Kilgharrah]

Interesting idea. I hadn't considered reading outside reviews of the movie from the time. You can definitely see how most of the movie world discounts and misunderstands science fiction in general and Stargate in particular.

You're gonna read my reviews when we begin the re-watch. I think I watch SG enough times to be able to write reviews.

There do seem to be some plotholes in this movie. For example, does the Air Force know what happens when you dial the gate? You get the implication that they do because of O'Neil's comments about "I'm here if you succeed" all of the equipment that they had in the gateroom (including the proto-MALP thing). If so, why were they keeping Daniel in the dark about all of this? Also, Catherine Langford is quite clear that they've managed to dial 6 chevrons just not the 7th. Why not keep spinning the gate until you get to #7?

They've been working on this for 2 years before Daniel joined them. Of course they managed to figure out something
When has anything like that ever been revealed even in real life?
It's not about spinning the gate. It's about the symbol. They didn't know which is the right one. They didn't even know there was such a thing as a point of origin.

I also get as much fun at seeing the things Devlin and Emerich got "wrong," so to speak. No, it's not in another galaxy you dialed 7 chevrons not 8. Two Ls please and give the man a sense of humor! And Walter needed to give those technicians a briefing about how to count out chevrons. Also, how did Lucious Lavin manage to find his way to Stargate Command ;-)?!

Like I said, I saw them as they were still young in every way possible, these ideas were still not made including the one about the 8 chevrons for another galaxy, and BTW if it was the other side of the galaxy, it would be 9 chevrons not 8 as you said.

[jsonitsac]

There do seem to be some plotholes in this movie. For example, does the Air Force know what happens when you dial the gate? You get the implication that they do because of O'Neil's comments about "I'm here if you succeed" all of the equipment that they had in the gateroom (including the proto-MALP thing). If so, why were they keeping Daniel in the dark about all of this? Also, Catherine Langford is quite clear that they've managed to dial 6 chevrons just not the 7th. Why not keep spinning the gate until you get to #7?

Still, it is kind of fun to watch this movie. I enjoy seeing the kernels of what would become the universe we all know and love. Spader is clearly the basis for SG-1's Daniel "hippy phase" and it is neat seeing those fancier looking Horus guards (rather than those kind of dull Serpant guards). Also, I wonder if they boxed the sets from LA and shipped them to Vancouver to become the hall portions of the SGC?

I also get as much fun at seeing the things Devlin and Emerich got "wrong," so to speak. No, it's not in another galaxy you dialed 7 chevrons not 8. Two Ls please and give the man a sense of humor! And Walter needed to give those technicians a briefing about how to count out chevrons. Also, how did Lucious Lavin manage to find his way to Stargate Command ;-)?!

Finally, does anybody else say "no Daniel don't get too close to her" when he's kissing Shau'ri?

[hlndncr]

I read what Roger Ebert said about it. He has some weird ideas about the movie. Even though, I don't usually agree with him, I think he might be right. He's not sure about the message of the movie, he thinks maybe there's a subliminal one, but I'm still not sure about this.

Interesting idea. I hadn't considered reading outside reviews of the movie from the time. You can definitely see how most of the movie world discounts and misunderstands science fiction in general and Stargate in particular.

Many of the reviews see that it is sci fi and has "star" in the title and therefore consider it necessary to compare it to Star Wars and Star Trek (the only genre movies they know anything about, but still have only a cursory understanding of). They ignorantly or willfully ignored the originality of the concept and some of the very subtle plot and character choices that make the film so intriguing. The reviewers often complained about how simplistic the plot was, and yet most failed to understand it. For example, many indicated that the Stargate was a time travelling device.

The movie is far from perfect, and I do think the action at the end overtook the plot. But I'm so glad Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner saw the potential of the Stargate as a plot device and the rich characters to be further explored.

[Kilgharrah]

- The first time I watched the movie, it felt great, but since SG1 came, the movie always felt boring to me, but not this time. I don't know what happened, but I really felt the thrill in it. I can't explain this, but it really felt awesome.
- I noticed that James Spader's performance was terrible. Michael Shanks is much better, but unfortunately, he had to imitate that terrible performance and he did it well. That's why I prefer MS as Daniel.
- Of course Kurt Russel is one of Hollywood's best actors, but he wasn't very good playing "O'Neal". Of course he has some advantages too, but still. RDA is much much better.
- The one that played Kwalsky in the movie was surprisingly much better than the one that played him on SG1.
- Shau'ri was definitely better looking, not to mention her very good performance.
- Alexis Cruz was still learning.
- It's the first time I considered that Cathering Langford to be a good actress, but still the one on the show was much better in terms of acting performance.
- I felt like everyone was still young, Earth, O'Neill (or O'Neal whatever), Daniel, Abyods, SGC and even TPTB themselves. They were still building the story from scratch and they did a very good job. Really feels like the very beginning in all ways possible.
- So many terrible ideas in the movie. Glad they changed it on the show, or I wouldn't have liked it at all.

Anyway, I would give it 3 out of 5 stars.
I read what Roger Ebert said about it. He has some weird ideas about the movie. Even though, I don't usually agree with him, I think he might be right. He's not sure about the message of the movie, he thinks maybe there's a subliminal one, but I'm still not sure about this.

[LeftHandedGuitarist]

Yes, movie Shau'ri was absolutely yummy I preferred her.

[hlndncr]

Just watched the movie again. I do like it, but I can't help but view it with an eye for what is to come.

I love Catherine, no matter what actress plays her. What a great character!

I miss the early James Spaeder inspired Daniel. The later Daniel Jackson especially Seasons 9&10 just don't do it for me.

I like the changes RDA made to the Jack O'Neill character that make him more watchable. But there are moments where Kurt Russell demonstrates a little of what I've come to know as classic Jack. For example, when they sneak into the pyramid at the end, just before he blows away the Anubis gaurd he gives him a little wink and a smile. And when Daniel and Shau'ri kiss at the end Jack gives this cute little shrug.

The one thing I think the TV show got wrong was changing the character of Shau'ri so much. The actress who played her was so much better (and prettier IMO) than the actress who played Sha're. Also, Shau'ri was smart and fiesty. She inspired and led the rebellion. They dumbed her down so much in the TV show. She was a like a simpering child--an empty headed damsel in distress. It was very insulting.

[Zoser]

The mastage (not sure of the spelling) was an animatronic head, a Clydesdale horse with a costume and even a dog in costume running with a puppet in tow. It looks like a sort of musk ox, but certainly not like a dessert animal.

Did I mention before how much I liked the way Ra's soldiers (Jaffa but no symbiotes) were dressed.

[hlndncr]

I'm rewatching the movie now, and it's interesting that they have the strange animal. Did they invent animals in the series? I seem to remember only earth animals in the series.

That's a good point. There's a wild pig thing in PL that I think was supposed to be a little different from the earth version of a wild boar, but that didn't come off very well.

The other Goa'uld must have carried away animals as well as humans.

[mathpiglet]

I'm rewatching the movie now, and it's interesting that they have the strange animal. Did they invent animals in the series? I seem to remember only earth animals in the series.

[Zarggg]

As I mentioned in the other thread, I already watched this the other day, but I'll probably watch the director's commentary sometime this week.

I first saw this movie in college. A friend of mine had it on DVD and we watched it in mid 2001. (I didn't get into SG1 until after it moved from Showtime to the Sci-Fi Channel.)

[SoundWaveV]

I know these issues have been beaten to death... But, for people (like myself)that need refreshing.. should we lay out some explanation for a few of the plot holes? Like, the whole issue with the 7th symbol at the beginning of the movie... Catherine Langford gives off the feeling that she knew they needed a seventh symbol.. So why not just try all of them instead of getting Jackson?

[Zoser]

I rewatched Stargate, the movie last night. I do love the movie but love the series so much more and Richard Dean Anderson is the chief reason and of course a Stargate the can go almost endless places within our galaxy (and beyond). The movie created the vision, the series picked it up and ran with it.

Daniel's character is defined in the movie - his coffee habit, allergies (thank heaven for antihistamines), intellectual curiosity and acuity, penchant for carrying too many books and using just a side arm.

We glimpse Jack as the suicidal , first man in, sun glass and no fingered glove wearing, very self-contained military man.

And yes the wormhole went to another galaxy! with no ZPM!

I thought the Ra before he took a human looked a little proto-Unas. He was described as a parasite.

The same actors: Skaara and Kasuf - love them both

Different actors: Jack O'Neill, Daniel Jackson, Catherine Langford, Feretti, Kawalsky, Sha'uri (I may have missed some)

[LeftHandedGuitarist]

I just (finally) got around to ordering myself the Ultimate Edition blu-ray of the original Stargate movie to begin this rewatch project. I've been meaning to buy it for ages now. It's been quite a while since I watched the film, but I have seen it many times and always really enjoyed it.

I went to see it at the cinema when it first came out - I remember being dragged to see it by a school friend. Even though I was a sci-fi fan, for some reason nothing about what I'd heard attracted me to the movie. I remember when the opening credits started and the title "S T A R G A T E" spread across the entire cinema screen, I thought that was cool. And then when the words "Creature effects by..." appeared, I suddenly became interested.

I loved the film, and it may have been the first movie I went back and saw at the cinema twice (or it could have been Jurassic Park - still sketchy on that). I've owned it in various formats over the years (recorded off TV, several DVD versions and now blu-ray). It seems to get re-released a lot!

I also used to own the novelisation, and being a teenager at the time I remember being a bit shocked that the book contained swearing which was not in the film!

Hopefully the disc will arrive in the next day or two and I can post some thoughts here in a retrospective context given all the SG-1 episodes I've seen since. Although I loved the movie, I always thought the SG-1 series improved upon it in so many ways.

[juggernaut975]

I saw it in a theater and I left thinking to myself 'Great movie, but wouldn't it be awesome if they could go to OTHER planets, too? Like, a whole NETWORK of Stargates across the Universe....'

Glad to see that I wasn't the only one who thought that!

On a side note, has anyone read the movie-themed novels? Rebellion, Retalliation, etc?

Are they any decent? Do they capture the feel of SG1 in any way or are they pretty much their own thing? I've always wanted to get my hands on those books, to see just how differently things could have been.

[fwupow]

Watching it right now. I remember seeing this movie title on the marquee at the movie theater nearest to my little Vermont home-town (30 miles away). Of course the title made me think Sci-Fi but the "Kurt Russell" & "James Spader" underneath convinced me that it was a hoax designed to lure Sci-Fi lovers like me into a movie about some talent agency.

All the cigarette smoke rising during Danny's first briefing is so 70s