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Reviewed by Colin Jacobson
DreamWorks, widescreen 2.35:1/16x9, languages: English DTS 5.1 [CC], subtitles: none, single side-dual layer, 20 chapters, rated PG, 102 min., $26.99, street date 5/2/2000. Supplements:
Directed by Dean Parisot. Starring Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, Tony Shalhoub, Daryl Mitchell, Enrico Colantoni, Sam Rockwell, Missi Pyle. For four years, the courageous crew of the NSEA Protector -- "Commander Peter Qunicy Taggart" (Tim Allen), "Lt. Tawny Madison" (Sigourney Weaver) and "Dr. Lazarus" (Alan Rickman) -- set off on thrilling and often dangerous missions in space…and then their series was canceled! Now, twenty years later, aliens under attack have mistaken the Galaxy Quest television transmissions for "historical documents" and beamed up the crew of has-been actors to save the universe. With no script, no director, and no clue about real space travel, the actors have to turn in the performances of their lives to become the heroes the Thermians believe them to be.
I'd just like to state that GQ provides a very entertaining and fun experience; it makes for one of the best hybrids of comedy and action I've seen, and it also holds up well through repeated viewings, a fact to which I can attest now that I've seen it three times, two of which came within eight days of each other. I can't call GQ a great movie, but it's consistently delightful and well-made. Galaxy Quest appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.35:1 on this single-sided, dual-layered DVD; the image has been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. You'll note that I didn't include my usual "original theatrical aspect ratio statement. That's because most of GQ was 2.35:1 in theaters, but not all of it. The movie started with a 1.33:1 ratio - duplicated on the DVD within the 2.35:1 letterboxed framing - and soon expanded to 1.85:1. That ratio stuck until Tim Allen ended up on the Thermian ship; at that point, the screen shifted to 2.35:1 and remained that way for the rest of the film. Personally, I don't understand why the 1.85:1 segment was altered to match 2.35:1. Admittedly, the TV doesn't offer the same impression as a movie screen, where we took in a strong impression of the growth in scope of the projection. On a TV, the effect could be similar - there's no reason that 1.85:1 couldn't have been "windowboxed" ala the 1.33:1 image - but it loses the grandeur. Nonetheless, I wish they'd used the 1.85:1 windowboxing and delivered GQ in exactly the same presentation as seen on movie screens. The 1.85:1 segments don't last that long, and it seems silly to use it theatrically but deem it unimportant on the smaller screen. Oh well - what're ya gonna do? Anyway, back to the regularly scheduled critique. While not flawless, Galaxy Quest looks quite good and lives up to the standards it should meet for such a recent offering. Sharpness generally appears nicely crisp and clear, with only a few instances of softness that mar the presentation. Moiré effects and jagged edges are very minor nuisances, and the film presents fewer artifacts from the anamorphic downconversion on my 4X3 TV than usual. Print flaws appear completely absent; I noticed no examples of scratches, nicks, hairs, speckles or grain at any time. Colors looked perfectly fine. GQ sticks to a pretty metallic palette for the most part, with few bright hues, but what we see appears nicely-saturated and accurate; I found the greens of Sarris' crew and ship to be especially pleasing. Black levels are also strong, with appropriately dense tones, and shadow detail looked adequately opaque but not overly thick. Some of the softness seemed a bit troubling, but other than that, this is an excellent presentation. Also very good is the film's DTS 5.1 soundtrack. The soundfield offers a nicely enveloping experience, with audio that almost constantly surrounds the viewer. The forward realm dominates the mix, but not to any extreme; the placement of sounds seems appropriate and well-balanced. Split surround usage appeared a bit limited and the activity level in the rears could have been a more intense, but for the most part, the mix seemed very nice. Sound quality appears equally good. At times, dialogue revealed a little bit of edginess, but most of the time speech seemed warm and natural; I definitely had no problem understanding any lines. Music was smooth and dynamic, with bright highs and solid lows, and effects sounded clear and packed some serious punch as well. While the activity level could have been a bit stronger, overall GQ provides an audio experience that seems very positive and fulfilling. So how does the DTS soundtrack compare to the Dolby Digital 5.1 mix on the other DVD? Pretty closely, though I'd give the DTS track the slight edge. Astute readers may have noticed that my comments that discuss both picture and sound quality do not differ in the slightest from what I wrote in my original review of the DD 5.1 DVD. Some may attribute this to laziness, but the real reason I didn't change anything is because the differences between the two editions are so minute. I felt the picture quality of both DVDs seemed identical, and though the DTS track sounds a bit better defined and presents slightly stronger bass, these changes don't merit new text, nor do they warrant a new purchase if you already own the DD disc. If you want to buy Galaxy Quest and you have DTS capabilities, then go with the DTS DVD, but don't expect it to blow away the DD 5.1 version, because while I prefer the DTS track, both sound pretty similar. Unlike a number of DTS DVDs - most notably Apollo 13 - this one exactly duplicates the supplements found on its DD counterpart, which is great, since GQ offers a few nice supplements. One odd bonus is the "Thermian soundtrack" that can be selected from the audio setup menu. This track replaces the normal English dialogue with the strange chattering uttered by the Thermians when they are without their translators. It makes for a rather different experience. More normal extras can be found as well. "On Location In Space" offers a ten-minute promotional featurette. The piece sticks to the light and fluffy side, but it provides some fun information and packs in enough interesting details to merit a look. A more comprehensive documentary would have been nice, but this program seems entertaining. "From the Cutting Room Floor" supplies seven deleted scenes. These run a total of nine minutes and 45 seconds and generally offer expanded versions of existing segments. None are terrific but they seemed pretty good; a case easily could have been made to keep all of them, especially one that gives Weaver more of a tough side. Lots of times, deleted clips are pretty useless, but these are quite strong. The "Cast and Crew" area provides pretty solid biographies for 12 actors and six crew members. Additionally, the segments for actors Allen, Weaver, Rickman, Shalhoub, Daryl Mitchell, and Sam Rockwell and crew members Dean Parsiot, Mark Johnson, Charles Newirth, Stan Winston feature interview clips if you select the small icon at the top of the screen. All of these are quite brief except for those from Allen and Parsiot; the latter snippets last at least a minute or two, whereas the others top out at maybe 30 seconds (and some, like Winston's, end after about five seconds.) Additionally, we find the theatrical trailer for GQ plus "Sneak Preview Trailers" for fellow DreamWorks offerings Chicken Run, Road to El Dorado, and Road Trip. The DVD finishes with a few text screens worth of production notes. These are pretty brief but they provide a nice look at the creation of the movie. Those notes also can be found within the DVD's booklet. Actually, I missed one supplemental feature: "Omega 13". I won't comment on what exactly this piece is, because it may spoil the ending of the film, but suffice it to say it's a really dopey extra, especially because you have to watch the whole film to access it; the DVD won't let you select it unless you've gone through the movie. (If you're impatient, just fast forward through the picture.) Don't be surprised if "Omega 13" isn't worth the effort, though. While I thought that one supplement wasted my time, I can't say the same for Galaxy Quest as a whole because the film offers a tremendously fun and exciting experience, made even more compelling by a terrific cast; a film that combines Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman and Tony Shalhoub is a-okay in my book. The DVD provides consistently strong picture and sound and it tosses in some interesting extras as well. I really enjoyed the very satisfying comedy-action hybrid of Galaxy Quest and think it would make a terrific addition to your collection.
Current as of 5/30/2000 Official Site--Hosted by Amazon.com, the site includes cast interviews, info on cast and filmmakers, and photo gallery.
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