Customer Reviews

Battlestar Galactica [VHS]

5 star:		(72)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(27)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I just bought the "complete series" of BSG, and just want to let it be known....There is no reason to buy the "feature film" dvd version, because it's all included in the "complete series". In fact, the "complete series" has many more scenes not on this version. The only thing that makes this worth buying is the excellent picture quality. It looks MUCH better than the new "complete series" version does. Surprisingly, Universal didn't seem to clean up the episodes as much as they could/should have. I watched the 2 side by side, and noticed this in NOT true widescreeen either. It seems the top and bottom portion of the screen were blacked out purposely to make it appear widescreen. If you compare the 2 versions, you'll notice you see the exacts same things on the left and right side of the screen.

There are actually three different versions of this, the pilot movie for Battlestar Galactica.
#1 The first version was a full length movie that tested in Europe and Canada in 1978. This version has never been released in the USA.
#2 SAGA OF A STAR WORLD is the pilot version that runs in a 3 hour
time slot. It is the same as the #1 version but the ending was altered so that Count Baltar 's life is spared by the Cylon Imperious Leader. An added epilogue shows the arrival of three new Cylon Basestars, a "new" Imperious Leader, Baltar alive and the first appearance of Cylon Lucifer.
It premiered on US TV in 1978. It is available in the DVD box set. (The one with the Cylon head on it)
#3 (This version) Is the theatrical version that played in US theatres the summer of 1979 and was available on VHS for most of the 80's and 90's.
It is a much shorter version of #1. Several lengthy sequences, most notably the attack on Caprica, have been removed or shortened. It is in stereo and is letterboxed on DVD(but does not have a very wide picture) and features the original ending in which Baltar is beheaded (off camera) by the Cylons. It does not include the epilogue and is notable for moving along at an almost jaringly fast pace. Basically they just took the scissors to a print of #1. Only of interest if you must have the stereo sound.
And in response to those reviewers who never watched Galactica until now. WHAT KIND OF SUPER DORK WATCHED BUCK ROGERS AND V, BUT NEVER SAW BATTLESTAR GALACTICA???!!!!!!!

I would like to say first and foremost that BATTLESTAR GALACTICA is a fine movie. It tells a really good story of the last survivors of the human race after the destruction of their twelve differing home worlds by an evil robotic race known as the Cylons. Lorne Greene stars as Adama, commander of the last surviving warship Galactica who is charged with leading his people to the safety of the legendary planet Earth.

This 1978 pilot was filmed for television and shown, followed by the descision to run it in theatres. As many have pointed out on this page, this film is not presented in true widescreen format, but rather sports black bars at the bottom and top of the picture which actually cover some of the original footage. You must keep in mind that this movie was NEVER filmed in widescreen to begin with, seeing that it was made for television. Several sequences and character moments are dropped from this cut as well to shorten the film to the more traditional running length. Universal is not cheating anyone here. Instead, they are presenting the version of the film as it appeared in theatres, altered in format and shortened in length to fit the theatrically wide movie screens we are so accustom to!

Ultimately, I would recommend "The Complete Epic Series" to anyone who fondly remembers BATTLESTAR GALACTICA before advising them to purchase this movie version of the film. Basically, this is for the major fans only, who may be interested in seeing what the film may have looked like in widescreen (as close as you will ever get to it in this case) and for those interested in comparing the two differing edits of the overall story. I would, however, recommend this version of the film for anyone who has never seen the show before. This is a good way to get the feel of what the series is about without spending too much money!

Lost Planet Of The Gods is the "sequel" to Saga Of A Star World and picks up where SOASW unwisely left off on exploring the mankind's genesis theme touched on in the series. Without question Lost Planet explores this theme with great effect.

The episode's superior quality is something of a surprise, for it gets off to an incredibly slow start and does not truly come into its own until Part Two. Part One does have strong qualities, notably the reintroduction of Baltar (John Colicos) and his placement into the role of commander of Cylon forces, complete with an aide-de-camp in the form of sentient cogitator Lucifer (voiced with infectious glee by Jonathan Harris). On the human side, there is the engagement of Apollo (Richard Hatch) and Serina (Jane Seymour).

But the Fleet encounters a spatial void, a magnetic "sea" that nearly "swallows" Apollo and Starbuck alive. Elsewhere, exploring a planetoid that houses a Cylon outpost, warriors Boomer (Herb Jefferson Jr.) and Jolly (Tony Swartz) contract an alien virus that spreads to warriors assembled at Apollo's bachelor celebration, and soon has stricken the bulk of the Galactica's warriors.

This disease-of-the-week angle is the episode's biggest weakness; I suspect producer-writers Glen A. Larson and Donald Bellisario wanted these pilots incapacitated in combat (a theme used in some fan fiction), but could not get away with it because of Standards & Practices at the ABC network, which regualrly campaigned to tone down the show's violence.

The stricken warriors are replaced by raw recruits, entirely female, and one of whom is Serina (Apollo and Serina argue over this, to good but insufficient effect). Predating G.I. Jane, they are seen whipping Cylon raiders over the planetoid as Apollo destroys the enemy outpost; the chessiness of this battle, though, is countered much later.

As for the void, Adama (Lorne Greene) recognizes it to contain the world from which humanity first gestated; Kobol. Upon finding the titular lost planet of the Gods, Adama, Apollo, and Serina (now husband and wife) explore two enormous pyramids, and eventually find ancient hieroglyphs recording the flight of humanity to other worlds, including the Twelve Colonies, and Earth.

However, Baltar has tailed the Fleet, and has landed on Kobol in a vainglorious attempt to convince Adama and his people to help him overthrow the Cylon empire. Suspecting that the human traitor indeed intends to so use the human fleet, Lucifer launches Cylon raiders to attack Kobol. The attack is harrowingly presented, with excellently booming sound mixing amid superb SFX of Cylon raiders strafing the planet; eventually Cylon raiders blast the tombs of Kobol to complete destruction, one of the absolute best SFX shots ever put to film.

The performances are superb, notably the verbal cat-and-mouse between Adama and Baltar within the largest tomb; Baltar's roar vowing revenge when he is left pinned under debris is chilling. Also gripping is the doom of Serina; shot in the back by Cylon centurions landed to rescue Baltar, she dies in the arms of Apollo back on the Galactica. Her son Boxey (Noah Hathaway) and Apollo are thus "left to face the universe alone," displayed as they sadly walk away at the episode's conclusion.

The episode's bitterly sad ending is bold; how often does any film end on anything but a happy note? It is one of the most poignant moments of the entire series.

Just an FYI to anyone considering this....buy the series DVD's and skip this DVD, as it's just the fullscreen version reedited....they just blacked out the top and bottom just like they did with it's prior iteration.....and it's MONO.....at least the series version of this story is 5.1, and is not very different from the movie.

Skip it unless you're passing on the series, and don't mind fullscreen copy with black bars.

It may have been made in an attempt to cash in on the success of "STAR WARS", but "BATTLESTAR GALACTICA" has withstood the test of time to become one of the best sci-fi films ever made. The story is gripping and, at times, funny. The cast, especially the leads (Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict, and Lorne Greene) are all perfect in their roles. The effects, while somewhat dated, are still great to look at. Who can forget the awesome destruction of Caprica? The awesome ships and costumes? The Cylons? All of these elements, and many more, make this one awesome film to behold. A must see for any serious fan of science fiction. Don't listen to those who say that this is nothing but a "STAR WARS" ripoff. They don't know what they are missing! Do yourself a favor-BUY THIS DVD TODAY! Also, there is currently underway an effort to get "BATTLETAR GALACTICA" brought back as a new series or movie. With your help, we can see that this great show finally gets to realize its full potential.

I also remember watching the original 3 hour (with commercials) pilot episode - which had been interrupted by news of a peace treaty being signed - in late 1978. I already had models of the Colonial Viper and the Cylons' fighter. Although the materials on the DVD suggest otherwise, this DVD is the movie version which was released one year later in Sensurround. I remember seeing the movie AFTER the series had started. (The DVD states the movie became the pilot.) I have never seen any video release of the complete pilot. It's always been this movie version. The pilot is now only shown as a three part episode in reruns. It would be nice to see more of the series on DVD.

It's been years since I've seen the complete pilot, but I'm guessing about 20 minutes might have been cut to make the movie version. The scene that stands out the most is Jane Seymour's character actually giving a TV news report. In the movie, you simply see her holding a microphone looking for her son. The DVD extras mention her character being a reporter, but unless you see that microphone, you'd have no clue what her career was before the Cylon attack.

The story begins with a peace treaty about to be signed between the human colonies and the Cylons. (Until just now, I never thought about the plot and the fact a real treaty was signed during the original broadcast.) The promise of peace is used to lure the humans into a trap - destroying most of the colonies and all but two Battlestars. (The second Battlestar pops up in a later episode in the TV series.) The survivors get together and begin a journey to where they believe an additional human colony exists. ...so they head for Earth.

The special effects are almost as good as those of the original Star Wars. (Dykstra was involved with both.) The story is well written. However, in some ways, it looks like it was made for TV. Many of the places look like sets - the brightly lit casino, the mines. The design of the Cylon warriors is great. The Cylons themselves (like the leader) aren't as impressive. The term "Cylon" is used to describe the lizard-like race as well as their robotic warriors.

Stu Philips' music is above average. It's better than his music for Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. It's not on the level of John Williams, but it's still enjoyable. I do have the LP of the soundtrack.

Battlestar Galactica was a great series I enjoyed when I was 9, and this movie does bring back memories. Until Universal releases more of the series, this is all we have on DVD. Besides the more famous stars like Lorne Greene and Jane Seymour, we also have Dirk Benedict who would later star in The A-Team.

This is one picture which actually managed to survive in the shadow of 'Star Wars'. What Galactica succeeded in doing was to outdo the plot of any of George Lucas's space soap-op epics (including this dreadfully overrated, digitally SFXed First Episode tripe) and throw in a great deal of other original elements in the bargain. The idea of Man on the run through space was a great reservoir to tap for a film and the opening narration by Patrick Macnee is reminiscent of Erich von Daniken's 'Chariots of the Gods?'. Other strong points include the work of John Dykstra who gave Galactica a fighting chance by injecting as many SFX into it as he had on 'Star Wars: A New Hope'. The sets are well designed and the fact that both the film and television series (the film was actually synthesised from episodes 1 and 5 of the series) had to keep to a none-too-loose budget hardly shows at all. What damaged the tv series and, to a lesser degree the film as well, was the acting and the lack of continuous shoot-em-up violence which had inspired countless kids who had seen 'Star Wars' to go out and buy X-wings and Tie-fighters. Colla was directing a cast culled from the wrong schools. Richard Hatch, for example, was great as Apollo, to be sure, but he had come in fresh from a soap opera background. This was not a film-oriented group of actors at all, which may have looked good for the series's prospects but the overall effect was to doom the series to a cult cathode following. Also, the Cylons (the B.G. equivalent of the Evil Empire) are just too unfrightening in form and they borderline being great targets for derision and comedy. One thing the film did get right was establishing a good story filled with terrific visuals, high symbolism and delivering a package which deserved to take on 'Star Wars' in critical treatment. While Dirk Benedict, Richard Hatch and Jane Seymour ensured a good-looking cast to rival that of 'Star Wars', luckily there was Lorne Greene to add depth as well, his immense screen presence and patriarchal method making the viewer see that this isn't a movie about space cowboys and injuns. A first-rate score and staggering special effects/art direction are the main players here. 'Battlestar Galactica' had the misfortune to be dwarfed in apparent glory by 'Star Wars' and drowned out utterly by the advent of 'The Empire Strikes Back'. In short, it was sandwiched to death by a competitor and assailed as being too mushy by too many to have ever been capable of being on par with that competitor. Too bad. Still, this picture retains a high entertainment value today. For those who claim it looks too dated, consider that it was Glen Larson's idea to give much of the costume design the look of an ancient-futuristic fusion. The movie is the perfect screen vehicle for the series. From the television series, I'd recommend 'Fire In Space', 'Murder on the Rising Star', 'Lost Planet of the Gods' and 'The Long Patrol' if you enjoyed the movie. However, a word of caution is due here: keep away from the ill-fated 'Galactica '80' series or any of its components. This was the follow-up to the original series and it single-handledly banged the last few nails into Galactica's coffin, as far as ABC and its viewers were concerned. You have to wonder just how many fans became ex-fans because of that alone.

The Battlestar Galactica movie - episode title Saga Of A Star World - kicks off the Galactica series, and as such it naturally has an incomplete quality. Not that the film doesn't stand well on its own - it does so quite well - but that it is not meant to be seen without also viewing the subsequent series.

Galactica: SOASW is a scifi allegory of the struggle of the state of Israel (though producer-creator Glen Larson has the Book of Mormom more in mind), and also an allegory on mankind's genesis. Both themes are intriguing and well presented. There is a hawkish view of war and peace issues - crystalized here with the Treaty of Cimtar that is but a cover for the Cylon Empire to launch the largest assault in the history of gaalctic warfare - that is by far BG's most provocative and refreshing quality; most other scifi suffers from a dreadfully pacifistic outlook that has never held up in the real world.

Many viewers at the time of the film's premeire in 1978 were asked to compare Galactica with Star Wars, and noted that Galactica benefits from a much stronger plot and premise than the original SW. The show's stronger plot remains impressive today, as do the performances of the huge cast assembled. Richard Hatch gets the strongest airtime here (subsequent episodes would explore the character of Dirk Benedict's Starbuck) and rounds out Captain Apollo very nicely.

Three mixes of SOASW have been aired; the original movie available on tape and DVD, the original with changes made regarding John Colicos (excellent as the villainous Baltar), and a two-and-one-half hour "director's cut," split into three one-hour episodes to actually launch the series. The long version includes the aforementioned changes for Baltar; in the original, Baltar is beheaded by the Cylons, but it was found that this was unsatisfactory a plot twist, and with strong audience reaction to Baltar, it was decided to change Baltar's fate and make him a continuing character (shown in a superior epilogue directed by Larson). The director's cut is the best of the three mixes.

The pilot's lesser qualities center primarily on the lengthy Carillon celebration, clearly inspired by the Mos Eisley bar scene in Star Wars. The Carillon angle is not poorly done, but it detracts from the show's theme about man's genesis. It is, though, good in setting up the show's hawkish outlook on war and peace; the Fleet's ruling Quorom decides to abandon the Fleet's voyage to find the planet Earth, and instead try to open a dialogue with the Cylons - unaware that those same Cylons have made the entire Carillon setup a trap in which to finish off the human race once and for all.

The SFX remain stellar nearly thirty years later, although the sound mixing of the later shows is markedly better, especially in the episodes Lost Planet Of The Gods and The Hand Of God.

In all, though, the Galactica pilot is a good start to a very enjoyable scifi series.

This is the first "episode" (it was actually a mini-series that launched the TV show) of Battlestar Galactica. However, if you buy the Complete Battlestar Galactica DVD Set (as most BSG fans would now that they are on DVD) this movie is on the first disk. Don't make the mistake I made and buy both. Once again, if you buy Battlestar Galactica: The Complete Epic Series, you do not need to purchase this item. While this is good, I don't see the point in buying it. You can buy it and the whole TV series in a boxed set, so to be able to buy just this seperate doesn't make sense.