Customer Reviews

Stargate [UMD for PSP]

5 star:		(166)
4 star:		(101)
3 star:		(57)
2 star:		(31)
1 star:		(27)

 

 

I'm not sure what makes the ultimate edition much different from the special edition, as both include the director's cut and theatrical version. The ultimate edition does include a 'making of' featurette, as well as a 'Is there a stargate' featurette that isn't included on the special edition. These are both interesting, but nothing to write home about. One big difference is the audio. The ult. ed. includes DTS 6.1 audio, as well as dolby digital 5.1.

Good: Being a fan of Stargate SG-1, I wanted to own the original movie as well, and when the ult. ed. was released, knew it was time to buy. I watched the director's cut, and was amazed. There were added scenes, as well as extended existing scenes. These changes really gave me a better understanding of how things in the tv show came to be the way they are, such as the relationship between Jack O'Neill and Daniel Jackson. In the director's cut, we see more interaction between them. We also get more into the head of Jack, and better understand just how messed up he really is after the loss of his son.

Bad: The only disappointment I have with the ult. ed. is that there were no 'gag reels' or bloopers, or other deleted scenes included. I enjoy watching these on other DVDs I have, and would have loved to have seen them for Stargate.

Overall, I'm glad I added this DVD to my collection. My only wish is that the Stargate SG-1 DVDs included behind the scenes or blooper reels as well.

First, let me start by saying that I love this movie. Perhaps because I traveled to Egypt when I was 16 and I saw the glory of the giant pyramids in person (just don't tell an Egyptian that it was the aliens who built their pyramids and not their ancestors, he or she will be mad at you forever!).
I also love Sci-Fi flicks, and this movie has a great story. if you haven't seen it and you like Sci-Fi movies, even adventure movies with Kurt Russell, you'll love this one.

Now about the Blu-ray DVD:

Let me say that I have been a happy HD DVD owner for almost a year now, but seeing some the movies that I love in Blu-ray only, made me decide to get a Blu-ray player.

Video: The picture quality of this Blu-ray disc shows excellent CLARITY and BRIGHTNESS and BETTER COLORS that were not on the standard DVD. It seems that the brightness level was boosted, but also at the cost of some graininess and video noise.

The Picture looks almost perfect in the bright sunny desert scenes, but with very visible grains indoors.
Overall, comparing this version to the dark (less grainy SD DVD) is like the difference between Day and Night!
Also, This BD has a cool disc menu with ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic that turn into English letter.

There was a problem with the subtitled translation of the Alien language or ancient Egyptian (I'm not sure if this language was actually made up in Hollywood like the "KLINGON" language in the Star Trek Movies). The problem is, the translation should show up in English whenever that language is spoken, but it doesn't!!!!!! One helpful reviewer on this page suggested going to the main menu and selecting English subs, and it works!, but you end up with subtitles throughout the whole movie. This release might have been rushed to the market (like many Blu-ray releases of 2006 in order to compete with the other HD format). How long do we "Stargate" fan have to wait again before we get a release with a good picture quality (hopefully grain free and no subtitle problem)????

Audio: very good

Conclusion: I can say that this is the best version of this movie available to date! but it has its problems. If you can't wait and you don't mind turning on the subtitles during the whole movie, it's a great release under $20.

First off, once you get past the idea of a Stargate the rest kind of falls into place. The government, with the help of Professor Daniel Jackson (James Spader), figures out how to work it. Pro. Jackson, with an escort of soliders led by Colonel Jack O'Neil (Kurt Russell) step through it to the other side.
They find a desert planet where humans are being made to mine for the same material that the gate was made from.
The people are Egyptians who were removed from Earth over 10,000 years ago, by an alien, and even Daniel Jackson can't understand their language because living languages CHANGE.
The movie is careful to stay away from many of the cliches of most sci-fi movies but also stays away from having characters which are TOO simple. Both Daniel and Jack (played by James and Kurt) are real people, not cardboard cut-outs, with all the flaws and merits of our own reality. The natives are catch between trying to be friendly towards strangers AND not pissing off their Gods.
The science and technology used by Ra and his men look very sleek and very real. From the spaceship to the gliders, everything has a touch of old Egyptian myth mixed with advanced alien know-how.
The DVD comes with two versions of the movie, Director's Cut and the theatrical cut, in which the former has audio commentary. The DVDs also have a great 'Making of Stargate' featurette, a 'Is There a Stargate?' short starring Erich von Daniken himself, trailers, scane access, crew and cast information and production notes.
Everything you could want in a DVD set, a mixture of sound science fiction, a touch of great effects and the pinch of old fashion adventure. This is a great pop corn flick. Enjoy!

I own this disc although the reviews of subtitle problems. However, I found the solution! Do NOT go to the menu screen and select english subtitles. The correct way to do it is to press your subtitle button on your remote and select English 3. This will correctly display the alien subtitles without the English subtitles. Whew! I am glad I found this out!

4 stars due to no major special features. The Blu Ray transfer makes this movie look more and more like 1994! Great movie!

The more I see this film, the more it confirms how much I like it. As a film, I see it primarily as a romance. In the end, a man out of place in one world, finds his place in another, and one man finds meaning in his own world after a very traumatic event. The central force is the romance that one finds in a place across the Galaxy.
Comparing the Film with TV series is not worth it. The TV series is rightly stated as "MacGyver Versus the Stargate", since that is what it is set up to be. The film, however, is a stand-alone masterpiece.
Emmerich and Devlin team up, and produce a film that works on many levels. You can enjoy the many extras on the discs, however, the Von Danikan add-ons are just fluff. The heart of this film is an excellent script. The soul of it lies in the performers, and the performances.
You will probably notice some Emmerich staples, such as some truly superb performers who have appeared in other films by Emmerich and co.
The Sound on the DVD is excellent, and despite some very minor, but incredibly obvious continuity mistakes, the story works. There has not been an intergalactic romance like this since FORBIDDEN PLANET, and both STARGATE and FORBIDDEN PLANET are excellent films, each ahead of their time, and both immensely for any fan of the genre.

Like other reviewers, I love the movie and already had it on dvd, but was VERY disappointed with the Blu-Ray transfer. When the scenes are bright (e.g., in the desert), the picture is excellent. But darker scenes are horrible. Very grainy. I'm not even sure grainy is the right word. There's snow on the picture like I'm receiving it with an antenna and the signal is weak. But then, switch to a brighter scene and we're back to crispy again. I can't figure out what went wrong. Was the original film poor in lower light conditions? I doubt it. Did they transfer from a copy of a copy of a copy? Probably. Regardless, I CANNOT recommend this Blu-Ray for now. Perhaps an "ultimate" or "collector's" edition will come out so I can buy it a 3rd time and they'll have cleaned it up. Hello? Criterion? Are you there? Somebody get the rights off these Lionsgate boobs.

I understand a lot of companies are doing this - rushing to put out a blu-ray versions with no effort to make good transfers. I'd rather they hadn't issued a Stargate blu-ray at all. I suppose they know I'll buy it again and again, like a lab rat getting repeatedly zapped at an electrified food dispenser.

Also, I didn't see any extras on the blu-ray at all, just the commentary, which was on the dvd.

I bought the blu-ray edition of the movie and was blown-away at how horrible the picture looked. I'm not sure how they transferred the film to digital but the blu-ray looks worse than DVD copies of the film I've seen. You'll be looking at the TV wondering if its on the fritz becuase there's so much snow and artifacts in the picture - and no I don't mean archeological artifacts either. Avoid the blu-ray version!

Amazon.com should make it more clear, that this is not the standard "Ultimate Edition" but the Ultimate Edition (version 2). These are not the same sets. Even though reviews and images posted are of the original... THIS IS NOT IT.

The V.2 does not come with the original theatrical version, and is just the "Extended Cut". On top of that the transfer is so poor, you have a better chance of seeing a higher quality version taped off of a television broadcast from 15 years ago. The picture is excessively grainy, blurry in most spots, and the colors are faded or washed out.

This belongs in a dollar DVD bin. I thought that for less than[..] on sale, I was getting a bargain... now I feel ripped off. While it may cost close to your standard video rental, it will be watched fewer times. It's truly sad that such a magnificent movie can't ever be viewed again how it was originally intended to be seen.

My advice... Avoid all Artisan Entertainment products until they can figure out how a movie is meant to be watched.

This review is primarily explaining this Remastered HDTV 16:9 5:1 Dolby digital Ultimate Edition / Directors Cut, 2 DVD Set presentation!!

Artisan is notorious for re-releasing their DVD over & over again each time giving us more fluff in its DVD package (not necessarily the picture or sound quality).

Case in point "STARGATE - Ulitmate Edition Director's Cut. This is their 3rd release of "STARGATE" and they FINALLY got it right! (what takes Artisan so long to release the movie right??? Never the 1st time (SO BUYER BEWARE) NOW on their 3rd try they have provided us with a worthy outstanding presentation!!!!

Note: If you are a Home Theatre Owner with HDTV WideScreen 16:9 you must be cautioned about your DVD purchasing. First WideScreen (Letterbox) DVD's are not going to be true WideScreen on your 16:9 HDTV. Letterbox means just that - horizontal & vertical black bars around a very small centered WideSceen picture. Second true WideScreen as this "STARGATE - Ultimate Edition" is indeed a true HDTV 16:9 (as noted on the DVD Ultimate Features)picture giving the complete expanded presentation. Finally remember the only true HDTV WideScreen DVD will be noted on the Extra Features Section as 16:9 WideScreen Enhanced or Anamorphically Enhanced (DVD will automatically adjust to TV size).

"STARGATE" the movie itself is a scifi classic weaving ancient Eygptian theories with scifi. Brought to us by Erich von Daniken, author of the renowned book "Chariots of the Gods". A very imaginative movie with great screen acting (Kurt Russell & James Spader), outstanding special effects and a very fascinating complex story.

This "Ulitmate Edition" is awesome!! Here is what you get; Newly REmastered 16:9 WideScreen - the picture is absolutely fantastic), A "DIRECTOR'S CUT" - additional extended scene footage allowing us to know more about this fascinating world of "STARGATE", Original Theatrical Cut - so you get two versions to compare!! (Director's Cut wins hand down), Digtially ReMastered Sound - 6.1 DTS & 5.1 Dolby Digital - Awesome, Featurettes: Is this a STARGATE? - a great explanation of aliens visiting earth etc., The Making of STARGATE - includind never before seen behind the scenes video, Audio Commentary - great backgound information about "STARGATE", Production Notes, Cast & Crew Information & Theatrical Trailers. Wow, what a great DVD package. Artisan finally gets it right so now I can pass on my old inferior versions to friends so they can at least get a taste of this great scifi epic.

Now I can say buy "STARGATE" and sit back & ENJOY the ride over & over.

This film managed to appear at just the right time. Capitalizing on the success of the Star Wars films and The Abyss, and foreshadowing Independence Day, it manages to combine our dreams of instantaneous transmission across galactic space with a whole line of modern myths about the visitations of pyramid building aliens. Hitting just at the right time, it spawned a successful TV series and lingers in the minds of more than a few avid film geeks.

After a quick flashback to an old excavation in Egypt where a gigantic ring like artifact is discovered and then promptly whisked away into secrecy were come to the present and see Dr. Daniel Jackson (James Spader) getting laughed out of an academic conference for insisting that Cheops did not build the great pyramid. Desolate, Jackson is recruited for a translation job. Brought to some great subterranean base his challenge is to fine the right set of symbols on that ring, which turns out to be something special - a Stargate.

Kurt Russell plays Jack O'Neil, a suicidally depressed Special Forces commando who will lead the team (Jackson included) through the Stargate when the combination is finally decoded. Where they find themselves in a pyramid (no surprise there) on a desert planet where humans labor to mine the metal from which the Stargate was made. This moment of mutual discovery is interrupted by the arrival of the villains in, sure enough, a giant flying pyramid. A group of aliens took over human bodies millennia ago and has been living forever ever since.

The film is predictable in the extreme - a feel good film with one of those spectacular endings where everything turns out right and the audience yells and whistles with delight. In other words it's fun, but of the lightweight sort. Acting is evenly forgettable, but survives having a cast the majority of which talk in an incomprehensible ancient Egyptian dialog. Jaye Davidson gets a few extra points for making a pretty faced boy look totally evil, but don't look for much in the way of high drama.

Still, I liked it then, and I like it now, especially the hokey Egyptian space furniture and animal headed costumes. It's silliness in a good cause - something to shake a scepter at. Don't get fooled too much by the 'Ultimate' thing. You get a feature on Von Daniken, writer of Chariots of the Gods, and a narrative commentary, all easily skippable.