Film: 
DVD: 
Written by Ronald D. Moore and Christopher Eric James, based on the series by Glen A. Larson
Directed by Michael Rymer
Starring Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis, and Tricia Helfer
Features:
- Making-of Featurette: Battlestar Galactica: The Lowdown
- Deleted Scenes
- Running audio commentary by writer Moore, director Rymer and producer David Eick
Released by: Universal Home Entertainment
Rating: NR (some violence and sexuality)
Region: 1
Anamorphic: Yes.
My Advice: Own it. Now.
[ad#longpost]Humans created the Cylons. They were designed to be robots to help out with the mundane tasks of everyday life. What the humans didn’t plan on, though, was the Cylons developing an artificial intelligence and starting a war. The war finally ended and the Cylons agreed to leave the Twelve Colonies. Together they built a space station where they could keep the peace in place. The only problem is that the Cylons didn’t show up for over forty years. Finally, they have come back to finish the war that they started many years ago. There’s only one little problem: the Cylons have figured out how to take on human form…and damn good looking ones at that. The fate of the human race depends on one of the few remaining Battlestars: Galactica.
Armed with the understanding that the original series was groundbreaking during its day, this re-imagining of the story is far superior. The original series attempted to do for television what Star Wars had done for films. This series attempted to do for television what the wheel did for mankind. Seriously. The digital effects are first-rate and second to none. The acting is far superior. For starters, the actors understand the characters they are playing should feel like real people and not bad soap opera character-heroes. The bottom line is that it’s just better in every single way. The storyline is much more compelling when you know that there are characters who might possibly be the enemy. Olmos is the quintessential military commander. The biggest shocker is that they chose to cast the role of Starbuck as a female this time around. This caused quite a bit of stir among the faithfuls, but believe me it works perfectly. Sackhoff is perfect.
Oh yeah, did I mention that the digital effects are amazing?
The DVD is quaint, but good. For starters, there is a feature length commentary track with the director and executive producers. Granted, they had a lot to talk about adapting the old show, but there is something to be said for a feature length commentary that lasts through a whole miniseries. Kudos to them for that. And, they keep it interesting. On the flipside of the disc, there are deleted scenes and a featurette. The deleted scenes are great. It’s just a shame they couldn’t find a way to work them into the show. The featurette features interviews with some of the cast members from the original show as well as the cast and crew from the new show. It’s a fitting tribute to the source material, but they make no bones about attempting to blow it out of the water.
Even if you are a die-hard fan of the original show, you won’t be disappointed. I say run out right now and pick this one up. It’s a keeper.
