Galaxy Quest

Details

Twenty years after their television programme was cancelled, the former crew of the NSEA Protector now earn a living opening supermarkets, promoting electrical stores and attending Galaxy Quest conventions. Although their adventures remain enormously popular with the fans, the cast have become tired of endlessly recreating scenes and repeating catchphrases from a programme they made decades earlier.

Jason Nesmith, who played the heroic Commander Peter Quincy Taggart, is the only member of the cast who still appears to enjoy the attention. He arrives late for appearances, takes centre stage whenever possible and happily accepts the adoration of the fans, leaving the rest of the cast increasingly resentful of both Jason and the programme that has come to define their lives.

During one convention, Jason is approached by a peculiar group of people who ask him to help them negotiate with an enemy. Assuming they are devoted fans offering him another paid appearance, he agrees to meet them the following morning. After being collected from his home, Jason is transported aboard what he believes to be an astonishingly convincing recreation of the Protector.

The visitors are actually Thermians, an alien race who intercepted transmissions of the original television series and mistook its episodes for genuine historical documents. Believing the crew to be real space heroes, they have modelled their society and technology upon the programme, even constructing a fully operational version of the NSEA Protector.

The Thermians are being hunted by the ruthless warlord Sarris, who wants possession of the Omega 13, a mysterious device mentioned during the final episode of the series. Still convinced that he is taking part in an elaborate performance, Jason casually orders the Protector to fire upon Sarris' ship before asking to be shown the way home.

Only when Jason is returned to Earth in a transparent pod does he finally realise that the ship, the Thermians and the danger they face are all real. Excited by the prospect of becoming a genuine space commander, he gathers the rest of the cast together, although he neglects to explain precisely where their next appearance will be taking place.

Before long, the actors find themselves standing on the bridge of a real starship with no script, no director and no idea how any of the controls actually work. Their only knowledge comes from the fictional roles they once played, whilst the Thermians unquestioningly expect them to have all the answers.

The crew initially attempt to recreate the behaviour of their television characters, but soon discover that genuine space travel is rather more dangerous than working on a studio set. Alien creatures do not follow stage directions, damaged engines cannot be repaired between scenes and an encounter with Sarris is unlikely to end conveniently before the closing credits.

Matters become considerably worse when Sarris captures the Protector and discovers that its supposedly legendary crew are nothing more than actors. With the Thermians facing destruction, Jason and his reluctant companions must stop pretending to be heroes and finally become the people their alien fans have always believed them to be.

Their only hope of defeating Sarris lies in combining their knowledge of the television series with the abilities of the real Protector. This even means turning to the Galaxy Quest fans back on Earth, whose encyclopaedic knowledge of the ship and its fictional adventures may prove considerably more useful than anyone expected.

Picture & Sound

At first I was worried about the picture quality, but I needn't have been. At the beginning of the film the audience is actually watching an old Galaxy Quest episode at one of the conventions. As the camera gradually pulls back to reveal the auditorium, the image suddenly becomes bright, detailed and filled with vibrant colours.

The dark corridors of the Protector are especially impressive, with solid blacks and plenty of shadow detail. Colours remain strong throughout, from the crew's uniforms to the various alien worlds, whilst the consistently high bit-rate ensures that there are few signs of compression artefacts. The computer-generated space battles look superb and could comfortably hold their own against many of the genuine Star Trek films.

The DTS soundtrack is astounding, with some of the finest sound separation I have heard on a DVD. Dialogue is crisp, clear and firmly anchored in the centre of the soundstage, whilst the rear channels are continually brought to life by spacecraft, alarms, explosions and the general activity aboard the Protector.

The space battles provide plenty of deep, booming bass and enough directional effects to give every speaker a thorough workout. Even the quieter scenes make excellent use of atmosphere, helping the interiors of the spacecraft feel considerably larger than your living room. It is simply a pity that DreamWorks couldn't fit both DTS and Dolby Digital soundtracks onto the disc, as Universal have managed to do on some of their releases. Perhaps DreamWorks have avoided compressing the DTS track quite as heavily, and judging by the results it certainly appears to have paid off.

Menu & Extras

The animated menus are brilliant and perfectly suited to the film. I couldn't stop laughing at the special-features menu, where a bored alien wanders around in the background mopping the floor. It appears that additional footage was created especially for the DVD, which is considerably more effort than many studios put into their menus.

The deleted scenes are amongst the most worthwhile extras and contain several moments that fans will enjoy, although it is easy to understand why some of them were removed from the finished film. The On Location in Space featurette offers a brief but entertaining look behind the scenes, whilst the trailers, production notes and cast biographies provide the usual supporting material.

The most unusual addition is an alternative soundtrack presented entirely in the Thermian language. It is completely bizarre and very funny for a short while, although only the most dedicated fan is likely to watch the entire film this way. Nevertheless, it is exactly the sort of wonderfully pointless extra that makes DVD collecting so much fun.

At least we don't have to pay a price premium for the DTS version, and we are even treated to a special introduction informing us that our "theatre" is equipped with DTS. It looks as though it was filmed in a cinema by somebody hiding a camcorder beneath their coat, but it remains an amusing way to begin the film.

There is one slightly annoying problem with my particular DTS setup. Although the film, trailers and features are presented in DTS, the menu sounds are not, forcing me to switch decoders whenever I return to the menus. This probably won't trouble anyone with a modern automatic Dolby Digital and DTS receiver, but those of us with separate decoders may find ourselves reaching for the remote control rather more often than expected.

Overall

On paper, Galaxy Quest sounds like a one-joke parody of Star Trek. Fortunately, it turns out to be considerably more than that. The film understands its subject far too well to settle for cheap jokes, affectionately recognising everything from implausible technology and disposable crew members to actors who have spent decades trying to escape a single catchphrase.

More importantly, the film never mocks the fans themselves. The Thermians may have taken the television series rather more seriously than intended, but their belief in its characters is treated with warmth rather than cruelty. Even the convention attendees, who initially appear to be included as easy targets, ultimately demonstrate that their detailed knowledge of the programme can be genuinely useful.

The cast are clearly having enormous fun. Tim Allen gives one of his most likeable performances as the egotistical Jason Nesmith, whilst Sigourney Weaver enthusiastically sends up her own science-fiction image as Gwen DeMarco. Alan Rickman is magnificent as the permanently irritated Alexander Dane, delivering every sarcastic glance and reluctant catchphrase with perfect timing.

Tony Shalhoub brings an amusingly relaxed attitude to even the most dangerous situations, while Sam Rockwell threatens to steal the film as the terrified Guy Fleegman. Robin Sachs also makes a suitably unpleasant villain, giving the adventure enough genuine menace to ensure that the film never becomes a collection of sketches.

That is ultimately why Galaxy Quest works so well. Once the jokes and references have established the characters, the film becomes a proper science-fiction adventure in its own right. The threat feels real, the action is exciting and, by the final act, you genuinely care whether this mismatched collection of actors can become the heroes they once pretended to be.

DreamWorks have produced an excellent DVD presentation. The picture is colourful and detailed, the animated menus are amongst the most entertaining seen on disc and the collection of extras contains enough unusual material to keep fans amused. However, it is the spectacular DTS soundtrack that really makes the release stand out and provides a superb workout for any home-cinema system.

Galaxy Quest is one of those rare films that seems to improve with every viewing. Whether you're a lifelong Star Trek fan or have never watched an episode in your life, there is something here for everyone. Funny, exciting, surprisingly touching and endlessly quotable, it deserves its place amongst the finest science-fiction comedies ever made. Never give up, never surrender!

Special features

• "On Location in Space" Featurette
• Deleted Scenes
• Thermian Language Audio Track
• Theatrical Trailer
• Cast and Filmmakers' Bios
• Production Notes