Battlestar Galactica (2003) (TV)

User Rating:

8.2/10   

Director:

Michael Rymer

Writers:

Glen A. Larson (earlier teleplay)
Ronald D. Moore (written by) ...

Release Date:

8 December 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Never create what you can't control.

Plot:

A re-imagining of the original series in which a "rag-tag fugitive fleet" of the last remnants of mankind flees pursuing robots while simultaneously searching for their true home, Earth.

Plot Keywords:

Cylon | Planet | Survivor | Quest | Fighter Pilot

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Edward James Olmos	...	Commander Adama
Mary McDonnell	...	Laura Roslin
Katee Sackhoff	...	Lt. Kara Thrace - Starbuck
Jamie Bamber	...	Capt. Lee Adama - Apollo
James Callis	...	Gaius Baltar
Tricia Helfer	...	Number Six
Callum Keith Rennie	...	Leoben Conoy
Grace Park	...	Lt. Sharon Valerii - Boomer
Michael Hogan	...	Col. Tigh
Matthew Bennett	...	Doral
Paul Campbell	...	Billy
Aaron Douglas	...	Crew Chief Tyrol
Barclay Hope	...	Transport Pilot
Lorena Gale	...	Elosha
Kandyse McClure	...	Dualla

Also Known As:

Battlestar Galactica: The Miniseries (USA) (long title)
Battlestar Galactica (Germany) [de]
Battlestar Galactica (France) [fr]
Csillagközi romboló (Hungary) [hu]
Galactica - Astronave de Combate (Brazil) (DVD title) [pt]
O Retorno de Galactica (Brazil) (cable TV title) [pt]
Taisteluplaneetta Galactica (Finland) [fi]
Thorikto Galactica (Greece) [el]

Runtime:

USA:180 min

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:14A (DVD/video rating) | Netherlands:12 | Sweden:11 | Australia:M | Germany:12 | Singapore:NC-16 | UK:12 | USA:TV-14 (part 1) | USA:TV-PG (part 2) | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Bloedel Floral Conservatory, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

R&D TV

Trivia:

The MkII Viper that Starbuck flies in the miniseries has "Raymond 'Raygun' Lai' on the side of the cockpit. Ray Lai was one of the preproduction concept artists for the miniseries.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Apollo shoots the missile and loses power, you get a shot of the Viper MK II Cockpit when he pulls the trigger, however when he loses power,it shows a Viper MK VII cockpit losing power.

Quotes:

Number Six: What are you doing?
Baltar: Phoning my attorney.
Number Six: That won't be necessary.
Baltar: Nah, he'll know what to do. He'll sort this out. He's the best in the business.
Number Six: It won't be necessary because in a few hours no one will be left to charge you with anything.
Baltar: What exactly are you saying?
Number Six: Humanity's children are returning home. Today.
[a nuclear detonation flares in the distance]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "South Park: Go God Go (#10.12)" (2006)

Some People Just Do Not Understand

I've read a lot of your comments, and it amazes me how some people seem to think that the function of this mini-series (and hopefully series) is to cater to the whims of the fans of the original series. Sorry, that's not it.

The die-hard types -- the "fans" (and I am one, of BSG, BSG2003, Trek, B5, etc.) -- are never going to be more than a small fraction of the viewership of any television program. It must appeal to a broader audience, or it is DOOMED.

Ronald D. Moore -- in my opinion, one of the better writer-producers in sci-fi today -- took a concept that pleased just about nobody but the fans and reproduced it in a manner that made it interesting and watchable to a modern audience. And if you step outside of your "I want Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch, and Dirk Benedict" temper tantrums, you will find it interesting and watchable as well.

As for some of the main cast members -- like the Adamas pere et fils -- being stiff and inhuman...my friends, welcome to career military officer types. I would bet you're the same people who complained about Commander Jeffrey Sinclair in the first season of Babylon 5 as well. These are TRUE TO LIFE heroes, not the Saturday morning cartoon comic book heroes.

As for remolding Starbuck (does she drink a lot of coffee? ;-) and Boomer into women... well, I had my doubts at first, but I thought they did a magnificent job. As for the Cylons looking like humans now... well, only some of them do. And, to be perfectly honest, it makes a lot of sense for them to be able to blend in with their enemies. Anyone who has knowledge of terrorists in the Middle East knows that the reason they can get in to major civilian population centers and cause hideously evil damage and destruction is because THEY BLEND IN. Use some logic, people!

Much like when going to see a movie based on one of Tom Clancy's novels, I didn't go into this expecting to see the original. I went into it expecting to see something new and interesting with some similarities at the plot level. And I was not disappointed.

Since ENTERPRISE seems to be killing the Trek franchise -- and I admit, I enjoy ENTERPRISE a lot of the time, but a lot of people don't, and I can see why -- I am in high hopes a series based on BSG2003 can revitalize hope for on-going TV science fiction. I don't see why it shouldn't as long as people stop thinking they're going to get Lorne Greene. They're getting Edward James Olmos, one of the most brilliant actors in Hollywood, coming BACK to TV after a successful movie career... and how often does THAT happen?!?