Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
Written by General Jabbo
With the new Star Trek film in theaters, what better time than to re-release the DVD of the movie that lampooned it so well 10 years ago? Now in a deluxe edition, Galaxy Quest is back and better than ever.
Galaxy Quest tells the story of the cast of the television show of the same name. It is now 20 years since the show was cancelled and the actors have fallen on hard times, making appearances at Galaxy Quest conventions and opening electronics stores in full costume. The actors are at each other’s throats and especially resent Jason Nesmith (Tim Allen essentially playing William Shatner) for his ego and nonchalant attitude.
Nesmith’s opinion of himself changes though when he overhears some fans badmouthing him while he is in a bathroom stall. The fans are unaware he is there, but their message hits home and Nesmith ends up going on a drinking binge.
It is then that Nesmith is visited by a group of aliens known as Thermians and beamed aboard their ship. They have mistaken transmissions of the Galaxy Quest television show to be historical documents of life on Earth and patterned their entire culture after it. Nesmith initially thinks the Thermians are actors and that he was filming a scene for them. Once they beam him down, he realizes they really were aliens.
Back on Earth, Nesmith manages to convince the cast to join him on the mission. They are skeptical of any of it being real, but need the work and decide to go along. They are beamed aboard the ship and unwittingly sucked into a war with Thermian nemesis General Sarris (Robin Sachs).
Allen leads a crack cast including Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, Tony Shalhoub, and Enrico Colantoni that seems to be enjoying themselves. It is this enthusiasm that helps make Galaxy Quest a lighthearted tribute to Star Trek. It pokes fun, but does so lovingly — not in a mean-spirited way.
The DVD has a number of special features, including: “Historical Documents: The Story of Galaxy Quest” — a documentary about the making of the film; “Never Give Up. Never Surrender: The Intrepid Crew of the NSEA Protector”; “By Grabthar’s Hammer, What Amazing Effects”; “Alien School: Creating the Thermian Race”; “Sigourney Weaver Raps,” which has to be seen to be believed; three deleted scenes; and a host of other extras.
For fans of the sci-fi genre, Galaxy Quest offers feel-good fun with actors who are into their roles 100 percent. Think of it as the This is Spinal Tap for sci-fi geeks. Never give up. Never surrender.
