Galaxy Quest
1999
D: Dean Parisot
**********
Pros: Good Cast, Funny, Good Effects and Design
Cons: Not as Funny as It Starts Out, Mediocre Villain
I remember when I first saw Galaxy Quest shortly after it came out on video. I didn’t particularly care for it. I recently figured that perhaps my sense of humor had matured since then, so I doublechecked it and I was fortunately right. The movie is of the typical ersatz Three Amigos! formula, but it’s funnier than the last one I reviewed. There’s even a bit of a Liar Revealed plot as the main character’s egotism causes him to play along with the hapless aliens’ delusion he is a real hero.
The movie introduces us to its cast of actors from a fictional version of Star Trek. Our Kirk analogue is Jason Nesmith (Tim Allen). Gwen DeMarco (Sigourney Weaver) played an objectified female officer whose role on the show was limited to repeating the ship’s computer. She is moderately embarrassed by this shallow role. Less mild in his embarrassment is Alexander Dane (Alan Rickman), a snarky Shakespearian actor whose alien character is known for a decidedly cheesy line. A nice payoff is his earnestly reciting this line while comforting a dying alien (Patrick Breen) he has formed a connection with. His cynicism toward his role could be a possible crossover reference to Alec Guiness, but I’m bugged by a brief scene in which he is seen in his home still wearing his head makeup despite his hatred for the role. Other cast members include the clueless Fred Kwan (Tony Shalhoub), who played the ship’s ChEng, Tommy Weber (Daryl Mitchell) who played a gimmicky child pilot (Corbin Bleu), and Guy Fleegman (Sam Rockwell), a dead redshirt who tags along on the adventure and is later recast as a major character in the revived series (a reference to Star Trek’s frequent reuse of the same actors). The flaws and quirks of Trek are effectively and affectionally ribbed throughout the movie. I was afraid the movie was overpraised for making fun of fanboys in the same way that most 90’s Warner Bros. cartoons did during the preceding decade, but it’s brief and respectful. One of them (a young Justin Long) even helps them win the day at the end.
The witty dialogue and effective chemistry are utilized well in the first scene, in which the crew is preparing for yet another humiliating publicity stunt. The timing is good, and the cinematography (Jerzy Zielinski) even uses a mirror to deliver a joke that appeals to my sometimes capricious taste in delivery. A few more funny scenarios occur: a hung-over and bemused Nesmith is herded by the Thermians into what he thinks is an elaborate LARPing session but is in fact an actual attack on an enemy ship. The cast witnesses a group of cute aliens turn on one of their wounded.
Unfortunately, the movie suffers from a common affliction: Plotting a Perfectly Good Comedy. Usually, the opportunities for comedic strengths of some movies are discarded in the 2ndor 3rdact in the name of a formulaic, earnest plot. Fortunately, this plot is actually pretty effective, and there’s still enough decent humor that’s satirical enough to not be passed off as just comic relief. The stakes are effectively high. You actually care about these characters along with the too-good-for-this-universe Thermians (Enrico Colantoni, Missi Pyle, Jed Rees, and Rainn Wilson in his film debut). I usually roll my eyes at assertions that “X parody is a better X serious work than X serious work,” but that applies to Galaxy Quest in a way that’s quite indictment of recent movies. It’s definitely better than the Star Wars sequel trilogy, and it’s certainly more watchable than the bulk of the Star Trek reboots. J.J. Abrams apparently said his favorite Trek movie was Galaxy Quest, so that probably explains something.
The protagonist has an effective arc as the conceited egotist who learns humility. He thrives on the publicity his co-stars dread until he hears someone hurt his fragile ego, causing him to lash out at fans and question his worth. After he and the crew are taken up by the Thermians, he plays along gleefully but desperately with the delusion until he owns up to them during tragic moments. He then bonds with the crew and defeats the villain in a way far more satisfying that what I tend to see in more recent fare. “I am Iron Man,” whatever. Give me “dragging mines.”
The Thermians are also good characters. Their true form (brought to life by Stan Winston and company) is very Cthulhu-like, and I like how the movie is sympathetic toward non-humanoids. Because fiction is an alien concept to them, they mistake Galaxy Quest( the show) for “historical documents” and recreate the show’s ship (oddly enough with devices they have no way of knowing how to recreate) and recruit the crew. This movie also has honesty points over The Invention of Lying by allowing the existence of disagreement among these aliens in their past. Their simpering mannerisms while in human disguise are justified, and you still feel bad for them as they’re disillusioned by heroes’ coming clean and when they’re being tortured by Sarris. You feel good for them when they overcome adversity and strike out on their own.
Sarris (Robin Sachs) is a weak point in the movie. While his costume is nicely detailed, it does not allow enough articulation in the face. His mouth is permanently stuck in an odd little smile, and the actor doesn’t do too well, either. Combined with his lack of interesting dialogue and one-dimensional personality, this makes for a rather bland villain. He seems a possible inspiration for the villains in the first and third reboot movies, but then again at least unlike them he has some style. This style also comes in the form of his ship, which looks (probably intentionally) like the lovechild of the Planet Killer and a D’deridex and has an interesting interior. The heroes’ ship, the Protector also has a great design. Special effects are pretty good, but there is some dated CGI.
A long-foreshadowed plot point is the Omega-13, a mysterious device on the Protector, whose purpose no one actually knows. Despite the common assumption that it will destroy all existence, Nesmith uses it to reverse time (based on a vague hunch by someone else that it will do something else) when Sarris successfully murders the heroes. It’s upsettingly similar to the plot point that ruined Superman, but more forgivable since it is not done so lightly. I can confidently say that any mention of this device can be removed from the movie without losing anything.
Galaxy Quest is definitely an effective spoof that pleased both fans and creators. It remains the best parody about the franchise, except maybe for certain sequences in STD. In contrast, Orville isn’t so much a spoof as it is an earnest rehash of TNG with more lowbrow comic relief. I also consider comparisons to Spaceballs to be heretical, as Galaxy Quest is actually funny and its satire involves intimate knowledge of the work besides outside jokes about merchandising. The latter was clearly made with love. And to think, I’ve been spending all these years thinking it was overrated. Good thing we have anniversaries.
 |
| Wait, what, is....is that an STD Klingon?! |
No comments:
Post a Comment