Galaxy Quest Deluxe Edition
Never Give UP, Never Surrender is the catch phrase of the crew of the NSEA Protector but the TV series has ended years ago and Jason Nesmith must get his crew back together for one last adventure.
Film making 22/25
Cinematography 20/25
Audio 20/25
Bonus Features 18/25
Total 80/100
Jason Nesmith is a long out of work actor except for the store opening gigs and conventions that revolve around the TV series he was a star of 17 years ago. The show called Galaxy Quest was about the NSEA Protector and her crew as they cruise the universe exploring the vast reaches of space.
The show was a great success, kind of like Star Trek, and the actors now are type cast into the roles they left so many years ago. Instead they are relegated to opening electronics stores and appearances at conventions that honor the show, also like Star Trek.
When a group of supposed fans approach Jason, played by Tim Allen, he thinks they want him for another gig and agrees to meet them at his home. The rest of his crew of actors are sick of his late appearances many times due to being hung over.
While at the convention Jason overhears some people saying what a joke the whole convention is and what they really think of the actors as well as what the actors think of Jason. Jason meets the group of real aliens the next day called Thermians and joins them on their ship in space in another galaxy as they try to fight a reptilian race that is trying to take over the universe.
Mathesar the leader of the Thermians leads Jason to the command seat of the ship they built on what they call the historical documents of Galaxy Quest. The Thermians believe all television broadcasts are historical documents and they do not understand about entertainment.
Jason at first does not believe they are on a real ship as he fell asleep from his hangover while on the trip to the ship so he deals with Sarris, the leader of the reptilian aliens, as he would in the show. He finds out the whole event was real when they send him back to Earth in a cocoon of a gelatinous material and launch him through a black hole back to his house.
He finds his fellow actors at a store opening and tells them about the trip but they do not believe it is real and only join him thinking it’s another gig. They are amazed and start to help the Thermians in their fight against Sarris and his cohorts eventually winning the day.
Galaxy Quest is not so much a parody of Star Trek but a movie that looks at the actors of such long running shows that become stuck in the roles they played. The film does a great job of looking at human nature and being stuck in a rut with something that you did love and has now become tedium.
The film had a great group of actors including Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver and Allen Rickman as well as some very good direction and production from Mark Johnson and Charles Newirth. The film has some great help from actors who not only worked on serious and funny shows but from an understanding of being type cast in a role.
Galaxy Quest is a great comedy and has that unique and almost unattainable quality of being more than just one genre or type of film with its serious side of human emotion and showing people wanting to be liked as just themselves. The film is great and well worth owning for a repeat appearance every now and then for some serious laughter with a touch of drama.
The Deluxe Edition that has come out ten years after the original release is full of special features on the DVD including five making of features, a funny rap video from Sigourney Weaver and deleted scenes. The making of features go from the original idea and getting things together from the director and producers to the actors view of playing various roles that are portrayed in the film.
The bonus content is great and really adds a lot to the film that shows how much really went into the film that is not just a sci-fi comedy but a deep look at people. Galaxy Quest is a great film and well worth the low cost for the Deluxe Edition on DVD for a fun time and a deeper look into acting and really any profession that you may end up becoming a has been in.