AmateurMovieReviews.com

By Simon Woodhouse

What is it that pushes a movie just high enough to make it a blockbuster? I suppose if anyone knew the answer for sure, they'd be head of the largest film studio in the world and also extremely rich. When I ask what makes a film a blockbuster, I'm not talking about the amount of money it rakes in. I mean what is it about the movie itself that so catches the public's imagination they flock to the multiplex in their droves? More baffling than this question is its opposite number - what makes a movie a flop? And then there's a third question, why do some films merely loiter in the middle ground between the two extremes?

Galaxy Quest is a middle ground film. But at the same time, it seems as though with a few changes here and there it could have been a blockbuster. It's got all the right ingredients - good players, witty script, funny basic premise. However, something just doesn't quite click across the whole 115 minutes.

Whether you love or loath Star Trek, you know it exists. And chances are, you can name a few of the characters as well. Bearing this in mind, it's hard to see how anyone couldn't relate to the story of Galaxy Quest. Struggling actor Jason Nesmith (Tim Allen), once played the character of Commander Peter Quincy Taggart in the hit TV show Galaxy Quest. But it's a role that's plagued him all his life. Nearly twenty years later he's making a living attending Galaxy Quest conventions, where he appears alongside other cast members from the TV show. It's unglamorous work, but the fanatical fans feed Jason's ego, and the money's not all that bad.

However, after realizing he's actually a laughing stock, he comes down to Earth with a bump. Hung over after a night of soul searching and heavy drinking, he's accosted by a group of fans who he thinks want him to take part in a fan film. But it turns out the fans are Thermeans, genuine aliens from the other side of the galaxy. They've come to Earth after watching the Galaxy Quest programs, and they think Jason really is Commander Taggart. The Thermean home world is under threat, and so the chief Thermean, Mathesar (Enrico Colantoni), wants Commander Taggart's help in dealing with the evil Sarris (Robin Sachs). Already a victim of his ego, when Jason realizes the Thermeans virtually worship him, he's happy to play along with their misconception. Not only that, but he ropes the rest of the Galaxy Quest cast into helping him.

Tim Allen's character is obviously meant to be Captain Kirk from the original Star Trek. Other cast members include Alan Rickman as Alexander Dane/Dr Lazarus, a Mr Spock clone, and Sigourney Weaver as Gwen DeMarco/Lt. Tawny Madison, whose Star Trek equivalent would have to be Lt. Uhura. These three get the most screen time, but not the most laughs. This prize is jointly awarded to Tony Shalhoub as Fred Kwan/Tech Sergeant Chen, a drugged out version of Scotty, and Sam Rockwell in the guise of Guy Fleegman/Crewmen Number Nine. The Thermeans are also pretty funny, with there hopeless naivety giving them an endearing quality.

Everything about the film mirrors Star Trek. The Galaxy Quest ship is the NSEA Protector, a double for the Enterprise. The crew travel to and from the ship via the digitizer (a transporter variant), and even the planets they visit look reminiscent of the studio sets used in the original Star Trek TV series. You don't have to be a fan of Star Trek to enjoy the film, but it does help.

As the movie moves forward, Nesmith and his crew of wannabes make a mess of dealing with Sarris, and are forced to beat a hasty retreat. In the process they wreck the Protector's engines, and so have to go in search of a new Berilium sphere (the fuel that powers the ship). This leads them to an unnamed planet, on the surface of which they encounter a couple of different alien races. Though a very visual film, it's the dialogue that provides the laughs, and it's not all at the expense of Star Trek. The movie is funny in its own right, and this is thanks in no small part to the ensemble cast. They're such a mixed bunch of oddballs that putting any two of them together produces funny moments. The best pairing, however, is definitely Fred and Guy. In fact, had these two been given more screen time the film may have done a little better.

Via a clever bit of writing, the movie ends where it began - at a Galaxy Quest convention (the scenes for which were actually filmed at a Star Trek convention, hence the Klingons). The finale seems tailor made to allow for a sequel, but none was ever forthcoming. The movie did relatively well at the box office, grossing about $30 million more than the production costs. But perhaps it suffered from the same fate as Star Trek itself, i.e. each cast member wanting more money to do another sequel, and thus making the film unprofitable. Whatever the reason, Galaxy Quest stands as the one and only outing of the crew of the Protector, which is a shame, because for once I'd have been more than happy to see a sequel.