Atlanta's DragonCon in July saw the screening of the promotional concept proof produced to wet the movie-making appetites of Universal Studios. The following is the conference report, reprinted with the kind permission of our chum Encelladus at www.moviecrypt.com Battlestar Galactica: the Second Coming
promotional pre-production teaser Pulling back from a spacescape eerily identical to the one Commander Adama once used to dictate the history of the Battlestar Galactica, Apollo, now Commander of the fleet, speaks into a microphone. Twenty yarns have passed, and somewhere along the way, the Cylons mysteriously ended their single-minded pursuit of the Galactica... until now. The music becomes intense as the familiar boot of a Cylon falls, a simple blaster is raised that suddenly morphs into a powerful weapon, and a cold, mechanical voice sounds off "By your command!" as more Cylons appear from a dreamlike mist. The scenes then flash rapidly by, depicting familiar but obviously more advanced Cylon Bases and glimpses of a fortified fleet still led by the Galactica. The voice-over continues as Apollo explains that a Cylon civil war was the cause of the disappearance and that something new has evolved and survived it, and now they're coming back to finish where they left off. A younger group of Viper pilots are being trained, none of which are old enough to remember the original Cylons. Colonial Vipers roar through a red and golden skyscape, skimming a desert planet's surface as they dodge hidden gun emplacements. As Apollo turns his attention to training and leading the new pilots, others question his ability to lead the fleet with his hatred of the Cylons blinding him. As if to confirm Apollo's worst fears, the leering face of Baltar appears, now scarred and aged but no less dangerous. Turning to his father's wisdom, a hologram of Adama speaks of the past as Apollo makes a fateful decision. Militaristic but hopeful music plays in the background as the Cylons mount their attack. Pilots young and old join the attack as wave after wave of Vipers launch from the Galactica and meet the enemy, cut in with excerpts of a rallying speech Commander Apollo gives his pilots. The battle is joined as Baltar chuckles to himself, fading away safely while others die. The words "Battlestar Galactica" turn over as a exploding galaxy expands in the background, and the words "The Second Coming" appear beneath as the trailer ends. And the fans at DragonCon stood and applauded before begging to see it again. If this teaser is a hint of what Richard Hatch has in mind for his version of Battlestar Galactica, Glen Larson better throw in with him quick before Universal tells Glen to go remake Knight Rider or something. Reportedly paying for the teaser out of his own pocket, Hatch has achieved a professional looking and feeling advertisement worthy of a summer blockbuster, and, as he tells it, the best stuff isn't even finished yet! The filmwork doesn't look cheap and the effects are mostly bluescreen and CGI, done well enough to give the teaser a look superior to the first season of Babylon 5, and that's quite an accomplishment for a film that doesn't exist. Although not shown in the teaser because of time constraints, there is an updated Viper fighter design called the "Scarlet" class Viper, one of many improvements the Galactica fleet makes in the interim and a key feature for any continuing film. And in a year where Crusade is already cancelled and Paramount has ended Deep Space Nine, sci-fi fans have only Star Wars,Episode II to look forward to in the years to come, three years to be exact. Battlestar Galactica could be the next big thing, and it could be out a year sooner than Episode II. Richard Hatch and Jack Stauffer, both veterans of television soap opera All My Children as well as Galactica, played to the crowd as they charasmatically answered questions. Hatch revealed that they have gone to Universal with a letter of commitment and backing for the film already in the $40 to $60 million range, but because Universal is having its own problems internally they will need more than what used to be simple assurances. Since Universal owns the rights to the original, the studio's approval is all that stands in the way. Hatch also expressed his intent to invite each one of the surviving cast members from the original series to reprise their roles, and as seen in the teaser, even those who have passed on will still play a part. The saddest part is that this teaser, even when finished, will likely never be shown to fans again at large unless the movie deal falls through completely. Only George Lucas seems to put this kind of heart into a story and concept before committing it to film, and in spite of critics putting Star Wars down, Episode I is now firmly in the top four highest grossing films of all time. If Universal Studios approves another twenty year old concept only because of the money it might make, then they need to start listening to the fans. And then, just maybe, we'll get the treatment that Battlestar Galactica has always deserved. There's a nice fan effort over at http://www.kobol.com/ And this article is (c) copyright our chums at the www.moviecrypt.com |
