The Movie
Within the world of science fiction, Stargate has become its own cottage industry. Although it was just a single, moderately successful, sequel-less feature film, it has spawned multiple long-lived TV series, which of course has meant TV movies, DVDs and so on. For its part, the original has been visited and revisited for home video, and this new 15th Anniversary Edition is actually a Blu-ray double-dip.
The movie itself remains engaging: A mysterious device was left in Africa by aliens in 8000 B.C., dug up by archaeologists in 1928, and finally deciphered in the present day. This "Stargate" is capable of teleporting man and machine to the edge of the known galaxy, so of course a crack team of soldiers ventures through to investigate, to discover transplanted Earthlings toiling as slaves for a mysterious "Ra," who has had enough of troublesome humans and decides to make a decidedly anti-social move. Let the freedom fighting begin!
Moments are borrowed from Return of the Jedi, some would be repeated in the filmmakers' next effort, Independence Day, but really Stargate is thematically closest to director Roland Emmerich's 10,000 BC. And how ironic that they bother to close with the words "The End"-- which almost no one does anymore--when it was actually the beginning of a franchise that continues strong to this day.
The movie is accessible in either its original theatrical version or subsequent nine-minute-longer "Extended Cut."
The Picture
Smoky/steamy/dusty scenes--and there are many--tend to be surprisingly noisy for such a well-regarded "event" film, and there could definitely be more detail. The blacks could be more natural, shadows and other areas within the 2.35:1 frame can look awful, and ringing compromises a few shots. The special effects, both analog and digital, hold up well, but often this Blu-ray doesn't look much better than a good DVD.
The Sound
David Arnold's musical score, chorus and all, is mixed across the entire DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 soundstage, to dramatic effect. I noted dynamic use of the rears and ample play in the low end throughout the entire film... even if the bass rumble doesn't always make apparent sense. The omnipresent desert wind helps bring a sense of realism, while a climactic air battle/ground battle/indoor firefight offers the sort of multichannel Hollywood action we would expect.
The Extras
The new three-part "Stargate: History Made" feature (22-and-a-half minutes, HD) breaks the movie down into pre-production, production and its legacy. The "Stargate: Ultimate Knowledge" picture-in-picture BonusView mode is available on the extended cut only, as is the archived (and often disinterested) audio commentary from writer/director Emmerich and writer/producer Dean Devlin. "Master of the Stargate: Interactive Trivia Challenge" is a set-top game with both long and short versions, for up to four players: answer questions, some synched to the movie, and we unlock the Stargate.
The 12-minute mini-documentary "Is There a Stargate?" posits whether aliens have indeed visited Earth, while "Making of Stargate" from 2002 focuses mostly on the sets and special effects for its 23-and-a-half minutes. Both of these are in standard definition, as is the newly released three-minute Gag Reel, ambitiously produced but really rather silly.
Final Thoughts
Like Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Stargate has long been one of Lionsgate's crown jewels, the sort of big-budget sci-fi spectacle that can keenly exploit a good home theater, while its popularity has only grown with each successive TV spin-off. The video quality here is a disappointment, but 7.1 high-res channels and next-gen interactivity make for a fine Blu-ray.
Product Details
- Actors: Kurt Russell, James Spader, Mili Avital, Jaye Davidson, John Diehl, French Stewart, Leon Rippy, Alexis Cruz, Carlos Lauchu, Viveca Lindfors, Erick Avari, Djimon Hounsou
- Director: Roland Emmerich
- Audio Format/Languages: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (English), Dolby Digital 5.1 (French)
- Subtitles: English SDH
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Rating: PG-13/NR
- Studio: Lionsgate
- Release Date: October 27, 2009
- Run Time: 121/130 minutes
- List Price: $29.99
- Extras:
- Audio commentary with Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin (Extended Cut only)
- "Stargate: Ultimate Knowledge" BonusView P-I-P (Extended Cut only)
- "Stargate: History Made"
- Master of the Stargate: Interactive Trivia Challenge
- "Is there a Stargate?"
- "Making of Stargate" documentary
- Gag Reel
