Galaxy Quest (1999)

Director:

Dean Parisot

Writers (WGA):

David Howard (story)
David Howard (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

25 December 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The show has been cancelled...but the adventure is just beginning.

Plot:

The alumni cast of a cult space TV show have to play their roles as the real thing when an alien race needs their help.

Plot Keywords:

Alien | Actor | Convention | Costume | Crutch

Awards:

7 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Tim Allen	...	Jason Nesmith
Sigourney Weaver	...	Gwen DeMarco
Alan Rickman	...	Alexander Dane
Tony Shalhoub	...	Fred Kwan
Sam Rockwell	...	Guy Fleegman
Daryl Mitchell	...	Tommy Webber
Enrico Colantoni	...	Mathesar
Robin Sachs	...	Sarris
Patrick Breen	...	Quellek
Missi Pyle	...	Laliari
Jed Rees	...	Teb
Justin Long	...	Brandon
Jeremy Howard	...	Kyle
Kaitlin Cullum	...	Katelyn
Jonathan Feyer	...	Hollister

Also Known As:

Captain Starshine (USA) (original script title)
Earth Dick (USA) (working title)
GalaxyQuest (USA) (alternative spelling)

MPAA:

Rated PG for some action violence, mild language and sensuality.

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | Iceland:LH (video rating) | USA:PG (certificate #37085) | Portugal:M/6 | South Korea:All | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Canada:PG | Chile:14 | Denmark:11 (DVD rating) | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | Hong Kong:IIA | Ireland:PG | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:PG | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | Philippines:G

Filming Locations:

Culver Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

The promotional campaign for the film included a "mockumentary" for the E! cable channel about the fictional Galaxy Quest TV series. Most of the cast members appeared as their actor characters from the film. Extras from the film's convention scenes also appeared as fans giving candid interviews. Out-takes and behind the scenes footage from the film were used as clips from the TV show. The humor even went so far as Sigourney Weaver's character, Gwen DeMarco, claiming that she had turned down "a small part in a Woody Allen movie" to do the Galaxy Quest series [A reference to one of her first, though very brief, big screen cameos as Alvy's (Allen's) date at the end of Annie Hall (1977)].

Goofs:

Continuity: When Tommy is taking the Protector out of the space dock, he scrapes the hull along the side of the dock, but the port engine should be in the way.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Laredo: Exiting the time knot now, sir.
Tech Sgt. Chen: We're alive.
Laredo: We made it, Commander. We made it.
Dr. Lazarus: By Grabthar's hammer, we live to tell the tale.
Voice of Computer: Systems registering functional.
Lt. Tawny Madison: All systems are working, Commander.
Commander Peter Quincy Taggart: I don't like it. It was too easy.
Laredo: Wait. Oh, no! They're everywhere. There are time knots opening everywhere.
Lt. Tawny Madison: A trap!
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Middleman: The Palindrome Reversal Palindrome (#1.12)" (2008)

Best comedy to come along in years

A set of hammy TV actors turn up for a sci-fi convention only to be met by real aliens who, having only seen them on TV, mistake them for a real space crew.

Given that Star Trek and Star Trek fans are such campy jokes to start with you don't have to have such the imagination of Charles Dickens to see there is potential here.

The real surprise is that we don't get cheapo jokes, but fully formed, fully funded jokes. Indeed there is more plot and budget than many films that try play it straight.

The crew being actors think there may be a buck involved and go along with what, they initially think, are over-the-top fans and before they know it they are in space having a fully formed adventure.

Jokes about spacemen, mad Trekkies, transporters with side-effects, token blacks, interracial love, British thesps who detest what they do, aliens who don't have a sense of humour, characters who think they are going to be killed because they don't have a second name, and lots, lots more.

Once again I stress that this subject was a sitting duck for satire, but what is amazing is how clever the script is, worse will win Oscars. And the jokes just keep coming. Not all of them funny, but the ratios of hits to misses is pleasingly high and the cast are good enough to make themselves look like idiots as well.

The climax is both and funny and appropriate and had me laughing over the final credits. Highly recommended unless you are the butt of some of the film's bang-on-the-money jokes.