Battlestar Galactica to the Big Screen?

[TwoBrainedCylon]

JJ,

It depends on which elements of both it decides to keep and how it decides to blend them. It could be really good or really horrible. I'd be less worried about what Byran wants to do than what the studios decide is required for getting the budget. Using the video game as an example, it had a straightforward premise that was retrofitted to serve as a promotional.

I never played the video game but thought the intercut animations were pretty well done. I liked those more than a lot of the GINO action shots. It at least hinted at what could have been done with the original premise.

If this fusion/remake/whatever really tries to be a "Galactica story", rather than edgy, dark, and gritty, then it may be a big surprise for most of us. I suspect that if it is ever made, everyone who is now saying "count me out" will end up watching it to see what its all about. I did that with the pilot episode of Caprica and ended up liking it quite a bit (although I never saw the series).

I don't see this being a big hit. I think the chances of getting any new Galactica that would be a sweeping success were burned up in 2003. Galactica is a niche franchise now and we should expect that anything that does materialize to be along those lines, but like Hammer House of Horror, a niche, struggling franchise can have some good moments along the way. This isn't the original but at least its sounding like its not GINO version 2 either, and I'm hopeful in some respects because of that.

Plus, I'll admit that I thought the prototype Cylon in "Caprica" was pretty damn cool. I also liked the combat centurion in the flashback sequences from "Razor", so I know that they can get it right on occasion.

And if the comedy version of Land of the Lost could get made, you can't fully count out anything getting a budget. I don't think its going to happen but I think everyone here recognizes that this is truly our very last chance to get anything with any hint of the original premise included in it.

All my best,


Russell

[jewels]

I'm going to see if something gets filmed. If Universal was in better financial shape I'd say "if" but The shows on USA are probably their best output at this time.

Singer has done good stuff and hired good people in the past, so there's a chance of something good coming of it. I think the "if" of funding is huge at this point, or Singer would have it further along.

[Lara]

Originally Posted by peter noble

http://www.ign.com/videos/2012/08/02...-singer-update

Hopes to do it, and thinks it will exist quite well between the two BSGs, evolving quite well.

Still a wide target, still a tease with the risk we will make vast assumptions from a few off gaurd words.

At least it is still getting mentioned by a player with cred..

One thing I do know, if you make something to please everyone, you will satisfy noone..

Cheers,
Lara

[martok2112]

Originally Posted by Lara

One thing I do know, if you make something to please everyone, you will satisfy noone..

Cheers,
Lara

Wisdom!

To add: If you try to make something to please everyone, it comes across as a fanboy effort...and to me, that's kind of an injustice to the property.

To me it seems like we've been through this before. I seem to remember claims from the GINO production crew that this was going to have the original premise in it, that it was going to be more true to the original than the original itself. I think we all know how that worked out.

When I watched Bryan Singer's reaction in the clip, it didn't seem so much to be to be a surprise that someone asked him the question, so much as it seemed like it was a question that he didn't want to be asked, at least not yet. I seem to remember discussions how Singer and DeSanto kept their own production as secret as they could at the time, and I see no reason why they would change their tactics.

I can't speak for anyone else, but for me it doesn't depend on what elements are blended to together. For me, any element of GINO blended in will make it wholly unwatchable. But I'm probably the only one who never saw a single episode of Moore's drek, so I'm probably in the minority.

All I know is that if their plan is to give us a hint of the original premise, then I'd honestly just rather have nothing at all.

[martok2112]

I find it interesting to where the new series seemed to pick up on, and expand upon some elements in the novelization of SASW.

-Galactica, swing out landing arms.
-Col. Tigh, does not hide feelings well...in fact, because of that propensity, it cost him a chance at ship command at least once.

Would cite more, but have to go sing right now.

[TwoBrainedCylon]

JJ,

Not trying to be crass, but if "any element" of GINO is blended in makes it unwatchable, I have to wonder how you would know at what point it becomes unwatchable as you've never seen any of GINO and likely wouldn't know what those elements were as opposed to something new. Logically, you'd run the risk of accidentally seeing something you really liked and then changing your mind when you discovered its origin.

I'm reminded of the controversy over the original series-ish centurions in the Razor flashback in GINO. I really liked them and thought the scene they were used in was really cool. It was an unexpected gem in a series that I thought had mostly ranged from disappointing to an outright insult to my social values. I said so and as a result, some other fans got rather aggressive, not only with myself but with another person who liked it, and all but shouted Infidel!

At the time I was pretty irritated but I think over the years, I've put all that in a better perspective. Namely, their loss, both for not seeing the original series template underneath it all and for being jerks about how others reacted to it.

I don't concur with the "Nothing will ever be good enough" concept. I respect that you do but would think it would be quite unfortunate if Singer did manage to pull it off and make something polished and good only to have it crash because too many in the target audience either said "That's not the original series" or "That's not GINO". At least Singer is giving the potential of something that can be looked at as a glass half full, which is more than anyone has tried to do in a decade.

That alone is worth 2 hours of my time and the price of a ticket.

All my best,


Russell

[jewels]

Not to mention the cost of a babysitter!

I can think of a few items I wouldn't mind seeing from Gino. The miniatures in the war room or for that matter, a war room for planning strategy. A battle strategy like they used a Colonial Movers ship for in the 1st season of Gino. A strong female council of twelve member or other civilian leader. The nearly relentless battle of 33. The idea of showing more ongoing with the civilian population (unrealized for much beyond Saga or Take the Celestra in the original series.) I wouldn't object to a raptor-level fighting troop carrier (the raptor strikes me as an A-10 gunship crossed with a mini-Galactica shuttle.)

I've enumerated what I didn't like too many times to waste a breath with again. It's water under the bridge and washed out into the deepest depths of the ocean. Singer is smart (you don't come up with a character like Gregory House, if you aren't. You don't take X-Men from animated comic to live action leather-clothed summer blockbusters x3, that redefined what a movie of a comic book character could be, if you're not smart.

I'll hold out a tad of hope that the man knows dross and flotsam from the things that matter and are central to the story. I won't hold my breath for Uni to finance the movie. They and parent, NBC, have been spotty at best for the last 10 years at least.


Jewels

Originally Posted by TwoBrainedCylon

JJ,

Not trying to be crass, but if "any element" of GINO is blended in makes it unwatchable, I have to wonder how you would know at what point it becomes unwatchable as you've never seen any of GINO and likely wouldn't know what those elements were as opposed to something new. Logically, you'd run the risk of accidentally seeing something you really liked and then changing your mind when you discovered its origin.

Unwatchable for me. As far as how I would know that;for the same reason I know that there are no elements in Jersey Shore that I would find watchable.

I don't have to actually watch something to know I have zero interest in "giving it a chance."

I don't concur with the "Nothing will ever be good enough" concept. I respect that you do...

Actually, I don't subscribe to that at all. Pretty much any kind of Continuation or reasonably faithful reboot would be okay in my book, I wouldn't sweat the small stuff.

Rather what I do subscribe to, is that anything that contains elements of Moore's drek would in fact never be good enough, at least not for me.

I don't want to be crass either, but if others want to get spit on over feathered hair and disco casinos all over again, have at it. Enjoy.

As for me, I just don't have any interest in any hybrid film.

[Apolloisall]

Originally Posted by jjrakman

As for me, I just don't have any interest in any hybrid film.

Yeah, me either.

[Dawg]

Originally Posted by Apolloisall

Yeah, me either.

For me, it would depend on how they approach it. Are they looking at both shows and deciding which element to include? If that's the way they do it, I'm out.

But if they start with the original story and the original characters and then approach it from the perspective of 21st-Century storytelling (think Firefly or even the way Abrams did with Star Trek), they could have a winner.

These were positive aspects of GINO that can be traced not to the story or characters, but to how the story was told, that I think can be applied successfully here. I would certainly give a Battlestar Galactica made from this perspective a chance.

I am
Dawg

[Punisher454]

Myself I dont have any interest in mixing in any of the GINO storyline at all. Some of the more modern production techniques a big yes. Some of the added grittiness, yes. more complex characters, yes. having ALL the characters so riddled with character flaws that they become dysfunctional half the time, NO. Almost total lack of morality, no.

I also agree, an Abrams Star Trek type Reboot would be ok.

[Apolloisall]

Originally Posted by Punisher454

Myself I dont have any interest in mixing in any of the GINO storyline at all. Some of the more modern production techniques a big yes. Some of the added grittiness, yes. more complex characters, yes. having ALL the characters so riddled with character flaws that they become dysfunctional half the time, NO. Almost total lack of morality, no.

I also agree, an Abrams Star Trek type Reboot would be ok.

^^^What Punisher said!

[Senmut]

BSG is just that...BSG. It is NOT GINO. Sure, modern photographic techniques, and sounds, et al. But GINO has NEVER been anything but a rip-off, a pale imitation. Taming of the Shrew vs. My Mother The Car.

[Apolloisall]

Originally Posted by Senmut

BSG is just that...BSG. It is NOT GINO. Sure, modern photographic techniques, and sounds, et al. But GINO has NEVER been anything but a rip-off, a pale imitation. Taming of the Shrew vs. My Mother The Car.

Wow, that's pretty harsh there, Sen.

I happen to concur.

[martok2112]

Originally Posted by Apolloisall

Wow, that's pretty harsh there, Sen.

I happen to concur.

Couldn't disagree more, but hey, we're all unique.

[monolith21]

I don't know about this whole blending thing. I think if anyone can do it it is Singer. I know his heart is with the original so I think we'll get something balanced in favor of that even if he does choose to bring in some style elements or whatever from the other show.

[martok2112]

In all honesty, in this particular time, I highly doubt it would be possible to make a Galactica movie based on the original series without introducing some elements from the new show....at least in terms of the technology, and perhaps some characters (basically, the knuckledraggers...the flight crew, Tyrol, Cally, Prosna, etc.) .

I don't mean to self-promote, but folks, why don't you check out my fanfic of "Galactica: The Last Battlestar", (available here at the Fleets fanfic section...albeit incomplete) and then you tell me that a blending is absolutely NOT possible. It can be done if done respectfully for the source material....and my story respects both source materials in the ways they should be kept. But, go ahead, read it, and I CHALLENGE you not to believe that a blending could work. (Just ask some of the folks here who have read it. ) Yes, the story has many elements from the new series --largely technological, but there are some characters that carry over, but it is largely entrenched in the somewhat more positive spirit of the original. (And yes, Starbuck and Boomer --and Cain-- are dudes again....so worry not. And, the Cylons are once again made by an alien race. )

[Senmut]

Well, one could mix Shakespeare and Monty Python, but why in the Lords of Kobol's names, would one want to?

[martok2112]

Originally Posted by Senmut

Well, one could mix Shakespeare and Monty Python, but why in the Lords of Kobol's names, would one want to?

Don't tempt me!

Seriously though, a blending of the two Galacticas is not so evil a thing as some folks make it out to be...again, if it is done in the context that both sets of fans could appreciate.


Interesting, if extreme and flawed, rebuttal there, Senmut. Perhaps you should read my fanfic, and see if you can ask that question again.

[martok2112]

Two men, both carrying bouquets of flowers, walk into a large building.

Man 1: To be, or not to be?

Man 2: What?

Man 1: To be, or not to be? That is the question which must be answered. Whether 'tis--

Man 2: No bloo'y question at all.

Man 1: I beg your pardon?

Man 2: Well, the girls we're loo'ing for live in apartment 2A.

Man 1: So?

Man 2: So? SO?!!! That pretty well answers that daft li'l question you were put'in forth there a moment ago! The girls live in 2A, which is NOT 2B. Did you forget already?!

--------------------------------

WESTMORELAND. O that we now had here
But one ten thousand of those men in England
That do no work to-day!

MAN IN CROWD: (muttering) Lazy bastards!

KING: (in the midst of speech)We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;....(continues on)

ANOTHER MAN IN CROWD: (chuckling) Poor ol' sod' can't bloo'y well count now, can 'e?

MAN BESIDE HIM: Whatcher' tal'in 'bout there?

ANOTHER MAN IN CROWD: Well, there's some bloomin' thousan' of us, aren't there? Ah should think that counts as more than jus' a few.

MAN BESIDE HIM: Well, er, ah think 'e was--

ANOTHER MAN IN CROWD: An' do ah look bloo'y happy to ye'!? Ah sure in the 'ell ain' 'appy to be 'ere, tha's for certain! Loo'in to get all chopped up 'n' mangled jus' 'coz some wankah in a fancy 'ead decoration calls us to war for 'im?! Ah' sure as 'ell didn' vote for 'im!

MAN ON OTHER SIDE OF HIM: Oh, bloo'y 'ell, 'ere 'e goes again wi' 'is Supreme Entitlement speech!

ANOTHER MAN IN CROWD: Look, Supreme Executive Power does no' derive--(rambles on)

MAN BESIDE HIM: (leans over to MAN ON OTHER SIDE OF HIM) You call'd that one, mate!

ANOTHER MAN IN CROWD:-- Ah mean, jus' because some wet wench lobs a scimitar at ye'--

MAN ON OTHER SIDE OF HIM: Get off! Yer' talkin' 'bout the wrong bloo'y king anyway!

ANOTHER MAN IN CROWD: Ah'd rather be a' 'ome shaggin' me waff a good'n' then be standin' 'ere waitin' for us t' get all burnt,'n' decapitated, 'n' disemboweled, 'n' dismembered, n'...

MAN BESIDE HIM: Oh, piss off! Ye're spoilin' th' mood!

KING: (finishing)....upon St. crispin's Day. So if you do doubt your courage then come no further, for certain death awaits ye', with nasty, big, pointy teeth. (brings hand to mouth to simulate gory fangs)

MAN DOWN ANOTHER TWO TO THE LEFT OF PREVIOUS CONVERSANTS: What an eccentric performance!

So the question: you could mix Shakespeare and Monty Python together, but why would you want to?

Answer: Because I can!

[Gemini1999]

Someone's been smoking crack again...

[martok2112]

I'd love to stay and chat, but crack don't smoke itself.

[peter noble]

Some may have seen that Singer's signed on to direct the next X-Men film.

Now, what does this mean for the BG film?

I'm friends on Facebook with someone who knows Singer and he says that the BG moviesis stone cold DEAD.

[David Kerin]

It sure does look that way. The way Singer announces and then jumps project to project is ridiculous. If you don't have a clear plan to pursue a project, then don't announce things like Battlestar or Logan's Run, only to ignore it from that point on.

I still wish Tom DeSanto would get a crack at something Galactica. I know he pushed for an animated series years ago, maybe someone would have a new interest in that! Clone Wars seems to have done well for Cartoon Net, and using the voices of Hatch, Benedict, Jefferson... et-all... would be perfect. Sadly part of the list that will never likely happen.

On a bright side, I did get my copy of "By Your Command", so there's a way to still keep me in my Battlestar state of mind.

[TwoBrainedCylon]

Wow, ... another Galactica film effort that never got beyond a press announcement and a rough script. Who would have thought that would happen? I wonder if they got as far as making a few pre-production drawings and the like that they can release in a couple of years.

In five years, someone with some cash and an inside angle to Universal might convince them to do a trilogy of direct-to-download films to wrap up the original series. As long as the Sci-Fi Channel isn't involved, they might be OK. At this point, I don't think there's much else we can hope for.

All my best,


Russell

[martok2112]

I am saddened.

[Senmut]

The point is, someone doesn't WANT to ever see a BSG film come to light. As more and more of the original cast pass from the scene, this will become easier, and those passings will be used as excuses as to why it can't be done.
This will, if it ever happens, have to be done on-line in the same way os some Trek incarnations or other SciFi has been done. But TPTB will never actually expose one frame of film on this. Ever.

[TwoBrainedCylon]

Never contribute to conspiracy what you can contribute to incompetence.

I sincerely doubt there's a sinister plot in the Black Tower against the original series. The folks with money don't see the potential following for the 1978 series as a good investment in regards to their return on investment. Other folks who have been able to steer the franchise have seen it as a way to further their own careers. Its been a bad combination and its not one that I ever see changing.

The time for anything with the original cast has passed. The number of potential viewers under the age of 50 is growing increasingly smaller every year.

You do the math.

[peter noble]

All being told, I think it's for the best. The weird hybrid of the the two series thing would have never satisfied anyone and any Galactica movie could never match the one I see in my head.