Wing Commander

This film assembles one of the strangest casts of the late 1990s to play out a plot loosely based on the Wing Commander PC Game series. I have never played these games, but I was intrigued by the film for a variety of reasons, so I have now seen it a couple of times. I have to admit, I was more impressed and entertained the first time around. Sure, the film is reality-challenged, with several absurdities (misinterpretation of a black-hole, gravity problems etc), but I do not think that the film-makers were attempting to do anything as artistic as Star Wars nor anything as philosophical as Star Trek. This film, instead, fits solidly into the FUN, action-based sci-fi tradition, like Starship Troopers.

The plot is pretty cliché. Freddy Prinze Jr and Matt Lillard play young hotshot fighter pilots assigned to their first deep space mission. They are being delivered by Tchéky Karyo. As they arrive on a ship commanded by David Suchet and Jurgen Prochnow, they learn that the Sol System is about to fall under attack by Kilrathi invaders with a powerful armada. There is little time for complexity and character development as the single Confederation (earth) cruiser tries to make its way to a nearby jumpgate (basically the film's equivalent of warp ten or a "hyperspace button") before the Kilrathi do, fending off Kilrathi attacks the whole way. There are a couple of weakly explored love stories and a few surprises along the way concerning the identities of the characters, but there is little time for these to truly develop. So many of the characters do feel a bit one-dimensional, and the more intriguing plot points (such as "the pilgrims") are left unsatisfactorily explored.

I think this film would have made a better miniseries than a cinematic release. Given a little more breathing room, and perhaps time to consult with astronomers or even people with a couple of higher education science courses under their belt, this could have been a really good sci fi film. The cast was certainly decent (some of the European cast-members were very good); the money was obviously there, and the script would have been fine had it not been stretched by the overly ambitious scope of the film.

Bottom line: Entertaining with the help of a few drinks. Fun for action fans. Generally not recommended for the average moviewatcher.

The film has been critically panned and it bombed at the cinemas. But it's actually a pretty good film. Yes it isn't technically the best, nor is it scientifically plausible. And for devotees of the games it kinda screws with history, but for all that it is a good ride. You watch it and appreciate it. Saffron Burrows is great. David Warner and David Suchet excel in their (small) roles. It's a shame John Rhys-Davis and Mark Hamill don't reprise their roles, but their replacements do well enough.

You get caught up in the story, and the visual effects are fantastic, aided by good acting with the actors working well together.

So overall I would recommend this film. Don't expect it to be fantastic, but just enjoy it. It's a fun film and a worthy addition to Wing Commander lore.

I love SF

I own just about every SF movie made and have read upwards of 5000 SF titles. Wing Commander is a brilliant work of pulp war fiction based on WW2. Star ships with carrier decks. fighters with wings. torpedoes. Depth charging. Fighter cannons shooting bullets 'in space'. Hand loaded gun mounts.

And the science/.. how cheesy can you get.

The acting is above par for this type of flick. Prochnow is good and David Suchet outdoes all as captain.. what a great actor.

It all works.. And brilliantly. great music.. real nice graphics for the day -still stands up well today-

Star wars and the An*l Anti-SF BS Galactica bend over Wing Commander is here

MY all time favorites boys own SF romp

Nic

I was intrigued, after hearing many different points of views on this movie, to go see it. So I go to this used tape store, (why rent it for $5 when you can buy it for $2?) and buy it. I just wanted to see which side I agreed with. Most people that stated their opinions, said that this movie was a waste of time. Other people said it was the best movie they've ever seen, but I'm guessing they were fans of the video game or the 1977 version of this movie, both of which I've never seen. To go straight to the point and make it easy for those who don't know whether to see it or not, I'll let you decide for yourself based on my opinion. So to make it simple I'll just say the good and bad stuff about it.

Bad Stuff:

~Freddie Prinze Jr. sucks at acting. There's no other way to put it. I got very bored watching his one expression and monotone voice.

~Right from the beginning, I thought the music was terrible. Music is supposed to drag you in from the beginning and give you a sense of what's coming, (think "Jaws.") This just made me feel like I was about to see Captain America.

~The alien make-up was so extremely ridiculous that they looked like overgrown house pets. Not scary at all.

~I got tired of hearing people state the obvious. "Hey! I think something's wrong!" Well, aren't you the sharp one. The exploding bombs and loud "red alert" beeping didn't give it away, did it?

~The story had it's boring moments. There were parts I didn't follow and soon didn't even care, because I had gotten so lost by then it didn't matter.

~*This may or may not be a downside* I wasn't sure if the accents in this movie were taken from the video game or original, but it was way too weird. We had a Scottish guy, a ton of Englishmen, Americans, and some Asians. How did they all get on this one ship?

Good Stuff:

~Matthew Lillard did a fabulous job. I'm so used to seeing him act like an a**hole, (no offense, think "Scream.") that I wasn't expecting the serious performance he gave. It blew me away how serious he had to be in some scenes, and he pulled it off beautifully. (Although I gave the movie 5 stars, I would like to give his performance a 10.)

~The plotline, although confusing, did have it's certain interesting moments. I don't know which came first, Starship Troopers or this, but I have a feeling one of them is a rip-off of the first. However, it certainly had it's moments that put you in suspense.

~The special effect were great. It reminded me a lot of Star Wars. And the battle scenes were exciting.

~The rest of the cast didn't do too bad a job of acting. I was able to feel sorry for most of them.

I gave this movie a 5. If you have nothing better to do, I suggest you watch it. I certainly have seen worse, (read my review of "Jeepers Creepers.") If you liked "Starship Troopers" this is a movie for you. However, if you want something more out of a Sci-Fi movie of this sort, I suggest "Pitch Black." *****/10

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. The graphics weren't up to say Episode1 standards, but were convincing enough (and I loved the raspy engine noise for the Rapiers). The acting was what I've come to expect from these younger American actors (as in good).

I'd say from an objective view point it's a good film. A bit lacking in certain areas, but certainly enjoyable.

I say "objective" simply because I have never been exposed to the hugely popular game series, so I was seeing this as a film, not as a spin off (in which case I'm sure it would come across worse, simply because when you're used to one set of actors portraying your favourite characters a new team will never fit the bill).

Overall not a bad way to spend my Wednesday evening.