tisdag 22 oktober 2019

25 Years Anniversary Review Of Stargate

In the 90´s we had some really magical films from certain directors. I realize that there are many directors i could mention, but i have decided to pick out one director who managed to bring cinema magic to the big screen. I am especially thinking about director Roland Emmerich, a man most people probably remember for all of his disaster movies. But let´s go back in time, before he became the huge box office name. The first movie i saw from director Roland Emmerich was a science fiction action film, known as Moon 44. Released in 1990, this film tells the story of undercover agent Felix Stone ( played by legendary actor Michael Paré ) who is hired by Galacting Mining, to investigate the disappearance of two shuttles that went missing. Even if Moon 44 is not one of the better films of Roland´s films, i still think this is a cult classic, and Michael Paré is the highlight of this film. Just 2 years later, Roland would release his next film, known as Universal Soldier. This is a true science fiction action classic, with legendary action actors Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren. Universal soldier tells the story of Luc Deveraux ( Jean-Claude Van Damme ), a former U.S. Army soldier who was killed in the Vietnam War in 1969, returns to Life through a secret military program known as " Universal Soldier ". The idea is to control an army of soliders, to do anything that they are told, without having any emotions or regrets. Universal Soldier is a must see, as this is a really good action film. In 1994, Roland Emmerich released his biggest film so far in his career, known as Stargate. This film became a huge box office success worldwide, and now in 2019 it is 25 years ago since the film had it´s premiere. I started to remember how much i enjoyed this film as a teenager, and have not seen it for many years. So i decided to watch this film again, with this 25 Years Anniversary Review, to see if the film is still entertaining. Is this still a 90´s sci fi classic for everyone to enjoy, or has Stargate aged too much through time ?

Egyptologist and linguist Dr. Daniel Jackson ( James Spader ),  is invited by Catherine Langford ( Viveca Lindfors ) to translate Egyptian hieroglyphs on cover stones, that her father unearthed, in Giza, Egypt in 1928. Daniel is taken to the U.S. Air Force instilation, where he is told that this is classified imformation. David is asked to check translation for Egyptian hieroglyphs, and he manage to find the right words, where he especially see the word Stargate, that uses constellations as spatial coordinates. On this revelation David is shown that this base has this Stargate, tha Catherine´s father. They have onnly managed to find 6 markings on this Stargate, but not the seventh symbol. David manage to do so, and the Stargate opens up like a wormhole, connecting the Stargate with a distant planet. A team with leader Colonel Jonathan `Jack` O´Neil ( Kurt Russel ) and his soldiers, and Dr. Jackson all go on a mission to investigate this planet. 

It is strange how some films can age with dignity, and i have to say in the sci fi genre, Stargate may be one of the few sci fi films of the 90´s, that manage to do so and still feel like a great mix of action, adventure and science fiction. The Egypt mythology is especially one of the details in this film that fits so well with the storyline. Such details as the Egyptian hieroglyphs, the design of the Stargate itself, and the Egyptian masks, i enjoy it all for different reasons. But we have to talk about the characters for a while. James Spader as Dr. Daniel Jackson, is clearly a man who loves Egyptian history, and you can sense his passion in this character. Spader manage to balande his nerd personality, and also give him a more brave approach. Legendary actor Kurt Russel as the bad ass character Colonel Jonathan ´Jack´ O´Neil is one of the biggest highlights of this film. You could not ask for a better actor in this role. Legendary Swedish actress Viveca Lindfors is wonderful in the role as Catherine Langford. Erick Avari ( who most of you probably remember from the 1999 film The Mummy ) as Egyptian society leader Kasuf, is another really great choice for this cast. I have to mention actor Jaye Davidson, for his performance as Ra - The Egyptian Sun God ( here an Alien who have taken human form ). This is one of those performances you will not forget. One of the reasons why Stargate is such a good action adventure, is that this feels almost like Steven Spielberg might have influenced director Roland Emmerich when he made this film. Speaking of Roland, i have to mention i love his vision for this production. He clearly wanted to give us a different take on Egyptian mythology, and he finds a way to combine the Egyptian style with cool special effects. Even if this film is now 25 years old, i still feel that Stargate feels magical even today. Maybe it has something to do with the magical films of the 90´s, but i still feel that this is a film that can grow old with dignity, and still look good even today. Stargate is the perfect popcorn film for everyone to enjoy on DVD or Blu Ray, if you feel like watching a really entertaining 90´s adventure.

Rating: DDDD

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