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Battlestar Galactica: Razor Theater Review
On Monday November 12th I got the chance to see the new Battlestar Galactica: Razor movie in a theater. Limited screenings of Razor for one night only at a dozen or so theaters across the country. I heard about the limited screenings of Razor and found the site where you could register. I registered at a theater close to my work and just in time too, because an hour or so later the screening was full. I received a confirmation email, waited a few weeks, and printed off the email as it was my ticket into the screening. Now, this is not a review of Razor itself, this is a review of the experience that few fans got to be a part of: Battlestar Galactica on the big-screen. We were let in a half-hour before it started and it seemed like everyone who was going to see it was already there. The theater was only about half-full, which seemed very odd. Either half the people forgot they has signed-up for the screening or the limited number of tickets were more limited than I previously thought. Most of the fans there looked like normal people in their thirties and I only spotted two blatantly obvious super nerds. There was probably only about 50 people in the theater. Damn, all these empty seats, I felt kind of bad that more fans couldn't be there, but I got over it quickly. The lights went down and a commercial for the Xbox 360 epic Mass Effect was shown. I knew that this whole thing was sponsored by Xbox 360 and Mass Effect and was expecting a behind-the-scenes thing for the game, but not quite yet. Next was the Xbox 360 commercial that advertises Halo 3, Mass Effect, and BioShock where all the kids sing. Isn't it weird that Microsoft chose a song that kids are singing yet none of them are old enough to actually play any of the games in the commercial? Did I also mention how painfully loud the volume of the speakers were? The kids' singing was excruciatingly loud and I could feel my ear drums begin to wither and die. When the commercial ended a guy in the back screamed, "MY EARS!" The crowd got a good chuckle out of it and were able to get a moment of peace before the next commercial started. This time they were advertising the Zune with pink bunnies, cats, and some chick drowning. The commercials ended and the behind-the-scenes Mass Effect featurette came up. It had Seth Green talking about his role in the game and the joys of doing voice-over work. Thanks, Seth. It was only a few minutes long, but I could tell that some of the patrons were already sick of Mass Effect. Then Razor began. Don't worry, I won't spoil anything that hasn't already been known about it from its commercials. A lot of what is shown are events we have heard about from the regular series or things that characters have alluded to, so many of the things you already know will happen before they do. Actually seeing the events occur tugs at your inner BSG geek heart and wretches at your stomach at the same time. Razor does have its own story though, and there are a couple big surprises, one of them being something for Season 4. One surprise that nobody enjoyed came about halfway through the movie. Suddenly, another commercial for Mass Effect popped on-screen and a collective groan from the audience overwhelmed the still obnoxiously volume. I'm looking forward to Mass Effect as much as the next gamer, but this was supposed to be BSG time. Then the same damn Zune commercial played and a lighter groan followed. The third commercial was for the Sci-fi mini-series Tin Man. I can understand having all these commercials, but they should all have been played before Razor began. I, and I'm sure everyone in the theater, expected to watch Razor the entire way through. That's one of the points of showing it in a theater, right? I can say a few more non-spoiler things. Admiral Cain is still the biggest bitch in the galaxy, but Kendra Shaw is the second in bitch-dom. Stephanie Chaves-Jacobsen really held her own as Shaw and her presence in the BSG universe never felt right. The original Cylons kick ass and I hope we get to see more of them in Season 4. Overall, Razor ties in very nicely with the rest of the series and it will bring you another question or two for Season 4. It was obvious that Razor was filmed for a television-sized screen because there were times when the contrast and color didn't seen to be enough, but it was Battlestar on the big-screen so a slightly less clear picture was a small price to pay. After the credits we were promised a sneak preview of Season 4, but not before more commercials! This time all the commercials were BSG-related. First was an ad for the Battlestar Galactica: Razor movie showing on Sci-fi November 24th. Man, that looks good, I should probably watch that. Next up was a spot of the unrated and extended DVD of Razor on December 4th (and Season 1 on HD-DVD). Third was a shot spot of the Battlestar Galactica Xbox 360 game. I totally need a 360. Finally, the Season 4 preview showed, but its effect was under-whelming to some fans. After it played one of the two ultra-nerdy guys said in his nasally voice, "I already saw that on YouTube." The version of Razor we saw in the theater was the on-air version, meaning not the unrated and extended DVD version. The whole thing lasted about an hour and forty minutes. I will certainly be watching Razor again on the 24th and will pick up the DVD on Dec. 4th. I left feeling that the wait for the final season would still be painful, but glad that I was a part of something that few Battlestar Galactica fans will ever experience. - Shawn - 11/13/07 |
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