2008 August 07 | Lair of the Green Knight

Stargate: Continuum - Smart time travel??

Posted by

fitz in Movies, Television on Aug 07

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Hey all…

It’s no secret that I’m a science fiction and fantasy guy. Have been since I was first introduced to Robert Heinlein and JRR Tolkien many many moons ago… So it shouldn’t be too shocking that I’m a fan of the Stargate series. From the original movie with James Spader and Kurt Russell in 1994 to the TV series that began airing in 1997 and was on the air until 2007 (not to mention the spinoff Stargate: Atlantis).

Anyway… We’re big Stargate fans at my house. So when Stargate: Continuum was announced, of course I queued it up at Amazon to pick it up when it was released.

Rating:

Here’s the IMDB link.

This adventure for the SG-1 team starts innocuously enough… Ba’al has been captured, and they think it’s the real Ba’al this time… So the Tokra are working their mojo when suddenly… I won’t spoil it.

Suffice it to say that the team, indeed the universe itself, is at risk in this movie. And in true SG-1 fashion, they get things back to how they should be by the end. Yay team.

This is one of the few movies in my recollection that discusses time travel in any scientific way that actually follows current thinking in the scientific community. And it handles it beautifully. It’s one hell of a scenario to contemplate. Alternate realities, altered timelines, and decisions made by those in power to ensure their own survival. It’s a brilliant story that utilizes all of the SG-1 cast beautifully.

All of your favorites are back:

Ben Browder as Lt. Col. Cameron Mitchell
Amanda Tapping as Lt. Col. Samantha Carter
Christopher Judge as Teal’c
Michael Shanks as Dr. Daniel Jackson
Beau Bridges as Major General Hank Landry
Claudia Black as Vala Mal Doran and Qetesh
Richard Dean Anderson as Major General Jack O’Neill
William Devayne as President Henry Hayes
Cliff Simon as Ba’al
and Don S. Davis (in his final movie role) as Major General George Hammond

Everyone is extremely sad that Don S. Davis died about a month before this movie was released. He will be missed by Stargate fans everywhere.

Now… A couple of things. And there are spoilers involved, so read at your own risk…

[Begin spoilers]

We were getting increasingly distressed when they a) killed Jack O’Neill, b) made everybody disappear, and c) apparently left Daniel Jackson to freeze to death. But it turned out to be ok. Everybody survives in the end.
The Grandfather Paradox is unbelievably cool. Cam not only saves his Grandfather, but helps history right itself. Gotta love that.

[End spoilers]

Ok… So what did I think of this movie? We liked it a lot. I’d give it 3.5/4. It wasn’t perfect, but it was really good.