Battlestar Galactica: Razor

Posted by Kevin Carr (kevin@filmschoolrejects.com) on December 5, 2007

Like another release this month, Futurama: Bender’s Big Score, Battlestar Galactica: Razor has been made for the fans. It’s not a good idea to just pick this up to sample the new Battlestar Galactica, ‘cause you’re gonna be confused. This ain’t the cheesy Starbuck and Apollo scoring with chicks in a Star Wars rip-off galaxy. Instead, the new Battlestar is shockingly serious and overtly grim, and that’s what makes it stand out among the whimsical sci-fi on television today.

The movie Razor is meant to whet our appetite for season four without spoiling season three for those of us who haven’t gotten around to viewing it. It’s also meant to prime the pump in DVD sales for seasons 2.0 and 2.5, as it bridges the gap between these two sets. And for people like me, who have been waiting for DVD to watch season three, Razor and its peripheral stories achieve this very well.

The film takes place as Lee Adama (Jamie Bamber) rises to power as the new commander of the Battlestar Pegasus. The crew of Galactica is still trying to piece together what happened on the Pegasus months ago and how these atrocities came about. With crew member Kendra Shaw (Stephanie Jacobsen), we flash back to the story of Pegasus from the time of the Cylon attack to when they meet up with Galactica.

I won’t say that knowing the backstory of the Pegasus crew completely justifies the atrocities they commit (although it does give us a window into how power and revenge can spin out of control), but it certainly humanizes the war-hardened crew. It even gives us a level of sympathy to Admiral Cain (Michelle Forbes) in retrospect, especially in the additional footage.

The fortunate thing is that you don’t have to watch season three to understand Razor. However, seasons one and two are required viewing. This was meant for the fans and the avid viewers of the show. Trust me, you need the backstory on this one.

Of course, it flows right into SciFi Channel’s plan to air season 3.5 in its entirety in December and, as we can assume, drop the season 3 DVD before the March premiere of season four. And if you missed any of the season three episodes, they are available for download at iTunes and on Amazon’s Ubox PC viewer.

Now, fans of the show should at least be convinced to watch this, but I’m sure they’re asking whether it’s worth buying. If you just need to see it, and you’ve TiVo’d it from Thanksgiving weekend, it’s not a must-buy. However, if you want the extra footage and the special features, it’s definitely worth the rent. But if you want to hold onto the show, lay down your money and open up that 2 hours of recording time on your DVR, because the DVD format is better.

Ultimately, though, there’s more you can get from the extended cut. Unlike some DVDs that tout 2 or 3 minutes of extra footage, there’s a good 15 minutes more in Razor. Sure, it doesn’t make a different movie, but it gives a lot more pertinent background and is definitely worth watching.

Special features include a retrospective of cast and crew about their favorite episodes and a look at the production design of the series. And aside from the season 4 marketing spots and the standard deleted scenes and extended cut, complete with commentary, there’s some gems to this DVD.

One of the best ones is a 20-minute segmented piece about Admiral Adama’s experiences during the First Cylon War, which is spun into the plot of Razor, minimally in the broadcast cut and extensively in the unrated cut. They’re more intense than the webisodes preceding season three, and they give us a better glimpse at the new… er… older Cylon models.

Grade: A

The Upside An excellent way to fill in some blanks in the series.

The Downside: Could have used a gratuitous lesbian Cylon sex scene with Tricia Helfer and Grace Park.

On the Side: Kicks ass over the similarly quick-to-market Friends finale on DVD.

Release Date: December 4, 2007 Rated: Not Rated Running Time: 101 minutes Number of Discs: 1 Cast: Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis, Tricia Helfer, Grace Park, Michelle Forbes, Stephanie Jacobsen Studio: NBC Universal

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