Wing Commander (1999)

I am impressed!

Yes, I am impressed! I remember playing the video games of the same name back in the day, and this movie stuck to the plot of the games as best it could. Decent sci-fi action, and decent acting make for an enjoyable movie. April 9, 2008

VERY GOOD MOVIE.

I couldn't help, but notice the bad reviews this movie has received. I've seen a lot worse movies that received a lot more hype. I think this movie has a good plot, good actors, and great special effects. It's far from boring. I've seen this movie on t.v. a few times, and decided to buy it for my collection. I am a Scifi fan, and I love action/adventure movies. I'm anxious to see this movie again. March 15, 2008

Not like the video game, but still worth a look

For those of you who are familiar with the Chris Roberts space flight simulator game series, be fairly warned: this movie is not much of an accurate adaptation to the game. Actually it's so different they didn't even need to call it Wing Commander. The setting is there and the character names are there too, but not much else. The ships resemble nothing like those in the game. The characters only show a hint of their game roots. They even mess with the story by adding a different sub-culture of humans. That said Wing Commander does take the whole space fighter genre to a whole new level by incorporating elements of history into the future.

Imagine World War II in space and you will get the look and feel of Wing Commander. The fighters resemble prop fighters without the propellers and the capitol ships resemble a cross between a submarine and an aircraft carrier. You can even hear what sounds like piston engines! I find it an interesting blend, not to mention intriguing. The fighter scenes are really nice. You action nuts should enjoy them. So why do I only give it a four stars? I'll let you in on that....

Some of the sub-plots are annoyingly predictable. One involves a love interest and you just know tragedy will strike just because EVERY other movie does that. And true to form they do it too. Also some of the actions that carry out the sub-plots just don't make sense. For instance a downed fighter is on the landing runway and they are forced to push it off with the pilot still in it because the ships outside are running out of fuel. But later on you find out they have tractor beams. Why not use them?!?! Why not just float in space until they rescue the pilot?!?!? It just doesn't make sense. Fortunately the boneheaded plot twists and ironies are few.

All in all it's a pretty good movie. WW2 aficionados might get a kick out of Wing Commander as well as those of you into fighter pilot movies. Steampunk fans might enjoy it too. Suspend your disbelief for a little while and forgive the teeth grinding predictability in some scenes and you too will enjoy a truly unique space fighter/high adventure film.
December 24, 2007

If You Avoid Taking This Movie Seriously, It Is a Lot of Fun

SPACE PIRATES! THE SCOURGE OF THE UNIVERSE!!! Ok, maybe not. As some people say, close but no cigar. Actually, "Wing Commander" is based on a plot that has existed since man has been remembering stories. We have the advancing enemy, we have warriors who have information about where the enemy will attack that can save the homeland if the information gets through. We have the self-sacrifice of the warriors who stall the enemy long enough for the valuable information to get back to the good guys, who will use the information to advantage to defeat the enemy. Does this sound a lot like the plot of "300," and dozens of war, science fiction and fantasy stories? Of course it does, because the story is far from being original. However, even a story that is a plot retread can still be a lot of fun.

I have already given you the fundamental plot, so here are a few details. We have the evil Kilrathi out to destroy the universe, or at least the part with people in it. The Kilrathi have cleverly stolen a NAVCOM A.I. unit that contains earth's jump coordinates. The Kilrathi cleverly stole this unit by destroying the base that was around the NAVCOM unit. The crew of the Tiger Claw discovers that the Kilrathi have earth's jump coordinates and must get the information back to the main Confederation fleet so that they can defend earth from the evil Kilrathi horde.

Mixed into this stuff are subplots involving several of the Confederation Rapier pilots. Rapiers are the space fighters carried by the Tiger Claw. First lieutenant Christopher Blair is the primary hero of our story as he saves lives, ships and the Confederation with his skills. More subplots spice things up, including a little romance and prejudice against the Pilgrims, from whom Blair is descended. However, all of the subplots are mostly distractions from the special effects liberally sprinkled throughout the movie.

I can use a lot of words to describe this movie that are far from kind. This movie is formulaic, derivative, and shallow. Some of the movie borders on the absurd. Here are two examples.

The Tiger Claw broadsides a Kilrathi ship at close range with missiles. Remember my earlier space pirate comment? Ships have not broadsided each other for a long time. One would have destroyed the other long before the broadside. I must admit the broadside was fun, but hardly plausible.

Another example is the antics of Maniac Marshall (Matthew Lillard) and Rosie Forbes (Ginny Holder). Since the Tiger Claw is similar to an aircraft carrier, I have to assume that similar rules would apply. Fighter pilots would not deliberately endanger their ship with the kind of acrobatics that Marshall and Forbes performed during one of their landings. The risks are too high on a crowded flight deck and such maneuvers would be unthinkable.

As implausible as this movie as, as unoriginal as it is, I still liked it. As long as I did not think too deeply about the details, this movie was a great one for a bowl of popcorn. I have to admit that I have watched this movie more than once. Eek. I should be embarrassed, but I like the movie. Fans of movies like "Starship Troopers" "Top Gun" (which was just about as implausible as this movie), "Soldier" and the 1998 version of "Lost in Space" will probably like this movie as well. You might want to note that all these movies have ratings that are similar to the rating of this movie, except "Top Gun," which made it all the way to four stars. Okay, so this movie is not Shakespeare (though the plot borrows a lot from Shakespeare), but as a fun adventure story, it worked for me.

Good luck!

October 7, 2007

Spectacularly descent

What a pleasant surprise! One shouldn't expect much from a movie based on a video game space war. Nonetheless, Wing Commander is a very decent movie. The plot is rather generic, but the actors work with it very well. The special effects are very good overall - the ugly costume design is easily forgiven. The combat is never thrilling, but is never boring. Much closer to Starship Troopers than Star Wars, Wing Commander is sure to satisfy fans of sci-fi movies. Those without such a fancy for the genre may wish to pass. August 1, 2007

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