The early episodes of the short-lived series were adapted into this feature film, which tells, in capable style, of people living in the distant future. They are at war with mechanical villains called the Cylons, who renege on a supposed deal for peace. Many of the humans' military forces and colonized planets are decimated, with one Battlestar remaining: the Galactica. It's up to the intrepid Commander Adama (Lorne Greene) and his troops to relocate all the survivors - if they can find any place suitable.
Apparently axed by ABC because it was, at the time, very expensive to produce, there certainly was some potential in the character-building and world-building done here. Clearly, this series was borne out of inspiration from "Star Wars", but it's reasonably interesting and pretty entertaining on its own terms. It benefits from a highly engaging cast: Richard Hatch as Apollo, Dirk Benedict as Starbuck, Herbert Jefferson Jr. as Boomer, Maren Jensen as Athena, Tony Swartz as Jolly, Noah Hathaway as Boxey, and Terry Carter as Colonel Tigh, with a variety of familiar faces in guest star roles. Of these performers, Ray Milland was a particular favourite for this viewer because he's clearly having some fun playing a slimy opportunist.
Decent production values and action sequences help to keep "Battlestar Galactica" quite watchable, as well as a fair amount of humour (Starbuck likes to gamble, and develops an interest in an otherworldly musical act). It does get mildly precious when it creates a robotic "daggit" (or dog) on which Boxey can dote, but at least this particular character doesn't get *that* much screen time.
The Cylons are pretty cool villains, icy and remote and answering to an insidious being called The Imperious Leader (voiced by an uncredited Patrick Macnee). They do provide the right amount of menace. Producer John Dykstra continued here to utilize the same sort of special effects technology that he pioneered on "Star Wars"; the effects are variable, but effective overall.
The theme music by Stu Phillips is rousing enough to ensure a good time, and the story is, overall, enjoyable enough for this viewer to want to give the series a look.
As everybody knows, this was followed by an updated TV series (and TV movies) in the early 21st century.
Seven out of 10.
