Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is a 1979 theatrical pilot to the series of the same name. Originally intended to be a television movie, Glen Larson, the producer, wanted it to be a theatrical release after his other theatrical pilot (Battlestar Galactica) had some success. For the record, I believe I have a version of this film that is a mix of the televised version of this film and the actual theater release. I say this because it is given the title as Awakening (which is the title given to this film for the television version) but retains scenes that were not cut for television. Plus, this film felt somewhat short but that might have been just me. Buck Rogers in the 25th Century stars Gil Gerard as Buck Rogers with the film also starring Erin Gray and Tim O'Connor. The film was a success at the box office and led to the continuation of the television series.
The film follows Captain Buck Rogers who was sent into space by NASA in the year 1987. Buck Rogers encounters a freak mishap that freezes everything and basically preserves him. He is found 500 years later by a Draconian ship. The Draconians claim to be heading to Earth for a peace treaty but as we find out early on, that is not so. Apparently the Draconians want to take over Earth by whiddling down their defenses by using ships disguised as Pirate ships (that is space ships used by pirates not actual pirate ship boats). When Buck returns to Earth, he realizes that a lot has changed. This new Earth that he returns to is run by the Defense Directorate and they do not believe Buck Rogers. So now Buck has to prove his innocence and also save the Earth before the Draconians get a chance at taking over.
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was clearly made to cash in on the success of 1977's Star Wars and honestly it was not the only show that did this. With that being said, I am honestly split on this film. Buck Rogers is a really cheesy sci fi film from the 70's but that is the charm of the film. This film gives us a glimpse of what the television series is going to be like. Which leads me to say, this film is clearly not theater material. It obviously feels like a television movie. I honestly can't even imagine what the theater experience was like for everyone who watched this film who were possibly expecting something on the same level as Star Wars and what they got was a television movie. But with all of that being said, this is entertaining mostly for the wrong reasons. Sure, what is meant to be fun would be the space fights and those can be fun. But this is a cheese filled film that it also makes this an entertaining film. The performances somewhat add to that with performances that are fun to watch but in a whole vary between good and bad. Gil Gerard makes a name for himself as Buck Rogers here and while not a great performance, is still fun to watch. He gives silly one liners (possibly unintentionally silly). I will not even say that he is a well written character here either. Sure, he is somewhat developed here but you could have went more into the pain that Buck goes through with losing everything. They go a little into that in this film but not nearly enough. I personally do not believe that Erin Gray's character Wilma Deering is written well in this film either. Then again, I do not and should not expect anything to be too deep when it comes to this film and films like it. Princess Ardala is absolutely stunning (like holy crap stunning). But her motives are pretty standard here. With this being a Star Wars ripoff (in more ways than one), you have your droid duo that is Dr. Theopolis and Twiki which are fairly memorable here and are what would be considered the comic relief. Another way this is a Star Wars ripoff is the effects which try to be like the effects in Star Wars but come out as not really on the same level. I have seen people compare this film (and the series in whole) to shows like Star Wars and even the original Star Trek television series with people saying that those shows are far better in the effects department than Buck Rogers. Now, when talking about this film, I am also pretty much reviewing the first season of the show (and I will put out a review for the entire television series). So, the effects are not great and even the set design for this film is not great either. But yet again, that is where the charm is with this movie (and basically the series). For a movie that was made in the late 70's and takes place in the future, you will notice that this future is pretty dated with the music of the future and attire just to name a few things. This film ends somewhat all of a sudden but I do not expect anything better from a film that is the quality of a television film.
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is a film that is cheesy and not even that good, but I won't say that it is bad. It is fairly entertaining for the most part and there is not much harm in watching this film. I was originally going to give this film a five star rating but I decided in giving this a six star rating.
The film follows Captain Buck Rogers who was sent into space by NASA in the year 1987. Buck Rogers encounters a freak mishap that freezes everything and basically preserves him. He is found 500 years later by a Draconian ship. The Draconians claim to be heading to Earth for a peace treaty but as we find out early on, that is not so. Apparently the Draconians want to take over Earth by whiddling down their defenses by using ships disguised as Pirate ships (that is space ships used by pirates not actual pirate ship boats). When Buck returns to Earth, he realizes that a lot has changed. This new Earth that he returns to is run by the Defense Directorate and they do not believe Buck Rogers. So now Buck has to prove his innocence and also save the Earth before the Draconians get a chance at taking over.
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was clearly made to cash in on the success of 1977's Star Wars and honestly it was not the only show that did this. With that being said, I am honestly split on this film. Buck Rogers is a really cheesy sci fi film from the 70's but that is the charm of the film. This film gives us a glimpse of what the television series is going to be like. Which leads me to say, this film is clearly not theater material. It obviously feels like a television movie. I honestly can't even imagine what the theater experience was like for everyone who watched this film who were possibly expecting something on the same level as Star Wars and what they got was a television movie. But with all of that being said, this is entertaining mostly for the wrong reasons. Sure, what is meant to be fun would be the space fights and those can be fun. But this is a cheese filled film that it also makes this an entertaining film. The performances somewhat add to that with performances that are fun to watch but in a whole vary between good and bad. Gil Gerard makes a name for himself as Buck Rogers here and while not a great performance, is still fun to watch. He gives silly one liners (possibly unintentionally silly). I will not even say that he is a well written character here either. Sure, he is somewhat developed here but you could have went more into the pain that Buck goes through with losing everything. They go a little into that in this film but not nearly enough. I personally do not believe that Erin Gray's character Wilma Deering is written well in this film either. Then again, I do not and should not expect anything to be too deep when it comes to this film and films like it. Princess Ardala is absolutely stunning (like holy crap stunning). But her motives are pretty standard here. With this being a Star Wars ripoff (in more ways than one), you have your droid duo that is Dr. Theopolis and Twiki which are fairly memorable here and are what would be considered the comic relief. Another way this is a Star Wars ripoff is the effects which try to be like the effects in Star Wars but come out as not really on the same level. I have seen people compare this film (and the series in whole) to shows like Star Wars and even the original Star Trek television series with people saying that those shows are far better in the effects department than Buck Rogers. Now, when talking about this film, I am also pretty much reviewing the first season of the show (and I will put out a review for the entire television series). So, the effects are not great and even the set design for this film is not great either. But yet again, that is where the charm is with this movie (and basically the series). For a movie that was made in the late 70's and takes place in the future, you will notice that this future is pretty dated with the music of the future and attire just to name a few things. This film ends somewhat all of a sudden but I do not expect anything better from a film that is the quality of a television film.
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is a film that is cheesy and not even that good, but I won't say that it is bad. It is fairly entertaining for the most part and there is not much harm in watching this film. I was originally going to give this film a five star rating but I decided in giving this a six star rating.