Babylon 5: The Lost Tales DVD: Review By Dodd

I consider myself a love of all things on television. However, one genre that manages to stump me is science fiction. And these are words coming from a fan of science fiction in general! I am exactly not sure what happened. Perhaps I missed the boat by not being born soon enough to take in the original Star Trek episodes on a weekly basis. My mind tends to look at most sci-fi programs on television and group them together as the same space exploration series that only passionate fans could truly appreciate. This is precisely why I have not familiarized myself with the series Babylon 5. Not only did it look like every other sci-fi series in its advertising, but it appeared extremely cheesy in nature. The casting of Bruce Boxleitner in the lead was not exactly a selling point either. Hey...he may be a capable actor, but he is no William Shatner or Edward James Olmos.

Taking into account the distance I've kept from Babylon 5 over the last few years, I felt apprehensive when Babylon 5: The Lost Tales was given to me for review. The original film is a follow-up for the series and revolves around the characters 10 years after the show's finale. So how is a Babylon 5 virgin such as myself supposed to give an accurate review? Fortunately, this was not a problem thanks to the surprising originality of the writing.

The Lost Tales is a combination of two stories that overlap one another and follow the same main characters remembered from the original series. The first tale features Colonel Elizabeth Lochley (Tracy Scoggins) as she investigates a possible demon possession with Father Cassidy (Alan Scarfe). Yes, there are apparently demons in outer space. It is up to Cassidy and Lochley to determine if an exorcism should be performed, or if the evil spirit has an agenda based on being released into space.

The second story follows Boxleitner's character John Sheridan. Sheridan is now president of the Interstellar Alliance, and is faced with a difficult decision. Rather than vacationing to his space ranch to solve the issue, Sheridan handles the problem head-on. Unfortunately his choice is whether or not to murder a particular individual to possibly save the planet.

Despite my complete inexperience with the series, I was actually pulled into this original movie. The history of the characters is completely foreign to me, but the storyline is well-written to include the all-knowing and clueless alike. The premise involving the exorcism actually has some depth to it that showcases skilled science fiction writing, and the story surrounding John Sheridan is an intense character study beneath the layers of science fiction aesthetic.

Speaking of aesthetic, the look of the film is my major complaint. I realize that some things must be done o a low budge, but the special effects here are amateur at best. It was difficult for me to ignore fire flames that resemble orange Christmas lights, and images of space that would look more fit in a Looney Toons segment. It is this cheese factor that robs some of the finer points of credibility.

Interviews

Admirers of the show will certainly get their fill. Subjects discussing the show include Bruce Boxleitner, Tracy Scoggins, Peter Woodward, and creator/writer/director J. Michael Straczynski. I did not find anything particularly interesting about what the interviewees had to say, but I am sure their insight will speak to fans.

Memorials

Cast and crew reminisce about fellow comrades who acted in the series, Andreas Katsulas and Richard Biggs. Stories are told and it is clear that the tight-knit community on the set clearly misses these fallen comrades.

The Straczynski Diaries

These are the types of supplemental features that I appreciate. Straczynski composes many sub-features that are done himself in an amateur style on the set, but he doesn't just bore us with handheld goofery. Instead he gathers fascinating interviews and shots, and captures the inner workings of the set.

Fireside Chats

Straczynski goes into detail about the filming of the original movie. I am not sure why this is set apart as a separate feature when it could have been included with the interviews.

Widescreen. The DVD transfer is nice and clean, but the direction is flamboyantly poor. It is difficult not to fault the visual effects that couldn't look less like actual outer space.

Dolby Digital 5.1. The music has that same tone of amazement, wonderment, and exploration that comes with most science fiction programs.

Standard DVD case. The principle characters are pictured on the front cover in striped tiers.

I am an admitted non-fan of Babylon 5, but I must say this original movie is fascinating. If one can get around the cartoony effects and focus on the dialogue, this is some effective entertainment. Fans should definitely add this to their collection of seasons, and curious onlookers might consider picking this up one night for a rental.

Questions? Comments? Just want to talk movies? Drop me a line at dodd@movieweb.com