Edward James Olmos has announced that he will direct a feature film of Battlestar Galactica, in which, among others, Chief Tyrol (Aaron Douglas) will play a central role. One hopes the film will be written by Ronald Moore and his team, whose scripts for the television series have brought to the medium a level of intensity and depth one hasn’t really seen consistently since “Playhouse 90” in the 1950s. This isn’t glib, in-your-face, one-jolt-per-second writing, with character dev
elopments often taking long arcs that span a whole season. And the story–generally not more important than the portraits of the characters–is so complex it is virtually impossible to appreciate all the nuances without seeing the episodes in strict chronological order, beginning with the pilot. BSG is a challenge to viewers on every level, and showcases one of the really fine ensemble casts working today, some of whom are considerably experienced Canadian actors (Michael Hogan [Tigh], Donnelly Rhodes [Dr. Cottle]) but many of whom are relatively unknown Canadian actors of great charm and talent, such as Douglas, Tahmoh Penikett (Helo), Tricia Helfer (Number Six), Alessandro Juliani (Gaeta), and Nicki Clyne (Cally). The show is produced at the Vancouver Film Studios. The television series is in its final season, a fact that has loyal fans either depressed or resignedly turning away in search of an alternate diet. But BSG has a flavor, and a nutritional composition, entirely its own.
Notes from Nowhere 