Star Command (1996)

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Though I would have like to seen more of Chad and Morgan, and though the acting wasn't exactly Academy Award (it was a bit kitchy), this was a fun story with an interesting plot, watchable special effects, and a storyline that I always like (junior officer takes command and saves the day). Seeing the hero win by cleverness and bravery instead of a plot trick makes it worth watching. The bad guys were suitably evil to deserve their fate. There was probably an even better movie in here somewhere, but what we got was a lot of fun. I'd compare it to Midshipman's Hope by David Feintuch or On Basilisk Station by David Weber (though those are probably a cut above this movie in story). Seafort in Midshipman's Hope is a bit more doom ridden though, and that gets kind of old. The hero here is gets to actually enjoy the experience, finding his forte at last instead of washing out of the academy.

This Made-For-Tv film is a mish-mash of pulpy cliches, solid military sci-fi and 90210-esque Beautiful American Teens.I think it would be too easy and grossly unfair to write this film off as 'Bad' which, in fairness, it does approach... But it has that certain something. A lot of the story is pure fluff, feel-good TV with formulaic text, but the actors and actresses who are playing the roles manage to bring a degree of feeling to the proceedings that you don't expect. If you look beyond the shake-and-bake storyline, the tennis-skirted female officers and the slightly poor effects you find a selection of highly emotional scenes that convey their meaning without needing extra... Padding.My personal favourite is the conclusion of the court-martial hearing. As those five marbles roll out onto the table... The sheer power of that scene still moves me. Of course, that might just be me.Of the actors, Jay Underwood, Ivan Sergei and Chad Everett provide enjoyable and believeable performances. I don't believe it's fair to judge the actors based on this particular outing. A lot of their talent may have been submerged under the poor writing, but there are times when quality shines through.This TV-Movie is mostly a cheap, feel-good, sci-fi romp only worth watching if you're feeling low and want pure sacharine. Beautiful Heroines, Square-jawed Heroes, predictable action and a happy ending with all the horrible baddies meeting their maker. But it's also worth watching this if you're willing to look for the hardcore Military Sci-Fi centre. It is there and it's worth watching if you can find it.But don't take my word for it...

As someone else pointed out, this was a television pilot that, fortunately for all humanity, never made it any farther. Everything about this movie was terrible. The acting was horrendous, although that might have been attributed to the even worse plot that lacked any shred of believability. They seemed more interested in finding ways to show off the 90210 wannabes in sexy yet totally unpractical uniforms than actually working on getting a story line together. As for the main issue of defeating the evil doers, I've seen more coherent battles between He-Man and Skeletor. Stay away from this one. There's a reason why even syndication wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole.

I suspect that "Star Command"gained it's genesis from "Starship Troopers", the success of which probably prompted it's inception. However it is a very different type of sci-fi film to "Troopers", which I saw as a good old fashioned shoot 'em up war movie. And a good one at that.Rather, "Star Command" reminded me very much of the recent and excellent British "Hornblower" TV series, where the protagonist/s use initiative and daring to outwit the enemy rather than guts and straight out firepower.I'd not class this as even a very good movie, the acting, by a very pretty cast, is only just adequate, the characterisation stereotypical and some of the lines embarrassingly bad.However the story itself is interest holding and the special effects/sets quite good. Not a deep film by any means but not excreable either.2½ *'s out of 4