Product Description

When Professor Daniel Jackson (James Spader) innocently accepts the offer of a mysterious woman to decode an ancient Egyptian artifact known only as "Stargate," he unwittingly takes the first step on an epic adventure that will span galaxies and decide the fate of an entire planet. Colonel Jack O'Neil (Kurt Russell), a true soldier with nerves of steel and a tragic past, is brought back to active duty to commandeer the first trip through the "Stargate." On a desert planet on the far side of the universe, Jackson and O'Neil must battle the powerful alien Sun God, Ra (Jaye Davidson). At stake: the freeing of an ancient civilization from slavery and any chance of ever getting home!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3786 in DVD
• Brand: LIONS GATE HOME ENT.
• Released on: 2003-02-17
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .25 pounds
• Running time: 119 minutes

Customer Reviews

Director's Cut Is Excellent!
I'm not sure what makes the ultimate edition much different from the special edition, as both include the director's cut and theatrical version. The ultimate edition does include a 'making of' featurette, as well as a 'Is there a stargate' featurette that isn't included on the special edition. These are both interesting, but nothing to write home about. One big difference is the audio. The ult. ed. includes DTS 6.1 audio, as well as dolby digital 5.1.

Good: Being a fan of Stargate SG-1, I wanted to own the original movie as well, and when the ult. ed. was released, knew it was time to buy. I watched the director's cut, and was amazed. There were added scenes, as well as extended existing scenes. These changes really gave me a better understanding of how things in the tv show came to be the way they are, such as the relationship between Jack O'Neill and Daniel Jackson. In the director's cut, we see more interaction between them. We also get more into the head of Jack, and better understand just how messed up he really is after the loss of his son.

Bad: The only disappointment I have with the ult. ed. is that there were no 'gag reels' or bloopers, or other deleted scenes included. I enjoy watching these on other DVDs I have, and would have loved to have seen them for Stargate.

Overall, I'm glad I added this DVD to my collection. My only wish is that the Stargate SG-1 DVDs included behind the scenes or blooper reels as well.

In a way, a very realistic movie...
First off, once you get past the idea of a Stargate the rest kind of falls into place. The government, with the help of Professor Daniel Jackson (James Spader), figures out how to work it. Pro. Jackson, with an escort of soliders led by Colonel Jack O'Neil (Kurt Russell) step through it to the other side.
They find a desert planet where humans are being made to mine for the same material that the gate was made from.
The people are Egyptians who were removed from Earth over 10,000 years ago, by an alien, and even Daniel Jackson can't understand their language because living languages CHANGE.
The movie is careful to stay away from many of the cliches of most sci-fi movies but also stays away from having characters which are TOO simple. Both Daniel and Jack (played by James and Kurt) are real people, not cardboard cut-outs, with all the flaws and merits of our own reality. The natives are catch between trying to be friendly towards strangers AND not pissing off their Gods.
The science and technology used by Ra and his men look very sleek and very real. From the spaceship to the gliders, everything has a touch of old Egyptian myth mixed with advanced alien know-how.
The DVD comes with two versions of the movie, Director's Cut and the theatrical cut, in which the former has audio commentary. The DVDs also have a great 'Making of Stargate' featurette, a 'Is There a Stargate?' short starring Erich von Daniken himself, trailers, scane access, crew and cast information and production notes.
Everything you could want in a DVD set, a mixture of sound science fiction, a touch of great effects and the pinch of old fashion adventure. This is a great pop corn flick. Enjoy!

Subtitle issue...correct solution here.
I own this disc although the reviews of subtitle problems. However, I found the solution! Do NOT go to the menu screen and select english subtitles. The correct way to do it is to press your subtitle button on your remote and select English 3. This will correctly display the alien subtitles without the English subtitles. Whew! I am glad I found this out!

4 stars due to no major special features. The Blu Ray transfer makes this movie look more and more like 1994! Great movie!