My Review of Stargate: The Ark of Truth -- Adria, Replicators, Tomin's Redemption, & Macaroons!!
Going into season ten of Stargate SG-1 I knew the Ori arc would be closed out in the movie The Ark of Truth. What I didn't know was this movie represented what was going to happen in season eleven if it wasn't cancelled. I don't know if I'm a minority or not, but I always enjoyed the Ori storyline. The Ori storyline is a very relevant, topical story where religion could be used as facade to build an empire on oppression, slavery, and fear. It's also one of the reasons I enjoyed the Goa'uld storyline. Some say the Ori storyline is a rehash of the Goa'uld storyline. There are definite similarities, however; the Ori and Goa'uld are different types of villains. The Goa'uld were at times bit more comedical, historic, and they carried a lot of arrogance. I really enjoyed the Goa'uld storyline because they dealt with a more psychological level because those snakeheads can go into your head and take over your body for centuries. The whole idea of unwilling hosts just always freaked me out. They also didn't see people as living things. Plus over the seasons proved to be quite challenging for the SGC.
Whereas the Ori were never truly seen, had a serious tone, and their power is shown through their followers and technological advancements. It doesn't mean the Goa'uld storyline is inferior to the Ori storyline, or visa versa. I see them as two separate villains that share the same goal, but went about it in different ways. It also represents what conquer civilizations did throughout history, so there this great sense of realism. So going into The Ark of Truth I was really curious on how they would finish the Ori storyline because technically the Goa'uld storyline is still going on since there is a big question mark in regard to Ba'al and his clones.
The Replicators Return!! -- I was so pleasantly surprised to see one of my favorite villains back!! Man, we haven't seen the replicators since season eight on the show. The IOA continue to show their incompetence this time they went above and beyond stupidity. Seriously, not only do they turn on the Asgard Core, but they also create a replicator that isn't affected by an A.R.G. weapon. Did they not read the file reports from "Revelations" and "Unending"? I really loved the new idea of the Terminator Replicator. It was creepy, brutal, and neat at the same time. It was nice alteration in comparison to the Human Replicators. I wasn't expecting to see the Replicators in the movies, so color me a happy camper.
Adria is the Ori & Her (Sort of) Demise -- Considering this movie centered on the Ori arc I was surprised that Adria was barely even in the movie. What little we saw of her I really enjoyed because it was pretty much Adria on full blown power hunger. She was a slightly different Adria we last seen in "Dominion". I did like how Adria was defeated because it took everyone in the room to destory her, so Morgan and Adria could duke it out forever. Some say Adria's ending was a rehash of Oma vs. Anubis, however; I don't see it too much of a rehash. It was already confirmed in the Stargate mythology in "Threads" that to defeat an ascended being like Anubis you need another ascended being to keep them at bay. It's pretty much like a ying and yang situation battle. It makes sense within the show's mythology, so I don't have a problem with it. Plus I love that Morgan wss willing to go that extra mile to help save the galaxy. I really loved how the series showed that Morgan wasn't like how the old Camelot stories we've heard about for centuries. It was a nice, fitting touch to the ending storylines of Adria and Morgan.
Tomin's Redemption -- One of my favorite emotional beats would have to anything concerning Tomin. I always enjoyed Tomin's character, and his constant struggle with the Ori's tactics and love for the "Book of Origin". Plus I'm a big fan of Tim Guinee, and his chemistry with Claudia Black. I really loved the parallel storytelling between Tomin and Teal'c. These are two characters that were taught since birth to worship and do unspeakable things for their false gods. Teal'c hasn't spoken about it since, well, season one in the series when he was put on trial for killing a person. Tomin's scene with Teal'c was such a compelling scene because it adds to Tomin's journey to accept the fact he will never forgive himself, and it added more depth to Teal'c as well. Teal'c has done so much for the galaxy, and to this day he still doesn't forgive himself *sniff*. These are two characters that will never find their own forgiveness despite all the kindness, saving, and sacrifice they will be doing for years to come. Tim and Christopher did such an excellent job in that scene. I was happy to see Tomin live to see another day because I so thought he was a goner. I find it cool that Tomin wants to continue the "Book of Origin", however; in the way it written and not used for oppression, fear, and killing. Overall, I thought they did a great job with Tomin's journey since the first time we saw him in season nine. I'm glad Tomin found his way to the right side.
Space Battle & Replicators Invasion: Sam, Cam, & The Odyssey -- I liked how the movie was split between what was going on the Odyssey and Celestis. Both situations proved to be protecting multiple galaxies from two very powerful enemies. Sam and Cam not only had to deal with the stupidity of IOA and James Marrick, but they also had to deal with Ori ships and new formed Replicators. I know some people were kinda upset that Cam had the lead position on the ship, but overtime throughout the movie it felt like the lead became co-leadership between Sam and Cam. Cam would handle the physical aspect of the Replicators and Replicator!Marrick, and Sam organized how to do the tech portion of the mission to keep the ship intact and stop the replicators. At least that's how I viewed the leadership situation. Cam was officially given the leadership position by Landry to overthrow Marrick, but unofficially I felt they were trading off and on to just plan survive and protect everyone on the ship and in the galaxies. I could be wrong, but that's how I viewed.
I really loved seeing the interaction between Cam and Sam throughout the movie. It was excellent how they were protective, supportive, and banter with each other throughout. My favorite moment was when Sam visited Cam in the infirmary, and gave him cookies and a kiss on the check. I still don't ship these two romantically, but i just love their brother-sister friendship chemistry Ben and Amanda have with one another. They are just too adorable for words. I thought Cam did an excellent job throughout the film. I can see him getting a commanding position beyond Lt. Colonel after this movie. I really enjoyed seeing his fight against Replicator!Marrick. I was very happy to see the return of Major Marks, and his interaction with Sam during the Asgard Core battle. I always loved seeing their interaction since Marks was a captain several seasons back. Ever since Sam got the handle of space aircraft I always imagined her commanding her own ship. I hope seeing her success on these space problems the USAF, in the show of course, promotes her to her own command on a ship.
The Ark of Truth: Vala, Daniel, & Teal'c -- While Sam and Cam were dealing with their own problems, so was Vala, Daniel, and Teal'c. I really loved how it took each of them to weaken Adria's power for Morgan to fight her on equal standing. It felt like Daniel and Teal'c were alternating leadership throughout the mission. One moment Daniel had the floor due to his forte, then the next moment Teal'c took over with the physical aspect of things. I thought it was neat to see the transition between the two. I honestly thought Teal'c was a goner for minute when he got shot by an Ori staff blast. I'm glad he wasn't, but you never know what is going to happen when the series only received two movies. I really enjoyed Daniel's conversation with Morgan on how it is a must to intervene for the survival of the universe. I also love how Daniel figured out the code word being "origin" which is so ironic its funny hehe.
Vala really didn't have much to do in this movie, but I enjoyed her scenes with Adria and Tomin. Vala already chose her friends over Adria in "Dominion", so it was neat to see her pretty much distracting Adria to destroy her. Vala knew her daughter is now so far gone that no one can save her not even her mother. I really enjoyed Vala's scenes with Tomin. They still have this great chemistry and love for one another, but Vala had to let him down easy that her place now is with the SGC....her new home and friends....It was bittersweet and we already knew Vala's feelings, but it was still nice to hear Vala say it out loud. I really enjoyed the fact each member had a pivotal role in taking down Adria. I got a kick out of the teasing Vala and Daniel received in bringing the Ori to the galaxy. It's pretty much what Sam, Jack, and Teal'c have been hearing in regards to Ra, Apophis, and the Replicators....d'oh....so it was funny to hear the teasing from Cam about it. It brings a bit of humor to a dramatic situation and it is so SG-1 hehe.
Action Sequences, Visual Effects, Cinematography/Directing, & Music -- Robert C. Cooper is a novice at direction, but I really enjoyed his directing in "Unending". I thought Cooper did a good job in direction because he had a hard movie to do due to a lot of exposition in regards to Adria, Ark of Truth, Tomin, IOA, and Marrick. There was a lot to go through, and to finish the Ori arc with justice. The only expectation I had was Cooper making sure kept the storylines were tight and logical. I really loved Cooper's idea in making the movie bigger than the series. The spacecrafts were in a larger scale. The emotional beats had longer beats, and showed the awesomeness of the SuperGate and Stargate wormhole technology. Even though the movie was filmed on sets most of the time the scale was pretty excellent. It also showed through the type of film they used. The look was brighter, clearer, and wider shots. I really loved the decision Cooper made on making the movie's look slightly different compared to the tv show. The trek Teal'c does alone on the mountains is just breathtaking beautiful!! I loved the location they used for that montage, and big thumbs up for Christopher Judge in facing his fears to do it.
The visual effects and action sequences were pretty outstanding. I loved the look of the Odyssey and Ori ships in space. Marrick's Terminator!Replicator was pretty cool. The action sequences weren't huge, but my favorites would have to be Odyssey Crew vs. Replicators, Cam vs. Replicator!Marrick, and Ori vs. the Odyssey. My favorite visual effect would have to be hands down the Odyssey going through the SuperGate, and followed by Adria teleporting around Vala. We haven't seen what happens in the wormhole whatsover on the show. It was so beautiful, and neat seeing Cam, Sam, and Daniel go through the wormhole. Then to have the music behind it was just freakin' awesome!! I really enjoyed how they did Ascended Adria effects during her reveal scene. It was really really neat to see. How they did the effects, action, and cinematography made me really look forward what they do in the next movie!
The musical score was pretty much outstanding!! I loved how there were the signature themes and notes of Stargate, Daniel, Ori, Replicators, Sam, and Teal'c's individual theme music. Then, you got the new vast musical score of the battle sequences and going into the wormhole. The score was pretty much excellent, but it always is with the series.
Easter Eggs & References Galore!! -- I don't know if I have them all, but I just loved the easter eggs and references that were noted throughout the movie. I wasn't expecting any truthfully just because of the premise of the film.
*Area 51 -- Where the Ark of Truth was placed along with the rest of SGC travels are placed (previously seen on the show)
*Indiana Jones -- I thought there were some homages throughout the film and they were confirmed by the audio commentary.
*Stargate: Atlantis -- Colonel Ellis cameo on board the Apollo
*Stargate SG-1 "Line in the Sand" Episode -- Sam gives Cam macaroons in the infirmary just like he did for in "Line in the Sand" when she was injured
*Stargate SG-1 "200" Episode -- Cam tells Major Marks "weapons to maximum" which was a direct line reference during the Star Trek parody during the 200th episode
*Original Stargate Movie -- Homage to the wormhole dematerializing with Sam, Cam, and Daniel
Overall, I really enjoyed the movie because it had a great team dynamic balance. It wasn't solely on a couple of the team members. Every SG-1 member had an important part to play. Whether it be going up against Adria, the Replicators, or trying to make sure the Odyssey didn't blow up. Everyone had an important part to play in the destruction of the Ori, and keeping multiple galaxies safe. Now that the Ori storyline is done with I'm really looking forward to Stargate: Continuum because I heard some awesome things about this movie!!