Stargate - The Ark of Truth Reviews

• Very cinematic with high production value...if you like SG1, you'll love this!

  
  By A336NMIDNOHA5V on 2008-03-04
  First a small rant: don't review a movie you've not actually seen, it throws off the real ratings!
  
  (a little background...I'm not a member of the production company. But I was lucky enough to see the actual DVD movie a week before it was released. I saw the final retail version that is being sold here on Amazon; not the unfinished pre-release that's been floating around online)
  
  I just saw this movie and I must say, the characters, storyline, and visual effects are just awesome!
  
  You have all the things that make SG1 great: excellent character interaction, epic sci-fi settings, humor, tension, eye candy, and more.
  
  When I first heard about the movie, I had high expectations and a lot of anticipation. I am pleased to say that the movie does not at all disappoint, and in fact exceeded my expectations.
  
  SG1 has been in some pretty tough spots in the past, but the hole they dug themselves in this time has to be the worst one yet, and I'm not exaggerating! I spent most of the movie wondering how the heck they were going to save the day this time. The odds were so stacked against them.
  
  I'll try to give some character highlights without having any spoilers.
  
  Cam Mitchell does a great job in an unexpected, epic fight sequence that really shows off the strength of his character.
  
  Carter must work under extreme pressure once again to try to save the day.
  
  Daniel practically gives up due to the enormous pressure he's facing. When you know the history of his character you have to realize just how much he's up against to be so stuck that even he feels helpless.
  
  Teal'c manages to walk about 1000 miles while being seriously injured.
  
  Vala has some really great interactions with Adria, Daniel, and Teal'c.
  
  General Landrey shows his amazing strength and conviction face to face with a prior.
  
  Plus there is more to worry about than just the Ori, and when you find out what you'll be thinking OMG x10.
  
  The ships are just pretty, the super-gate is beautiful, the production values is significantly better than the episodes, and the episodes already rocked.
  
  Finally the score was just amazing. They had a choir singing in Latin (a guess; not sure what language it really was) along with a great orchestra soundtrack underlying the entire movie. And the mountain scenes were just pretty and epic. The views and the music combined just made this a very worthwhile experience.
  
  To wrap this up, I must say the movie is worth buying. I don't know why it is not released in HD yet, but if you're not holding out for a Blue-Ray release, then don't hesitate; grab it right now.
  
  Also if you are sad that SG1 is leaving the airwaves, have hope: Stargate Atlantis is a very good series with top-notch casting and production design. They are using much of the same crew (and even some cast crossover) as SG1, and the original SG1 writers are now focusing their attention on making Atlantis great. If you start watching Atlantis, you'll find that the empty feeling you have with SG1 leaving the airwaves will be adequately filled and you'll feel like all is well in the universe.
  
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• Can't wait for this! SG-1 should never have been canceled!

  
  By A1RQYAE58WJJ3D on 2007-12-27
  Stargate - The Ark of Truth
  
  Like most loyal Stargate SG-1 fans, I firmly believe that this show could have continued, at least for one more season. But MGM's greed and SCiFi's poor management forced it off the air before its time (yes, I'm talking about you Bonnie...how you worked out in your head that ECW wrestling belongs on the SciFi Channel remains a huge mystery to everyone). I am glad that the powers that be have at least seen fit to provide us with this and the next Stargate movie and I hope that they will be the first of many.
  
  

• One Word: Amazing

  
  By A1T535M9W7AKXR on 2008-02-12
  I had the privelege of watching a screener of "Ark of Truth" recently and I must say, quite simply, it's amazing. It exceeded my already high expectations. It excels in terms of character, story, and direction. Long live all things Stargate!
  
  

• Some good stuff, but very disappointing!

  
  By A282A0P69UT137 on 2008-03-16
  As a fan who has watched the show from the beginning and has loved it all along, I must say that this film was overall a disappointment.
  
  But let me start with some positives. The production values of the film were awesome, and I loved the location filming in the mountains. The photography in this was quite beautifully done. And the actors did magnificent as always. I also liked the elements of the story involving Tomin and his facing the actions he took as an Ori soldier, with Teal'c being the one most interested in and capable of helping him through it. This also gave Christopher Judge a chance to really show his dramatic acting capabilities, when most of the time his role is based more on physicality.
  
  But beyond that, I thought that the film had three major flaws that detracted from the quality and enjoyability of the film. One-the whole plot device of the Ark of Truth was an overly simplistic solution to the Ori problem. Open a box, let a Prior see it, and all the Ori followers will see the error of their ways and be nice from now on. Come on!! I know that they had to come up with some kind of simplified solution to the Ori problem because they didn't have a whole season to wrap the story, but this was a just plain stupid idea!
  
  Two-bringing back the replicators!! As soon as I saw that metallic bug, I hung my head and went "Argh, give me a (bleeping) break!" The replicators were a lot of fun for a villain back when they were first introduced, but at this point, they have just gotten old! I'm sick of them! They've almost become an excuse for them to bring out big guns with really big ammo magazines so they can show a plethera of clips of really loud guns being fired by really cool looking dudes! They could've thrown in Jean Claude Van Damm and made this a B action film. I think if they had focused on the Ori story instead of devoting a full third of the film to the replicators, the film might have been much better served! Instead, I felt like I had seen all of the replicator stuff before. Of course, I had, in Seasons 4, 5, 6, 7, and a whole lot in Season 8!
  
  Third-the replicator element brings us to the final problem I had with this film-Replicator Man! At least, that's what I like to call the replicator-controlled zombie that Colonel Mitchell fights. Through this whole sequence, I thought I was watching some cheesy zombie film mixed in with a little action-movie style fight scenes. Replicator Man was a stupid enough plot device on its own, but then the sequence dragged on and on and on. Only Ben Browder's whit in between the punches kept me even partially interested.
  
  As I said, disappointing film overall that had some good points, but was rather poorly executed in terms of writing and plot. Here's hoping for something better with Continuum.
  
  

• The Truth

  
  By A2QNS95WGN35G9 on 2008-03-13
  This review is spoiler free!!
  
  I have to preface this review with the statement that I am an avid Stargate fan, and as such, my review may be biased (but I think not!)
  
  After enduring season 4 of Atlantis this year, it is nice to get back to the show I truly love, Sg-1. Opposed to Atlantis, SG-1 takes place on earth, spends time on the explorations, and takes into account ancient mythologies, opposed to Atlantis, which is more action oriented, with dumbed down dialog, and shooting anything that moves.
  
  I have been awaiting this release since it was announced, it finally came to my home yesterday, I watched the movie, then the extras (comic con conference which was really cool! and a behind the scenes which was great as well (this is almost 1 hour of material), I then watched the movie again, this time with commentary (again, I love SG-1).
  
  This dvd has a "prelude" which basically goes over everything you need to freshen up on to fully enjoy and prepare for this viewing. As someone who has seen each episode of stargate countless times, I found this prelude a great review, as it has been a while since I watched it all.
  
  The movie then follows, and it is a great movie. The scenery in this movie is astounding, it looks much better than we are used to seeing on the TV show. The pacing is slower, more akin to when the show aired on Showtime, which works well, as the aspect of stargate that i enjoy most, is the interactions between the characters, the explorations of new worlds and civilizations, and how everyone reacts to the culture.
  
  This brings the conclusion to a satisfying end. I think several of the cliffhangers are drawn out a bit much (putting a tad too much tension near the end), but all in all, I enjoyed the movie.
  
  This reminds me of why I love this show, I know they are coming out with another movie soon (this one will have Richard Dean Anderson in it), and word on the streets is, it should arrive this July.
  
  I truly hope people are not just downloading bootleg copies of this dvd, and I really hope everyone will buy this dvd, and the next one. I really want this show to continue on, if the studios do not get the results they are looking for, this could be the end.
  
  I really hope the dvds do sell well, maybe they can continue to do movies throughout the year, and maybe even a mini series or another season. There are many aspects of the Stargate world that have gone unexplored, and unfinished.
  
  I hope the producers read this review, and understand that what make stargate work is not the snappy dialog, the wonderful interactions, the brilliantly designed enemies, sound design, artwork, and constant tension, but the exploration of new worlds, the ability to learn something (ancient history, see ancient figures, the Egyptian gods) and the exploration of these foreign cultures. Something Stargate Atlantis completely misses, which is why I do not enjoy it as much.
  
  I truly hope everyone will buy this dvd, enjoy it, and more get made.
  
  I also must comment on the beautiful video quality and sound design, the show has never looked or sounded this good (they did use 35mm film) and it shows.
  
  Please keep up the great work, and I hope everyone enjoys this fantastic dvd.
  
  (note, if you are a fan of the movie, and haven't watched too much of the series (last 2 seasons--9 and 10) this dvd is likely not for you, do yourself a favor, and buy the complete series collection, and catch up, then enjoy this fantastic dvd, as you will not be able to understand much of what is going on)
  
  Also, the creators of the show, are working on a third show, that deals with the ninth chevron, tentatively called "Stargate Universe" which is set in present time. I really hope this will be the return of intellectual Stargate, and I eagerly await its arrival on TV.
  
  
• Stargate SG-1 - The best Sci-Fi series....ever!!!!!
  By A6KZQ97MFX0OR on 2008-01-10
  I am a HUGE fan of Stargate SG-1 and also the spin-off series Stargate: Atlantis. It was horrible that the Sci-Fi network did not carry on this show; the ratings, the popularity, the fan base, even the show speaks for itself....10 YEARS. Never has any other Sci-Fi series lasted that long. Even the long running Star Trek sagas, all of them ran for their respective 7 seasons then came to an end. And the stupid thing is, they canceled SG-1 when the story line was at a strong point with the battle with the Ori.
  
  The Goa'uld story line alone lasted for 8 years, then the Ori became the next ultimate threat, A LOT more could have been done carry on the show. Why didn't MGM just move the show to another network? It first started on Showtime, then onto Sci-Fi; if Sci-Fi no longer wanted the burden (stupid decision I might add since their ratings would have carried one at a high point) then why didn't they just move on to another network?
  
  I am looking forward to this movie. And I hope they make some more.
  
  
• One More Adventure
  By A1EXS156IQG7OA on 2008-02-20
  It was a sad day when one of the longest running SF TV shows in history, Star Gate: SG1, was cancelled. One should comfort oneself that at least the show is going out on a high note and is not being kept on long past its prime. Meanwhile we have Ark of Truth and one other direct to DVD film staring our intrepid space explorers to look forward to.
  
  
• Average At Best
  By ALHNUKZ5NJCX2 on 2008-05-21
  Let's face the facts. Stargate SG-1 ran out of gas around Season 6 or 7. The last three years of the series, the program was sucking on fumes. I hate to say that, because I loved watching the program when Richard Dean Anderson was starring. I have to say I only bought the 'Ark of Truth' because they left the Ori plot line dangling when the final season ended. To be honest, I felt cheated out of my money for this DVD. Granted, the producers had more money for creating a longer, more special effects laden product. Unfortunately they forgot the plot. I always had the impression that the Ori, this supposedly invincible foe, was going to end with a whimper. That is how it felt to me. Did we really need a plot line that had the Replicators involved one more time? How many times do you need to defeat them before they go away, permanently? I will have to think long and hard about shelling out for the second installment, Continuum. Three stars for what the series originally offered the fans.
  
  
• Stargate SG-1 - Fans be Ready
  By A9Z6CWDEV7H1Z on 2008-01-11
  I along with most of the Stargate fans out there think this show should have never been canceled. I watched this series from the beginning start out small and eventually grow to have a cult following that can almost go head to head with any Trek fan. I have not seen the full length movie yet only clips that have become available since the series ended; however the storyline is supposed to answer questions that were left opened when the series ended. I hope everyone out there who is a Stargate fan will purchase this movie and leave reviews to show MGM and Sci-Fi that the Gates brand deserves another chance and ECW does not belong on the Sci-Fi channel. I know there is still Stargate Atlantis and I am a HUGE fan of that show, but it still will never be the same as SG-1. Enjoy everyone.
  
  
• Ark of Obvious Truth
  By ABVXILKFG2HXE on 2008-02-24
  As with many others, I had opportunity to view a screener of the video. It has some fairly impressive scenes in it and there was obvious extra budget beyond the normal episode. That said, as a movie, the video was fairly disappointing--it should have been cast as a four episode story arc minimum with extra details to fill in what turned out to be a fairly rushed, plot-obvious film.
  
  The directors/writers crammed too much into the film. Expectations found on many sites for how the Ori story arc would end are spot on in almost every instance. The return of an old, previously defeated enemy in the middle of the film was creative but had little build up. This secondary plot, however, had greater depth and build up than the main plot.
  
  The main plot, dealing with the end of the Ori, was resolved in a classic Deus ex Machina form--something I thought had been decried since the Greeks first developed it. Beyond just being classic, elements at the end of the main storyline echoed the end of Anubis in the tv series with only differing visual effects.
  
  While much of the above is negative, it was a fun, if obvious story, with very impressive visual effects. The video clips of mountains were among my favorite and deserve a place in any documentary of the real earth location. The space battles were also visually impressive, as was the depiction of the "Fields of Celestis" and the incarnation of the remaining Ori.
  
  Will I buy it when it comes out? Probably... from amazon.com's used item link.
  
  
• Finally!
  By A1JO84HMA0T76X on 2007-12-09
  After a 10 year long run, I've just about hit the wall in my withdrawal symptoms of no more new SG1 when what in my inbox should appear? The notice that I can pre-order the first Stargate SG-1 movie! What a wonderful early Christmas present, even though the movie won't actually arrive until March. But until then I can happily bounce around knowing it's coming! It's coming!!! :)
  
  
• Finally
  By AUFUFK1GLU1L8 on 2007-12-18
  I've been waiting for this ever since I first heard it. It's so great that they were able to keep this awesome story going. This is going to be an awesome movie.
  
  Now I'm excited to see when the 2nd movie is coming. Every SG-1 and Atlantis fan has to remember that Robert Cooper is trying to get a second spin-off going, Stargate: Universe! We have to show our support to keep it going!
  
  
• Ark of Truth, Conclusion and Beginning
  By A1GHUN5HXMHZ89 on 2008-03-12
  Ark of Truth is a must see for fans of the series. It concludes the Ori battle and yet ends with SG-1 starting another mission. Something SG-1 has not had time to do for a couple years. Let's face it most of us have missed Jack and the exploring they use to do. The bulk of the movie is finding a weapon to destroy the Ori, but it turns out it is not where they first thought and when they find it, it doesn't do what they originally thought either. However they are victorious and there are changes of loyalty from a place you might not expect. Overall I was not at all disappointed, but I must admit the scene with Teal'c walking across a desert after being shot by a Ori weapon was a bit much.
  
  The wife and I were a bit disappointed that Richard Dean Anderson didn't even put in a cameo appearance. Excellent production values as always, they won't seem better as the TV series was so good that we were all spoiled by them. The DVD includes plenty of extras including a prelude you can play previous to watching the movie. The prelude is snapshot segments from several episodes from the last two seasons and that lead up to the final battle. I bought a copy because I loved the series and it wouldn't be complete without this movie. They made it clear another movie is in the works. Let us hope there will be more exploration and singular episodic adventures for future movies. Great quality picture and sound and good replayability.
  
  
• tie up loose ends
  By A2650CHSMIY4AY on 2008-01-13
  i am a huge stargate fan, have been from the start. i have all ten seasons and the original stargate movie. when i don't know what to watch, i can always watch sg-1. i agree with the others, that the show could have gone on, what's with ecw on scifi anyway, maybe they should cut back on the meds alittle. tie up some loose ends, like the cloned jack they have, what about the tolans, never met the furlings, or in 100 days episode o'neill, may have a child on that world, i could go on, but the series will not. at least they are going to throw us stargate fans a bone with a couple of movies.
  
  
• Finally it has arrived!
  By AYN16N4771ZKP on 2007-12-09
  "Stargate: The Ark Of Truth" is first Stargate SG-1 Direct-To-DVD film. It also is the film which closes the Ori stary arc initially begun at the beginning of it's 9th Season ("Avalon" Parts 1 & 2 and "Origin").
  
  I have been looking forward to this film for some time given it's placement within the Stargate Timeline. Even though Atlantis S4 is currently airing, and Samantha Carter is now the base commander ("Reunion"), in fact, this film takes place some time before Atlantis' Season 3 finale "First Strike."
  
  
• Really great
  By AXI31LRXTBQSU on 2008-01-04
  This movie is much better than I ever anticipated, even with my high expectations. The scope of the higher budget than a regular episode is clearly visible.
  
  Everyone shoud do as I do, and buy a DVD, in order to prove to everyone in the business that Stargate SG-1 isn't dead. The series must go on, in any form possible.
  
  
• Stargate was once a wonderful show, now it's just repetitive drivel
  By A165Q7RXO48ICL on 2008-03-13
  I used to love Stargate. But maybe it was the departure of Richard Dean Anderson, I don't know. But the last few seasons have been extremely repetitive and tiresome. Random Ancient artifact saves the day. The Ark of Truth is no exception. The only character that gets any decent character development is Tomin when he has a change of heart. Otherwise it's the same ole tired formula. 1) Find Ancient artifact. 2) magically decipher it despite how ridiculously old and advanced it is. 3) Save the day. 4) Lather rinse repeat. It was bad enough that the first seasons of Stargate dealt with Humans miraculously defeating an enemy that was vastly more advanced and had been in power for thousands of years. But my suspension of disbelief simply cannot tolerate simple humans fighting virtual deities and somehow winning. It is extremely disappointing to see Stargate fall so far.
  
  
• Well fitting ending for a great story
  By A3C1WIUGDEY8DB on 2007-12-25
  I loved the story and effects (except the ascended one on one fight scene which was lame, i hope they change it for the final release)
  
  I will definitely buy this one when the retail version becomes available
  
  *yes i have seen it so no QQ pls, thanks
  
  
• I hope they make 20 more!!
  By A1R6ZUQMBX2LGD on 2008-01-08
  As an ardent Stargate fan for 6 or 7 years, (I originally discovered the series on DVD) I was heart broken when I heard that the show was coming to an end. I personally thought that season 8 was the low point of the series and seasons 9 and 10 were getting better with almost every episode. Then I was angry when I realized that Stargate SG-1 was being replaced by some of the worst television shows ever created. My point isn't to rag on the Scifi network, but merely to reflect the rollercoaster of emotions this SG-1 fan has felt over the last couple years. So when I heard that MGM was producing not one but two straight to DVD movies to extend the series I was ecstatic. I admit that I haven't seen the completed film yet but the plot sounds good and I'm sure the production and acting is excellent. In the ten years of the series I really can count on my hand how many episodes I think are truly bad. Hopefully this will do well and we'll get some more. Maybe we'll even get a theatrical release some day.
  
  Update: Having now purchased and watched the movie I can whole heartedly recommend this title to anyone who is a fan of the Stargate television franchise. The acting is solid, the effects are really very well done and the writing is nicely done too and ties up the Ori arc quite well. Someone who hasn't seen much of the past two seasons might want to think about renting or purchasing them before they watch this film as the material is heavily connected to events from the last two seasons of the show. I leave you with those thoughts and bid you good day and happy watching.
  
  
• Another Stargate Adventure!
  By A39ESIV3LTIZNV on 2008-01-13
  Continuing the Ori story-line, this action packed full-length movie has it all! Any fan of SG-1 would be dumb to miss this one!
  
  
• Average At Best
  By A12702M6EQY6RA on 2008-03-07
  Stargate fans who are more discerning and don't think every single episode of Stargate is 'amazing' will be somewhat disappointed by the DVD movie. The lazy writing that plagued the show in latter years is evident in the movie, which is nothing more in quality than a typical 2 episode double parter on a typical stargate season.
  The writers really don't know how to write for 'film' and what we get really is 97 minutes of 'talking heads'- usual for the television genre.
  The SFX is servicable with nothing spectacular.
  This one is strictly for the fans and won't really attract any newcomers to the Stargate universe.
  
  
  
• The truth is I was disappointed.
  By A11ED8O95W2103 on 2008-03-17
  Sure, it was great to see the characters, more like old friends now, that I've missed since Stargate SG-1 ended, but this long awaited TV movie felt more like two average episodes than anything like I hoped it would be.
  
  I thought something was strange when the opening credits were white letters over white snow in the mountains. Some very hard to even read. How did that get past someone? Just a nit, but it made me wonder what I was in for. Caution, spoilers follow.
  
  First, I was disappointed that the story revolved around a magic weapon that solves all our problems if we can only find it, which of course we know we will eventually. That made the whole adventure more or less predictable.
  
  What follows is a lot of lets say very conveniently written stuff with some strange transitions. We've got the Odyssey going through the Super Stargate in one scene and immediately Vala and Daniel are sitting at a table in a villiage in Ori occupied space. That was easy.
  
  Then here come the replicators, again. Replicators have already been done in the SG-1 series, where they were an original idea to the series, and in Atlantis, where it made me think the Atlantis writers had run out of ideas, and now here they are again! Once again we are treated to scene after scene of heavy and light machine guns mowing down replicators while the bullets do absolutely no damage to anything that isn't a replicator. It got corny a while ago, folks. By the way, why did the characters weld and bolt the doors to the Asgard Core room shut if it had already been established in the show that the little bugs can just melt their way through metal?
  
  Then there's the new twist: the gross zombie replicator human, and the endless fight between this thing and Mitchell, which ends with the terminator (er..oops..replicators) forming a human skeleton after all the flesh has been burned away.
  
  Why is it that all of a sudden these Ori mother ships aren't so tough, and four of them can pound away at the Odyssey for endless minutes while the replicator problem is taken care of, and then once the replicators are defeated the Ori ships all of a sudden become an urgent threat again?
  
  How can Teal'c get a Ori weapon blast in the back, get left for dead, and in the morning feel great enough to go mountain climbing, complete with incredibly corny not-too-Stargate-like melodramatic music playing? He falls flat on his face but gets supernatural help to recover. Later, he somehow penetrates the Ori city and shows up in a Pryor's uniform to rescue our heros, but we never get to see how he did it!
  
  One thing I forgot to mention at first, Samantha Carter seems to come across more like a soccer mom than a military person. Maybe because her hair seemed long for a military person, or because she baked cookies for Mitchell and kissed him on the cheek while she had her hair completely down while on base at the end of the episode. I don't know, but something seemed tweaked about Sam. Of course, I'm not caught up on season four of Atlantis.
  
  Finally, the super villian in this story is dispatched just the way the super villian Anubis is dispatched in the Threads episode.
  
  Anyway, I thought will all the extra time available to make this movie I'd get to see something fresh and somewhat original, but it was the same old same old. At least the Ori story arc was brought to a close.
  
  Bottom line: see if you can see it without paying full retail.
  
  
• Oh COME ON
  By A1YNOF895B82W8 on 2008-02-17
  Alright. I love Stargate, and I can't wait for this DVD, but you people are all just ranting about how much you loved the series... The point of this review system is to talk about the DVD isn't it? I really I am being a hypocrite, but I just had to say something, and I definitely intend to share a real review once I've actually SEEN it.
  
  
• Enjoyed it, but you have a right to be disappointed!
  By A3B57Z552RMKZB on 2008-03-18
  I've been a Stargate Fan since the first movie, and loyally throughout all 10 seasons over both cable networks it was carried on. Stargate: Ark of Truth is a fun ride, a step up from the weekly show, but a disappointment in complete lack of story originality.
  
  In this story, (AN EXACT CLONE OF THE REPLICATOR DEFEAT EPISODE IN SEASON 9) SG-1 discovers yet another ancient artifact that will destroy the nearly un-beatable near-omnipotent foe. Exactly as they defeated the replicators with Bal's help in season nine, with a convenient 'link' between all Stargates and this Ancient weapon, the Replicators were wiped out in a single stroke, all over the galaxy with a coded entry on an old stone control pad.
  
  Guess what happens at the end of this movie? Well, without revealing everything, a convenient 'link' to all the ((blanks)) from an old stone/metal tablet Ark, wipes out all ORI believer's faith in one stroke once the critical coded pattern is stuck on the device. ORI defeated, as quickly and as unbelievably neatly as the replicators were way back when.
  
  Even more lackluster, the ORI "were killed" and not just wounded by the device sent to kill them in the latter part of Season 10 where Daniel Jackson was a Prior deceiving old evil Audra. So, no better complexity of the Ancients versus the ORI, and how humanity can step in and fight is ever really explored. We'll just leave Jackson a new ancient buried wonder-device to take care of it in the end. With all of these perfect weapons laying around the universe in piles of desert dust, how in the world did the Wraith ever cause the ancients a sweat? The ancients could not have found all of this stuff when they needed it? Puhleeze!
  
  Audra does little more than dance around in fiery steps, brag on about having all of the power, and wastes what could have been a nice scary scene with Claudia Black. Julian Sands has a cup of coffee as the head prior, and then does nothing. I was hoping for a bit more battle with the heavyweights!
  
  The movie is fun, tosses in the predictable IOA manic official with poor judgment and an even poorer dialogue, but a terminator replicator he becomes, and of course Ben Browder will survive about 15 steel pounding hits without dying or being rendered inert. The logic behind the IOA guy's story for intentionally risking everyone's lives is silly, not even political paranoids could or would get away with his access and security passes.
  
  We get some more astounding Canadian scenery, which is okay, the special effects are good, and the humor and dramatic elements are nicely brief and poignant for a change, so the movie moves well if the story lacks for any originality. Oh my, IRONY, with ORI and ORIGIN, you get NO ORIGINALITY. That point sticks with me badly I'm afraid.
  
  The cast is sharp, but sadly, there is no pickup of Jackson's and Vala's destined romance, only Beau Bridges gets to deliver what is expected, and Tealc' is in good form.
  
  I was shocked that I really did enjoy the show, about 2 hours 10 minutes of no boredom, but later as I rummaged the tale through my head, remembering it was little fun, so much potential missed, and a story completely cloned in the conflicting elements exactly to the old formula of beating the replicators, a similar track was used in older SG-1 episodes too. Let's hope Stargate Atlantis does not suffer from such story redundancy and writer's laziness. This copy-cat story transfer was a true shame, hope this writer did NOT GET PAID! Adding in Replicators is a transparent attempt to boost cheap excitment levels and raise kids hands cheering, but leaves any mature Sci-Fi senses flat on the deck of the Odyssey swimming in that replicator shrapnel.
  
  Most of us could have written a far better screenplay. This was not bad at all, it is fun SG-1 show, worth the time, but the end-all story to a huge build-up from the past 3 seasons, had no merit, honor or punch in the end. Its a feel-good send-off to all SG-1 fans, but only if you're VERY generous on forgetting that they've done this to you time and time again.
  
  The actors and the show deserved a better ending to the ORI storyline!
  
  docsetc@msm.com
  
  
• Finaly
  By AZJDH02J8KITN on 2007-12-09
  Wow finaly. The conclusion of the Ori story ark. I'm very much looking foward to this. SG-1 is still one of the best scifi shows.
  
  
• 1st of many! hopefully
  By A3CICNKOXVOHFN on 2007-12-29
  This movie will be awesome of the two that will be released so far. This show should have never been canclled and when we buy this movie and the next all of us will use our support to have MGM sign for more Stargate SG-1 movies.
  
  
• 10 yrs was better than 8
  By A1TZCOVQK18UVX on 2008-02-17
  I agree with the reviewer who said this area was to review "The Ark of Truth". As for the rest of you, the show was scheduled to end at season eight when Richard Dean Anderson was leaving the show. Fan support by write ins kept it on for 2 more seasons. How many of you wrote to Sci-Fi and/or Stargate producers & writers trying to keep it on longer than 10 yrs? With the demise of SG1, Atlantis script writing has improved. I would suggest you enjoy and support Atlantis so it doesn't go the way of SG1.
  
  
• Dissappointment
  By A1NVQ86OCVHA9B on 2008-03-20
  Well I must say that this movie was a dissapointmen. There is so much the writers could have done with this story. But somehow this became more about the replicators than the Ori/priors. Honestly I expected an all out battle between the priors & SG-1 and between the Ori & the ancients. But instead it was a battle with the replicators. I thought it was lame & it took from the main bad guys which were the Ori. There was so much story & discoveries they could have shown, but the writers took they easy way out. I think it could have been cool to use all of earth's ship in a battle against the ori ships. That would have been cool. But no Lets go back to a story that we have over done "the replicators". Honestly I am a huge fan of this show because of the story that they told in the TV series, but now I feel that the writers owe us a great ori story. I think that they told better stories in the TV series than the movie. I honestly hope that the they put a little more effort in the 2nd movie.
  
  
• Good Production, Not so good script
  By A12I47F8942U6Q on 2008-03-30
  SPOILERS AHEAD....
  
  Stargate has always had its homages to other genre shows and they are clearly on display here -- the opening caption paraphrasing "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away", the peak-to-peak aeral shot just beging for Gondor outposts to light the signal fires, a Terminator-like rise from an explosion, ... (I'm sure folks can spot more).
  
  The visual effects were lovely, and there were some really good bits of characterization. The converation between Teal'c and Tomin was wonderful, as was Tomin's final scene with Vala.
  
  As for the rest...
  While many a Stargate villain comes direct from Central Casting, Marrick (the IOA guy) is particularly ill-written in a series that brought us Senator Kinsey, Colonel Maybourne, and even the briefly-referenced Mr. Woolsey. In prior episodes where the IOA, NID, or Senator Kinsey were challenging the SGC often they had a legitimate PoV, even if they were wrong. Here, they are just wrong and profoundly stupid.
  
  Similarly, Adria mostly gets to chew scenery in her scenes with Vala rather than have some character development before her inevitable defeat. (Itself a solution borrowed from Oma Desala's final battle with Anubis.)
  
  Others have commented on problems with the Replicator subplot and Repli-terminator -- one other aside -- what did they make the walls and BLUs (blinkie-light-units, per the commentaries) out of?! Thousands of high-power rounds blasted around them, and not one bit of damage? Yet they bend when Mitchell is tossed into them? Yes, limits of CGIs, but might have been nice to show some collateral damage on a movie-scale budget.
  
  The wounded Teal'c walking montage eventually blew my suspension of disbelief -- particularly when it is apparently occuring at the same time as Carter and Mitchell's battle with the Replicators (who knew Teal'c could walk that fast!).
  
  
• Good but Utilitarian
  By A144I2VJ9T0N26 on 2008-03-14
  I've watched every episode of Stargate. I even paid for Showtime just so I could see it, before it gated over to Sci-Fi. I very much hated the last episode for reasons I won't go into here. This should give my review a context.
  
  Ark of Truth was good. Not great. I really like the actors and the characters they portray. The effects were up there and the interesting Ori story arc was closed nicely. HOWEVER, there was nothing new here. It was an extended episode. What was worse was the whole plot thread that seemed to be added by a fan of the Terminator. It was cheap and a waste. I can only guess their reasons for it but it was insulting to have to watch that to get to the real story.
  
  The ending hints at more adventures to come and I'm glad for that. Maybe they can take the Ark over to the Pegasus galaxy...
  
  

• Stargate: Continuum
• Stargate Atlantis - The Complete Fourth Season
• Stargate SG-1 - Season 10
• Stargate Atlantis - The Complete Third Season
• Battlestar Galactica - Season Three