Dans une galaxie prés de chez vous (2004)
IMDb meta-data is 1 hour and 49 minutes runtime rated 6.9 by 1,200 cinematizens
Genre: Sy Fy; Species: Quest
DNA: Québécois
Verdict: Tabernac!
Tagline: Questions? Action!
Reader Advisory: A longtime Radio Canada television parody of Star Trek–Red Dwarf spawned this ….misbegotten specimen. The 23-minute episodes are hard enough to watch but this prolongation is cruel and unusual. However, on with the show….
A group of misfits is the only hope for humanity!
This Frat House in space is led by the dim but decisive Captain who, with budget constraints, has made his own mechanical man with a very long extension cord for away missions. There are two women who do not scream. Iago is the science officer busy undermining the Captain. Don’t forget Bob who is not easy to forget, but it happens avec ou sans cheveux. Then there is Serge 6; don’t ask about Serges 1-5.
Their mission is to find a new planet for humanity to occupy since Earth is used up. The spaceship looks like the tuna fish tins that it is made from. To land on prospective planets they fax themselves down, and a scanner malfunction got Serge – see above.
There are many references to ice hockey in the terminology, especially the glory days of Gentleman Jean Beliveau and Blond Demon Guy LaFleur. The gear worn by the crew look like the hockey uniforms of Les Canadiens.
It is also replete with Québécois slang that the A.I. subtitler could not fathom, rendering much of the dialogue even more nonsensical than it is, and it is nonsensical to begin with. One example is ‘tatas,’ an idiom that means ‘idiots,’ but which the subtitles render as ‘goodbyes.’ And yes, ‘tata’ for idiot is a reference to English-speakers who say ‘Ta ta’ for goodbye. The humour is parochial and adolescent compounded by the subtitles.
Still the players and director inject plenty of energy into the proceedings. There is also some considerable humour as when the crew, off in deep space, discover….where all the stray socks from the wash have gone over the millennia. Truly an awe-inspiring moment! The rival captain who appears late in the piece with his can opener is none too subtlety portrayed as an Anglo.
In case of any uncertainty the maple leaf flag is everywhere, including underwear.
It was so big in Montréal that a sequel was made called Dans une galaxy près de chez vous 2 (2008). The title indicates the anticipated audience would grasp that 2 follows 1, but nothing more complicated than that. There were rumours in 2019 of a ‘3.’ Tabernac, indeed! [Look it up.]