IMDb user comments for
Babylon 5: In the Beginning (1998) (TV) More at IMDbPro »

Filter: Hide Spoilers:
Page 1 of 3:[1] [2] [3] [Next]
Index 27 comments in total 

12 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
A good movie that adds important detail missing from the series, 6 February 2002
Author: Neville Angove (lecygne) from Australia

As with most TV movies that are effectively a story arc, "In the Beginning" is only attractive to fans of the series. But for these people, this movie adds critical background information only hinted at in the series, and as well, casts one of the significant characters of the show into a different light. Now we can see a little of why the first four Babylon stations were destroyed, and how Sinclair and then Sheridan were fated to be the keystones in the development of Earth-Mimbari relations.

Finally the linked histories of Delenn, Sincliar and Sheridan that are alluded to throughout the series are explained, revealing some of the deep background created by J. Michael Straczynski that helped add to the series strength. The acting is well crafted, highlighting the depth of skills in their craft of the major cast. What I found particularly intriguing was the manner in which Straczynski rounded out the character of Llando by having him slightly distort the historical events covered in the series (only apparent to someone who had paid particular attention to the original TV screening).

Was the above comment useful to you?

11 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
Essential viewing for fans of the TV series, but still enjoyable for those who haven't seen Babylon 5 before., 17 February 1999
10/10
Author: Mark Alan Jones from Brisbane, Australia

All stories have a beginning. The five year TV tale of Babylon 5 did not however begin with the first episode. This story told in semi-autobiographical form by one of the TV series' main characters sets the scene for what would become the TV series storyline. Babylon 5 has consistently shown what can be done in the science-fiction area with intelligent writing, a good cast, and a decent budget for special effects. This is no exception, the acting is its usual standard - with particular mention to Peter Jurasik, always excellent entertainment in the form of Londo Mollari. The effects are of the same standard as the TV series, still the benchmark of computer animation for the small screen.

Most of the principals of the TV series are there - although some are reduced to almost cameos. The plot line is somewhat disjointed, but that's offset by the way it is told by Jurasik's Londo Mollari. The individual scenes are just long enough in most cases to carry the plot and allow the actors scope, while still making sure that those who watched the series find out the pasts of all the characters, although Garibaldi is conspicous by his absense.

For those who want a rollicking good tale of heroism, triumph, tragedy, humour and big explosions, then this is a movie for you.

Was the above comment useful to you?

12 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
Goosebumps!, 14 December 2004
10/10
Author: kevin-623 from Sørum

I was a fan of Babylon 5 as a kid, but I didn't remember the story before seeing this movie. However, seeing this brought out a whole lot of goosebumps. Not because I am the greatest fan, but because of the amazing acting and setting in some of the scenes

Without doubt the movie that has brought me closest to crying in a whole lot of years.

An absolute recommendation goes out to all! But be bewared: It will be tempting as hell to join the wagon and see the series :D

If you are already a fan of the series, you have no choice. An absolute must-see for fans, and a "should see it anyways" for all others!

Was the above comment useful to you?

4 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
The greatest story in the Babylon 5 series., 16 January 2003
10/10
Author: Animus from Hickory, NC

And so it begins... "In The Beginning" is quite simply the one of the best movies ever filmed. As part of the Babylon 5 series it is technically superfluous, since everything depicted in the movie is spoken of in various episodes during the series. However, simply hearing about what happened is nothing compared to seeing the events portrayed so powerfully. The cast and writer (JMS) bring us the story in all it's beauty and all its horror, from the simple mistakes that caused the war right up to the eve of humanity's destruction and everything in between. If you have never watched Babylon 5, this is the perfect place to start. If you do not wish to see Babylon 5 you should still watch this movie because to ignore it simply because of its roots is to deny yourself the experience of seeing some of the finest performances ever put on film. If the final 20 minutes does not stir your soul, then nothing ever will.

Was the above comment useful to you?

3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
The only good B5 movie so far. But boy, it sure is good., 17 March 2006
8/10
Author: Kefka_8203 from Sweden

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Another poster here commented that as soon as B5 strays from it's 5-year arc it fails, I agree with that.(Though...truth be told, the pilot episode of B5 was horribly silly as well)

In the Beginning is the story of how the Earth and Minbari went to war, and the stories of many of the people we know from the B5 show, all told by Peter Jurasik as Londo Mollari. A masterful choice since Jurasik has a charisma that to me is only matched by Andreas Katsulas as G'Kar.

From the start the movie is a feast for fans of B5, the great war is explained in all it's horrible stupidity with leaders of both races too arrogant to see their own faults; The humans by sending an armed force of ships to Minbari space when advised against it by Londo "Send only one ship.", their folly is shown when they fire upon a minbari ship and kill the spiritual leader of the Minbari. Though for all their alleged wisdom the Minbari show themselves as prideful as the humans when they set the wheels in motion for total genocide of the human race. With the warrior caste driving it forward the war takes on a life of it's own, as Delenn so eloquently puts it.

It is when the war begins that the real highlight of the movie starts, the 10-or so minutes of eerie scenes of battles and defeats, hauntingly backed up by Christopher Franke's 'Battle on the Line'

So what about the rest of the movie? Well, the actors plays their roles with mostly the same energy as they did in the shows, something which lacks in other B5 movies like Thirdspace. Some of the other characters are quite simply just fillers, the Earth officials that send the Expeditionary force to Minbari space feels too much like the 'crooked politician' to be of any real worth to the movie. The special effects are rather good, on par with the show. The greatest weakness with the movie is the feel that maybe..It is too much flirting with the fans, like "Look! There's all our favorites!", and the fact that I cant' grasp how the war could last for years when the Minbari slice through fleets in seconds. Sure the ground battles could last for awhile but it's hard to have ground battles if the fleets transporting soldiers get shot out of the sky. And it is good to know that even with genocide as their goal the Minbari ignore the civilian populaces.

8/10

Was the above comment useful to you?

3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
What a way to start it all, 5 August 2004
Author: Stefan Brattlöf

Although this movie came a long time after the series premiere, it was actually the first piece of B-5 I saw. It's a great movie on it's own, and a perfect way to start the whole series, because you get all the background info.

The movie revolves around the Earth-Minbari wars, a war erupting when a captain from an earth-warship reacts to a Minbari greeting in a hostile way, resulting in the death of several hundreds of thousands of Earthlings. And that's all you need to know, the rest will show itself when you watch the movie.

The action is great, special effect OK (they were never great, sad to say) and the acting first-class! So go see this movie, and then follow up with probably the second-best Sci-Fi series EVER (after Enterprise of course...:))

Was the above comment useful to you?

2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
EXCELLENT made for TV Sci-Fi movie, 10 September 2008
10/10
Author: dslcobra from United States

"In the Beginning" is a mark of brilliance...a perfect made for TV movie for the Babylon 5 series. It is the best of the B5 movies with the second being the pilot episode.

ITB chronicles the genesis of the Earth Minbari war which was a holy war started by misunderstanding between Humans and a powerful alien race called the Minbari. In the struggle, a huge chunk of humanity is killed as the Minbari march towards Earth, destroying human colonies on the way.

Since this movie comes near the end of the 3rd season and out of chronological order, it answers many unanswered questions that B5 watchers would expect to be answered from the 1st Season onwards.

On its own, the story is PERFECT. There is plenty of CGI war scenes, plenty of dramatized war scenes and plenty of intrigue. A perfect reason to bother getting into the series itself if you weren't a fan.

Was the above comment useful to you?

2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Wow, it doesn't get any better than this., 1 July 2008
10/10
Author: savagesteve13 from Tulsa, OK

This B5 movie was AMAZING. It fit together all the complex plot lines of the series, answered many questions, and still left open some uncertainties. It does have some cute kids which usually kills a movie, but they are not plot devices but instead a way to segue to more important things. If you kept up with the entire series, by the end of the movie you know exactly where the movie is chronologically, and you know the tragedy that is about to unfold. Thankfully the movie doesn't cover it, because as the emperor of Centauri said, "That is another story, for another time". Great acting by everyone.

An interesting tidbit about one of the alternate language tracks is if you turn on the German language dubbing, Reiner Schone, who plays Dukhat does his own dubbing because he's from Germany.

This is a must-have movie for a B5 fan, Its the best of the bunch.

Was the above comment useful to you?

4 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
Perhaps the best Sci-Fi movie for TV ever made., 13 October 2002
10/10
Author: hardelan from Trondheim, Norway

This is a must see movie for all those who call themselves a fan of Babylon 5. This is how it all starts. The reason of the Human-Minbari war, and why the Babylon stations were built. There are a lot of questions that is not answered in the B5 series, but you get a lot of answers by watching this spectacular movie. One of the best Sci-Fi movies for TV ever made.

Was the above comment useful to you?

1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
Fine telemovie that should be watched by all fans of the series., 18 August 2002
8/10
Author: David Alexander (david_g) from Australia

Before watching In the Beginning I had only ever heard of Babylon 5 in passing. I knew it was well respected amongst its fans and had earned critical acclaim. After watching this film I became an avid fan of the series. In the Beginning tells the tale of the Earth/Minbari war, Earth was on the rise as an interstellar power and filled with confidence after defeating the Dilgar. Many races were courting Earth's favour, in particular the Centauri, a former power in the cosmos now in the twilight of its Empire. The tale is told in retrospect by Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik), then just a lowly liason to the Earth government, but now an aging and sad Emperor. Through his narration you get a sense of the importance of the events surrounding the war and the consequences for all life in the universe as a result of it.

The special effects are of good quality, on par with the series but not of the same quality you'd find in a cinema release. Some of the scenes have been recycled from the first season of Babylon 5 (particularly those shots involving the Battle of the Line and Michael O'Hare) but coupled with Peter Jurasik's voice over they prove to be very effective in portraying the relentlessness of the Minbari and the courage of the humans in the face of destruction.

Despite the conspicuous absence of Micheal Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), all of the series regulars make an appearance. It was interesting to see a young looking John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) in his much talked about battles with the Minbari and the events surrounding Delenn's (Mira Furlan) proclamation of war against the humans after the death of the Minbari leader Dukhat. However, it must be said that the star of the film is Londo Mollari. Anyone familiar with the regular series will appreciate Peter Jurasik's performance and his subtle references to the mistakes he made in the past.

In the Beginning can be watched by anyone. I came to it with no knowledge of the regular series and enjoyed myself immensely. It tells a stirring story of heroism, courage in the face of overwhelming odds and hope for the future. Those fans of the series that haven't seen it yet will no doubt come away with a greater appreciation for Babylon 5. It fills in a lot of the history surrounding the Earth/Minbari war and has a great ending that links in directly to the double episode War Without End from the third season of B5 (it my confuse those not familiar with the series though). That said, those interested in good sci-fi would do well to see this telemovie as it shows what can be done with good writing, wonderful acting and good special effects. The best of the Babylon 5 telemovies.

Was the above comment useful to you?
Page 1 of 3:[1] [2] [3] [Next]

Add another comment

Related Links

Plot summary Amazon.com summary Ratings
Awards External reviews Official site
Plot keywords Main details Your user comments
Your vote history