Star Trek films on Blu-Ray... what we know so far (1 Viewer)

[Jonathan Perregaux]

Yeah, Insurrection was a hot, sloppy mess. Like someone melted a pound of Ex-Lax into the bowl of chocolate fondue at an old folks home party, waited a few hours, then pulled the fire alarm.

I loved the part where they drained an entire lake enough to reveal a spaceship several stories tall resting on the bottom. Then rowed out to it from a nearby dock.

 

[Ted Van Duyn]

Insurrection. A film that on it's own is a very bland but mercifully short distraction. But as a Star Trek product that takes into account other Trek properties such as Deep Space Nine? Character assassination.

Let me explain. Insurrection had to acknowledge that Deep Space Nine was a thing that was happening because Worf was now a regular on that show. One of these acknowledgements is the mentioning of the Dominion by Picard and Ru'afo. The Dominion was a galactic power house that the Federation had just recently discovered thanks to the Bajoran Wormhole that connected our quadrant of the galaxy to theirs. After several seasons of the Dominion manipulating all the big power houses in the Alpha quadrant (including the Federation), it soon escalated into all out war. Whole planets were conquered, fleets of Federation ships decimated, Federation leaders taking part in political assassinations and a secret Starfleet organization resorted to genocide to help win the war. This wasn't just your average every day trouble on some lonely station in space. These were events that were going to affect EVERYTHING in the Star Trek universe.

So how is Insurrection problematic?

PICARD: In view of our losses to the Borg and the Dominion, the Council feels we need all the allies we can get these days.
​

So, the Federation is in the middle of a costly war with the Dominion and thanks to a nonaggression pact that several systems had signed, the Federation's outlook wasn't looking good. But wait! With Star Trek Insurrection, Starfleet has discovered a planet that has life restoring effects!

DOUGHERTY: We'll be able to use the regenerative properties of this radiation to help billions. - With metaphasics, life spans will be doubled. An entire new medical science will evolve.​

Holy cow! Double lifespan and major advancements in medical science? If there was ever a non-aggressive way to win a war, this would be it. It's not just healing the wounded officers in the line of duty, it's also a negotiation advantage. How many systems that signed the non-aggression pact would choose to side with the Federation with the promise of having this advanced medical discovery shared with them? The Dominion only offers unity under a strict and brutal dictatorship.

And what does Picard do in Insurrection? Throw it all away so that 600 self-centered and non-caring hippies won't be inconvenienced.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

"How many people does it take, Admiral, before it becomes wrong? Hmm? A thousand, fifty thousand, a million? How many people does it take, Admiral? HOW FUCKING MANY?! I'll punch you with these new, buff arms I never had before on the T.V. series!! I WILL GROW ADAMANTIUM CLAWS BEFORE THE NEXT MOVIE!!!"

 

[Osato]

Here's the EW Insurrection review/analysis:

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/06/24/star-trek-insurrection-age-hollywood

With all this talk about hoping Shatner would get a chance to do a director's cut of Final Frontier, the one I'd actually most like to see get a DC is Insurrection, if for no other reason than to have the original ending with finished effects in there. Instead of being blown up at the end, Ru'afo would have ascended out of the collector and exposed himself to the full strength of the radiation, de-aging in front of us. It would have been a much more ironic and appropriate comeuppance, and certainly a more "Star Trek" ending.

Thanks for the post! I've been trying I got to stay up on the ew articles. Popular mechanics posted an interesting Star Trek film list too.

Insurrection is one that I like. It's not one of the best but I enjoyed it and recall seeing it twice in the theater. Nemesis is where they lost me.

I like having the alternate scenes on the blu Ray. I doubt we'll see another cut the film though.

I wish the tng movies and many other 90s films would hold up better.

I really though Jerry goldsmith soundtrack was a highlight for insurrection. I also thought it was a dark film in terms of the conspiracy with starfleet.
Oh and paramount, always hire ilm for effects.

All in all I find the film a fun watch but I don't often watch it. As with most of the tng films...

 

[Osato]

Is the authors claim of piller's unreleased book about the film true?

Title: Fade In: From Idea to Final Draft – The Writing of Star Trek: Insurrection,

 

[Osato]

Wow! I would read this making of insurrection book by pulled!!

More here:

http://trekcore.com/blog/2013/06/ex...dra-piller-the-best-of-both-worlds-screening/

 

[Stephen_J_H]

If you Google Fade In Michael Piller, it's easy to locate. Planning on reading it in the next little while.

 

[Osato]

If you Google Fade In Michael Piller, it's easy to locate. Planning on reading it in the next little while.

Thank you!

 

[trevanian]

I read it a few years ago. I'd say that the various earlier versions don't ever add up to the possibility of a great movie, but nearly all of them would have resulted in a better movie, probably more focused as well.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

I have new-found appreciation for Insurrection after reading about how a later draft of the script involved a llama pissing on Beverly Crusher. WTF!!

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

Interesting read about the "Roddenberry Box" that evolved into the "Pillar Box." Basically, a set of Draconian writer's guidelines that made it a hundreds of times harder to develop drama within a script. All because humanity had solved all its problems by the 24th century and nobody has conflict anymore. Utopia is nice, and I guess huffing spores too, but it's boring as hell.

 

[Jason_V]

Interesting read about the "Roddenberry Box" that evolved into the "Pillar Box." Basically, a set of Draconian writer's guidelines that made it a hundreds of times harder to develop drama within a script. All because humanity had solved all its problems by the 24th century and nobody has conflict anymore. Utopia is nice, and I guess huffing spores too, but it's boring as hell.

The good thing that came out of this is the rich development of non-human races (Klingons, Cardassians, Bajorans, etc.) who made the humans really examine their beliefs. By using an outside influence as a catalyst for potential change with our characters, that showed humans can evolve and aren't perfect...though no one actually comes out and says it that way.

Look at Sisko. In the course of "Emissary," he goes from a non-believer to a fairly Prophet-friendly person. And by Season 4, he's fighting to be the Emissary. That is change. You can argue he was closed minded in the beginning and gradually began to see other points of view, with a healthy dose of drama mixed in.

 

[Paul_Warren]

Anyone bought the vudu HDX version of ST6 DC yet! Bill Hunt reported it last week but not sure anyone has bought to see if its a new transfer or not as it must be if 1080 & Directors Cut. I live in UK so cannot buy it to see. The titles in the free 2min preview look better than the existing BD!!

Anyone fancy spending $3.99 to rent that HDX version & report back if its a new transfer or not?
http://www.vudu.com/movies/#!overview/180841/Star-Trek-6-The-Undiscovered-Country-Directors-Cut

 

[joshEH]

^ Yeah, snagged it yesterday after I read about it -- it's still in the 2.1 aspect-ratio, and there's still a great deal of "waxiness" in the transfer (due to DNR), but -- get this -- it's basically the 2003 Director's Edition, but using the original 1991 theatrical version of the Spock/Valeris mindmeld-scene (WITHOUT the "bongs"), and we actually get to hear the conspirators' names again during the meld ("Romulan ambassador Nanclus...").

It looks like Nicholas Meyer probably finally looked at the changes made in 2003 and compared it to the previous version and said, "Why is that sound blocking out the dialogue?" LOL.

Great tweak of something perhaps he didn't know or hadn't realized earlier. I pray he was reviewing it before a planned Blu-Ray release.

 

[Camper]

Well, the DC always had the 2 to 1 ratio and if get's released on Blu-ray probably will again.

Was wondering if the Klingon subtitles are burned in so far from the bottom or have been moved lower.

The 2002 DVD has them too high. They are right for 2:35 but look a little off for the 2:00 ratio.

Hope they fixed that.

 

[Lord Dalek]

Personally I'm fine with 2:1 (even if its highly unlikely the 70mm prints had that aspect ratio in 1991). For some reason, the transfer of the theatrical STVI looked a shade claustrophobic at 2:35, perhaps due to Hiro Narita's unfamiliarity with Super 35 and the scope ratio.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Back when Martin Blythe from Paramount was posting here, I asked him about the ratio and he confirmed that it was framed 2.0:1 to match the 70mm version.

 

[Bryan Tuck]

I saw a 70mm print of VI a few years ago, and although I didn't have a ruler out, I could tell it was most definitely not 2:1.

Interesting that this is just now showing up on VUDU. The DC of VI has been available in HD on Amazon for a while now.

 

[Camper]

Except this version of 6 DC has been altered.
It contains the conspirators faces without the gong sound.
This means they recently took that sound effect away -- likely at Meyer's request.
New Bluray coming we hope

 

[Stephen_J_H]

The Undiscovered Country was shot Super 35, with VistaVision effects elements. While it may not have appeared in 2.0:1 in 35mm screenings (no doubt because most 35mm houses at that point only had the ability to show 2ARs, can anyone definitively say that this is a case of cropping and not expansion? This isn't a Univisium scenario, after all.