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Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) (2 Viewers)

MikeTV

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The drydock sequence, and touring the outside of the ship in such beautiful detail with that wonderful score is one of my favorite scenes in all of motion picture history. It always gets me. To me, it's a love letter to every Star Trek fan and I feel every emotion Kirk feels. I feel it the same way today as I did as a 9-year-old boy seeing it in December 1979 five times in the movie theater.
 

Rodney

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I can't seem to find the most recent thread on TMP; anyway, I stumbled upon this today.

Now, I'm a fan of Taxi, and I think Bob James' theme from Taxi is one of the greatest TV themes ever recorded.

That said, this might be one of the worst things I have ever heard, and it appears to be real (not a mashup):

this is also available on the 3-disc Star Trek: TMP CD set from La-La Land.
I actually like this stuff. I'm also a fan of Neil Norman, which this sorta reminds me of.
 

Nelson Au

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I decided to watch the theatrical cut last night. I missed the added scenes used on the Wise Cut and the revised CGI of Vulcan. But it was enjoyable to watch this cut.

This was the first time seeing it since I upgraded my two main front speakers and tuned the speaker levels on all the channels. It was interesting to hear the sound design again of the theatrical cut. Very minimal. It's also interesting that I've been indulging in the 3 disc set of the TMP score from La La Land on the new speakers. The CDs sound great! And then when I watched the movie, it was surprising how the audio quality of the score drops a bit when it's edited into the film.

I had forgotten about that really forced perspective painting of the Enterprise shot when the ship is docked on the V'ger island and the crew walk out of the saucer section. That really stands out. The other thing that is interesting to see is how the practical model of V'ger is filmed with smoke and lasers lighting the clouds, it really sells the scope of that ship and alien-ness of it. Plus all that film grain added to the effect.

I still like the movie!
 

Joel Fontenot

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I had forgotten about that really forced perspective painting of the Enterprise shot when the ship is docked on the V'ger island and the crew walk out of the saucer section. That really stands out.

Yeah, that's really one of the worst matte paintings ever - that and the next side view shot of the saucer in that same scene. Its' a shame that those paintings got approved for use at all, but they could have happened near the end of production when time got tight. Just a guess, of course. I have no idea of the production order.
 

Nelson Au

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Joel, they were certainly up against an immovable date to get the movie out, so I'm sure you're right about the lack of time to get those matte painting improved or redone. The same side view shot of the saucer also has one of the bad matte jobs done where the Blu Ray reveals the lines where the live action is inserted. But overall, they did a remarkable job at getting the movie out for the December 7 release date and the majority of the work all still holds up today. The launch of the Enterprise out of space dock is as magnificent as ever with only a few errors that you can spot.
 

Joel Fontenot

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Joel, they were certainly up against an immovable date to get the movie out, so I'm sure you're right about the lack of time to get those matte painting improved or redone. The same side view shot of the saucer also has one of the bad matte jobs done where the Blu Ray reveals the lines where the live action is inserted. But overall, they did a remarkable job at getting the movie out for the December 7 release date and the majority of the work all still holds up today. The launch of the Enterprise out of space dock is as magnificent as ever with only a few errors that you can spot.

I agree. Those ship matte paintings at the end are the only sore spots for me. Everything else, I love. Even the Spock space walk through the V'ger images which were also obvious matte paintings (as was the entire initial travel through the cloud) - they were just much better and artistically done.
 

Harry-N

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STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE was always special to me, and remains so.

As one of the original STAR TREK viewers - yes, I was around and a functioning teenager when STAR TREK premiered in 1966 on NBC. And I became a major fan by the end of that first season. It was quite a blow in 1969 when the show was cancelled, but so many of my favorite shows had gone bye-bye before it that I was kind-of used to it. I cherished the ability to watch the series on weeknights through much of the '70s, and I even was drawn to the animated version on Saturday mornings.

By the late '70s, I, along with countless others had heard of STAR TREK being revived - first for TV, then for the big screen. I didn't have access to scripts or story treatments other than what may have surfaced in a Starlog magazine or something like that. So I had no preconceptions of what the show would look like on the big screen. Just the fact that every member of the cast was back in it was good enough for me.

The movie premiered in December on a Friday. That was a workday, so I wasn't going to fight Friday night crowds. News of crowds lined up around the block kept me away on Saturday, but the wife and I decided to brave it on a Sunday afternoon matinee at a theater in King Of Prussia, PA.

Surprisingly, we got right in, though the theater was pretty full, so at least we didn't have to endure standing in line. I recall the Overture starting with the curtains closed although I didn't recognize it at the time - I'd never heard any portion of the score, so as far as I was concerned, it was just background music that the theater turned on before the feature. As the overture finished, the curtains opened and the credits began to run. Cheers went up for each name, and we were off on our adventure.

The opening Klingon sequence was very, very dark. I didn't realize it at the time, but I think the theater had an underrated bulb for the movie, as it looked dark throughout - and that somehow managed to make the film even more moody than it was intended to be. We couldn't make out much of what V'ger was supposed to look like - it was all dark and mysterious. Cheers went up as Spock was introduced on Vulcan, and again when Admiral Kirk appeared. It had been a long ten years, and seeing these icons again on screen was SO magnificent. Unless you lived through that period, I don't think it's possible to understand how much this film meant to us. It was a great victory.

85% of the way through the film, about the time that Decker and V'ger/Ilia were merging, the film broke! We sat there for about ten long minutes while they got it going again, but our mood, our investment in the story and film was ruined. Theater management made an immediate announcement after the feature that all of us who wished to could stay for the next showing. And we opted to take them up on it and immediately got the see the whole thing all over again, cementing how much we loved it as we now were noticing things that you tend to do in a second showing.

The scene of the tour of the Enterprise in dry-dock remains an emotional highlight of this film, nearly bringing a tear to my eye as it plays out.

1979 was the early age of home video. I'd gotten a Magnavox VHS recorder in 1978, so I just KNEW that someday I'd have this miracle movie on tape. My wish came true just a month later as a friend managed to have a copy made for me on this new VHS format. I have no idea where in the world she came up with this - possible a copy of a screener or something. I didn't ask, but just resolved to enjoy this little birthday present on a cold January evening.

As we watched the VHS tape, I hadn't realized that the Overture was missing. I'm still not sure I realized that there WAS an official overture. Also, even through the mushiness of the recording, I could see that the film was much brighter than what we saw in the theater. Now, anyone who knows anything about film lengths and VHS tape duration will realize that something would be amiss. The movie was around 2:15 or so, and VHS tapes were famously 2 hours in length. This tape was in the SP mode - so...at about the point where Decker and Ilia/V'ger were merging - the tape clicked off! It was the same exact spot that the film had broken in that first showing. When my friend asked me how I liked the tape, I told her with a great degree of truth, "I loved it no end!"

The moment that the real STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE was released on VHS, I got it. The extended version had aired on ABC and I copied that. This VHS tape was an extended version too. I'm not sure now if they were identical or if the TV version was longer.

Anyway, I kept up with technology getting the movie on VHS in stereo, then on LaserDisc in its theatrical state, DVD as a Directors Cut, and finally Blu-ray back in its theatrical cut.

Though I appreciate Robert Wise and his ability to go back and re-edit the film to his liking, I still missed the theatrical version, so I hung on to that old LaserDisc until the Blu-ray brilliantly brought THE MOTION PICTURE into the age of high-def,

Note: to this day, whenever I watch THE MOTION PICTURE, I often make sure the room is totally darkened (nighttime) and reduce the brightness on my TV to bring back the memories of that first theater viewing.

Harry
 

Tino

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The fact that this thread even exists is proof of its popularity. I don't see any other TOS movie threads.
 

Nelson Au

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Thanks for the story Harry. I was a little younger then you and so while I saw a few TOS episodes in its original broadcast, it was lost on me. I guess I'm more a syndication fan, when I really was able to appreciate it when I was older. I saw TMP on opening night and I remember it too. I remember there was some people snoring behind me, and in hindsight, I think there was a very large segment of the audience who were not the hardcore fan base expecting Star Wars type action. So it was unfortunate the film had to be compared to that. And then there was Alien a few months ahead of Star Trek.

After reading the posts here and revisiting the theatrical cut this past weekend, I think I can understand some of the people who prefer the theatrical cut. There is a large component of having the film that was the original version. When the Directors Cut was released it was very exciting for me as it was what Wise finally got to do and finetune the cut, plus the frosting of augmented visuals. So it became the gold standard for me of what this film should be, verses what Lucas did which the opposite. I enjoyed this cut a lot, it flowed better. And it was something new and exciting at the time. I still hope and wish Paramount will release the Wise cut as part of a remastered set that includes all the cuts of this film. I can see there is nostalgia for the original 1979 cut. Plus many prefer it. The best part of the Wise cut that surprised me for its controversial is the new Vulcan shots. Vulcan has no moon. But after watching the theatrical cut, it's only low point for me is that shot of Vulcan's sky when Spock looks up. But it is what it is. And it did bring me back to 1979.

Tino, that's a very good point!
 

joshEH

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After reading the posts here and revisiting the theatrical cut this past weekend, I think I can understand some of the people who prefer the theatrical cut. There is a large component of having the film that was the original version. When the Directors Cut was released it was very exciting for me as it was what Wise finally got to do and finetune the cut, plus the frosting of augmented visuals. So it became the gold standard for me of what this film should be, verses what Lucas did which the opposite. I enjoyed this cut a lot, it flowed better. And it was something new and exciting at the time. I still hope and wish Paramount will release the Wise cut as part of a remastered set that includes all the cuts of this film. I can see there is nostalgia for the original 1979 cut. Plus many prefer it.
That said, it's weird to me how massively attached some genre fans get to the earliest version of a thing. After all, the earliest version they see is itself usually the end result of a behind-the-scenes process of trial, error, and development. First drafts are rarely ideal, though.

As you try something out, you learn what works and what doesn't, and you do what you can to improve it. Prose authors do this all the time, and their works frequently see significant changes between one printing and the next (simply witness J.R.R. Tolkien's own stealthy, Soviet-style revisionism), but nerds seem to absolutely hate it when creators do the same thing to films, for some bizarre, incongruous reason.

When you're working on a continuing TV series, that process of refinement has to happen with the audience watching, and partly in response to the audience's reactions. Same thing even with a feature film, despite certain production-differences between the two mediums. So the earliest version of an idea is often the crudest, the least refined, and, to a creator, the least desirable one. And in the case of Robert Wise and Star Trek: The Motion Picture's theatrical cut, doubly so.

True, there can be a certain spontaneity and freshness to a new idea that can be sacrificed if you overdo the refinement. But for the most part, every first version of a thing needs some tweaking along the way.
 
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Harry-N

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^Would you allow a system whereby a pilot episode of a show is re-done to fit the later, better version of the series? Should Roddenberry/Desilu/NBC have re-done "The Cage" with Kirk, McCoy, Spock, Uhura, Sulu, Scotty, and filmed it on the more finalized Enterprise sets?
 

Worth

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That said, it's weird to me how massively attached some genre fans get to the earliest version of a thing. After all, the earliest version they see is itself usually the end result of a behind-the-scenes process of trial, error, and development. First drafts are rarely ideal, though...

I'm not sure release versions can really be compared to first drafts. Films are edited and re-edited, reshoots are often done and numerous tweaks are performed well before anything is seen by the public.

There's also the time factor. It's one thing when someone like Stanley Kubrick makes changes to a film that's only been in release for a few weeks, and something else when there's a major overhaul of a film three decades later, the way Lucas did with the original Star Wars trilogy and THX-1138.

The changes to Star Trek aren't quite that dramatic, but they can still be jarring after being used to seeing it a certain way for over twenty years. Personally, I like some of the changes in the director's cut and dislike others. On the other hand, I prefer the final cuts of Blade Runner and Close Encounters, but still appreciate the fact that all the major cuts of those films have been made available.
 

Edwin-S

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The fact that this thread even exists is proof of its popularity. I don't see any other TOS movie threads.

That's not necessarily evidence of popularity. I think it is more about polarization among fans and non-fans due the nature of the film.
 

Tino

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That's not necessarily evidence of popularity. I think it is more about polarization among fans and non-fans due the nature of the film.
Perhaps. But I like to think it's because it's the most popular. [emoji12]
 

Sam Favate

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I saw TMP in the theater when I was 12 or so, and while I liked it (I was a Star Trek fan), I wasn't that impressed with the movie. Star Wars was the biggest thing in the world at the time, and when you're anticipating thrills like that, TMP didn't deliver. However, as the years went by and I continued to enjoy Star Trek, my appreciation for TMP grew and grew. It's cinematic look, it's Roddenberry-penned story and the thrill of seeing the crew again (I do remember how the audience cheered with the reveal of each character in 1979), all contribute to it being remembered fondly. Yes, the later films (II-III-IV) were good adventure movies, and those are also appreciated, but TMP is unique among all the Trek films. In some ways, it's the purest vision of what Star Trek was intended to be, and it should be applauded for that. And for the record, I love the director's cut, and hope it finds its way to blu-ray soon.
 

steve jaros

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My opinion hasn't changed over the years: Felt it was plodding and slow when I saw it in the theater around Christmas, 1979, and felt the same way when I re-watched it on TV a couple of years ago. Too reverential, too slow. And yes, too swamped by the change in zeitgeist that Star Wars had wrought.

The series would find its footing three years later with "Wrath", but IMO time hasn't changed this film from a miss.
 

Jason_V

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TMP will always have a special place in my heart. The TV cut was my first exposure to Trek and I got special permission from my parents to stay up WAY past my bedtime to watch the movie. Seriously, bedtime was 7:30 or so...and I stayed up, on a school night, to 11. Alone.

It's not the most action packed, kinetic movie ever made. It's not the best written movie every made. But it does hold true to the mission of the Enterprise AND the vision of TOS. Exploring space, encountering new civilizations, examining humans in space with adverse situations. TOS Starfleet was never a military organization. TOS was never about the action scenes. Yes, TOS had action, but the drive of the show was not phaser battles.

As good as everything after TMP (aside from TVH) are, TMP is the truest movie to TOS.
 

Edwin-S

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Frankly TMP was Roddenberry's attempt at doing for Star Trek what Kubrick did for 2001: A Space Odyssey. The results pretty well show that Roddenberry was no Kubrick. While I don't hate the film, I also think that it was a big miss in terms of Star Trek "feel". It had the big idea like the best Star Trek episodes had, but the execution had none of the flair that the best TV episodes had. It was plodding, humourless and rather dull.
 

Joel Fontenot

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Pretty dismal acting from everyone as well.

And, you see, I thought they all played it out exactly how they should have given where each character was at that point where the the story picks up.

None of them were together, everyone was away from space for at least several years. Kirk, I assume, had a desk job and was getting antsy. Spock was off purging all emotions for at least some of those several years - that can change a person. And, McCoy was off cruising for chicks at the discos.

For the first half of the movie; Kirk was bitter, Spock was emotionless, and McCoy was in perpetual dismay. Exactly how they should have been.

By they end, that's when they get to the point where we remember them. They finally become what we remember - they start to click. Again, the events of the story gets them to that point - now ready for "the human adventure (that) is just beginning". I can't be the only person that recognized that and accepted it as it was.

I do also recognize the behind the scenes drama that caused production problems - especially the constant bickering between screenwriter Harold Livingston, and Gene Roddenberry. Not having a strong producer to keep the kids separated didn't help. It's kind of a miracle the movie got finished at all. Of course, I was not aware of that aspect of the movie at the time - it would be several years before I would read about that side of the story.
 

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