UHD Review A Few Words About A few words about...™ Star Trek - 4-Movie Collection -- in 4k UHD Blu-ray (2 Viewers)

[Worth]

It's a shame so many great movies all vying for the same audience were crammed into the same small release window in 1982. If any of them could have been pushed back a few months to a year, 1983 had much less competition in that space. Just Return of the Jedi, Superman III, and maybe Octopussy. With some smart scheduling to stay clear of those, and (to keep us on topic here) to get away from big '82 hits like Star Trek II, movies like Blade Runner, The Thing, or Tron might have been more successful.

I don't think either Blade Runner or The Thing were ever going to be mainstream hits. Their respective sequels flopped as well, even though Blade Runner 2049 was a very good film and the 2011 Thing was not bad.

 

[Dave H]

I saw Blade Runner in '82. I was ten-years-old. The movie was over my head as I was expecting to see Han Solo/Indiana Jones using a laser gun shootin' up replicants! (and damn, it wasn't even a laser!). Maybe it was something about that classic poster with Ford holding the gun or something else, but as a kid I was expecting/hoping for some kind of sci-fi action flick lol. But I cannot help but wonder if even older audiences were expecting similarly on some level. A few years later or whenever it was on cable, in my teens, the meaning of the movie sunk in but it wasn't until it reached DVD where I actually appreciated it enough to where it eventually grew into one of my favorite films.

For some reason, I don't recall The Thing as much at that time, but Star Trek II was indeed a big thing as was Poltergeist. Tron was fascinating with its CGI. And, yeah, E.T. of course was just huge and most of the talk.

 

[JoshZ]

I don't think either Blade Runner or The Thing were ever going to be mainstream hits. Their respective sequels flopped as well, even though Blade Runner 2049 was a very good film and the 2011 Thing was not bad.

Perhaps. I suppose you can throw in Tron: Legacy as well.

However, I will say that all three of those sequels came out long after the originals had been established as classics. Belated sequels to classics often struggle to find an audience, whether they turn out good or bad. The hype and the excitement and the desire for more immediate gratification have worn off, and fans are left skeptical that anything could live up to what they love about the original.

 

[Malcolm R]

Perhaps. I suppose you can throw in Tron: Legacy as well.

I would consider Tron: Legacy a hit. Over $172 million in North America, and over $400 million worldwide. It's only caveat was that it was so expensive ($170 million budget). But it was likely profitable in the end.

 

[cineMANIAC]

Anybody order this from Deep Discount and gotten a shipping notification yet?

 

[JoshZ]

I would consider Tron: Legacy a hit. Over $172 million in North America, and over $400 million worldwide. It's only caveat was that it was so expensive ($170 million budget). But it was likely profitable in the end.

Not profitable enough to make anyone happy. Disney expected the movie to be a blockbuster out of the gate, but it underperformed their expectations at launch and quickly fizzled afterwards.

 

[Malcolm R]

Not profitable enough to make anyone happy. Disney expected the movie to be a blockbuster out of the gate, but it underperformed their expectations at launch and quickly fizzled afterwards.

Seems like an odd expectation for a sequel released 28 years after the original. Though this is Disney. They're not happy with anything that doesn't return $1 Billion.

 

[JoshZ]

Seems like an odd expectation for a sequel released 28 years after the original. Though this is Disney. They're not happy with anything that doesn't return $1 Billion.

Yeah, I don't understand what the thinking was either, but they really thought it was going to be THE event movie of 2010. They spent an enormous amount of money marketing it. I remember visiting Dolby earlier that fall and everyone there was super hyped about it, like it was going to be bigger than Avatar. They used the trailer to show off several of their equipment demos.

Ron Epstein was there with us, as I recall. I bet he remembers some of that.

 

[Chuck_Kahn]

Let’s add selection of optics and filters.

I’m seeing nothing obviously wrong with the image harvests. Presuming lots of dupes. They simply aren’t highly resolved films, and cannot be, if fx are to appear as part of an overall image.

I recall discussing this with Mr. Wise, who liked his imagery sharp.

It's too bad that the 4K disc of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, with it's $40M budget and VFX shot in 65mm by Douglas Trumbull, couldn't be as reference quality as the $28M budgeted Blade Runner turned out to be on 4K disc -- https://www.hometheaterforum.com/co...out-tm-blade-runner-in-4k-uhd-blu-ray.353963/

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I don't think either Blade Runner or The Thing were ever going to be mainstream hits. Their respective sequels flopped as well, even though Blade Runner 2049 was a very good film and the 2011 Thing was not bad.

I agree with this. I love Blade Runner, and I love Tron, but they were niche films that eventually found their cult audiences, and there’s a big difference between a catalog title being a good seller on home video and being the basis for $200 million sequels decades later. A $200 million movie needs the buy in of the general public, not just the video store crowd (I say that with affection). I am overjoyed Warner and Disney made those sequels but they vastly overestimated the audience for them.

 

[Tom St Jones]

…and now all the movie review shows are all gone.

Yeah there used to be a lot of them. The three I remember best are "Siskel & Ebert At the Movies/Ebert & Roeper", PBS' "Sneak Previews" (originally hosted by Siskel and Ebert, later by JeffreyLyons & Michael Medved) and "Hot Ticket" (Leonard Maltin)

 

[Tom St Jones]

I would consider Tron: Legacy a hit. Over $172 million in North America, and over $400 million worldwide. It's only caveat was that it was so expensive ($170 million budget). But it was likely profitable in the end.

Sounds (more than) a little like the theatrical release of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture"

 

[Rob W]

I'm sure Disney was expecting Tron : Legacy to start a new franchise for them; that's why I was stunned when I saw it and realized they had made another film that was only slightly more accessible to non-Tronnies than the original.

 

[Rob W]

Watched the 4K Search For Spock tonight and was highly amused during the sequence when Kirk revisits the (presumably digital) security footage of Spock's demise and the scenes on the video monitor were full of specks, dirt and hairs....

 

[Sam Favate]

Anybody order this from Deep Discount and gotten a shipping notification yet?

Not yet.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I'm sure Disney was expecting Tron : Legacy to start a new franchise for them; that's why I was stunned when I saw it and realized they had made another film that was only slightly more accessible to non-Tronnies than the original.

Yeah - and I still watch it once a year and marvel that it even exists. It’s one of the most sublime IMAX 3D experiences I’ve ever had, I went something crazy like six times.

I think of this original batch of four Trek films, I’ve seen TWOK theatrically the most - even before the Fathom events it popped up in repertory and midnight screenings more often than it does now so there were a decent number of chances to see that on a big screen.

 

[JoshZ]

Watched the 4K Search For Spock tonight and was highly amused during the sequence when Kirk revisits the (presumably digital) security footage of Spock's demise and the scenes on the video monitor were full of specks, dirt and hairs....

I'd love to know where the security cameras were on the ship, that captured the events in such tight reverse-angle-reverse coverage!

Even better is when Nimoy does the same thing in Star Trek IV, as the characters watch footage of the Enterprise's destruction shown from a variety of camera angles outside the ship!

 

[KPmusmag]

Watched the 4K Search For Spock tonight and was highly amused during the sequence when Kirk revisits the (presumably digital) security footage of Spock's demise and the scenes on the video monitor were full of specks, dirt and hairs....

That jumped out at me as well. Not to mention that it was obviously videotape - and NTSC at that. 23rd century tech LOL

 

[Josh Steinberg]

That jumped out at me as well. Not to mention that it was obviously videotape - and NTSC at that. 23rd century tech LOL

He does have a fondness for antiques

 

[Johnny Angell]

Eventually, maybe, possibly, probably.

But from what Digital Bits reported, physical media releases of the remaining titles are dependent on these selling well. For years, Trek fans have lobbied the studios for various releases and then unfortunately when those releases came out (like TNG on BD) the sales numbers never matched the enthusiasm that had been demonstrated for them.

I don’t doubt that Paramount will create new 4K masters for the remaining films, but I think there is a very real chance that if this initial batch doesn’t meet their sales expectations, the rest could simply become Paramount+ exclusives.

Is that fair? I love ST and haven’t bought this expensive set. Particularly when it comes with a built-in double dip for TMP. Wouldn’t have single movie releases sold better, give the customer the chance to spread out the expense?