Nelson Au
Senior HTF Member
- Joined
- Mar 16, 1999
- Messages
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There getting to be a lot of Star Trek posts now, perhaps an admin can combine them all and this one into one if it serves the forum better. I'm taking a chance that I can start a review thread here of the DVD. (opps, just noticed I misspelled TMP in the thread title)
I finally got my copy of The Motion Picture last night. I saw the whole film right away and I wanted to add my comments about it.
Firstly, I think it’s a first rate job. Yes, there are specks here and there and some of the older effects shots are grainy, but that was the source material and the LD was like that. (I did notice a few volume drops, but nothing major)
The main thing that I noticed that was so different from the past LD wide screen version is the aspect ratio. This DVD looks wider to me. I didn’t compare to the LD yet. I find the new aspect ratio very pleasing, as there is a lot more picture information. Reactions from Uhura are visible that I do not recall seeing before after Spock arrives and ignores everyone’s greetings on the bridge.
The new titles are a bit jarring and I’m surprised I react that way. They are fine and very polished, more akin to the later Kirk films I think though. (I hope they do the same to that cheap font used on Star Trek 2, and I think it very likely on that remaster) The other thing in the film that surprised me was the new red alert sound effect. I admit I am used to the original one used in the film. But I’ll get used to it.
Aside from that, I am really happy the way the film flows and has been pointed out, the additional new effects help establish location, interaction and direction. Speaking of effects, they did a very fine job there. Both visual and sound effects additions are very subtle and enhance things greatly with out distraction. I was very pleased with the added original series transporter sound effect and very subtle use of the bridge sounds from the series. Any louder and it would have sounded out of place in this new higher tech Enterprise I think. The shuttle flight into San Francisco was great and works better. Vulcan makes sense now! That sequence looks so good now, not muddy like before. The final sequence of the polygon shapes forming the pathway to Voyager 6 from the Enterprise hull was very well done. I didn’t think it was hokey at all.
The re-insertion of the 2 scenes from the 1983 version I hope they would do is there and helps make the characters come alive more. First after Kirk leaves the bridge and Sulu and Uhura express how he got the Enterprise back and the mission is likely to succeed now. The second is the transporter sequence when Kirk is there to see why McCoy won’t beam up.
By the way, did any one notice that the short scene where Illia flashes Decker a smile on the bridge after they leave drydock was re-edited to locate it here in that scene? I quite possibly might not be recalling this right, but I remember that was used later in the film. A nice touch. It adds to their relationship I think.
Regarding the score, I could hear what sounded like new Illia theme music for her when she helps Chekov. And did anyone notice the entirely new shot of her running over to Chekov after he screams. I think that's a new shot never seen before. In fact several squences to me, looked like new alternate shot angles, like over Kirks shoulder POV shots, etc.
The scenes edited out during the briefing scene on the rec deck and the V-Ger fly over worked great. It is much tighter now. I don’t miss "Oh my God" or "Viewer Off!". You can’t tell where the edits are and the shots of the V’Ger fly over are timed well as it goes back and forth between the screen shots, outside shots and face reaction shots. Adds tension now. The worm hole sequence is better resolved now too.
One other change I just remembered, on Epsilon 9, in the widescreen LD version, you can see the two screen they are looking at of the Klingon battle with V’ger. One side shows a Klingon speaking, the other shows the text translation. That text is removed and now you see the V’Ger cloud. And the color on those two screen has a reddish tint. Odd, but not an objectionable use of color, and the removal of the text isn’t a problem either.
As other have said, the Mike Okuda text commentary was very well done and I hope he does this on the other films. I only sampled a short bit of it. It was too distracting for the first viewing of the film. A great source of information though. I can’t wait now to see the documentaries now. I’m really happy too to see the Orson Wells teaser trailer, I’ve never seen that before. Looked awful, and done poorly and looked so dated, but an excellent addition to the set. I so wanted to see it.
Those are my first viewing reactions. I admit that I was excited to see this finally, and it may have clouded my reaction as I was looking for the new stuff. But my gut reaction was that I really enjoyed it. The 2 plus hours passed quickly and I didn’t get sleepy!
Nelson
[Edited last by Nelson Au on November 07, 2001 at 01:34 PM]
I finally got my copy of The Motion Picture last night. I saw the whole film right away and I wanted to add my comments about it.
Firstly, I think it’s a first rate job. Yes, there are specks here and there and some of the older effects shots are grainy, but that was the source material and the LD was like that. (I did notice a few volume drops, but nothing major)
The main thing that I noticed that was so different from the past LD wide screen version is the aspect ratio. This DVD looks wider to me. I didn’t compare to the LD yet. I find the new aspect ratio very pleasing, as there is a lot more picture information. Reactions from Uhura are visible that I do not recall seeing before after Spock arrives and ignores everyone’s greetings on the bridge.
The new titles are a bit jarring and I’m surprised I react that way. They are fine and very polished, more akin to the later Kirk films I think though. (I hope they do the same to that cheap font used on Star Trek 2, and I think it very likely on that remaster) The other thing in the film that surprised me was the new red alert sound effect. I admit I am used to the original one used in the film. But I’ll get used to it.
Aside from that, I am really happy the way the film flows and has been pointed out, the additional new effects help establish location, interaction and direction. Speaking of effects, they did a very fine job there. Both visual and sound effects additions are very subtle and enhance things greatly with out distraction. I was very pleased with the added original series transporter sound effect and very subtle use of the bridge sounds from the series. Any louder and it would have sounded out of place in this new higher tech Enterprise I think. The shuttle flight into San Francisco was great and works better. Vulcan makes sense now! That sequence looks so good now, not muddy like before. The final sequence of the polygon shapes forming the pathway to Voyager 6 from the Enterprise hull was very well done. I didn’t think it was hokey at all.
The re-insertion of the 2 scenes from the 1983 version I hope they would do is there and helps make the characters come alive more. First after Kirk leaves the bridge and Sulu and Uhura express how he got the Enterprise back and the mission is likely to succeed now. The second is the transporter sequence when Kirk is there to see why McCoy won’t beam up.
By the way, did any one notice that the short scene where Illia flashes Decker a smile on the bridge after they leave drydock was re-edited to locate it here in that scene? I quite possibly might not be recalling this right, but I remember that was used later in the film. A nice touch. It adds to their relationship I think.
Regarding the score, I could hear what sounded like new Illia theme music for her when she helps Chekov. And did anyone notice the entirely new shot of her running over to Chekov after he screams. I think that's a new shot never seen before. In fact several squences to me, looked like new alternate shot angles, like over Kirks shoulder POV shots, etc.
The scenes edited out during the briefing scene on the rec deck and the V-Ger fly over worked great. It is much tighter now. I don’t miss "Oh my God" or "Viewer Off!". You can’t tell where the edits are and the shots of the V’Ger fly over are timed well as it goes back and forth between the screen shots, outside shots and face reaction shots. Adds tension now. The worm hole sequence is better resolved now too.
One other change I just remembered, on Epsilon 9, in the widescreen LD version, you can see the two screen they are looking at of the Klingon battle with V’ger. One side shows a Klingon speaking, the other shows the text translation. That text is removed and now you see the V’Ger cloud. And the color on those two screen has a reddish tint. Odd, but not an objectionable use of color, and the removal of the text isn’t a problem either.
As other have said, the Mike Okuda text commentary was very well done and I hope he does this on the other films. I only sampled a short bit of it. It was too distracting for the first viewing of the film. A great source of information though. I can’t wait now to see the documentaries now. I’m really happy too to see the Orson Wells teaser trailer, I’ve never seen that before. Looked awful, and done poorly and looked so dated, but an excellent addition to the set. I so wanted to see it.
Those are my first viewing reactions. I admit that I was excited to see this finally, and it may have clouded my reaction as I was looking for the new stuff. But my gut reaction was that I really enjoyed it. The 2 plus hours passed quickly and I didn’t get sleepy!
Nelson
[Edited last by Nelson Au on November 07, 2001 at 01:34 PM]
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