Why I Love Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Vložit
- čas přidán 5. 09. 2024
- Support my work on Subscribe Star: www.subscribes...
Follow me on Bitchute: www.bitchute.c...
KEEP UP ON SOCIAL MEDIA:
Gab: gab.ai/DaveCullen
Subscribe on Gab TV: tv.gab.com/cha...
Minds.com: www.minds.com/...
Subscribe on Odysee: odysee.com/@Th...
Apologies, at 8:25 I made a small mistake, I got the name of the TOS episode wrong. I should have said The Changeling. My bad.
Man don't sweat it. This was a great video. Kudos to you for creating it!
That doesnt' invalidate your opinion regardless; and others like me just made the correction in passing anyway, be it in our heads, and move along.
@@readhistory2023 They were Sonak, the Vulcan appointed science officer personnally picked by Kirk, and Vice-Admiral Lori Cianna he had been dating for a year, who he considered ''perfection.'' She is featured in the third chapter of the novel but only anomymously in the transporter accident scene of the actual movie. Sonak is the Vulcan we see briefly when Kirk disembark from his shuttle.
@Bobbie Charles Run Silent Run Deep with Burt Lancaster as the ''Decker'' of Clarke Gable' s ''Kirk.'' A classic among WWII movies. Check it out. All of us who had seen this movie immediately recognized that character dynamic when we saw STTMP. That's how you make character conflict beleivable and significant in a story.
You are flawed and imperfect, and you have not corrected by sterilization... / Error? Error? Error? Examine.
This Star Trek movie, more than any of the others, conveys the beauty, the danger, and immensity of what's out in space.
That's very accurate.
Agreed. This movie showed the Enterprise in space. Wrath of Khan showed the Enterprise at sea.
More like: what's in our own psyche.
True
No, dude this is sci-fi. Keep it real! Space is one of the most boring thing for a human today and centuries later it will be still one of the most boring thing for an average joe. The problem is most of the people decide to believe in science like it is a science fiction and will look it that way.
Space is like living in a bunker under a wasteland.
People went into the theaters expecting a Star Trek flavored Star Wars, but what they got was a Star Trek flavored 2001: A Space Odyssey.
"...the best beauty shots, ever."
Coupled with Jerry Goldsmith's score, the introduction of the refit Enterprise is, in my opinion, the best introduction of any character, ever.
Goldsmith was approached to create a score for the original series but scoffed at the idea and said he doesn't score for "television". This basically was him eating crow or perhaps apologizing to Roddenberry.
I'm glad he changed his mind about t.v., his score for the miniseries, "Masada" is amazing.
Correct
I agree, and it's aged like fine wine, which only excellent movies can do.
The introductory shots of the refit Enterprise are pure, unadulterated Starship Porn!
Jerry Goldsmith had such an impactful career. He left his mark all over Hollyweird.
I think he was much better then John Williams, and I’m not knocking Williams. Goldsmith is just on another level.
I wish Star Trek would get back to this. Be thought provoking. Be mysterious. Have a sense of wonder. These qualities have been missing for so long.
I agree with you, but sadly, I don’t think true Trek like this is ever coming back.
I agree. Modern Trek has become too much like other shows, dark and brooding. It has lost the optimism. In the first episode of Picard, Picard says during an interview Starfleet was no longer Starfleet. A good reflection of what Trek has become. No wonder I go back to TOS and TNG. Those were the shows of hope and advancement.
But thats not what the people want, they want . . . . MOAR VIOLENCE!
You're SO damned right!
The wrong people are in control now. They don't want us inspired. They want us to believe in an ideology.
I miss the “old” Star Trek and the culture that inspired it. It was a different world.
You got that right. Now anything Trek is painful garbage designed to entertain 1000 checkmark people that would never watch the show.
I know that's the thing that really sucks about regurgitation Trek that has come out... Nothing's inspiring about any of the new series granted the old episodes did have some ups and downs but it was mainly inspirational and a great way to have character development that you think about in your own life
It was a grown up world, that was well traveled around the world, assembling order from the Chaos of two World Wars. Most people, most writers today have never left their own country, let alone their city or home town. Today adults are pretty much Xenophobic and Childish blissfully unaware of what goes on outside their doorstep.. content to watch curated Netflix programs and Trite serials.
@@joey_after_midnight Most writers today operate under the umbrella of “mental health issues.”
That's when we used to believe in something wondrous and bigger than ourselves.
I recall a time when fine art inspired genuine reverence in people.
This was a movie for the fans of the original star trek series. It reintroduced us to all the original characters including the Enterprise itself. And I absolutely loved the slow passing views of the Enterprise and Klingon Battle Cruisers.
As the first movie, those initial slow shots were a real love letter to the fans. Truly epic, after years of reruns on the independent channels!
For all that it eliminated the color and vitality of the original series - rather strangely - it was also a very philosophical movie, and a very humanist one. I'm not sure people today would agree with the idea that a 'machine' is unable to understand human emotions, but at least the movie involved trying to make contact with a true alien, as opposed to "humans wearing rubber appliances on their foreheads". Even Odo, the least humanlike alien on any Star Trek show, was reduced to having love interests and thinking like a human.
Fan of the original series here: It STINKS.
It is one of the few Star Trek films I've liked more with each viewing until now it has become my co-favorite Star Trek film (with Wrath of Khan). I have watched it several times this month with the new 4k Director's Cut.
It was important for this film to be made because it conveys the awesome and infinite possibilities are out there - you don't get movies like that these days anymore.
Compared to the newer Star Trek movies and TV shows, TMP is a masterpiece.
Yes, indeed!
It's a masterpiece that stands on its own compared to all of Star Trek. Obviously it's flawed, but it's also ambitious in a way no other Trek movie has ever been since.
Amen
That’s an incredibly low bar. The worst episodes of voyager were better than anything pumped out of Fake Trek.
@@BalrogUdun Sadly, you are correct.
I've heard complaints about the long shots of the Enterprise. They don't understand that this was for the fans, to give them a good look at their old friend's new clothes. Make no mistake, the Enterprise was a main character in TOS.
Then again, a lot of these people think those scenes were CGI, so...
A close second is "Stealing the Enterprise" from Star Trek III 'The Search for Spock'. That ship was just made to loom majestically across the screen. People who'd rather watch the ugly, pointy ships in 'Picard' lurching around have no sense of awe or beauty.
That’s a good point. You rarely got a great defining shot of the enterprise and it had been a decade since anyone had seen trek.
I was around 11 when I got to see this and I'd seen the series so many times in re-runs I had tears in my eyes seeing the Enterprise in all its glory. As I got older I appreciated it was a gift to the fans who campaigned for years for the return of Star Trek. Much as I love Wrath of Khan I love TMP more despite its flaws
They were beautiful, is what they were.
It’s an amazing feat of practical effects and model work that’s lit using dental mirrors. Not kidding, they were looking to properly light the Enterprise and built an arrangement of dental mirrors to shoot the dry dock scene.
I had 3 relatives work on the movie. My grandfather directed it, my father worked as an assistant cameraman, and my great uncle worked as an assistant director on it, as well as all the other original cast Star Trek films.
One of my earliest memories is of visiting the set, specifically the pit with V'ger, as well as where they essentially walked off the Enterprise. There's a picture of me and my sister taken that day with my dad and grandfather in my grandfathers book.
I didn't talk much about the movie with my grandfather, but when I did, I expressed my affection for it, while he didn't seem all that pleased with it, saying that he made the movie that Gene [Rodenberry] wanted him to make, rather than the movie he necessarily would have wanted to make himself.
Wow neat
So, you need to go do a podcast with Nerdrotic and talk about it all. Bet he'd be up for it.
So you're a Wise?
@@skaterdave03 Fuck nerdrotic.
Wow. Thank you for sharing this. 🖖
This is a seriously underrated film. It is traditional Star Trek. Real science fiction...not a space shoot-em-up. The visuals and score are incredible. Unmatched in cinema history.
Pure sci-fi, instead of space opera (ie. warfare in space).
One of my favorite moments is when Spock holds Kirk's hand and says, "Jim, this simple feeling is beyond Vger's comprehension." This type of concept was certainly the inspiration for Data in TNG.
Are you gay?
I think for the majority new trek’s NCIS and Hawaii Five O writers this concept would fall on deaf ears. Maybe writers of CSI in the William Peterson era would get it on a rudimentary level but that’s as far as it goes.
This was another thing that TNG had taken from Phase 2. Xon was to be a full blooded Vulcan trying to understand emotion in order to better interact with his human crewmates. There was going to be something of a reversal with McCoy being something of a defender of the young man because he simply didn't understand the emotions which Spock merely denied.
@@carlrood4457 McCoy defending a vulcan would be great plotline. I imagine he also would try to explain to him what he don't understand and even he is still acting though in the outside he would be very understanding and helpfull, it would be like a father son relationship.
And when Nimoy would came to the I Am Spock phase he could go back to the Enterprise and it would be very good to see both together.
D'ger?😂
The original trek episode was called "The Changeling" the probe was called Nomad
And yes I agree, Star Trek The Motion Picture was a great movie that I have also enjoyed for decades
Oh yes TMP was a rehash of that old episode to one extent or another. Maybe this was Jar Jar Abrams's inspiration when he wrote The Farce Awokens ?
@@jkdbuck7670 ST has always taken inspiration from other source materials, even it's own shows but TFA was a blatant redux of ANH. Much more shameless.
Great episode. Spock: "Your logic was flawless". Kirk: "You didn't think I had it in me, did you?" Spock: "No, sir."
The worst thing Kirk ever did was convince Picard not to take a desk job.
Jesus, that's kind of haunting lol
How so?
Lol, so true! 😂
@@michaelcongerjr8806 watch (if you can endure it) ST Generation's. Kirk meets picard and the result is unexpected
Well isn't that the problem? Picard is no longer in the captains chair.
It's a science fiction masterpiece. A really cerebral movie.
Yes, if I were to make a Mt Rushmore of SF films I'd include STTMP. The Director's Cut.
I’m looking forward to seeing the new 4K version of the director’s cut that has enhanced the special effects. It should be out on physical media in September.
Exactly
Also playing in some selected theatres.
I trust not the remasters.
Models always trump pure CGI
There are some new shots, some dodgy roto work, A new sound mix that is great except during warp shots. I was hoping they would remove those annoying matt lines around the miniatures for all the shots but not so, however optical compositing artifacts is corrected. Old 2001 CGI looks recreated from scratch.
They edited the long "entrance into V'ger" scene so it's much more palatable now, I believe. It's still long, but doesn't feel interminably so. There are still visual flaws, but overall it looks and feels better than ever, IMO.
It’s an actual science fiction film, as well. Every other Star Trek film after that was more action (though VI was more of a thriller). Robert Wise also directed The Day The Earth Stood Still so you have someone who understands how to shoot sci-fi.
I miss good science-fiction. Like you said, space lasers and special effects do not mean good sci-fi.
@@davidm4566 Space lasers and special effects are actually Action, not Sci-Fi. For example Star Wars is more like Science Fantasy. The purest form of Sci-Fi is coming from novella, it came up with an idea and makes you think about that idea, if it's a whole book they close up so much loosed end you don't have to think that much and sci-fi is about thinking, you read something and you thinking about it 10 or 100 times much than you spend reading.
And the good thing is there are thousand of those sci-fi novelle all around the world. I know better, I came from Central Europe we know the western literature the eastern literature and we know Central European literature all three is very different.
Agreed
@@Zodroo_Tint, Star Wars is not science fantasy it's Space Opera, but yes the cerebral tone is one of the most interesting thing in science fiction. That's not to say there wasn't cerebrality in the other Star Trek movies, or even in Star Wars, but the subsequent movies were less cerebral, and that's a too bad.
This is definitely the most “hard” sci-fi of the Trek films. It’s slow and cerebral like 2001 or classic Doctor Who serials. I grew up in that era, and loved all of it.
Definitely love me some classic Doctor Who. #tombaker
LIke said in the review, the sense of scale is terrific in this one. And I wish I'd seen it on the big screen.
i understand why people like it, my best mate thinks its on of the best ST movies. But in my humble opinion its a long, philosophicaly bloated beautiful screensaver. No offense.
@@MyBrainGlows You're out of your mind, no offense.
@@maxxdahl6062, agreed.
A very underrated film. So glad it's one of my guilty pleasures. I never get tired of Kirk seeing the refitted Enterprise for the first time.
You and me, Dave must be a rare breed. For I to love this film and was thrilled attending its 1979 original cinema release. You are right, people do compared STTMP to the Star Trek episode: The Changeling, which is a fair enough criticism. Still, that battle with V'ger and those three Klingon Battle Cruises plus the sight of the Enterprise in drydock after a ten year hiatus to me is still edge of your seat Star Trek!
I wouldn’t even say the comparison is a criticism. It’s honestly a testament to the quality of the original series that you can take an old episode remake it with a bigger budget, refine the story and add more time and have such a great movie.
I am right there with you Philip.
@@BalrogUdun Plus, from a chronological standpoint, one could easily imagine that the machine world V'ger went to & was repaired by, may have decided "that idea of going out and collecting samples,...we should do that too" and then built _Tan Ru_ which, as we know, later collides and repairs/merges with _Nomad_ .
I like STTMP more than ST IV: The Voyage Home
Star Trek the motion picture is a movie that has aged like fine wine. I can live with the slow pace of the film. Everything else from the acting, music, set designs, and special effects has held up perfectly.
ST: The Motion Picture was essentially my introduction to ST:TOS. I was born in 1970 and had caught only one or two original episodes here and there. So I was familiar with the characters before I watched the movie. But it was not until sometime in the mid eighties when, as a teenager, we rented it on VHS. I was totally captivated by it. Every few years I'll rewatch all of the Star Trek theatrical movies, and I still very much enjoy The Motion Picture.
I was 13 and got the VHS collection of classic trek movies for Christmas. The box art when put together visualized the Enterprise refit.
TWOK was mine. But I went back to TMP and thoroughly loved it, although when I rewatch it, I still tend to stop at the moment Spock arrives and they fix the warp drive. I should try watching it from the V’Ger encounter instead- it’s like a separate but just as wonderful film
I just watched the 4K Directors Cut, I’d always seen the TV or theatrical release but never saw the director cut. Wow! I was moved to tears during the ship porn scene which carried further into the film. I never expected to be emotional, not weeping or crying, just very moved.
“Is this all there is?” Even writing this gives me a little teary eyed. Has this world been so accustomed for the mundane and crass that it’s lost the drive something larger something more than what we are at this moment to be better.
Marxist ideology is atheist to its core, and not in a cerebral way, but in a toxic and soulless way. Cynical, nihilistic. Star Trek was always spiritual at its core. Today's Hollywood does not even comprehend that it does not comprehend it. The saddest part, to me, is that actors who helped bring life to the spiritual scripts in TNG are participating in today's soulless venture without blinking an eye. Makes me admire their acting skills, from back in the day, while at the same time pitying that they could be so close to it and even speak the lines, yet not really understand any of it.
The Director's Cut is the best version but was only available on DVD and looks like crap now, to say I'm excited for the 4K release of it would be an understatement.
@@philipsheppard4815 The 4k is incredible. I joined Paramount Plus for that alone. I ordered the complete adventure on 4k and blu ray, so 9/6 can't come soon enough.
Those of us who love science fiction love this movie. It's a fantastic high concept story and the director allowed his film to breathe as the best sci fi should, we get to drink in and immerse ourselves in the scenes and music.
Modern fast paced ADHD, zip zap, pew pew movies will never hold a candle to TMP.
I recall seeing one of the Taken movies (the 3rd perhaps), there's a scene where the main character jumps over a fence during a chase. For that one jump I think I counted 26 different camera angles. Modern movies have followed the short attention span trend of social media, nothing lasts for more than a few seconds, the MO is to hammer the senses so the viewer never has a chance to thnk about what they're seeing. It's as bad as when camera shake became fashionable in both TV drama and movies, as if ordinary people stand and perpetually wobble.
Don't even get me started on CGI, and I say that as someone who kinda helped in the effects industry for a fair while.
And then there are the endless reboots, sequels, prequels, retcons, etc., no attempt to tell genuinely new stories, despite there being a plethora one could choose from, such as the Hyperion/Endymion series by Dan Simmons, the "City of Stairs" series by Robert Jackson Bennett, etc. Or pick virtually any of the dozens of short stories from the long running book series, "New Writings in SF" (highly recommended if you've never read them, easy to find on ebay, etc., I now have the complete 30-book collection), though some have doubtless already been put to film albeit in inferior form, eg. ("Passengers" is highly reminiscent of "Spacemen Live Forever", published in 1966 by Gerald W. Page, though the latter is a better tale with more interesting concepts.
A while ago I watched, "The French Connection" for the first time, always liked Gene Hackman but this one had somehow passed me by. Well oh my what a contrast to modern movie styles. 8) Lots of older films put modern productions in the shade, eg. how many movies ripped off, "Colossus: The Forbin Project" (or were at least inspired by it).
So yes indeed, TMP is a stand out for sure. I think this is why, out of the other Trek movies, my favourite is probably Undiscovered Country, because it has a proper story and it doesn't shy away from these other aspects of film making.
Assuming of course we don't count Galaxy Quest, which is quite wonderful. :D
Strange btw, "Pitch Black" is a film I initially ignored upon release because its marketing portrayed it as if it was a slash horror, but it's actually a lot more like the scenic scifi you're referring to, fascinating concepts with good opportunities for soaking up the stunning visuals, etc. I never understood why the marketing was so misleading; fans of slash horror wouldn't like it because it certainly isn't that (doubtless many "wasted ticket" reactions there), while scifi fans may have ignored it like I did. They could have just conveyed it for what it was, appeal to the proper target audience.
But then, dumb marketing is nothing new when it comes to scifi. I'm sure some did not react well to "The Fifth Element" because the trailers very much suggested it was a serious scifi movie, so the comedy and whackyness were doubtless jarring, but I've come to love the movie a lot. At least Besson was trying something different, and these days nobody in Hollywood is capable making something as gutsy as his original "Nikita".
@@mapesdhs597 Thanks, I'm going to check out Pitch Black!
@@zxyatiywariii8 Note the sequel is kinda ok I guess (meh plus or minus; they rather wasted some opportunities. though it still has its moments for sure), but the later movie just called "Riddick" is definitely good.
I also recommend, "The Brother From Another Planet", "Silent Running", "Firestarter", "Farenheit 451", "A Matter of Life and Death", "The Andromeda Strain", "The Satan Bug", "The Quiet Earth" (fantastic final shot in this one), "The Third Man", "The Bedford Incident", "Westworld", "Capricorn One", "The Medusa Touch", "Dark Star", "They Live", "The Omega Man", "Outland", "The Thing" (1984), "Angel's Dance", "Catch 22", and I'll stop there before I wear out the 2 key. :D Though I expect you've already seen many of these.
They can't hold a candle. They're all style and no substance. No thanks. I'd rather have Star Trek 1-4 again (provided they don't leave Saavik behind like they did . . .)
I really like the slow pacing and epic effects shots of Star Trek The Motion Picture. The vibe is solely into itself and it does try to grasp at some heady questions as to the meaning of life and finding ones purpose. I look forward to seeing the 4K Directors Cut to see this movie in all its glory.
I totally agree with your analysis, the motion picture is like a fine wine, meant to be savored
Ditto! STTMP is a cerebral journey through the Trek universe!
I remember growing up, watching these films. Even before I watched any of the Star Trek series. I understood that, being young as I was, I wasn't grasping the full nuance of The Motion Picture. I was able to develop a proper appreciation and love for this film more recently.
I remember going to the theater to watch Star Trek: The Motion Picture, with my parents as a kid. A total borefest. As a kid , the part was watching the Enterprise go to warp speed & the worm hole scene. I couldn't grasp the intellectual aspect. Now I'm 51 yrs old, in my opinion, this movie was a continuation of TOS thinking. The philosophy, critical thinking & egos was tremendously awesome.
The scene introducing the new Enterprise is one of my favorites in any film. And the heavenly music brings a tear to my eye every time. Even the dialogue sequences between Kirk & Scotty were spot on.
@Newsbender II"Ye're rright!" 😂
It was released on my 9th birthday and I love it! It’s such a beautiful movie. And it has some wonderful themes of humanity that ironically people overlook because of it’s slowness. By FAAAAR my favorite Enterprise design!
I liked the movie. I love 1970s futurism. "Space Station 76" does a nice nod to 70s Space Fiction
I too have recently come to appreciate and like TMP after not liking it for decades. Probably because the modern Star Trek is so godawful that you can’t help but crave the “classic” Trek feel with competent, likable characters, a positive future setting, and handcrafted effects and models. TOS is my favorite ST series and TMP is a great “let’s get the gang back together” film.
I came to like it but it could have been so much better.
A shame you needed the abysmal nuTrek movies as a comparison to appreciate this masterpiece, oh well.
The older I get, the more I realise TMP is my favourite of the Trek films.
It is stunning to look at.
The V'ger flyover with Goldsmith's score is soooo atmospheric.
I always felt this was the most mature of the Star Trek films. Even Kirk is mellower, more thoughtful and more patient. It felt like the characters had grown up.
Kirk cutting Decker, essentially his hand-picked successor, off at the knees and then forcing him to be Spock was neither mellow or patient. Kirk was chafing at being put out to pasture and took this as an opportunity to get back in the center seat. All things McCoy pointed out to him.
@@MrCornrowz If he hadn't, that ship wouldn't have been coming back.
Beautiful movie. It's something modern Hollywood *can't* produce for now.
I love this movie! It’s my favorite ST movie because it - at least, attempts - to stay true to the series. Fun fact: Leonard Nimoy was the last to agree to join the film, so he’s the last to arrive on the Enterprise, with a grand entrance. The Constitution-Refit is the most beautiful ship i’ve ever seen, and sets the standard. As you said, more 2001 than Star Wars. Isaac Asimov was a consultant. It’s a wonderful story about getting what or where you need to be - Kirk needs the Enterprise, Spock needs Kirk (humanity), V’Ger needs to evolve, Decker needs Ilia. A lot of tge credit goes to young Jeffrey Katzenberg, who was an enthusiastic champion of the film.
As a fan, i can tell you the best version is the early 2000’s Director’s Edition DVD, where the late great Bob Wise was able to re-edit the film, putting Spock’s “I weep for V’Ger” speech back in, and touch-up or finish some of the confusing theatrical fx shots (V’Ger calling off the attack, the bridge to V’Ger at the end, etc.). Paramount, adding to their trend of bad decisions, is too cheap to put it on blu-ray.
8:51 - best shots, best orchestral score, best acting, and the ending, “the human adventure is just beginning”, was a welcomed sense of optimism in the last year of a nihilistic decade, I.e. the ‘70’s.
Was the monumental _Star Wars ANH_ not the same two years earlier?
_Grease (1978)_ was pretty ... exuberant.
@@beingsshepherd In 1978 Grease was the word, was the word, was the word. But when, by a year later, the movie world saw Alien and people were scared. Very scared. They stopped going to movies for a longish period of time. They slept in, didn't go to work, GDP went down. Then, two years later, Raiders of the Lost Ark came out and people started to see the light again. GDP rose. Reagan was president. The world looked incredibly bright. It was in that world we first got a glimpse of The Thing.
@@trhansen3244 Intriguing analysis.
I always felt the economy didn't bounce back until 1982's _ET_ & Michael Jackson's _Thriller._
@@beingsshepherd No. ET was not really that big of a success until it was on home video. Thriller was more of a spectacle than a financial success. It intrigued certain people but that's about all.
@@trhansen3244 From Wikipedia: 'The film [ET] was an immediate blockbuster, surpassing Star Wars to become the highest-grossing film of all time, a record it held for eleven years until Spielberg's own Jurassic Park surpassed it in 1993. E.T. was widely acclaimed by critics, and is regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. It received nine nominations at the 55th Academy Awards, [...]'
'With 32 million copies sold worldwide by the end of 1983, Thriller became the best-selling album of all time. It was the best-selling album of 1983 worldwide, and in 1984 it became the first album to become the best-selling in the United States for two years. It set industry standards with its songs, music videos, and promotional strategies influencing artists, record labels, producers, marketers, and choreographers. The success gave Jackson an unprecedented level of cultural significance for a black American, breaking racial barriers in popular music, earning him regular airplay on MTV and leading to a meeting with US President Ronald Reagan at the White House.'
STTMP has always been amazing. I actually loved the lavishly extended scenes flying through the Vger cloud.
I actually consider STAR TREK THE MOTION PICTURE the best movie they had made. You actually have to think while you watch this movie.
Today's ( A D D ) generation would not be able to watch this. They would most likely have a break down in the theater trying to watch it. 🖖live long and prosper DAVE ...
The oversaturation of CGI flashy, jumpy, slo mo, and 'splosions, has jaded an a generation. They just can't sit through the older movies with story, character arcs, etc. Sure old movies had crazy action and all that but they were not as blockbusters but something to watch, and laugh at, on a slow day.
The first movie is terrible everyone knows its terrible so I dont understand you dorks trying to argue this.
I gave a copy of my avatar I had signed by Miss Sean Young to a friend at work, and to my niece out west....they STILL havent been able to sit though Blade Runner to understand the image.
And Blade Runner has actual beatings and shooting people.
@@springwoodslasher79 No one is arguing eneything we are just having a conversation about the movie. What's with the anger ? Everyone is entitled to he or she's opinion , just like i respect yours.
You said that you didn't "understand" how come we liked this movie so much?. 🤷
WITH RESPECT MY FRIEND HAVE YOU BEEN CHECKED FOR ( A D D )?.
Both it and 2001 are ×××× and overrated. They are pretentious. Let's be honest.
My older brother took me to see it in the theatre 3 times! He saw it a total of 7! The best of times. Miss ya', Paul.
My absolute favorite of Star Trek films! We stood in a line halfway around the block on opening night to see it, and it inspires me, still.
Many didn’t like it because they were expecting it to be like Star Wars, but I loved it because I had waited a decade for Star Trek to return.
More recently, we saw it on the big screen, and it remains one of the most visually impressive sci-fi films ever crafted.
I've always looked at this film as more of a experience then a movie, you get that feeling that your a part of the journey and less of just watching a movie
Good point.
When I was a kid I didn't like watching TMP, but now it may just be my favorite Trek movie. The Egyptian theater in Hollywood has had a few screenings of it over the past 15 years. It's been great to get to see on the big screen.
Wow that’s cool
This movie is a work of art and a masterpiece. One of the best Star Trek movies ever created. I seen this movie first as a kid when I was around 10 and I remember being blown away then by the visuals and the soundtrack. I saw this two years ago rerleased in theatres (only two other people were in the theatre when I went). I was completely in awe almost like I was watching it again for the first time. This is a pure sci-fi movie. People today have been spoiled by action oriented sci-fi movies which don't get me wrong are great but are a different type of movie from this. The VGER cloud sequence is just a mesmerizing visual powerhouse of a scene. Seeing that scene and the Enterprise launch were incredible on the big screen! My hope is one day this movie gets the recognition it truly deserves.
Agreed. A love story to the fans who missed their adopted family on TOS. The treatment of the Enterprise - filmed as a true supporting character - was glorious.
Unashamed to say, this is my favorite Star Trek film. I thought the feel and vibe of this movie fit Star Trek best.
It's interesting that one of the subtexts of the film is Kirk's reaction to his own aging. He's no longer the young, dynamic captain of TOS, he's a more seasoned, mature man, moving into mid-life with its changing responsibilities. This is carried on in the later films. We all accepted this as a proper development at the time, and yet when I watch this film now, Kirk still looks like a young man to me. Maybe it's because William Shatner is still alive, and is now so very much older, in this film he looks like a man in the prime of life, and I wonder a bit what's he's worrying about. I'm now much older than he was when he made the movie, but coming out of the 60s and 70s when Youth was everything, at the time Shatner did look like an older man to us. Maybe it's also that there now seems to be a trend for actors to keep on playing the same roles long after they should have quit - Patrick Stewart as Picard for one, Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones for another.
maybe fifty seemed older in those days..
it did to me but i was barely in double figures at the time..
was eleven when i saw the motion picture and the crew looked really old to me at that time...
not now! 🙂
This is my favorite of the Star Trek movies. I liked the mystery, and the tension between characters and mission. If you ask me, this was the ideal Star Trek always strived for.
This movie is the only one where the scenic design made me feel that the ship interiors are “real”. I had the cutaway poster and I loved how the sets actually fit inside the shell of the ship. Once we went to ST2: TWOK, we were back to sets that looked like television scale and quality. I want to serve on the ST:TMP Enterprise!
excellent overview; this film was always highly underrated. this motion picture couldn't be made today, which is to say hollywood has no imagination, only pathetic agendas.
Coming off TOS and seeing the refit Enterprise for the first time was absolutely awe-inspiring. Especially the way that scene was shot and the score behind it. It really does make you miss the old days of movie making, as opposed to the current era of non-stop CGI for just about every moment of any film. Also makes you miss actual character development.
Well said Dave. I can remember as a child seeing the Enterprise revealed for the first time on the big screen. I was in such awe at it’s beauty and the majesty of the presentation. Definitely a feast for the eyes.
This plus 2001, and in parts "Silent Running", are very good SciFi, films that sadly would never be made today.
Silent Running is one of the best science fiction movies from the 70s. I got to see it when it came out and I still love watching it today.
Silent runnings worth a watch?
@@chriswright6245 absolutely
Silent Running had some questionable themes. But the Scifi was full of wonderful bits and the robot interactions absolutely made the movie. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it.
I've never seen Silent Running, but 2001 is way overrated. It's pretentious and barely a movie. (Also, it's secretly cynical like Kubrick's other movies.) ST 1 is a lame knock off. The uniforms are atrocious.
I actually love how they built up Spock as a character in ST: TMP. He was the humanoid reflection of V'Ger that the emotions and "leaps beyond logic" when directed toward what is good makes all of mankind truly great. Both Spock and V'Ger know they need those exact qualities.
I always loved that scene, when Kirk saw the Enterprise in the dock... if that was not REAL love :D
The scenes where they enter Vger are still amazing looking ... love the homage to 2001 with all that stuff .. psychedelic practical effects at it's best. Jerry Goldsmith's score is beautiful ... People say they linger too long on certain set pieces like the introduction of The Enterprise, but I love all of it ... as indulgent as it was. Great movie. Wrath of Khan I like for different reasons ... but they're both epic
I absolutely love the slow moving scenes moving into the cloud and then flying over the V'Ger vessel, turning around, and then going into it. I have probably watched it a hundred times.
@@trhansen3244 Yes .. It still completely holds up. The scene when Spock goes into V'Ger on his own with his jet pack was pretty damned awesome too. I
@@Fiveash-Art Yes, another breathtaking sequence, culminating with Spock's mind-meld with 'Ilia'.
@@trhansen3244 Ilia .. that sexy minx.
You can feel 2001: Space Odyssey's influence in it
Yes, it was even more pronounced for me because I've always loved 2001 !
@@kathleenhensley5951 me as well, its total art.
Does it matter? Like speaks to like.
@@Tarotlynx idk. Cant whoop me though 👊👊
And you can feel Star Trek influence in 2001 a Space Odyssey. ;) The big difference is that Star Trek tells a story with a real scenario and a clear purpose.
Vigor came from a civilization of machines in the delta quadrant. Anybody remember who else came from the delta quadrant that was a civilization of machines? Picard ultimately dealt with them.
According to the writers of the Star Trek Chronology (1st ed., p. 17), shortly after "Q Who" was produced, "Gene Roddenberry half jokingly speculated that the planet encountered by Voyager might have been the Borg homeworld."
@@ajclements4627 It is possible.
Couldn’t agree more Dave. I have always loved this movie. Slow, Smart, and Wholesome; the kind of thing that would NEVER get made by today’s dummies. Watched the 4K last week!
I'm so jealous of you Americans being able to see the Director's Edition in cinemas! 😩
@@josie_the_valkyrie Haha I’m Canadian my friend, but yes we are privileged!
@@stevemeyer4765 yeah, I don't understand why they didn't release it to Europe as well? 😕
@@josie_the_valkyrie likely didn't think it would make enough money in a theatre, but would on home media.
I've always felt that _Star Trek: The Motion Picture_ was an underrated film. I never quite understood the degree of dissatisfaction that was directed against it.
Not enough pew, pew? I would image a large portion of the ones who saw it had previoulsy seen Star wars, as well as the more swashbuckling episodes of TOS... It is very different to those.
ST 1 and 2001 are ××××. Let's be honest. Both are pretentious. 2001 isn't even a movie. It's a music video for classical music (and it's actually cynical like the rest of Kubrick's overrated movies).
@@GoldenCroc I appreciate the restraint to not have a classic TOS space battle scene upped in scale to that of Star Wars. It showed a focus on story and humanity as you put it over explosions.
@@tomcruisenukedmyaccount5388 I don't see how 2001 is cynical. Bowman ascends to the next level and returns to the Earth...like in so many other myths and legends out there. Am I missing something?
@@jkdbuck7670 You have to read between the lines. I'm not the first person who said this, and I'm sure there are essays about it online somewhere. The biggest clue is the photo taking scene with the monolith on the moon.
The movie is different from Clarke's novel which is more optimistic. If I remember right, Kubrick claimed 2001 is supposed to be subjective, but if you look at it closely, it's pretty cynical. It's a post modern, deconstructionist movie which mocks the audience. Why would Kubrick make one optimistic movie in a series of extremely cynical ones???
My addition is AI is a pessimistic response to and apology for 2001 which already is cynical.
Basically, 2001 portrays a universe where violence and oppression are inevitable for intelligent life. Also, humanity is portrayed as shallow and stupid and small.
Love you Dave; may you live long and prosper
IMO, one scene in The Wrath Of Khan (1982) got a positive bump because of the Motion Picture (1979). As fans had already seen Kirk and Decker's strife over command, as we had witnessed Kirk's obsessive compulsion to be the captain even in the original series ... when Kirk takes command of the Enterprise in TWOK, we knew it was inevitable. Sulu's line, "So much for the little training cruise," became hysterical as the best inside joke, ever!
Don't forget Kirk offered Spock to remain in command after it became serious, and Spock said he didn't have an ego to hurt.
There was an episode of The Big Bang Theory where Sheldon was saying that Star Trek TMP was the worse film over The Final Frontier.
It’s funny because whoever wrote that had it backward. Everything Sheldon said that was bad about the first film actually applied to 5.
He mentioned art direction and music for example.
Even Final Frontier is a masterpiece compared to the Jar Jar Abrams movies. It's made with more love for the IP and characters then anything Jar Jar did, who just turned it into a run of the mill action flick. The interaction between Kirk, Spock and McCoy is top notch and when they confront their deepest traumas the actors get to show some meaty acting.
@@chaptermasterpedrokantor1623 For all the criticism ST 5 got it was the most like an old TOS episode. The whole crew is together on the ship and they actually go “where no man has gone before”.
@@otarthemad9780 Even though ST5 is the least favourite, it had the best moment between Kirk, Spock and McCoy of all the movies. When Kirk remarks how he lost a brother once and was glad to get him back. Such a tender moment in the franchise between those 3. I think that scene gets overlooked due to the dislike of ST 5, to me it's the best part of that whole movie.
Big Bang Theory isn't laughing with nerds, it's laughing at them. That's why they got it wrong.
@@blbatled1 Totally agree. I wish they had made a couple more movies like that
I’ve seen this movie at least 50 times, mostly when I was a young teen with a VCR in the early 80s. The music and the effects were stunning for their time, and they still hold up. (The complete soundtrack with all the music cues is one of my favorite things to play in the background while I’m working.) ST:TMP reflects Gene Roddenberry’s vision for what Star Trek should be.
As a wise man once said. "I like my Sci-Fi slow and boring!"
I also like a bit of off beat 70's sci-fi and TMP fits that perfectly.
I am so glad to know there are other people that think like I do! I saw this film when it came out in the theaters prior to that I was a big fan of the original series. Sadly... I don't think we'll ever get a Star Trek like this again. The closest thing that we haven't given was Star Trek Continues. I watch your videos like I watch my Star Trek... All the time!
TMP always instilled a feeling of wonder and mystery for me when I watched it. Almost dreamlike. One of my favorites to this day. Beautiful analysis Dave.
This is my favorite Star Trek film and one of my favorites in general, for many of the reasons you gave, Dave. I also so appreciate how this is sadly the only Trek film to lean into having a connection with real life organizations such as NASA, reminding us that the Enterprise crew and Starfleet are astronauts carrying on the work being done now on the ISS.
Excellent analysis. Thanks Dave.
I saw it when I was 8 in a "Cinemascope" theatre. The film had a precursor orchestral overture that made it truly a cinematic experience. An underrated masterpiece. Good review!
Have you ever watched Farscape? It's right up your alley.
The concept of V’ger … of a Voyager craft returning to Earth, was underrated and bloody genius. 👍🏽
The success of the first "Star Wars" was also a factor in making ST:TMP. After all, Paramount could say with a perfectly straight face that it wasn't ripping off "Star Wars", since everyone knew "Star Trek" came before.
🖖😎👍One of the truly greatest moments of STMP the movie was the flyby with Kirk and Scotty of the Enterprise while still in drydock and the launching of Her; And I myself found this to be a very fabulous and a spectacularly interesting movie indeed!👌.
I remember seeing this in the theater. It was an amazing experience but at the time the movie was heavily panned. It's developed a strong cult following over the years and I do enjoy the remaster they did a few years back. It feels like a mashup of Star Trek and 2001, that's for sure! Beautiful production design. And my all-time favorite version of the Enterprise.
I, too, love Robert Wise's STTMP! It is a wonderful, classic work of visual art and extends the Trek concept into a vast cinematic experience. The only Trek adventure to do so. Oh, how I love its meditative pace, a multi-dimensional space odyssey, flaws and all, in the footsteps of Kubrick's 2001. A science fiction masterwork!
My goodness, I'm beginning to think we were all very wrong. This sounds like the best Star Trek film! We had such utter tripe for years now. The TNG films were total garbage, despite the show being so good. It's nice to remember why we used to Love Star Trek. Thanks Dave.... Getting echos of 2001 saying that haha
First Contact was good.
I thought the first two TNG films were fairly good, but I'll agree that pretty much everything after that has been decidedly weak.
@@drumjedi5301 Insurrection had it's moments, but too few of them. Nemesis was pure crap though, but the director should take all of the blame he removed almost any and every scene that would have improved that movie by a ton.
I was 10 when I saw Star Trek: The Motion Picture with my dad in Kingwood, Texas. It was my first psychedelic experience. I left the theater absolutely buzzing! It might be hard for younger folks to understand, but my only experience of Star Trek to that point was on a 19" color screen, in mono from a crappy built-in speaker. Completely mind-blowing.
I've always thought The Motion Picture was a highly underrated Star Trek film. I argue that it's the closest the films ever came to capturing the tone and style of the original series.
Ironic. I just saw this film 5 days ago. It is without a doubt one of the best sci-fi films.
It’s always nice to see TMP getting some appreciation, it’s always been my favourite of the ST movies, mainly I think because of Goldsmith’s dark and mysterious score while we watch the V’ger flyover. Most people cite that as the most boring part of the film, but it’s probably my favourite bit! 😅
Sadly, I don’t watch it as much as I used to because of Stephen Collins. I’m hoping maybe someone will one day deep fake him out of the movie.
I’m interested in watching the updated 4K Director’s Cut, but I was never a fan of a lot of the changes they made, like the new red alert klaxon and computer voice. My personal favourite version is the Special Longer Version that was aired on US TV in the ‘80s and later released on VHS. It’s admittedly rough in places, but it was the version that I first saw.
Agreed! I remember watching TMP for the first time, and that glimpse of V'ger just absolutely rocked my imagination. I never understood those complaints.
What I love about this movie is that it is beautiful and has gravitas to it. You feel like you are part of the crew. It has a beautiful soundtrack and it looks good, even today. I miss this in modern movies. Also that it takes itself serious. This is so much needed today. This world needs more beauty and actual rolemodels.
Star Trek succumbed to the “Star Wars effect” that changed Sci-Fi movies from that point onward. If it had been released prior to the space fantasy the reception might have been quite different. It still ranks among my favorite movies and was an inspiration to the much beloved TNG. Unfortunately the later films and TV shows strayed from the path of what made Star Trek great.
This is the one ST adventure I keep going back to. It has everything one could want from classic Trek, and more. It stands alongside the greatest sci-fi films of all time, and makes the latest ST iterations look amateurish.
In my opinion it's easily the best movie in the entire franchise.
The love that is in Captain Kirk's eyes shows when he sees the refit Enterprise is truly moving. The love.
There's no flaw in Star Trek The Motion Picture apart from the fact that the movie was released before the special effects were finished. It's the best of the saga, the most faithful to the original spirit of what Star Trek is, the most ambitious, the most profound, the most cerebral. Its scenario is richer and contains far more science fiction elements than the other movies. It pushes the boundaries of thought, which is one of the strong points of science fiction, if not the most important.
The Warth of Khan is, in comparison, a small revenge movie, superbly written but far less ambitious. It doesn't matter how complicated the writing of TMP script was, creation is not always an easy task, what counts is the result, and it's absolutely fabulous. They've worked hard to make a movie that lives up to expectations and to what Star Trek is all about. This movie can be considered a masterpiece.
As much as I love the Star Trek movies, and as much as they represent some of the best science fiction ever made, I would have preferred the following ones to be a little more on the cerebral side (which is still there) that is the hallmark of Star Trek. What a shame that all this was ruined by Jar jar abrams and Alex Kurtzman, the worst incompetents in cinema and television. What a shame that Star Trek has become a completely stupid, incoherent and implausible parody, just like Star Wars.
"Oh no, they're forming ! " - favorite line from the film. Completely agree with the author, this is the most esoteric and unique of all the Star Trek films.
I love how the success of Star Wars made this film possible yet the film doesn't ape off of Star Wars at all.
The best Star Trek movie by far. Great effects and very thought provoking story.
Wish we could have another good science-fiction movie like this again
Well said, as usual.
I was the first to buy my ticket for my local theater’s 4K release of this film next month! At the same time, discovered the 40th anniversary release for Wrath of Khan in September, and did likewise.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture is the most Star Trek of all the Star Trek films. Wraith of Khan is just a great story, that really could be told in any genre.
I feel like Star Trek V is the most TOS style movie.
In TWOK the characters were on point, the story perfectly paced and told in an unique style only possible within Star Trek. Sadly, TMP misses the mark of the characters almost completely, in my opinion.
I'm disaffected by Wrath of Khan because they left too much on the cutting room floor. Scott's nephew was a key character thematically, but they don't really identify him and leave out most of his scenes in the final cut. That guts the movie's emotion because he's the thematic link between Kirk's son and Khan's "son". The pathos of the movie is about "sons" suffering because of the "fathers", but all the cuts absolutely gut this emotional payoff to make it feel like a summer blockbuster instead. Almost none of the more melancholic parts made the cut.
@@wtk6069 Isn't that in the Directors Cut of TWoK?
@@treborkroy5280Yes, some of it is added back in, but not all. The DC still left out most of Peter's individual arc, including his unrequited romantic infatuation with Saavik, which also expanded her character as she dealt first with his crush and then his death. The rest can only be found in the screenplay or the novelization written from the screenplay. I can't fault their financial reasons to keep the film at around 2 hours, but man another 30-45 minutes would have been so satisfying.
I loved this movie too. And I REALLY loved Kirk's entrance especially. This was simply GROUNDbreaking for its time with its effects.
"There's a star beyond time, floating in space, waiting for you and me." The song "Star Beyond Time" is really beautiful and I do remember it fondly from time to time.
Sir,
I had the privilege to see this film in the theatre.... I was eight years old and soooooo excited. I still insist that TMP is the best of the post-series films, because it was the only one with what I considered a 'hard' science fiction story. And it was written by ADF. I love the late seventies-just-becoming-the-eighties decor and dress.... a magical time I was lucky enough to live through.
I saw this in theaters when I was a kid. I did not really like it all that much at the time, and ignored it for decades. When I saw it again as an adult, I actually enjoyed it, and like it to this day. If it had been successful at the time, Trek might have taken a very different turn in future films and shows.
The jump to warp speed is still the best.
I totally agree. I have always liked Star Trek TMP. It is true sci-fi. Especially when you compare it to the Nu-trek crap of today.
I hate the new Trek.
@@trhansen3244 me too. Nu-trek sucks. Voyager was the last real Star trek series.
I saw ST:TMP in the theater when I was 8. It was my first exposure to Trek. I then started watching the reruns of TOS on KCOP 13 here in Southern California. I have always had a place in my heart for this film.