Target Audience / UNCUT REACTION - Star Trek The Motion Picture (Director's Edition)

Here I watched this one yet again after your comments in ST:VI... Good memories..

Badger

2025-01-14 00:08:53 +0000 UTC

For anyone weirded out by this because you have not been reading my TOS/TAS/and current TNG comments, this is the sex scoreboard. Here we chalk up the body count (in a good way) for the Main Crew and others. important If you are easily offended do not read this. If you do read this do not contact me directly about it because I will go out of my way to be more annoying to you. Here is how it works. We score a notch on the bedpost if some Wonka-donka happens. It must be in that episode (movie) or directly because of the episode or movie. We do not have to KNOW it happened we just need some evidence. Mostly it is looking for some off camera time and a satisfied look after (or with Klingons maybe terrified). If you disagree with a score either you think it was or if one is counted that you disagree PLEASE comment with your why. HOWEVER, future information does not count. DO not say “we know they didn’t because in ep 9 in the future they say it. Save you argument for that episode then make it. We are watching in release order and assuming ONLY what we know from what we have seen not what will see. TOS Sex Scoreboard No main crew boot knockin but it ended with bangin' Kirk 12 Chekov 4 Spock 4 Bones 4 Scottie 2 Uhura 1 Extras: Illia new +1 Decker new +1 We had to wait a long time, until the very end, but we end up with a three way. Illia, Decker, and Vger get together in full on, light blinding pretzel twisting. I mean it was so hot it sent them to a new dimension.

Prof Moff

2024-12-22 23:59:10 +0000 UTC

Pretty obvious they were going for 2001 A Space Odyssey vibe if for no other reason than to desperately try to differentiate themselves from Star Wars. I'm sure someone mentioned this along the way but while it was not clear in the movie, in the script it is specified that Decker is the son of Commodore Decker from The Doomsday Machine.

penoyer79

2024-12-18 05:52:05 +0000 UTC

TMP is certainly not one of my favourite Trek movies, but it's definitely grown on me over the years. It's easily the most TOS feeling movie in tone and concept. Definitely the pacing is the most common complaint. For me one of the things I always disliked most in TOS is how it takes a concept and jacks it up to 11 unnecessarily in a way that kind of makes the job of future writers difficult. Basically I don't like making the universe too small. At least having V'Ger know "everything in the universe" isn't so much of a problem since it "ascended at the end". Production was obviously a mess, but I think in the end they managed to pull a solid movie out of it. The theme of searching for meaning in particular is a strong part of the movie. Regarding the debate of when the film takes place, A lot of people say 2272 or 73 based on Kirk being out of space for 2.5 years, and it's later established that the monster maroon uniforms were in circulation by 2278. So the latest the movie could take place is early in that year, assuming the new uniforms were distributed later that year. It's never firmly established, but I prefer to imagine it's 2277/78 just because the actors have aged a decade but the earlier date only puts them like 3 years from TOS, and then TWOK shows the characters over a decade later but the actors were only a couple years older. The second reason is Kirk being an admiral and moreover chief of starfleet operations, and that's a BIG step up considering he would have gotten that post at 37 or so years old, which is ridiculously young. Even the later date has him start at a still VERY young 42. So I assume between TAS and starting his new posting as an admiral, he either commanded the Enterprise for another 5 year mission, or a series of other smaller assignments, or commanded another ship or ships in that time, perhaps on training missions with cadets. Either way, my headcanon is that TMP is as close to a decade after TOS as the established events can allow. 2 things the movie handles flawlessly however are the refit of the Enterprise, and the introduction of the late, great Jerry Goldsmith to Star Trek. That sequence showing off the refit with all it's sexy curves took it's time, but combined with the Theme that would go on to be the basis for the TNG theme, it's several minutes of ship porn no true Trekkie will ever complain about. I was never a huge fan of the TOS Enterprise, but the refit is damn near perfect. The interiors are still a step up from TOS, but nowhere near as memorable as the exterior. Also never was a fan of the TMP uniforms. Even though it's never explicitly stated on screen, it's generally accepted Decker is the son of the commodore from Doomsday Machine. He was a pretty solid character. Shame the actor turned out to be a dirtbag IRL. Ilia was also pretty memorable. I do like how with him losing the Enterprise to Kirk and then losing Ilia(on top of his dad a few years before), and with V'Ger not knowing who created it or what it's meant to be, we get these 2 stories of these vastly different beings who are kind of lost and end up finding their purpose together by the end of the film. I also think Spock's arc in the film is a nice contrast to TOS where he very clearly embraced his Vulcan half exclusively. Having him come back from his time on Vulcan being extremely cold and expressionless, and to progress to him laughing and crying I felt was very deliberate. In him not going through with the kolinahr and seeing him change back more to the Spock we knew from the series, it felt like an acknowledgement that his Human half is just as important a part of him, even if it's not as readily apparent. So despite it's flaws, I think TMP remains an important and unique chapter in Trek.

Timothy Nikiforovs

2024-06-05 03:54:21 +0000 UTC

Someone else did it again around 2000, a Japanese filmmaker whose name escapes me, I believe, but it is still extremely rare, which is unfortunate.

Linda Stricker

2023-08-31 14:49:25 +0000 UTC

The biggest hurdle this movie had to cross was Expectations. It was two years after Star Wars and years after the series. Everyone had their idea as to what the first movie should be. I think I was 11 when this came out and it was way above me. Watching it decades later, it definitely presents a hopeful outlook of mankind's exploration of space. As other's have mentioned, the Enterprise is as much a character as the crew. You may go back and watch this alone in the future and you go along for the ride and at its core is the most Star Trek.

Stephen Wright

2023-08-17 02:40:56 +0000 UTC

My favorite part of your reaction is when you first see San Francisco. So far you have been tied to a very small part of the larger Star Trek universe. This shot is basically the first step into that world IMO. Soon you will see other crews, space stations, ships, times, places etc and Starfleet Headquarters here is just the beginning.

Jef Etters

2023-08-16 19:51:39 +0000 UTC

I saw this at the cinema with my parents and the lights were down when the overture played. The starfield was mesmerising. There were still ads and trailers before the main feature. It really wasn’t any different to today in the late 70s except you still got B movies then. However, with STTMP there was no B movie, just the main feature. This was in the UK.

Paul Rymer

2023-08-08 08:42:06 +0000 UTC

This film uses the premise of a TOS episode and expands on it . ** Info: S2 E3 · The Changeling - The Enterprise encounters NOMAD, a powerful artificially intelligent Earth probe lost 265 yrs in the past, comes aboard the Enterprise and mistakes Capt. Kirk for its creator.

TeenyStudio Flicks

2023-08-06 14:58:38 +0000 UTC

The theme to the Star Trek TV was used during the Captain's logs.

Christopher Alvarez

2023-08-05 18:20:49 +0000 UTC

Yes, you are right about TMP feeling very 1970's and being a testing ground for the following ST films. I would argue though that TMP was a big pop culture event and many of the casual TOS audience didn't return for ST in the cinema until The Voyage Home. So TMP both ensured the franchise would continue, but also alienated too many of the general cinema going audience for almost a decade.

Numinous2019

2023-08-04 13:34:59 +0000 UTC

Approval or not, that song slaps

Stuart Arbury

2023-08-03 21:27:20 +0000 UTC

I think the movie that feels the most like the tv series is the often derided Star Trek V, that's another movie that I've liked more than the general consensus, and the soundtrack also by Jerry Goldsmith is fantastic

Scarpad’s Domain

2023-08-03 06:15:09 +0000 UTC

she unfortunately died way too young

Scarpad’s Domain

2023-08-03 06:09:28 +0000 UTC

after years of Nutrek this is like a breath of smart air

Scarpad’s Domain

2023-08-03 06:06:18 +0000 UTC

I think a large part of this movie being disliked by some was the movie that came after doing some things better than this one. It was definitely popular enough to make that sequel, but looking back it sometimes seems like kind of a "dry run" before tweaking some things for ST2. Also, I feel like this movie is more a product of the '70s while the other is more of an '80s feel. Yes, I know that's literally true, too, but you know what I mean.

Joe Concepts

2023-08-03 01:29:00 +0000 UTC

Some nice trivia facts. Thanks.

Collin Freeman

2023-08-02 22:24:30 +0000 UTC

I'm sure it's already been mentioned, but Leonard Nimoy originally wanted nothing to do with the project. It started out as a second TV series, called Star Trek II and then Star Trek Phase II, before evolving into a feature film off the back of the success of Star Wars. Spock's replacement in the series was to have been a vulcan named Xon, played by David Gautreaux, who was dropped after TMP was greenlit and Nimoy got interested. As compensation to Gautreaux, he got a small role as the commander of the Epsilon 9 station at the beginning.

Steve Webster

2023-08-02 19:12:47 +0000 UTC

It's really poetic that both men sacrificed themselves to end a giant planet-killing machine.

Steve Webster

2023-08-02 18:54:36 +0000 UTC

Yeah we all were Kirk seeing the ship after 10 years. The Directors cut the sequence is slightly trimmed

Scarpad’s Domain

2023-08-02 06:49:07 +0000 UTC

Started watching after finishing TAS. I saw this first day Dec 7th 1979. My mom let me stay home from school and dropped me off since I was 16 at the time. I loved it ever since. The idea this was 2 1/2 years after the 5 year mission. After TMP Kirk and crew had their second 5 year mission, went their seperate ways more or less and Star Trek 2 is 10 years after that.

Scarpad’s Domain

2023-08-02 06:47:28 +0000 UTC

Why I love STTMP. Remember that TOS when Kirk got over the virus, looked up to the ceiling “I’ll never lose you”. That when I was a kid made me realize that the Enterprise was a character on the show. For me it was Kirk, Spock, Bones, Enterpise, Scotty etc..so to get a 22 minute flyby of my favorite ship and character..well..if I watch it too often I might go blind..thank you so much for posting this this weekend, I just drove 8 hours to start cleaning out my mothers house and getting rid of everything and-you posted this at the exact right time!

Badger

2023-08-02 05:22:00 +0000 UTC

There is an off-canon explanation that Chekov had returned to Starfleet Academy during Kirk's 4th year in command to take up Security Training, and while he was gone, his old Navigation teacher from the Academy, AREX, took over Chekov's position on the Enterprise. We have no idea if they'll ever - for whatever the reason - place that into canon, but it is certainly an interesting "behind the scenes" idea..............

Rhett Coates

2023-08-01 02:01:19 +0000 UTC

There are LYRICS to "Ilia's Theme" (heard as the opening orchestral overture before the movie starts), and the lyrics were NOT approved of by Jerry Goldsmith, yet they were recorded by SHAUN CASSIDY (younger brother of David Cassidy, of "Partridge Family" fame). On YouTube, look up the title "A Star Beyond Time". This seems to be a re-occurring thing with Star Trek: Gene Roddenberry wrote lyrics to TOS opening, and called them "Remember Me" - which were NOT welcome by the composer of the music, Alexander Courage, however A.C. did say he was willing to rearrange them to better fit the tune, however that never happened, for whatever reason. Those can also be found being sung on YouTube, and they are properly sung by a female. On YouTube, that link reads "Intro to Star Trek with Lyrics" - and the lady singing Gene's lyrics starts at Time-Index 1:09.

Rhett Coates

2023-08-01 01:51:52 +0000 UTC

The phrase "Live Long and Prosper" was spoken in the native Vulcan language by actress Edna Glover as Spock fails his Kolinar test near the beginning of story. There are T-shirts available with that on them along with the hand gesture, which is a physical display of the Hebrew letter Shin, which stands for El Shaddai, meaning "Almighty (God)". Nimoy and Shatner both have Jewish heritage. The phrase, in Vulcan language, is on the T-shirts as "dif-tor heh smusma" which is how it appeared in the screenplay.

Rhett Coates

2023-08-01 01:46:47 +0000 UTC

Marcy Lafferty, the actress portraying Chief DiFalco (who took over Navigation after Ilia was "patterned for data storage' and disappeared from the bridge) was MARRIED TO WILLIAM SHATNER when this picture was filmed.

Rhett Coates

2023-08-01 01:39:00 +0000 UTC

While the film came out 10 years after the end of the original series, I think it is generally accepted to take place 2 1/2 years after TOS. And then at the end they're off on another 5 year mission with Kirk in command. It remains to be seen for you guys if movie 2 will pick up during that, or some point after. As for the cast, they really didn't enjoy this filming experience. Besides the back and forth about it being a show or a movie, Leonard Nimoy had some legal issues with Roddenberry, and by the end he felt like he was done with Star Trek. And the entire cast hated these uniforms, so you guys aren't alone here. Interesting you bring up the soundmix, because I realized something that was missing fromthis movie: the sounds of background bridge equipment. No whirring or beeping machinery like in the series. I think that also contributed to a certain lifeless feel in a lot of scenes.

Nolan

2023-07-31 22:55:51 +0000 UTC

They had to redo a lot of the effects at the time as I recall, which is why the film went insanely over budget.

Rich Wagener

2023-07-31 20:47:53 +0000 UTC

There are some critical character moments added back in - for instance, Spock's explanation that how V'Ger is is how he was before he came aboard. That was missing from the theatrical cut, and until the director's edition, I had never heard that line before. These sort of things add emotional boosts at the right moments. When I first saw that scene in the director's edition I thought "wow, this adds so much more meaning and emotion to this scene". It makes the film feel less mechanical and more human.

Michael Ducharme

2023-07-31 18:06:42 +0000 UTC

Since you wondered why Chekov didn't replace Ilia after she was killed: He's no longer the navigator, he's the tactical/security officer now. The phase II show was supposed to have a bigger cast, so they moved Chekov to tactical, introduced a new navigator and moved Spock to be just science officer and added a new first officer with Decker. So the show was supposed to have a bigger bridge crew. That never panned out, but a lot of that was kept for TNG. TNG has a dedicated security/tactical officer, and a dedicated first officer.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 17:42:27 +0000 UTC

NBC rejecting the pilot as too cerebral is a myth that has been debunked. The real reason was the huge budget of thf pilot and that they didn't believe a Show like that could be done with a normal TV budget, and they were correct. Even the new pilot Where no man has gone before was massively over budget. NBCs producers actually loved the first pilot, it was just too expebsive. The fact that they loved it so much is why they gave Roddenberry the chance to make a second pilot, which was unheard of at the time.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 12:23:53 +0000 UTC

I think this is way better than The Changeling. This is not about beating a computer, it's just a plot device to teach that emotions and faith have value, that love and friendship make us human and find meaning, not just pure logic. The Changeling had no such message, no human element, nothing to connect with emotionally. And Nomad was a clear antagonist that we just wanted to be shut down. V'Ger had our sympathies and we feel happy that both V'Ger, Kirk and Spock found their meaning in life. It has similar beats and to a degree the same premise but in my view a completely different story.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 12:16:45 +0000 UTC

Let's bring that back :😀

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 12:08:24 +0000 UTC

Decker was also one of the few ST characters that could tell Kirk he was wrong and have the audience on his side. not easy to pull off.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 12:07:17 +0000 UTC

“For Bob” is Robert Wise, the director. This 4K directors cut was released after his death.

Stuart Arbury

2023-07-31 12:04:44 +0000 UTC

To be fair, once the Ilia drone comes aboard both versions basically flow the same. But the first act definitely improved.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 12:03:59 +0000 UTC

The reason the uniforms were so colorful in the 60s TV series was to help sell them fancy shmancy new color TV sets. Not kidding!

Stuart Arbury

2023-07-31 12:02:27 +0000 UTC

Lucas and Roddenberry both loved eachother's work but were smart enough not to copy eachother. They wanted to realize their own vision, not cash in on the other one's. I wish filmmakers like that we're more common again.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 12:02:15 +0000 UTC

The “theme from Star Trek tv series” is played every time Kirk does a Captain’s Log.

Stuart Arbury

2023-07-31 12:00:40 +0000 UTC

Release order makes me happy. And like I said before, I can't wait to see you watching two series a week. There is a two season overlap when TNG and DS9 aired simultaneously. And another overlap with DS9 and Voyager.

StealthMomo

2023-07-31 10:03:58 +0000 UTC

Fantastic. I have been eagerly awaiting this. As much as I was when I saw it in the theater on opening night back in 1979. Wow. Just thinking about the time passage blows my mind. As to the content of the story, this was as pure Gene Roddenberry as you can get. Don't forget, the original pilot was rejected by NBC as being "too cerebral". For better or worse, he finally got his way here. This was written by Alan Dean Foster, a prolific sci-fi writer who also wrote novelizations of all of TAS episodes. He fleshed them out quite a bit and in the final four or five books expanded greatly on the core stories. He basically wrote this to spec for Gene. The TOS episode you were trying to remember with a similar McGuffin was The Changeling. Remember Nomad? The floating Hoover Vacuum Cleaner? The miniatures (the ships, space docks and all the background shots) were done in a process called Magicam. It was supposed to be the next big thing but was quickly overshadowed by superior processes. That being said, I think they still hold up well today. You guys want more character arcs? Kirk dealing with middle-age angst? Definitive action along with a great story? Well hold on to your hats and buckle your seat belts boys. Because it is time for arguably the best part of the roller coaster. (Truthfully, the first four movies are all spectacular for different reasons). Until next time gentlemen, Live Long and Prosper. 🖖🏼

StealthMomo

2023-07-31 09:51:31 +0000 UTC

Yes the uniforms were very in keeping with sci-fi of the time

AzoriusMage

2023-07-31 07:25:04 +0000 UTC

This cut is better than the movie version, but still nothing to write home about. VGER, Nomad...a rose is a rose is a rose, and yet you love this and were not impressed with that. Personally, for me the Nomad episode has this beat. I did like when the old theme pops in during Captains Logs, and it was great to see Janice, but the set and wardrobe people really concocted the most boring visuals imaginable.

Ken R

2023-07-31 07:24:28 +0000 UTC

If you want a laugh, look up Shaun Cassidy- A Star Beyond Time. It’s Ilia’s theme… with lyrics… it’s hysterical and AMAZING. https://youtu.be/7HYpkJQGyOg

Stuart Arbury

2023-07-31 05:22:58 +0000 UTC

Thanks for a great reaction! I loved how you cheered every time you saw a character! I saw this in the theater when I was 12 so it always hits the right nostalgia buttons for me. I've been listening to this score by Jerry Goldsmith ever since, it's so good! To be honest, I do find the story and pacing a little lacking now compared to the others, but I still enjoy it.

Gary Leyh

2023-07-31 05:22:30 +0000 UTC

Non-spoiler, just some bearings before Star Trek II- the lore now says that after Motion Picture, Kirk and crew embarked on another 5 year mission. Wrath of Khan picks up 15 years later in franchise chronology. This is actually a brilliant move- it ages the characters up to catch up with the actors’ ages, and allows us to join them in a totally different phase of life.

Stuart Arbury

2023-07-31 05:16:49 +0000 UTC

the opening before the title card was a what a a there to get the audience in the mood, they didn't show commercials before films and top premier films would have the score to entertain the audience. that's what they heard as they were getting their popcorn and getting in their seats.

David Marcoot

2023-07-31 05:02:45 +0000 UTC

Not sure if someone else has mentioned this but 99% of the effects you saw were as audiences saw them in 1979. Damn impressive

Stuart Arbury

2023-07-31 04:40:53 +0000 UTC

I believe the episode that you were trying to think of that's similar to this is The Changeling. The Nomad probe merged with an alien probe and thought Kirk was its creator. This is the movie that seems the most like the original series, in my opinion. Especially with Decker and Ilea taking the main stage. It was always the guest stars that defined some of the best episodes. Decker probably had the best lines of the whole movie as well ("I don't think you're sorry." and "This is how I define unwarranted.") I also have to wonder how much footage is still out there. There are plenty of scenes where Bones shows up on the bridge and then leaves without saying anything, we get a jumpy cut in a conversation, etc that lead me to believe a bit of dialogue got cut.

Nerd's Gold

2023-07-31 04:23:24 +0000 UTC

We are watching in release order

Josh (Target Audience)

2023-07-31 03:56:27 +0000 UTC

Hey Great reactions to your first Star Trek movie especially to Bones you two jumped so high LMAO. Unfortunately the problem with color of uniforms was kinda that way in a lot of movies. For some reason it was thought that future clothes would be drab even in some tv series at that time Space 1999 was one but there were a lot more. Had wonderful time rewatching this movie and your reactions were legit. lol

Robert Elliott

2023-07-31 03:35:44 +0000 UTC

Making this a second comment so it doesn't get lost - you can watch movies 5 and 6 right after 4. They don't really give away anything from TNG. I would probably suggest watching the first six films before starting TNG, unless you are purposely saving 5 and 6 for partway through TNG just to provide some kind of break from the string of episodes. It is different when you get up to Deep Space Nine too, that one you will want to start around when it started in TNG, due to a few tie-in episodes that take place.

Michael Ducharme

2023-07-31 03:19:17 +0000 UTC

The reason why it doesn't feel slow is because it is the Director's Edition. The original theatrical version left out some character scenes in favour of more/longer VFX shots and more shots of George Takei looking with astonishment at the viewscreen. The new visual effects is not the reason to watch the Director's Edition, instead it is the much zippier edit which prevents the film from dragging.

Michael Ducharme

2023-07-31 03:08:00 +0000 UTC

They believed this would be the only movie. However, with such a success, it was felt they could make a second one which addressed several of the issues that you two talked about with the first one. That became a success, so they made a third, …

Geoffrey Linehan

2023-07-31 02:50:04 +0000 UTC

One other thought .. this came out after Star Wars ... almost every science fiction movie that came out in the wake of Star Wars tried to emulate that in some fashion. It was incredibly ballsy of Roddenberry to make a movie with no outer space "battles" or cute robots etc. Star Trek stayed true to its roots of being more cerebral and humanistic than most other sci-fi of the time.

Chris Taylor

2023-07-31 02:48:24 +0000 UTC

Someone may have already mentioned this. There was a plan to make a second series, called Phase 2. It’s premier on a fourth tv network called Paramount would have been a two hour tv movie. Leonard Nimoy was in the middle of a contract dispute over unpaid royalties, so a new Vulcan character named Xon was designed who would be periodically trying to experience emotions, sort of like Pinocchio. Plans between a theatrical or a tv series went back and forth until Star Wars became popular. Close Encounters of the Third Kind showed there was a huge sci-fi film audience. They decided to use the new sets and costumes intended for the series in The Motion Picture. Leonard Nimoy’s contract dispute was won, so he signed on for the movie.

Geoffrey Linehan

2023-07-31 02:46:14 +0000 UTC

This is the most "cinematic" of the Star Trek films. Personally I love it. Most of the issues you had with the movie are addressed in the films to follow. Some great stuff ahead. I think Kirk had a definite arc .. in the beginning he was unsure of himself and not listening to others. he came across as arrogant and combative. As the movie progressed he began to become more like the Kirk we knew from the series. He as confident (but not cocky) and began welcoming input from Decker. By the end of the film he has the ship back and is the Captain we remember. Without the ship he was incomplete ... like Spock was incomplete without his human half. I was so glad you both liked it ... I get tired of the movie being attacked so much.

Chris Taylor

2023-07-31 02:42:01 +0000 UTC

You liked it!! Awesome watch along. Another excuse for me to watch again for a millionth time. I saw this in the theater Dec 79 and it was awesome then. Well, can't wait for Star Trek 2 watch along. 2, 3, and 4 are like a huge 3 act movie. Thanks guys!

JoeyVettes

2023-07-31 02:13:55 +0000 UTC

Can't wait for the next ones!

JD Nevesytrof

2023-07-31 02:10:10 +0000 UTC

Loved watching this along with you guys! This is only the second time I've seen it as I didn't really love it all that much the first time. I think I was put off by how long some of the shots were and the pacing. I agreed with those people who called it Star Trek: The Slow Motion Picture! I love the score though and found a lot to appreciate on a second viewing. Can't wait for Wrath of Khan!

Elizabeth N

2023-07-31 01:59:08 +0000 UTC

If I imagine TMP trimmed down to the 90-minute runtime of subsequent Trek pilots and two-parters, you might be right. But I think the DS9 pilot would give it a run for its money.

Jeff Cornell

2023-07-31 01:33:49 +0000 UTC

No spoilers: I won't say what or how, so it's still left to our esteemed pair of First Timers to find out for themselves. There is a WHOLE LOT more to that story than I described here, and what I stated is just an appetizer, as it were.

Rhett Coates

2023-07-31 00:59:24 +0000 UTC

I loved watching with you guys. Many found this too cerebral but every time I watch this grows on me a little more.

Charles Regazzi Jr

2023-07-31 00:47:03 +0000 UTC

Dude, spoilers?

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-31 00:24:51 +0000 UTC

The scene with the 430 members of the Big E's crew assembled on the rec-deck to see what they would be facing was interesting: a large contingent of Star Trek fans from the L.A. area were recruited to play the crew in this large casting scene, and on the front row were Robert Wise's WIFE, David Gerrold (writer of "The Trouble with Tribbles"), and Bjo Trimble, who helped head up the big letter-writing campaign that kept TOS on the air for Seasons 2 and 3. Also, standing on the catwalk in the rear, on the second tier, was SUSAN SACKETT, who was, at the time, Gene Roddenberry's secretary. You may have noticed the aliens in that scene, but did you also notice the native Americans, in what appears to be native American dress (with the Starfleet delta logo on their upper left sides)? Yes, Mr. Roddenberry was quite adamant that ALL of Earth's population have representation in Star Trek. That was noted, also, in TAS episode "How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth," and would come back again in Star Trek: Voyager's XO, Commander Chakotay, portrayed by Robert Beltran.

Rhett Coates

2023-07-30 23:21:05 +0000 UTC

The movie's warp-jump effect is called, by some who worked on the film, a "Starbow," which is the rainbow-like smear seen when stars are undergoing a relativistic Doppler effect as the Enterprise enters warp space. It's one of the most impressive special effects created for Star Trek, and has a continuing "sequel" of sorts in the next four subsequent Trek television shows TNG, DS9, VGR and ENT, where when looking out a porthole and/or following the ship outside at warp, the stars which streak by actually have the same (but continuous) rainbow-like effect as they trail by.

Rhett Coates

2023-07-30 23:16:17 +0000 UTC

Worry not about the Klingon "upgrade" in the movie's first scene: their appearance, differing from that on TOS and TAS, is addressed in an episode of Star Trek: Enterprise, in a surprising twist that harkens back to Khan and the "augments" (genetically altered "super" men) in Earth's past (in the 'Trek time line). It's also mentioned in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine ("Trials and Tribble-ations"), which was filmed before the ENT episode. "YOU'LL SEE..............." BTW, here's a bit of casting TRIVIA for you guys: the Klingon captain in that first scene is none other than MARK LENARD, who portrayed the Romulan commander in "Balance of Terror" and Sarek, Spock's father, in "Journey to Babel" and "Yesteryear."

Rhett Coates

2023-07-30 23:10:21 +0000 UTC

Honestly if this had been the Phase 2 show pilot it would have been the best pilot of all the ST shows. Some of those pilots are good but none are like this.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-30 23:09:52 +0000 UTC

Especially for something to go into earth orbit hehe. But even just the vger ship without the cloud is still one of the biggest ships of any Sci fi

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-30 23:08:08 +0000 UTC

Guys, this is my favorite ST:TMP reaction! Thank you! Loads of fun! As slow-paced as the Dir. Cut is, the theatrical version is far worse and some visuals were not in a finished state or not in the movie at all. This is the version that we should have gotten in 1979. In 1979, I really hated this movie. As far as we knew, this terrible movie was the end of Star Trek. But, an injection of new producers, writers, and a special writer/director, the franchise got a second lease on life. To Paramount's credit, they gave Robert Wise the opportunity to finally finish his movie. Unfortunately, the original Director's Cut (2001) was hobbled by early 2k CG. This new 2022 4k version is truly spectacular. (I got to see it in a theater.) In retrospect, I really appreciate the cerebral nature of this movie. It feels like the most like classic Star Trek than any sequel (nuTrek) movie or series. No villains, no pew pew phasers (a few photon torpedoes but fired defensively), and a thoughtful story about alien intelligence and AI. Given the recent congressional hearings on UFOs and the explosion of wide availability AI (esp. open source), I think that 44 years later this movie is more relevant now than when it was released. Now, I genuinely like this movie. But, it's taken decades for me to get to this point. --- In addition to the reference to TOS episode, The Changeling (which others have mentioned), the poker dialog between Decker and Kirk was a callback to Kirk's poker bluff in The Corbomite Maneuver. “Not chess, Mr. Spock... poker." --- If you guys haven't see it, 2001: A Space Odyssey would be a nice companion to this movie (followed closely by 2010). Just don't forget about the overture...

Ron

2023-07-30 22:53:59 +0000 UTC

Fun fact, we only ever launched two Voyager probes. I think NASA originally planned more but they got cancelled. But that happened after this movie. So in our reality there never was a Voyager 6, only Voyager 1 and 2. Those programs are still active, the probes are still sending data. Both have since left our solar system and are now in interstellar space.

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-30 22:36:53 +0000 UTC

There's also a cut scene with Sulu just gawking at Ilia and then fumbling about when Decker - who is taking great delight at the effect that Ilia is having on Sulu - asks Sulu to show her something on the controls. Edit: Found it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJCIW2iF7Zo

Dion James Pitman

2023-07-30 22:34:29 +0000 UTC

He certainly had the Reputation for Putting sex into every Story. Mudds women was his first Script I think

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-30 22:32:22 +0000 UTC

Roddenberry was such a horn-dog.

Collin Freeman

2023-07-30 22:26:38 +0000 UTC

Yes! Correct! Probably even more Metamorphosis than Obsession.

Collin Freeman

2023-07-30 22:25:59 +0000 UTC

That's right! I had forgotten that!

Collin Freeman

2023-07-30 22:25:07 +0000 UTC

I agree with everything you said. The flare in Uhuru's eyes when Spock says that V'ger has in fact been communicating is a great example of what Nichols was able to do with so little in this film. Uhuru's professional pride has been hurt in this moment.

Numinous2019

2023-07-30 22:23:16 +0000 UTC

When you learn about the development hell the Star Trek movie went through for years, especially how it was ping ponged between being a TV movie, then a show for a new paramount network and then a movie, it is amazing the movie turned out as good as it did. When it decided to be a movie, models and sets made for the TV show had to be scrapped or overhauled. The original effects team chosen to do effects spent millions of paramount money on development of equipment to do effects but delivered only a few not very good effects before they were let go. Dougles Trumble (2001) was hired and brought in to complete effects on a very limited schedule. And some already shot sequences had to be scrapped because of the problems and lack of time for doing the effects. For instance, you thought it was weird Kirk was just wanting for Spock outside the ship and then Spock is just spit back out by VGER into Kirk's path. What was originally shot was Kirk going outside and catching up to Spock and they explore Vger together. A scene where Kirk is seen suiting up to go after him was actually used in TV and extended versions (it's on the extras in your 4k set). But the enormous difficulty in hiding wires and others things that did not work has Trumble rework it into a solo scene with just Spock, with the concept of VGER sending him back to the ship after he passes out from the mind meld. There are three main versions of TMP floating around out there. The original theatrical version, which was very rushed to meet the locked in release date, The extended version, which first aired when the movie was shown on ABC tv. It was typical for network premieres of movies to add deleted material to make it run in a larger time slot. The fans were really surprised and pleased by some of the added scenes and the longer version got a video release and was the main version on home video for years. Then, Robert Wise participated in making the Director's edition where he had a chance to due the editing tune up and a couple added effects he did not have the chance to do originally. It was first released to video in standard definition. It was only a year or 2 ago that this version was revamped and restored for 4K and actually put into a limited run in theaters. The scene with the space probe on the bridge was done by having a huge fluorescent light pillar being handed by a black suited operator and the probe was animated over the light. In order to eliminate the operator and rigging from the shot, they projected the footage on a flexible mirror and bent in the mirror to hide it. This is why you see distortion all along when the probe travels on the bridge.

Mike Rogers

2023-07-30 22:17:30 +0000 UTC

Chief DiFalco, the replacement navigator, was played by Marcy Lafferty, Shatner's second wife.

James H

2023-07-30 22:06:35 +0000 UTC

Yeah, in Roddenberry's novelization there's a lot about Deltan pheromones and their effect on human males.

James H

2023-07-30 22:05:31 +0000 UTC

At the time this was made. There wasn’t plans for sequels. The making of this movie was such a mess, from Gene Rodenberry making script changes the other writers didn’t want to the horrible uniforms, and an effects budget that was out of control. However with all that this movie made the most money of any Trek film up until the JJ era. Once they saw the gross then they wanted sequels as long as there was no Gene and a much smaller budget. Hardest part was convincing the cast to come back since most of them were pretty bored and thought they had even less to do than in the series.

Jonathan

2023-07-30 22:05:13 +0000 UTC

Watching this movie again made me remember, as I do every time I watch a Robert Wise movie, of the time he called me a moron. That happened. Watching this again and watching you guys react to it has made my whole weekend. It was like eating the most delectable, moist and gooey fortified chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, and real whipped cream. Almost as good as watching this movie on acid.

Rich Cirivilleri

2023-07-30 22:03:47 +0000 UTC

Also some elements of "Metamorphosis," where the Companion becomes human to join with Zefram Cochrane.

James H

2023-07-30 22:02:41 +0000 UTC

In the original version he said the cloud was over 82 AU's in diameter, but someone later must have decided that was too ridiculously big.

James H

2023-07-30 21:59:34 +0000 UTC

Oh my God”Kirk likes ‘em blonde, but I like ‘em bald.” I shotgun spat my junior mint right at the screen.🤪

Rich Cirivilleri

2023-07-30 21:55:00 +0000 UTC

I think the warp scale is logarithmic in TOS, where "Warp X" means 10^(X-1) times light speed, as you outlined. In TNG onward, the scale is tweaked such that low warp factors are similar to the old scale, but warp 10 corresponds to infinite velocity and can't be achieved in practice. But I'm not sure what the exact change of the math was.

Jeff Cornell

2023-07-30 21:28:12 +0000 UTC

One more useless nerd info: When Kirk said Warp .5 that was impulse power. Impulse drive basically is a regular Ion Drive as we can build them already today, just way more powerful obviously. It goes up to close to light speed but like today, you cannot get past light speed with it. Warp .5 or as they call it later, half impulse, is basically half of lightspeed and full impulse is as close as you can get to lightspeed with regular technology. To get past light speed they need to switch to the warp drive, which starts at warp 1. So the Enterprise basically has three means of propulsion: Maneuvering thrusters which are only used for super slow maneuvers, like getting out of a space dock or such. Then the impulse drive which is mostly used inside a solar system, and then Warp Drive to travel between star systems, and works roughly on a logarithmic scale: Warp 1 is light speed, Warp 2 is 10light speed, Warp 3 is 100 light speed, Warp 4 is 1000* light speed or something like that if I remember correctly. They slightly change the warp scale later for TNG I think, so Warp 7 in TOS is not the same as Warp 7 in TNG

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-30 21:10:40 +0000 UTC

She had a good role (with full hair) in Nighthawks with Sly Stallone and Billy D Williams. She was Miss India for some beauty pageant before this film.

Collin Freeman

2023-07-30 21:04:44 +0000 UTC

as others have said most of what the "special edition" here entailed was finishing off or doing some shots they didn't have time for, but for the rest of the visuals they pretty much just went back and restored and re-scanned the original film reels. The one thing though that I always don't like about this edit is they replaced almost all the alert sound effects with ones that seem really inferior to what they originally had in the film.

Seirsan

2023-07-30 21:01:04 +0000 UTC

That "oath of celibacy" from Ilia was supposed to be a bigger plot point in the originally planned Phase 2 show. The Deltans (her species) were supposed to have an incredibly high sex drive so her oath of celibacy kept that in check for her Star Fleet service. Just one of the many ideas they had for the show that never got realized :) Not sure why they kept that line in the movie lol Interesting fact btw, the actress I think was a model, and when she was offered the role and heard she needed to shave off her hair for the role she didn't hesitate. You can look her up :)

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-30 20:59:20 +0000 UTC

For a while now I have been thinking about what your reactions to certain things would be (mostly from the start of the movie), such as the overture, the main theme, the Klingon battle, Spock on Vulcan, San Francisco and the tour of the Enterprise. So I am thrilled to have finally seen them :) Loved the cheers with every character entrance. And I was even waiting for the "It's Janice!". It was funny seeing Josh's look of recognition as it slowly dawned that Janice Rand was back. I actually watched the Directors cut for the first time last week when I first found it available on Itunes and it wasn't a chore to watch it again so soon :) The movie gets a little slow once they leave the orbit of Earth, but it is very pretty so I enjoyed it far more than I remembered. Of course, the previous times that I watched it was the original cut so that no doubt affected the viewing experience. And while I do like the visual style and the overall tone, I do think that this was missing some of the spirit of the Original series, such as the character interactions. That said, I agree that the rest of the cast - Nichelle Nichols in particular - did much with what little they were given. My favourite part of the movie is the score, although I agree about the sound mixing being off when it came to the score and the dialogue. But I just love the main theme and all the iterations in which it appears here. The overture theme is great too. And the use of the blaster beam makes "And The Children Shall Lead" almost worth it - the inventor played Tommy in that episode, as well as Kirk's nephew in "Operation Anihilate!" They did play the Original Series theme in at least two scenes, once was in the background during the Captain's Log sequence and then later when...my mind has gone blank on the specifics but Uhura was in the scene. Voyager I and II had been launched in 1977 so it was still pretty topical at that time. I believe by the time the movie had come out both Voyager probes had already made flybys of Jupiter and was on its way to Saturn. They are still out there, having now left the Solar System, although they are expected to run out of power in the next few years...and apparently Voyager II's antenna was recently inadvertently pointed away from Earth with a correction not due to take place until October. Those were the only Voyager probes launched, Voyager VI in the movie is fictional. Warp 0.5 means half the speed of light, whilst Warp 1 is the speed of light. Above Warp 1 it goes up in...I forget which scale but Warp 2 is not twice the speed of light but a figure somewhat higher if that makes sense.

Dion James Pitman

2023-07-30 20:30:27 +0000 UTC

Your reaction was pretty much how I remember feeling about it when I first saw it in the theater in 1979. Then later, after thinking about it, it became like The Phantom Menance or the JJ Abrams films, and I thought "It really wasn't that good." This was Gene Roddenberry's $40 million retread of The Changeling, Immunity Syndrome, Doomsday Machine, and Obsession all put together. V'Ger may have achieved a human factor, but to me, this film is almost totally lacking in it. The security officers now wear "reflective armor" which makes no sense to me if you take a full phaser shot. Your comments about 2001: A Space Odyssey comparisons are spot on. The color palette is so bland. If you like (or miss) red, hang on. You'll get plenty of it in the next films. I hope you do a live stream of watching Star Trek II. It would be so worth it. Love rewatching these films with you guys!!!

Collin Freeman

2023-07-30 20:19:35 +0000 UTC

Agreed. The V'Ger light probe on the bridge is exactly how I remember seeing it in the theater in 1979.

Collin Freeman

2023-07-30 20:14:19 +0000 UTC

Alan Dean Foster is a fine science fiction author in his own right, but he is also a prolific novelization author, including Star Trek: The Animated Series, Star Wars (the book of the first film) and Alien (and many more). He contributed the story for this film.

Mateo Latosa

2023-07-30 20:06:08 +0000 UTC

I was shaking my fist in triumph when Alex said he loved it :) I'm so happy you both liked it. I was worried because it has slow pacing and I knew Alex didn't like Kirk vs Computer, so I am so happy that you could look past that and even saw it as the perfect trope for a TOS movie hehe. In regards to the color, that will change with the remaining movies. They change the uniform again and bring some more color into the sets as well. The movies will also change pace a bit more towards more action, and the side characters will also get more to do. So all those smaller problems got ironed out. In terms of Kirk's story, yes they couldn't make this story about him giving up command since this was originally supposed to start his 2nd 5 year mission with a new show after all. Only after they saw the success of Star Wars they turned this into a movie instead of a show pilot. So this crew was supposed to be the new enterprise crew, and from what I remember, Decker was supposed to stay on as 1st officer and Ilia was supposed to remain as Navigator, while Chekov moved to the tactical position as weapon's officer. In TNG Decker's character was inspiration for the role Johnathan Frakes ends up playing. So instead of ST Phase II we got ST TNG with a lot of the ideas still in place :) So in a way this was the prototype TNG hehe. I'm still pumped you liked it and I was so happy whenever you cheered another one of the main cast showing up :) And yes that was Janice Rand :) I was wondering if you were going to recognize her :)

Andreas Schmitt

2023-07-30 20:04:27 +0000 UTC

Alex's point about the resemblance of the visual effects to those in 2001 A Space Odyssey is mainly due to Douglas Trumbull being in charge of the effects for this movie, while he was one of the effects supervisors on Kubrick's film.

Numinous2019

2023-07-30 19:48:57 +0000 UTC

My favorite film of ALL of the Trek movies. It is in my estimation the most Trek-like of Rodenberry's scifi philosophy. It's also THE most cinematic where every shot is just artistically framed. Is it perfect? No. The the best? No. But it is for me the benchmark of Trek cinema. So glad I didnt hear the word "boring" from you. Please check out the other versions or at least the extra scenes.

Michael Nemo

2023-07-30 19:46:35 +0000 UTC

So since we've officially entered a new era I have to dust off this old chestnut and give it an upgrade .... ahem So, uh, when's the next Star Trek Movie Reaction coming? Well this was a treat. A pleasure as always gents. "For Bob" was Robert Wise, director of the film who passed away some years back. Robert Wise you may remember from the classi c"The Day The Earth Stood Still." He's also probably the biggest director in terms of directing pedigree that Star Trek EVER got. It's so important to understand that this film is a bit of a miracle in the fact there's anything even coherent on the screen. The script was not finished. The actors were making stuff up, like I said on your announcement post previously... Scenes like the "tears" scene were made up by the actors. The ending was basically entirely the actors taking the "story" that existed and actually forming a script of sorts. RE: The Klingons. There was a different ending at one point where, after V'ger ascends to a higher plane, the Klingons and Epsilon XI were restored in Earth orbit, and the Klingon ships immediately engaged the Enterprise in battle, forcing the ship to seperate the saucer section. This sequence was story boarded, but nothing was ever filmed. I think it would have just cost way too much. The movie is already stupidly expensive when you factor in that a large sum of money was spent building sets, costumes, etc for the PHASE II tv show. All of that had to be reworked to film standards. This was my first Star Trek ever, and it inspired some of my earliest nightmares as well. The V'ger stuff is haunting, and especially when they're first investigating has an almost Lovecraftian quality. To give you an idea of the scope/scale that we're talking about the guy on the space station says that the cloud has a diameter of "2 AUs." An AU is an Astronomical Unit. The distance between Earth and the sun. V'gers cloud was two of those. V'ger and it's cloud are probably the single biggest space vessel/entity that we ever see in Star Trek. 'yuge. We don't get another Trek movie quite like this one. From here Gene was told to go away, basically, and because it wasn't a huge success, mostly because of how expensive it was to make, the budgets get tighter, and the writers/directors have to be a lot more inventive and character focused... Which I think most people will agree is actually a good thing. Wrath of Khan feels a lot more like TOS. Still, TMP will always hold a place in my heart, and the restoration is breathtaking. It's a shame Robert Wise didn't live to see it. Can't wait to hear your more in depth thoughts going forward. The Human Adventure is just beginning. OH! Also, the theme music. You hear it during the Captain's logs. Interesting note about that is that Jerry Goldsmith didn't feel right playing the theme himself, so Alexander Courage came back and recorded those short sections himself. The fanfare is also sprinkled throughout. Interestingly, TMP is the only G-rated Star Trek movie. All the rest of them are PG, up until Star Trek Nemesis, which is PG-13.

Steven Johnson

2023-07-30 19:44:15 +0000 UTC

Wow so enjoyable to watch again and see your reactions thanks for making me enjoy like I did when I was 10 years old. Just enough fan service without it being the whole thing great visuals neat story.

AzoriusMage

2023-07-30 19:43:41 +0000 UTC

Pleasantly surprised you both enjoyed it despite the slow pace. This was the last of the classic Trek movies I ever watched, because I had heard its reputation as the slow and boring one. When I finally got curious enough to watch it, my thoughts were essentially "this would have been a really great 50-minute episode of Star Trek". I like a lot about it, but the long sequences of spectacle with nothing happening just get ridiculous after a while. The TOS episode you're thinking of with a very similar plot is season 2 episode 3, "The Changeling". An old 20th century earth probe called Nomad collided with an alien probe, and the alien probe attempted to repair and combine the two of them into a single probe, which wound up with a very confused program and went seeking its creator, which it expected to be a machine like itself. It was only maybe 5 years ago that I watched the entire movie, but I did see clips here and there when I was a kid and it was on TV. I mainly remember the screaming mangled figure in the transporter beam being nightmare fuel. I think that scene was the main reason the movie got a PG rating instead of G. (back in the 70s, G included what would be a soft PG today, and PG included what would be a soft PG-13 today, and PG-13 didn't exist.)

Jeff Cornell

2023-07-30 19:40:34 +0000 UTC

I believe it was played while people were still taking their seats and the house lights would have gone down after. Kind of nice. Now we have to watch a bazillion previews and ads for the first 30 minutes of every movie. I'd much rather have a nice overture playing like this.

danzthename

2023-07-30 19:36:11 +0000 UTC

This story is a combination of The Changeling (Earth probe repaired by a machine civilization and finding its creator, (Jackson Roy)kirk and One of Our Planets is Missing in which an intelligent cloud is heading to the heart of the Federation consuming planets along the way with the Enterprise entering the cloud to find its central intelligence.

Mateo Latosa

2023-07-30 19:30:51 +0000 UTC

The Bob dedication was for Robert Wise, the legendary director who also directed the classic Day the Earth Stood Still, felt he never was able to finish editing the 1979 cut of the film to reflect his vision. He supervised the second edit but still wanted a few changes This third version is the closest we'll ever get.

Mark Chrisco

2023-07-30 19:05:16 +0000 UTC

There was a scene of McCoy arguing with Kirk about going out to get Spock in the spacesuit, but it was filmed one way, with a different suit, and it didn't match the final scene, so they couldn't include that in the DC. (It was in a old TV version, complete with an unfinished shot of the Enterprise airlock, where you could see the stage rafter above William Shatner.)

tyranusfan

2023-07-30 19:05:15 +0000 UTC

Well, my Sunday evening just came to a well deserved stop! So glad you guys enjoyed this. It gotten more, imo deserved, praise of late after years of being derided. That said I feel you guys have now left low earth orbit and are really getting out there into the wider Trek universe. Really looking forward to Wrath of Kahn...thanks and LLAP!

Tuomas Leone

2023-07-30 18:44:03 +0000 UTC

So just an FYI, you are looking at MOSTLY the original FX for the movie. It looks ALMOST exactly like it did in 1979-80 when I first saw it. There are a couple of shots where things were COMPLETED, filled-in that Wise didn't have time to do because they yanked it out of his hands before he was finished. But you keep wondering what they 'originally' looked like; they looked like this. There were some backgrounds added into Vulcan, and on Earth, but mostly shots and sequences with people in them, have been put back in, and more importantly a really annoying alarm sound was switched out for a much less disruptive klaxon. The bridge probe, for example, is the same effect it always was.

Angelaina Marie

2023-07-30 18:32:19 +0000 UTC

Syd Mead, formerly a designer in the American car industry, designed the V'Ger spacecraft. Mead also designed the flying cars in Blade Runner, the Leonov spaceship in 2010, the armoured personnel vehicle in Aliens and some of the elements of Tron.

Numinous2019

2023-07-30 18:23:47 +0000 UTC

And it is Doohan who is speaking the Klingon words. Took me some time to realise that.

Numinous2019

2023-07-30 18:07:02 +0000 UTC

Knowing it was Bones waiting for you two to realise was such a good moment

AzoriusMage

2023-07-30 18:05:33 +0000 UTC

Well, I’ve got everything all queued up. I’ll be watching your reaction on my phone with a remote speaker, and I have the film queued up on my projector on a 9‘ x 6‘ screen. I just want to say that no matter what your reaction is, I’m going to love it because it’s YOUR reaction, and that’s what’s most important. I have a pretty good idea, knowing you both, but I’m looking forward to it no matter what. Here goes! Comments after the screening. Cue overture!

Rich Cirivilleri

2023-07-30 17:37:39 +0000 UTC

Captain Decker was supposed to be the son of Commodore Decker, of Doomsday Machine fame, but that detail didn't make it into the movie.

tyranusfan

2023-07-30 17:31:37 +0000 UTC

The Klingon commander at the start was played by Mark Lenard, aka Spock's dad and the first Romulan we saw. He was the first actor to play the three main alien races in ST. (Not the last by any means.) The Klingon language he spoke was roughed out by James Doohan.

tyranusfan

2023-07-30 17:16:30 +0000 UTC

So the thing at the beginning is an 'overture' and was at one time very common. I believe this and the overture at the beginning of The Black Hole, are the last time that was done in modern filmmaking. The soundtrack for this movie is one of my favorite and longest-treasured records. It's brilliant.

Angelaina Marie

2023-07-30 17:05:30 +0000 UTC

Looking forward to watching this tonight!

Bret Kay

2023-07-30 16:51:39 +0000 UTC

So excited to share this journey with you both!!!

Dale Gonyea

2023-07-30 16:39:17 +0000 UTC

What a journey you have begun from 1987 until nutrek finally broke me 5 eps in to S2 of SNW , it’s been quite a ride.

Scarpad’s Domain

2023-07-30 16:28:56 +0000 UTC

You just made my day! Screw chores, it's time to boldly go! 🖖

MrDeadstu

2023-07-30 16:28:11 +0000 UTC

Yay!!!

AzoriusMage

2023-07-30 16:26:35 +0000 UTC

[Excited Kermit gif]

danzthename

2023-07-30 16:22:04 +0000 UTC

UNCUT REACTION - Star Trek The Motion Picture (Director's Edition)

Comments

Here I watched this one yet again after your comments in ST:VI... Good memories..

Someone else did it again around 2000, a Japanese filmmaker whose name escapes me, I believe, but it is still extremely rare, which is unfortunate.

This film uses the premise of a TOS episode and expands on it . ** Info: S2 E3 · The Changeling - The Enterprise encounters NOMAD, a powerful artificially intelligent Earth probe lost 265 yrs in the past, comes aboard the Enterprise and mistakes Capt. Kirk for its creator.

The theme to the Star Trek TV was used during the Captain's logs.

Approval or not, that song slaps

I think the movie that feels the most like the tv series is the often derided Star Trek V, that's another movie that I've liked more than the general consensus, and the soundtrack also by Jerry Goldsmith is fantastic

she unfortunately died way too young

after years of Nutrek this is like a breath of smart air

Some nice trivia facts. Thanks.

It's really poetic that both men sacrificed themselves to end a giant planet-killing machine.

Yeah we all were Kirk seeing the ship after 10 years. The Directors cut the sequence is slightly trimmed

Marcy Lafferty, the actress portraying Chief DiFalco (who took over Navigation after Ilia was "patterned for data storage' and disappeared from the bridge) was MARRIED TO WILLIAM SHATNER when this picture was filmed.

They had to redo a lot of the effects at the time as I recall, which is why the film went insanely over budget.

Let's bring that back :😀

Decker was also one of the few ST characters that could tell Kirk he was wrong and have the audience on his side. not easy to pull off.

“For Bob” is Robert Wise, the director. This 4K directors cut was released after his death.

To be fair, once the Ilia drone comes aboard both versions basically flow the same. But the first act definitely improved.

The reason the uniforms were so colorful in the 60s TV series was to help sell them fancy shmancy new color TV sets. Not kidding!

Lucas and Roddenberry both loved eachother's work but were smart enough not to copy eachother. They wanted to realize their own vision, not cash in on the other one's. I wish filmmakers like that we're more common again.

The “theme from Star Trek tv series” is played every time Kirk does a Captain’s Log.

Release order makes me happy. And like I said before, I can't wait to see you watching two series a week. There is a two season overlap when TNG and DS9 aired simultaneously. And another overlap with DS9 and Voyager.

Yes the uniforms were very in keeping with sci-fi of the time

If you want a laugh, look up Shaun Cassidy- A Star Beyond Time. It’s Ilia’s theme… with lyrics… it’s hysterical and AMAZING. https://youtu.be/7HYpkJQGyOg

the opening before the title card was a what a a there to get the audience in the mood, they didn't show commercials before films and top premier films would have the score to entertain the audience. that's what they heard as they were getting their popcorn and getting in their seats.

Not sure if someone else has mentioned this but 99% of the effects you saw were as audiences saw them in 1979. Damn impressive

We are watching in release order

They believed this would be the only movie. However, with such a success, it was felt they could make a second one which addressed several of the issues that you two talked about with the first one. That became a success, so they made a third, …

You liked it!! Awesome watch along. Another excuse for me to watch again for a millionth time. I saw this in the theater Dec 79 and it was awesome then. Well, can't wait for Star Trek 2 watch along. 2, 3, and 4 are like a huge 3 act movie. Thanks guys!

Can't wait for the next ones!

If I imagine TMP trimmed down to the 90-minute runtime of subsequent Trek pilots and two-parters, you might be right. But I think the DS9 pilot would give it a run for its money.

No spoilers: I won't say what or how, so it's still left to our esteemed pair of First Timers to find out for themselves. There is a WHOLE LOT more to that story than I described here, and what I stated is just an appetizer, as it were.

I loved watching with you guys. Many found this too cerebral but every time I watch this grows on me a little more.

Dude, spoilers?

Honestly if this had been the Phase 2 show pilot it would have been the best pilot of all the ST shows. Some of those pilots are good but none are like this.

Especially for something to go into earth orbit hehe. But even just the vger ship without the cloud is still one of the biggest ships of any Sci fi

There's also a cut scene with Sulu just gawking at Ilia and then fumbling about when Decker - who is taking great delight at the effect that Ilia is having on Sulu - asks Sulu to show her something on the controls. Edit: Found it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJCIW2iF7Zo

He certainly had the Reputation for Putting sex into every Story. Mudds women was his first Script I think

Roddenberry was such a horn-dog.

Yes! Correct! Probably even more Metamorphosis than Obsession.

That's right! I had forgotten that!

I agree with everything you said. The flare in Uhuru's eyes when Spock says that V'ger has in fact been communicating is a great example of what Nichols was able to do with so little in this film. Uhuru's professional pride has been hurt in this moment.

Chief DiFalco, the replacement navigator, was played by Marcy Lafferty, Shatner's second wife.

Yeah, in Roddenberry's novelization there's a lot about Deltan pheromones and their effect on human males.

Also some elements of "Metamorphosis," where the Companion becomes human to join with Zefram Cochrane.

In the original version he said the cloud was over 82 AU's in diameter, but someone later must have decided that was too ridiculously big.

Oh my God”Kirk likes ‘em blonde, but I like ‘em bald.” I shotgun spat my junior mint right at the screen.🤪

She had a good role (with full hair) in Nighthawks with Sly Stallone and Billy D Williams. She was Miss India for some beauty pageant before this film.

Agreed. The V'Ger light probe on the bridge is exactly how I remember seeing it in the theater in 1979.

Alan Dean Foster is a fine science fiction author in his own right, but he is also a prolific novelization author, including Star Trek: The Animated Series, Star Wars (the book of the first film) and Alien (and many more). He contributed the story for this film.

Alex's point about the resemblance of the visual effects to those in 2001 A Space Odyssey is mainly due to Douglas Trumbull being in charge of the effects for this movie, while he was one of the effects supervisors on Kubrick's film.

Wow so enjoyable to watch again and see your reactions thanks for making me enjoy like I did when I was 10 years old. Just enough fan service without it being the whole thing great visuals neat story.

I believe it was played while people were still taking their seats and the house lights would have gone down after. Kind of nice. Now we have to watch a bazillion previews and ads for the first 30 minutes of every movie. I'd much rather have a nice overture playing like this.

Syd Mead, formerly a designer in the American car industry, designed the V'Ger spacecraft. Mead also designed the flying cars in Blade Runner, the Leonov spaceship in 2010, the armoured personnel vehicle in Aliens and some of the elements of Tron.

And it is Doohan who is speaking the Klingon words. Took me some time to realise that.

Knowing it was Bones waiting for you two to realise was such a good moment

Captain Decker was supposed to be the son of Commodore Decker, of Doomsday Machine fame, but that detail didn't make it into the movie.

The Klingon commander at the start was played by Mark Lenard, aka Spock's dad and the first Romulan we saw. He was the first actor to play the three main alien races in ST. (Not the last by any means.) The Klingon language he spoke was roughed out by James Doohan.

Looking forward to watching this tonight!

So excited to share this journey with you both!!!

What a journey you have begun from 1987 until nutrek finally broke me 5 eps in to S2 of SNW , it’s been quite a ride.

You just made my day! Screw chores, it's time to boldly go! 🖖

Yay!!!

[Excited Kermit gif]

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