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Review of Star Trek: The Motion Picture The Director`s Edition
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Chris Cox
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    About This Item

    Unique ID Code: 0000026240
    Added by: DVD Reviewer
    Added on: 7/11/2001 11:13
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    Star Trek: The Motion Picture The Director`s Edition (US)

    7 / 10
    4 votes cast
    Rate this item
    Inline Image

    The human adventure is just beginning
    Certificate: PG
    Running Time: 136 mins
    Retail Price: $29.99
    Release Date:

    Synopsis:
    The U.S.S. Enterprise™ proudly soars again in this new, beautifully restored Director`s Edition of the original Star Trek™ movie classic. This new Director`s Cut features enhanced visual effects and a new sound mix, supervised by legendary director Robert Wise. When an unidentified alien destroys three powerful Klingon cruisers, Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) returns to the newly transformed U.S.S. Enterprise™ to take command. Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley and the cast from the acclaimed original Star Trek™ television series mobilize at warp speed to stop the alien intruder from its relentless flight toward Earth.

    Special Features:
    Interactive Menus
    Scene Access

    Disc 1:
    Group Commentary by Director Robert Wise, Special Photographic Effects Director Douglas Trumbull, Special Photographic Effects Supervisor John Dykstra, Music Composer Jerry Goldsmith and Actor Stephen Collins
    Text Commentary by Michael Okuda, Co-Author of The Star-Trek® Encyclopedia

    Disc 2:
    New Retrospective Documentaries with Cast & Crew Interviews: Phase II: The Lost Enterprise, A Bold New Enterprise, Redirecting The Future
    Teaser Trailer
    Theatrical Trailer
    New Director`s Edition Trailer
    8 Television Commercials
    5 Additional Scenes (From the 1979 Theatrical Version)
    11 Deleted Scenes (From the 1983 TV Version)
    Storyboard Archive
    Interactive Menus
    New Star Trek™ series Enterprise Promo Spot

    Video Tracks:
    Widescreen Anamorphic 1.85:1

    Audio Tracks:
    Dolby Digital 5.1 English
    Dolby Digital Surround 2.0 English

    Subtitle Tracks:
    English

    Directed By:
    Robert Wise

    Written By:



    Starring:
    Mark Lenard
    Grace Lee Whitney
    Stephen Collins
    Persis Khambatta
    Majel Barrett
    Nichelle Nichols
    Walter Koenig
    George Takei
    James Doohan
    DeForest Kelley
    Leonard Nimoy
    William Shatner

    Casting By:
    Marvin Paige

    Soundtrack By:
    Jerry Goldsmith
    Gerald Fried

    Music From:
    Alexander Courage

    Director of Photography:
    Richard H. Kline

    Editor:
    Todd C. Ramsay

    Costume Designer:
    Robert Fletcher

    Production Designer:
    Harold Michelson

    Producer:
    Gene Roddenberry
    Jon Povill
    David C. Fein

    Distributor:
    Paramount Pictures

    Your Opinions and Comments

    8 / 10
    This dvd is a star trek fan`s must buy. A brilliant director`s cut with added scenes and enhancements. (Note the video itself still hasn`t been cleaned up that much) Good sound but no DTS and plenty of extra`s which is a first in Star Trek DVD`s. Let`s hope the next Star Trek DVD`s has plenty of extra`s too.Everybody properly seen this already so if you`re a star trek fan you`ve got this already and the others well it`s up to you.
    posted by David Garner on 14/11/2001 23:33
    8 / 10
    A must buy if you are into Trek even if you hated it the first time round it is sure worth another look with the added special effects and superb re-edit.
    Great extras...roll on Star Trek II!
    posted by groovedoctor on 28/12/2001 22:09
    8 / 10
    Don`t listen to Chris Cox - the score is far from being bleep bleep synthesiser music, but is in fact one of Jerry Goldsmith`s best scores. The new soundmix preserves all of Jerry`s layered and powerful soundtrack, and Chris convienently seems to forget that the score was nominated in both the Oscars and Golden Globes for Best Original Score in 1980. The score includes the very memorable Goldsmith Star Trek theme, which was used in four subsequent ST movies (Final Frontier, First Contact, Insurrection and Nemesis), and of course, for every single episode of The Next Generation. The score also helps capture some of the grandeur Wise tried to inject into the proceedings, full of mystery and chilling use of the "Blaster Beam", not a synth, but a fifteen foot long instrument using artillery shell casings and magnets to produce the unearthly twangs signifying V`ger`s presence.

    Oh, and Chris ... "The movie starts with a very long shot of a star field set to the score" ... this is called an overture, and was a common feature to movies in the past before ST:TMP`s release - here the wonderful "Ilia`s Theme" is used to superb effect. Initially black on theatrical release, subsequent releases using the overture used a moving starfield as is seen on the Director`s Edition DVD.

    As for his other comments, Chris is obviously blissfully unaware of split focus techniques, and for a 22 year old film (at time of release for this disc), the print stands up very well indeed, and looks more vibrant than in previous releases. It`s unfortunate more work wasn`t done to further restore the print, but Foundation Imaging`s work on "completing" the tasks given to John Dykstra and shops like Abel and Apogee is superb, finally fleshing out the previously unclear form of V`ger, and the very appropriate editing trims some unnecessarily drawn out sections of the movie to tighten the pacing.

    A wonderful movie, given the final touches by both the original director and some of today`s movie magicians.
    posted by neuro on 20/4/2003 15:16