BUY IT AT AMAZON: CLICK HERE
STUDIO: Paramount
MSRP: $139.99
RATED: PG
RUNNING TIME: 685 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:

Nothing

The Pitch

William Shatner admits to having never watched The Next Generation

The Humans

Director: Tim King

Cinematographer: Adam Biggs

Cast: Jonathan Frakes, Whoopi Goldberg, Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner, Patrick Stewart

I promise you, Ted Danson’s balls were this big!

The Nutshell

A one-hour discussion with the two greatest Enterprise captains and their first mates.

Yeah, but you haven’t me. It is about this long and …

The Lowdown

You can watch this all together or split it into three parts. A lot has been said about William Shatner admit to never having watched an episode of Next Generation but it should also be noted he also says he never watched an episode of Boston Legal either. This is a perfect conclusion to the package as the four stars are led in a wonderful interview with Whoopi Goldberg. They all share fantastic anecdotes and stories that make the seventy minute running time fly by. This could easily have gone on for another hour and it never would have lost its appeal.

You .. have got to be … kidding … me

The Package

Nothing

STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE – 6/10
STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KAHN – 10/10
STAR TREK III: THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK – 7/10
STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME – 8/10
STAR TREK V: THE FINAL FRONTIER – 3/10
STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY – 8/10

STAR TREK: ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE COLLECTION – 10/10

BUY IT AT AMAZON: CLICK HERE
STUDIO: Paramount
MSRP: $139.99
RATED: PG
RUNNING TIME: 685 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary
• The Perils of Peacemaking
• Stories from Star Trek VI
• Conversations with Nicholas Meyer
• Klingons: Conjuring the Legend
• Federation Operatives
• Penny’s Toy Box
• Together Again
• Tom Morga: Alien Stuntman
• To Be or Not to Be: Klingons and Shakespeare
• DeForest Kelley: A Tribute
• Original Interviews 
• Production Gallery
• Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 006: Praxis
• Storyboards 
• Trailers
• 1991 Convention Presentation by Nicholas Meyer

The Pitch

The final voyage of the original crew.

The Humans

Director: Nicholas Meyer

Writers: Nicholas Meyer & Denny Martin Flinn

Cinematographer: Hiro Narita

Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Kim Cattrall, Mark Lenard, Grace Lee Whitney, Brock Peters, Leon Russom, Kurtwood Smith, Christopher Plummer

No, I won’t do the Darth Vader voice, now stop asking me

The Nutshell

The original crew gets a sendoff in a murder mystery

The Lowdown

The original idea behind Star Trek was the notion that the Federation represented the United States and the Klingon Empire represented The Soviet Union. By the time this film, the final with the original crew, was in production the Cold War had come to an end and the United States stood tall. The Undiscovered Country took that as the starting point and created a murder mystery surrounding the uneasy alliance between the two sworn enemies.

not funny guys…

A disaster takes place, not unlike the Chernobyl incident, and unless the Federation comes to the rescue, the Klingon race is doomed. A lot was done in this movie to show the racist strife that still existed between two societies that could not be more different. James Kirk was given much more to do in this movie as he deals with the death of his son in the face of having to help the people he deems responsible. This movie is a great sendoff to the cast as everyone seems to get their moment in the sun and the entire film is gives a wonderful goodbye to the fans.

The movie itself is a murder mystery dressed up like a Star Trek film. The influences here range from Sherlock Holmes to film noir as director Nicholas Meyer (Wrath of Kahn) returns to prove he is the greatest Star Trek director of them all. The mystery of whether Kirk and Bones were responsible for the attack on the helpless Klingon vessel is never in doubt, but the question of who is responsible, and why, is what lingers through the film. Thanks to this wonderful story and a great emotional sendoff for the original crew, this remains one of the best movies of the series.

Yargh!!

The Package

There are two commentary tracks, the first with director Nicholas Meyer and screenwriter Denny Martin Flinn and the second with Larry Nemecek and Ira Steven Behr. The track with the director is a great listen as he walks us through the influences for the movie, from Dashiell Hammett to Sherlock Holmes. The movie is full of little Easter eggs and he points out them all (Spock is a descendent of Sherlock Holmes). The other track is more fan oriented with a look at the Star Trek Universe as a whole. Unlike the Meyer track, which was informative and educational, this one is full of humor and one of the more fun tracks in the set. The same Library Computer feature that was on the other movies is also available here.

The Perils of Peacemaking is a documentary looking at the real world implications of the movie. Leonard Nimoy and Nicholas Meyer talk about the similarities between this story and the fall of the Soviet Union, Chernobyl and the bringing down of the Berlin Wall. It is an interesting look at the film and Meyer points out that when you take real world problems and move them into outer space, people can look at these problems from a different perspective, without built in prejudices.

Don’t worry, let me find a giant tauntaun and you will be just fine

Stories From Star Trek VI is a making-of feature split into six sections. I find it very interesting that this was the time they considered making the Starfleet Academy movie that we got with the recent J.J. Abrams reboot. They talk about how Nimoy came up with the metaphorical ideas of the movie. They also discuss the Shakespeare aspects, special effects, the final farewell to the original crew, and the racial undertones of the times. This is a great watch, at close to an hour in length. I also find it funny when Shatner talks about “hearing” about a new show they were working on – a show that had been on TV for four years when this movie was released.

There is a small feature talking to director Nicholas Meyer about his career. Klingons: Conjuring the Legend is a 20-minute look at the Klingons. It is a full history of the race, from their creation to their transformation over the years and more. It is a great feature for fans of the show. Federation Operatives is a neat little feature where we see various actors who have played different roles on various Star Trek properties. These include David Warner (Star Trek VI, Star Trek V, Star Trek: TNG), Kurtwood Smith (Star Trek VI, ST: DS9, Voyager), Brock Peters (Star Trek VI, Star Trek IV, ST: DS9), Michael Dorn (Star Trek VI, ST: TNG, ST: DS9), Rene Auberjonois (Star Trek VI, ST: DS9) and more.

Penny’s Toy Box is a look at a highly secured storage room full of props used in all the Star Trek movies. Together Again is a look at the career trajectories of William Shatner and Christopher Plummer, who both started out in Montreal. Tom Morga: Alien Stuntman is a look at the character actor who has played aliens in almost every Star Trek property since Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

To Be or Not to Be: Klingons and Shakespeare is a strange feature. Basically, a theater group put on a full stage production of Hamlet, performed as Klingons in the Klingon language. This is all due to a line from the movie where Chancellor Gorkon says that you haven’t heard Shakespeare until you have heard it in Klingon. The Starfleet Academy feature is also included here.

This features a tribute to DeForest Kelley. Everyone from Christopher Plummer to Leonard Nimoy talks about Bones and we get a nice look at his career. Nicholas Meyer mentions that Kelley had the most experience of any member of the original crew. Next up is a large number of original interviews with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig and Iman. There is also a production gallery, storyboards and trailers. We finish off the package with a 2001 Convention discussion with Nicholas Meyer.

BUY IT AT AMAZON: CLICK HERE
STUDIO: Paramount
MSRP: $139.99
RATED: PG
RUNNING TIME: 685 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary
• Harve Bennett’s Pitch to Sales Team
• The Journey: A Behind the Scenes Documentary
• Makeup Tests
• Previsualization Models
• Rockman in the Raw
• Star Trek V Press Conference
• Herman Zimmerman: A Tribute
• Original Interview: William Shatner
• Cosmic Thoughts
• That Klingon Couple
• A Green Future?
• Star Trek Honors NASA
• Hollywood Walk of Fame: James Doohan
• Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 005: Nimbus III

The Pitch

Let’s go find the Wonderful Wizard of God!
 
The Humans

Director: William Shatner

Writers: David Loughery

Cinematographer: Andrew Laszlo

Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, David Warner, Laurence Luckinbill, Charles Cooper, Cynthia Gouw, Todd Bryant, Spice Williams, Rex Holman, George Murdock

The Nutshell

The Star Trek franchise goes back to the original story idea that Gene Roddenberry conceived and throws out a stinker.

Wait, is this not the set for Jason Takes Manhattan?

The Lowdown

I like to imagine William Shatner making the pitch to the producers that anything Leonard Nimoy can do, he can do better. If this movie is any indication, he failed. There are a number of people who like to debate the “odds are bad, evens are good” argument and I don’t believe it is necessarily true. However, this movie is easily the worst movie starring the original crew by such a large measure that it brings all other odd numbered movies down on its own.

The Final Frontier takes Gene Roddenberry’s original idea for the first movie, a world discovering that God is not who you expected him to be, and runs with it. However, after such a fun movie in The Voyage Home, this plodding, boring movie was like a kick to the face of Star Trek fans. When a Star Trek story is not fun and exciting, it needs to be intriguing and question everything. This movie throws out a ton of questions but gives us no answers – at least answers that matter.

LOOK OUT!!!

While a lot of the complaints have to go to the screenwriters, Shatner does nothing in his directing to make the movie interesting, to make the audience care, or to make anything that happens coherent and connect in any logical way. William Shatner has a one-upmanship contest going with Leonard Nimoy and, in this one instance, is trumped in every conceivable way.

The Package

There are two commentary tracks included here, the first with William Shatner and his daughter Liz and the second with Michael & Denise Okuda, Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Daren Dochterman. The track with the Shatner’s is not as funny as you might expect and I am finding that his commentary tracks never allow him to be as funny as he really is. However, they point out a lot of scene specific information and it remains informative. Now, the other track is with a group of writers and experts of the franchise and it is clear through the tone of the voices that they know the movie is crap but are careful not to bash it too much. The same Library Computer feature that was on the other movies is also available here.

Please, this is important, tell my son he must …

The Journey: A Behind-the-Scenes Documentary looks at the creation of the movie, talking to everyone involved. William Shatner talks about how hard it was to make the movie as a director and lead actor. Shatner says his original plan was to go in search of God but instead finds the Devil, proving that God does exist. When Roddenberry explains that making a Star Trek movie about God won’t work, which seemed to really bum Shatner out. A compromise was made with the writers and The Final Frontier was born. Harve Bennett still seems to believe the movie has stood up to the tests of time. He lies.

Harve Bennett’s Pitch to Sales Team is a gimmick pitch where Bennett uses the Vulcan symbol for “truth” to say that Star Trek V is as good as, if not better, than Star Trek IV. He lies. There is a series of Make-Up Tests for God, Sybok, General Korrd, Caithlin Dar and an assortment of aliens. These include drawn sketches, photos and the actual screen tests themselves. There is no dialogue or music played during this feature. Pre-visualization Models is a very short feature (with no sound at all) where the effects team plays with the models.

Jim was still angry about not knowing who put the mayo in his underwear drawer.

Rockman in the Raw explains that there was originally an elaborate climactic sequence with Kirk’s escape, with Kirk fighting ten Rockman creatures. Thanks to budget constraints, Shatner was denied and only one Rockman was built. After tests, they cut it completely from the movie. This shows production design of the creature, with sketches and photos and some test footage. There is also a thirteen minute press conference taking place on the last day of photography. We get to hear the answers but never hear the questions asked. It is the first time the cast has been assembled together for this type of press conference.

Herman Zimmerman, the production designer on most of the films and many shows, is given a nice 20-minute tribute. It includes an interview with Zimmerman as well as other production team members talking about what he brought to the table. We also get a 14-minute interview with William Shatner from Yosemite Park during the time of the shoot. Cosmic Thoughts is a discussion with sci-fi writers and scientists about the themes of the movie. Todd Bryant and Spice Williams talk about playing the Klingon couple Klaa and Vixis and the effect it had on their lives. A Green Future? discusses the original hopes that Yosemite Park will still there for many, many years and then climaxes with a discussion about Global Warming.

Star Trek Honors NASA is a new feature talking to astronaut Terry Virks and the influence Star Trek had on his life. A number of experts discuss how the show inspired a number of people who work at NASA. A short feature is included about James Doohan (Scotty) being honored on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It includes kind words from both Walter Koenig and George Takei. Also included is another stupid Starfleet Academy feature. Rounding out the features are four deleted scenes, a 4-minute production gallery, 2 trailers and the TV spots.

BUY IT AT AMAZON: CLICK HERE
STUDIO: Paramount
MSRP: $139.99
RATED: PG
RUNNING TIME: 685 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary
• Future’s Past
• On Location
• Dailies Deconstruction
• Below the Line Sound Design
• Pavel Chekov’s Screen Moments
• Time Travel: The Art of the Possible
• The Language of the Whales
• A Vulcan Primer
• Star Trek: Three Picture Saga
• Star Trek for a Cause
• Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 004: The Whale Probe
• From Outer Space to the Ocean
• The Bird of Prey
• Original Interviews
• Roddenberry Scrapbook
• Production Gallery
• Storyboards

The Pitch

Leonard Nimoy, Whale Rider

The Humans

Director: Leonard Nimoy

Writers: Steve Meerson, Peter Krikes, Harve Bennett & Nicholas Meyer

Cinematographer: Don Peterman

Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, Jane Wyatt, Catherine Hicks, Mark Lenard, Robin Curtis, Robert Ellenstein, John Schuck, Brock Peters

The Nutshell

The crew of the Enterprise return to Earth to find the planet in mortal danger from a probe that wants to talk to whales.

Screw you guys, I’m going home…

The Lowdown

While this is the most successful Star Trek movie, the most profitable of the original series, I never liked it when I saw it as a kid. Hell, this movie is what made me not return for future installments of the franchise. I thought it was stupid at that time and the entire “saving the whale” subplot was ridiculous to me. This was Star Trek and I thought it had officially jumped the shark, causing me to shut it out for a long time.

Looking at the movie now, I realize how wrong I was. The movie is very funny, much lighter in tone to the previous two installments, and a much needed break from the pathos that had been built into the series. It is not as good as Wrath of Kahn but it does trump Search for Spock and, as an adult looking back in reflection, it is a pretty damn good movie.

Hi, we’re actors from Star Trek. For some loose change, we will perform for your pleasure!

The crew is travelling back home after rescuing Spock and are facing criminal charges for their actions in the last movie. When they reach Earth, they find that a probe has shut down everything and has blocked out the sun. Earth will perish if they don’t figure out a way to eliminate this danger. The probe is sending an audio signal to Earth and they realize it is waiting for a response, but no one knows what it wants. It is very similar to the plotline from the first movie in that aspect until Spock realizes the sound similar to the humpback whales songs, a species that had been extinct on Earth for years.

The plot makes no sense, the crew deciding to go back in to the past to capture two humpback whales to bring back to the present day so they can respond to the probe. The movie becomes a fish out of water film with McCoy horrified at the “barbaric” medical practices, Spock unsure about the 20th Century dialect, Scotty teaching an engineer how to develop the technology they need to fix their ship and Chekov getting his chance to shine as he is captured by the U.S. Military while trying to gain some nuclear power for their ship. The entire movie is hilarious, their time spent in our time keeping it light and fun.

It is most like the television show when displaying this fun atmosphere, reminding me of favorite episodes like Trouble with Tribbles, and that makes this one of the best movies in the cannon, most definitely the most enjoyable.

Now, if you will excuse me, I have a yoga class to attend

The Package

There are two commentary tracks on this Blu-Ray and both are really good. The first is with William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy. The bad news is Shatner is on his best behavior in the commentary and doesn’t make fun of Nimoy at all. That was a huge disappointment for me. However, the two carry on a great discussion about the movie, from the behind the scenes information to the plotline. They delivered a comfortable commentary that was easy to listen to and flowed throughout the movie. The second track is a “fan” track with Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, the writers of JJ Abram’s Star Trek reboot. They talk about the movie as fans, mentioning their reactions from the first time they saw the movie and pondering questions raised through re-watching the film. It is a fun track, not giving any real information about the movie, but allowing us to listen to two guys like us watching the movie. The same Library Computer feature that was on the other movies is also available here.

Similar to the Captain’s Logs features on the other discs, Future’s Past looks at the making of the movies, talking to everyone involved. Everyone talks about adding humor to the story to make it lighter fare, making sure things less serious than the other movies. William Shatner also talks about not approving of the time travel aspects of the story because that allows you to cheat the viewers but admits that, on this one occasion, Leonard Nimoy was actually right for a change. Like the Captain’s Log features, this one is great as well. I love these featurettes.

…

On Location is a fun look at the location shooting of the movie. What makes this unique is that most Star Trek movies are shot on sound stages. This is one of the first times they actually shot outdoors. Dailies Deconstruction is a short feature where you see the separate shots in a scene and the differences between camera angles, dialogue and more. It is decent but nothing important to watch. Below the Line Sound Design is exactly what it sounds like, a discussion with the man who created the sounds for the movie, from the phasers to the transporter. The sound editor says that Nimoy was a huge stickler for all the sound effects in this movie, preferring them to an actual score in some cases.

Pavel Chekov’s Screen Moments (HD) is an awesome interview with Walter Koenig about his big moments in this movie. He is so appreciative about the big moments he got in this movie. Koenig mentions that prior to this, he only got sound clips on the ship and when he got the big chase scene, with a Russian score, he was happier than he ever was making a Star Trek movie. Time Travel: The Art of the Possible has three physicists talk about time travel and its real-world possibilities. The Language of Whales is about various types of whales and their dialects.

A Vulcan Primer is narrated by a Star Trek novelist and discusses the Vulcan race, touching on their controlled emotions as well as the rules and lives of these beings. Kirk’s Women looks at the women that Kirk has courted in the movies. It has the women who starred as his love interests talking about both Kirk and William Shatner and is pretty much just a love fest for The Shat. Star Trek: Three Picture Saga (HD) looks at the “trilogy” that occurred from the second through the fourth movies. The fact that it was not meant to be a “trilogy” is explored as writers and crewmembers discuss the storyline, the inconsistencies and more. Star Trek: For a Cause (HD) is a Greenpeace special talking about how the movie helped their cause. They also mention that if you join Greenpeace today, you will get a personal call from William Shatner thanking you. Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 004: The Whale Probe is more of the same old crap.

From Outer Space to the Ocean is a look at the visual effects in the movie. They talk about how the more difficult effects were caused by the present day sequences. They look at the ocean, planetary and futuristic Earth effects and discuss how they made it work with present day San Francisco was thrown in as well. The Bird of Prey is another look at the spacecraft, much of it shown on the last film’s features. There are three original interviews with William Shatner, Deforest Kelly and Leonard Nimoy included as extras as well. Shatner is very difficult to interview in his segment, making the interviewer work hard for his answers. Roddenberry’s Scrapbook talks to the creator’s son about his father’s life and work. Featured Artist: Mark Lenard talks to the family of the man who portrayed Spock’s father about his life and career. There is also a production gallery, storyboards and trailers.

BUY IT AT AMAZON: CLICK HERE
STUDIO: Paramount
MSRP: $139.99
RATED: PG
RUNNING TIME: 685 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary
• Captain’s Log
• Terraforming and the Prime Directive
• Industrial Light & Magic: The Visual Effects of Star Trek
• Spock: The Early Years
• Space Docks and Birds of Prey
• Speaking Klingon
• Klingon and Vulcan Costumes
• Star Trek and the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame
• Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 003: Mystery Behind the Vulcan Katra Transfer
• Photo Gallery
• Storyboards 
• Theatrical Trailer

The Pitch

Hey, look! He ain’t dead!

Screw 3D and HD. I long for the days of 10 inch black and white TVs!

The Humans

Director: Leonard Nimoy

Writers: Harve Bennett

Cinematographer: Charles Correll

Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, Merritt Butrick, Phil Morris, Scott McGinnis, Robin Curtis, Robert Hooks

The Nutshell

Kirk heads back to the Genesis planet to retrieve Spock’s body so he can be buried properly and finds that he was reincarnated and is aging at an accelerated rate. He also has to fight Klingons!

Wait, she’s doing what to that donkey?

The Lowdown

I find it amusing Leonard Nimoy, the one principal actor who didn’t want to return for Wrath of Kahn, is not only back for the third effort but he returns as the director. His first task was to find a way to bring his character back from the dead and that is done using the Genesis project. The movie opens immediately after the last movie ended with the crew on their way back, mourning the loss of Spock. When they arrive home they are informed the Enterprise is being decommissioned and the crew dispersed. Dr. McCoy, who received a mindmeld with Spock in the second movie, is acting strangely because he now holds Spock’s katra.

There are definitely some things to dislike about the movie, not the least of which is the off-screen death of Admiral Kirk’s son, something that should have been more powerful than it turned out to be. But despite the shortcomings, this film works on its own merits. It is the middle chapter in a trilogy (2, 3 and 4) and possesses the sense of tragedy a middle chapter should. It is the darkest of the three, the crew at their lowest point and Spock in need of rescue, and then ending is very dark, although tinged with the same hope they left Wrath of Kahn with.

Wait, he’s doing what to that donkey?

This movie is nowhere near as action packed as its predecessor nor as funny or charming as the next movie but it is further proof that the law of odds (the odd numbers suck) is not necessarily true. It should not be judged against the movie’s surrounding it and works well on its own, Nimoy showing great care with the character he has grown into.

The Package

There is an audio commentary track with Leonard Nimoy, writer Harve Bennett, cinematographer Charles Correll and Robin Curtis. They are recorded separately and it is Nimoy who has the most to say which is just fine by me. Unlike Nicholas Meyer, who was pompous and annoying on his track, Nimoy is a joy to listen to. He has a laid back manner and his tone is conversational. I loved this commentary track. There is a second track with Ronald D. Moore and Michael Taylor, who at the time were fans. Moore went on to write First Contact and Generations while Taylor was a writer for Voyager. They put on a more interesting talk track as they converse about the scenes, the characters and their thoughts about the entire universe. Both tracks are worth your time. The same Library Computer feature that was on the other movies is also available here.

Captain’s Log is another fantastic look back at the film with the cast and crew. Director Leonard Nimoy had a lot of great stories to tell about the making of the movie. However, the real star is William Shatner who is hilarious as he always makes fun of Nimoy. There is the antidote that they weren’t going to let Nimoy direct the movie because they thought he hated Spock and demanded that his character die. When Nimoy said that was not true, they gave him the reins to the film. Terraforming and the Prime Directive is the next feature, looking at the opportunity to discuss how this science fiction can be utilized in real life. This feature talks about how to support life on Mars. It is kind of interesting, and I understand it’s relative to the Genesis project from the movie, but it has nothing to do with the movie so it is dispensable.

Industrial Light & Magic: The Visual Effects of Star Trek (HD) is another special effects featurette, the most interesting part being the destruction of the Enterprise. Spock: The Early Years (HD) is a look at the young actors who play Spock throughout his childhood. The one we hear the most from is Stephen Manley, who played the seventeen year old Spock who Ponfarred into manhood.

You said my son did what to that donkey?

Space Docks and Birds of Prey is a 27-minute feature over the design and techniques used to shoot the ships in the movie (the Enterprise and the Excelsior). It is a second visual effects feature but this one seems more focused, looking at the models, camera shots and more. Speaking Klingon is a fascinating feature where the man who created the language for Klingons and Vulcans explains how he created it. He goes through the steps showing how he developed not only the words but also the grammar rules for the languages. I am amazed at the work he put into this task.

Klingon and Vulcan Costumes discusses the costume design for the movies. Star Trek and the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (HD) is a sit-down interview with Harve Bennett about his contributions to the Star Trek universe. I bet you’ll never guess where they had the sit-down interview! This is interesting because Bennett is a smart guy with a lot to say about the genre. H says he originally was hired because he agreed the first movie was boring and said he could make a better movie for less money. His script ended up being Wrath of Kahn. Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 003: Mystery Behind the Vulcan Katra Transfer is the same sort of thing you saw on the previous discs. They are still not worth your time. Also included are photos, storyboards and a trailer.

BUY IT AT AMAZON: CLICK HERE
STUDIO: Paramount
MSRP: $139.99
RATED: PG
RUNNING TIME: 685 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary
• Captain’s Log
• Designing Khan
• Original Interviews with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, and Ricardo Montlaban
• Where No Man Has Gone Before: The Visual Effects of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
• James Horner: Composing Gensis
• Collecting Star Trek’s Movie Relics
• A Novel Approach
• Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 002: Mystery Behind Ceti Alpha Vi
• A Tribute to Ricardo Montalban
• Theatrical Trailer

The Pitch

KAAAAHHHNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!

The Humans

Director: Nicholas Meyer

Writers: Jack B. Sowards, Story by Harve Bennett and Jack B. Sowards

Cinematographer: Gayne Rescher

Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Bibi Besch, Merritt Butrick, Jeff McBride, Paul Winfield, Kirstie Alley, Ricardo Montalban

The Nutshell

When Kirk and the Enterprise investigate a planet, they run across Kahn, still angry about being abandoned there years before.

You know what this means!!!

The Lowdown

I mentioned that many people may decry Motion Picture due to its lack of action. While that may be true, those same people have every reason to praise Wrath of Kahn as the pinnacle of the franchise. They start off by paying true homage to the original series when they bring back a favored villain in Kahn, played with perfect menace by Ricardo Montalban. Montalban was afraid that, after years of playing Mr. Rourke in the popular Fantasy Island, no one would believe him as the psychotic bad guy in this movie. He had nothing to worry about as this role became what he is best known for to movie geeks the world over.

Another actor who wasn’t sure about coming on to the project was Leonard Nimoy, coy about returning to the role of Spock. Shatner was sure that Nimoy was just holding out for more money, but Nimoy says he was growing tired of only being known as Spock and had no desire to continue to be typecast in this one role. When he was offered a “great death scene” he reconsidered. That was also a great choice because it was Spock’s death at the end of the movie that gives it the emotional punch that makes it a superior film.

Campfire stories with Uncle Jim.

With a fantastic villain and an emotional conclusion, Wrath of Kahn remains the highlight of the entire Star Trek franchise, movies and television alike. This movie is not just a great Star Trek movie but one of the best sci-fi action films ever made. It also possesses as brilliant a transfer as the first movie. I remember watching this movie on TV as a kid and this version is so much crisper and cleaner than I remember. This looks even better than the recent special edition re-releases. They went all out on the first two movies in this set.

The Package

There are two audio commentaries and they both suffer from the same downfall: director Nicholas Meyer. The first track has Meyer by himself and he comes across as a self-absorbed prick at times. He spends a lot of time talking about his past accomplishments and everything he has done in his career. He also makes sure we know every time something happens that he had a hand in. The guy definitely loves himself. The second track is with Meyer and writer Manny Coto. Meyer spends most of the track talking with Coto seeming to be enthused to be listening to Meyer’s stories. It is the better track to listen to because Meyer does a little less rambling about himself. The same Library Computer feature that was on the first movie is also available here.

The first production feature is called Captain’s Log. This is a 27-minute featurette looking back at the making of the movie with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Ricardo Montalban, producer Harve Bennett and director Nicholas Meyer. This documentary is ten times better than the one provided on the The Motion Picture Blu-Ray. The entire story development, from start to finish, is discussed and everyone give some great antidotes and information about the movie. There is a really funny moment at the end where Shatner said no one told him they were adding hints that Spock might return and feels Nimoy and Bennett planned it behind his back. It’s a great, great feature.

And that is why you want to be on my side in this war!

Designing Kahn is another great feature, about 23 minutes long, talking about the production design of the film. A large number of the crew talks about everything involved in the designs in this movie from the Enterprise to the clothing, computers, planetary designs and more. There is a lot covered on this feature and almost all of it is interesting. A batch of original interviews with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Deforest Kelly and Ricardo Montalban from 1982 is included. I have to admit, Nimoy looks pretty swank in his white pin stripe suit, with pink shirt and tie. Where No Man Has Gone Before: The Visual Effects of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is a 20-minute feature about the effects used in this movie, from models to new computer effects. Next up is a new feature that talks to the composer, James Horner: Composing Genius (HD). The segment is great to listen to as Horner explains everything down to the details of what instruments were used to why he made the choices he did.

Next on tap is a group of features about the “Star Trek Universe.” The first is called Collecting Star Trek’s Movie Relics (HD) that looks at the various collectables you can buy, from phasers to uniforms. There were 6 warehouses strong that stored these collectables until a recent auction. A Novel Approach (HD) is almost thirty minutes long and talks to Greg Cox and Julia Echlar, two authors who write Star Trek novels, while discussing how they write their stories while remaining faithful to the source material. Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 002: Mystery Behind Ceti Alpha Vi (HD) is just like the brief from the first movie, and it is obvious they are only recapping the movie’s plot. There is also a written tribute from director Nicholas Meyer, read for the cameras. Finally, there are storyboards, the theatrical trailer and BD-Live trivia thing.

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STUDIO: Paramount
MSRP: $139.99
RATED: PG
RUNNING TIME: 685 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Audio Commentary
• The Longest Trek: Writing the Motion Picture
• Special Star Trek Reunion
• Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 001: Mystery Behind V’Ger
• Deleted Scenes
• Storyboards
• Trailers
• TV Spots

The Pitch

The Starfleet goes where it had never gone before … the movie theater.

The Humans

Director: Robert Wise

Writers: Harold Livingston, Story by Alan Dean Foster

Cinematographer: Richard H. Kline

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

When the federation finally allowed same-sex unions, it was almost too little, too late

The Nutshell

Admiral James Kirk takes over the newly revamped Enterprise and sets out to find the source of a strange cloud like substance that is eliminating everything in its path.

The Lowdown

Star Trek: The Motion Picture gets a lot of shit, and much of it is a little undeserved. This is not a balls-to-the-wall action film, but instead a science fiction film with all that genre’s ideas and thought provoking situations. The entire plot revolves around a sentient being looking for answers, the most pertinent one being “who is my master,” or in other words “who created me?” It is a question that exists in a lot of science fiction stories and Star Trek is the perfect place to examine the idea. However, fans wanted tribbles and God-like humanoids and space ship battles, similar to what they experienced in the television series. This might have been a little too cerebral for many of those viewers.

However, the movie is a decent little sci-fi flick and contains some nice performances by William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and Deforest Kelly and what more can you ask for? The conclusion of the movie was gimmicky with the being turning out to be a Voyager Probe sent out hundreds of years before to collect information. I think the movie lost steam with the ending but most of the movie is nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be.

Jim had yet to lose the staring game, yet it went on and on and …

The Blu-Ray transfer is magnificent. When you look at the deleted scenes, which are still in their standard definition format, it is even more spectacular. The colors are bright and vibrant. The dullness of the original movie is gone, the black levels are deep and the contrast is amazing. The outer space special effects look better than ever and this is the best the movie has looked. The audio is pretty loud but there are spots where it drops in and out, making it a little too uneven for my tastes.

The Package

While watching the movie you can listen to a fun, informative commentary by Michael & Denise Okuda, Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Daren Dochterman. The commentary is given from the point of view of these individuals as fans and is a love letter to Trekkies everywhere as they talk about homages, continuity trivia and even discover new items of interest as they re-watch this movie. Also included on this Blu-Ray is a trivia track called Library Computer, which is an interactive extra where fans can click on numerous tidbits of information. This is more suited for the Trekkies as you can learn the dialogue the characters are speaking, where in the solar system they happen to be, what equipment and instruments are in the shot and more. It is like the recent BD-Live trivia about movie actors and locations but made specifically with Trekkies in mind.

mmmm, late seventies CGI…

The first feature on this Blu-Ray is called The Longest Trek (HD), and is about the writing of the motion picture. They talk to a number of the writers involved, as well as actor Walter Koenig (Chekov), about the road from the television show to the movie. I found it funny that the studio said they wanted to make a movie from the television show. When the production team was working on the movie, the studio said it shouldn’t be a movie, but instead a second generation television show. Then when they switched formats and developed the pilot for the new series, the studio asked why they were making it a TV show when it should have been a movie like Star Wars. You can only imagine the studio heads had no idea what they were doing. It’s also funny that the screenwriters had to rewrite the script as the movie wore on based on Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner’s instructions (they had final say), and then had that rewritten by Gene Roddenberry who didn’t want to lose control of his creation, and then watched as the filmmakers made it in their own vision anyway.

Next up is a special Star Trek Reunion (HD). There is one scene in the original movie (a large crew scene early on) that is composed of Star Trek fans, friends and family members as stand-ins, playing members of the crew. This feature has five of those individuals reminisce about what it was like to be in that scene in the movie. That is followed by Starfleet Academy (HD), a feature that is displayed as “SCISEC Brief 001.” It is set up like an informational video brief about the history of the V-ger. The Blu-Ray is rounded out with eleven deleted scenes (SD), storyboards, trailers, TV spots and a BD-Live feature which is a trivia quiz.