Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

Director:

Robert Wise

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (television series Star Trek) and
Alan Dean Foster (story) ...

Release Date:

7 December 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Mystery | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The human adventure is just beginning

Plot:

When a destructive space entity is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral Kirk resumes command of the Starship Enterprise in order to intercept, examine, and hopefully stop it.

Plot Keywords:

Slow Motion | Old Flame | Psychadelic Image | Score Employs Electronic Instruments | Long Take

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 15 nominations

Cast

William Shatner	...	Admiral James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy	...	Mr. Spock
DeForest Kelley	...	Dr. Leonard 'Bones' McCoy
James Doohan	...	Cmdr. Montgomery 'Scotty' Scott
George Takei	...	Lt. Cmdr. Hikaru Sulu
Majel Barrett	...	Dr. Christine Chapel
Walter Koenig	...	Lt. Pavel Chekov
Nichelle Nichols	...	Lt. Cmdr. Uhura
Persis Khambatta	...	Lt. Ilia
Stephen Collins	...	Cmdr. Willard Decker
Grace Lee Whitney	...	CPO Janice Rand
Mark Lenard	...	Klingon Captain
Billy Van Zandt	...	Alien Boy
Roger Aaron Brown	...	Epsilon Technician
Gary Faga	...	Airlock Technician

Also Known As:

Star Trek II (USA) (working title)
Star Trek: Phase II (USA) (working title)
Star Trek: Planet of the Titans (USA) (working title)
Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Director's Edition (USA) (DVD title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for sci-fi action and mild language.

Runtime:

132 min | USA:136 min (director's cut) | USA:143 min (TV version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Klingon

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital EX (director's cut) | Dolby

Certification:

South Korea:12 | Brazil:Livre | Canada:PG (Ontario - 2006) | Italy:T | Iceland:L | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:K-10 | France:U | Ireland:G | Netherlands:12 | Norway:12 | Sweden:11 | UK:U | USA:G | USA:PG (director's cut) | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Canada:F (Ontario) | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia) (director's cut) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:G (Nova Scotia) (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Century Associates

Trivia:

The V'ger prop was so large and involved so much work that one end of it was being used in scenes while the other end was still being built.

Goofs:

Continuity: Colors of bands on the sleeves of Spock and McCoy's uniforms upon return to the Enterprise after the battle.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Klingon captain: [giving an order in Klingon] Tactical...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Standing on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of 2001 (2007) (V)

As far from the restrictions of TV as it could possibly be.

Oooh, a difficult one this. Very difficult indeed. Unless you are particularly patient, or are a hardcore Star Trek fan this is going to take some effort to stick with. It doesn't seem like a Trekkie movie. Nowhere near as much fun as Wrath Of Khan, or First Contact. Not as much humour as The Voyage Home. In fact, there is no humour at all. Something that cripples the film badly. Everything is very straight-faced and sincere. To introduce someone to Star Trek with this film would be a bad idea.

Being the first Trek product since the original series one might expect the familiar campy story lines and beaming down to "M-class" planets - a bit of desert 10-minutes drive from LA - but there's none to be had. Veteran director Robert Wise has crafted a film very much in the style of his original version of The Haunting. His w-i-d-e-s-c-r-e-e-n compositions are beautiful and he really manages to lift Trek from the small screen to the cinema screen. It was a hard undertaking, but he set the standard for nine sequels to date.

The plot has a giant alien force destroying three Klingon ships on its direct course with earth. If the Federation doesn't stop this thing, it will blow up the planet. Admiral Kirk leaves his sunny San Francisco home to assume command of the Enterprise from Captain Decker and stop the alien menace. But Decker has a chip on his shoulder. The new Enterprise is not finished yet and he doesn't appreciate Kirk moving in on his territory.

Very slowly the original crew return and are in command of their posts again and there is a weird new navigator, a bald-headed, celibate alien woman named Ilia. Decker seems to have a thing for her. For some reason.

Once they reach the mysterious alien mass, the crew learns its name is Vger. Ilia is kidnapped and replaced with an android. Spock is driven to tears as he finds TOTAL logic in Vger actions and motivations. This is all sub-subtext and the actual explanation behind Vger might not come as a surprise to most. Once they fly inside Vger's mass of clouds and orifices it takes a healthy hour for the damn thing to be fully revealed.

To criticise a film for its length may be an ignorant thing to do. Audiences today are too satisfied with any plot lasting less than 100 minutes. This is not a good sign. Films with the scope and, dare I say it, class of Star Trek: The Motion Picture need their full and proper running time. Coherent story lines can be sacrificed for fast paced, exhilarating storytelling, or a dull, seemingly endless narrative can be the result of a big story being fully fleshed out. It's difficult to achieve both length and pace. Sadly, this film doesn't. But it looks very good, is well directed and has the balls to bite off more than it can chew.