Discuss Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Discuss → Movies → Star Trek: The Motion Picture → General
Which version do you prefer?
posted by tmdb82469342STAFFMOD on July 3, 2021 at 6:40 AM
My favourite has always been the extended TV / home video version, probably because that's the first time I saw this film.
Theatrical version is my least favourite.
The director's cut DVD sits pretty in the middle.
Reply by rooprect
on December 9, 2021 at 10:37 PM
Yup I agree with the extended version. But I remember the theatrical version feeling closer to complete than the Director’s Cut. They inexplicably trimmed a bunch of scenes for the DC which took a lot of punch out of them. Off the top of my head, there’s the destruction of the Epsilon space station. In the theater I remember being very disturbed, especially by the reactions of the crew watching it on the monitor. There’s a dead silence, and then Kirk says, “Viewer off.” Camera cuts to Uhura who is frozen staring up at the screen. Kirk yells, “Viewer Off!” and she snaps out of it & switches it off.
In the DC, all that tension is cut. Instead I think Kirk just says “Viewer off” and she shuts it off. Couldn’t have been more that 5-10 sec cut, which is why I can’t believe they’d sacrifice such a powerful scene for just a few feet of film. There were other short but noticeable cuts like that.
Reply by catmydogs
on December 29, 2021 at 10:28 PM
I have the director’s cut on dvd. Would you guys suggest watching the theatrical cut on bluray? I never saw it in theaters. For what it’s worth, Motion Picture director cut and ST5 (yes, the Shatner directed one) are among my favorites of all the ST films. Well, aside from Wrath of Khan, of course.
Reply by rooprect
on December 29, 2021 at 10:35 PM
Greets from another huge fan of ST5. I would say definitely go for the theatrical TMP on bluray. If it’s the same one I have (2009 release, white box set) it felt complete to me. And they fixed 1 or 2 bad goofs such as the scene when Kirk & Spock exit the ship and you can clearly see the edge of the set in the frame lol. So toast up some marshmellons and enjoy.
Reply by sukhisoo
on December 30, 2021 at 9:01 AM
I much prefer the director's cut to the theatrical cut. In the theatrical cut, the scenes where they approach V'ger drag on much too long and it pulls the whole movie down.
Reply by catmydogs
on December 30, 2021 at 8:38 PM
So… I just went ahead and bought the TMP theatrical. In HD, it is so glorious. I love this film so much, I don’t mind the pacing at all, and I love the epic feel here. None of the newer ST films, for all their flash and sounds, come close. Or the Star Wars films by Disney, pft.
For me, the BEST space sci-fi film Disney ever made was The Black Hole. That great theme, the great fly-by introduction to the ship, the practical effects, the hellish finale, all wondrous. Yes, The Black Hole was flawed, but after TMP, it is my favorite 70’s sci fi film. Then, Alien and Star Wars (I love the 16mm version I have, with scratches and all….).
Reply by rooprect
on December 30, 2021 at 10:32 PM
Oh wow I love The Black Hole and need to grab it on bluray. Glad you dug the theatrical TMP, I also loved the pacing. Similar to 2001 A Space Odyssey, it wasn’t afraid to take things slow. Have you seen 2001? Many fans of TMP also enjoy that film and vice versa. Lots of similarities with the whole artistic approach to scifi, trippy visuals and overall creepy Kubrickian “horror” vibe to scifi!
Reply by catmydogs
on December 30, 2021 at 11:31 PM
Oh Yes, I’ve seen 2001. Many times. It’s my favorite sci-fi film of all time and the first film I bought on DVD. A very unique film. So many years since Kubrick made it, and still nothing quite like it, except TMP. :)
2010 wasn’t bad, but it was really a mainstream film.