Rating: 
Summary: Lacks fun and emotion, but it's a spectacular epic saga.
Review: The first of the popular sci-fi franchise, Star Trek: The Motion Picture is also the entry that I feel most divided on. Here is a film that strives to be cerebral and thought-provoking, a movie made with the best of intentions, but in doing so, much of the appeal of Star Trek is lost. Yes, the warm and witty "human" element is missing. The characters that are here are certainly those of the crew of the starship enterprise, but change their names and they could simply be a different crew entirely.The premise is interesting, and certainly less campy than one might reasonably have suspected back in 1979. The film opens with three Klingon bird-of-preys that are attacked and engulfed by a giant alien cloud. Concern about this heightens when the course trajectory for the anomaly shows it's heading for Earth. Sent to prevent this possible global-scale destruction is Admiral James T. Kirk (William Shatner), who takes back the command of the starship Enterprise from Captain Will Decker (Stephen Collins, the guy from 7th Heaven, believe it or not). On the bridge of the ship include old crew members Sulu (George Takei), Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), Chekov (Walter Koenig), and good old Mr. Scott (James Doohan) down in engineering. Brought out of retirement is Dr. Bones McCoy (DeForrest Kelley), against his will, too, but eventually grudgingly tags along. With Spock (Leonard Nimoy) the last to arrive, the crew is reunited in their journey to the mysterious alien cloud, a hostile entity which appears to be alive. What I've just described probably sounds like a great adventure, and make no doubt about it, several aspects of the film are terrific, even brilliant. But overall, The Motion Picture is maddeningly inconsistent, often poorly placed, and sloppy in terms of plot execution. In some ways, this doesn't even feel like the Star Trek many had come to know and love back in the late 60's. TMP is sincere in its attempts to be a cerebral saga, so director Robert Wise makes certain to take the film as deadly serious as possible; there's not an ounce of good humor to be found here. Given the premise, such a concept should be taken seriously, but not at the expense of the characters or the entertainment value. TMP does sport its tense moments, particularly in the opening scenes and later when the Enterprise enters the cloud and the crew slowly makes some startling discoveries about the anomaly's origin. The scene where an entity seemingly made of light invades the bridge and attacks the crew is even quite frightening, simply because Wise, well, wisely knows to keep us interested by venturing into the unknown. But much of the portion set in the cloud is rather tedious. Too much of it is spent looking at bizarre images as opposed to the crew speculating on the cloud's purpose and existence. Does anyone remember that similar The Next Generation episode, where the crew finds themselves trapped inside this black anomaly and encounter a higher being called Nagilum? Those 45 minutes were creepier and more entertaining than TMP. That's not to say all the material involving the alien anomaly isn't involving. The last half-hour finally gets to the speculation and theories we expect, so it makes for a thoroughly entertaining climax. The cast is about what you'd expect if you're a fan of the series. William Shatner's acting style is a sincere attempt at being serious, and no, it's not a particularly impressive performance, but he is the embodiment of Kirk. Surprisingly, Shatner would go on to deliver impressive performances throughout the rest of the series. Nimoy and Kelley are good as always. But the main focus of the film appears to be with Stephen Collins and Persis Khambatta. They've got a weird pseudo-romance going on, or had at one point. Neither performance is very good, but Khambatta still looks beautiful even with a bald head. So it seems my appreciation for The Motion Picture lies mostly in the visual and auditory sense. The special effects, great for their time, are still eye-popping by today's standards, if not also slightly dated. Arguably even more impressive is Jerry Goldsmith's rousing score, a memorable theme which outdoes even John Williams' work in Star Wars. Both aspects deserved their Oscar nominations. With this film, it often feels as if though the filmmakers were just desperate to introduce Star Trek to the series, and thus didn't quite put as much effort into this as they could have. The potential for a character-oriented epic adventure was there, but Wise left out the characters, so what we're left with is a visually spectacular saga that didn't quite reach the mark it should have. I still recommend The Motion Picture, but at least five of the sequels would turn out to be better (or at least more enjoyable) films (First Contact, The Undiscovered Country, The Voyage Home, The Wrath of Khan, and Generations).
Rating:
Summary: It's a Trek
Review: The Star Trek series has been largely a journey of the Enterprise through imaginative and thought-provoking worlds and galaxies. The film continues the journey in an off-beat way. The movie's special effects are the biggest virtue. Floating space stations, flying spacemen, bizzare clouds with little lights, and many other grand sequences make the film visually interesting. The updated effects are used sparingly, but embellish the visual style greatly. But as an actual movie, it is lacking. The characters are relatively flat and humorless. In fact, the crew of the Enterprise aren't even the main characters: Commander Decker and Illea are the main characters. Their relationship is undoubtedly an interesting one, but since this is the film's main focus, other characters like Kirk are underplayed. The only original crew member who really stands out is Spock. The story line of the film is just as thought-provoking as any episode in the original series, but is drowned out by the dull characterizations, and is too slow moving to be enjoyable. The film is perhaps best enjoyed by people who love Star Trek. As a movie, it is dull, but as a Star Trek episode, it is grand and interesting. It is like Homer's "Odyssey" in space, and in the imagination.
Rating: 
Summary: Speaking as a Star Trek novice...
Review: I am a diehard Next Generation fan, and I recently decided to watch all of the Star Trek movies from the beginning in order. So, Star Trek: The Motion Picture was the first step. So, if you are a newbie to the whole Trek genre, listen up! Star Trek: The Motion Picture is like an extended episode from the series. The movie involves Kirk's return to the helm of the Enterprise in an effort to save the planet from a mysterious entity that has engulfed and apparently destroyed three Klingon cruisers and is now heading for Earth. As admiral, he usurps the command of Capt. Decker (played by Stephen Collins, the father from tv's 7th Heaven) and recruits some of his old former shipmates, including Bones, Scotty, Uhura, and Zulu for the mission. The Enterprise's encounter with the entity (called "V-ger") creates a stir as it abducts a crew member and sends back a clone as a probe. Eventually, of course, the good guys win out, but the ending will leave some surprised, others going "oh my god, that's so cheezy". You will have to see it for yourself to find out what side you come out on. All in all, not a bad movie. Entertaining...great to see the old crew (including a younger, slimmer, trimmer William Shatner) get together for a decent adventure in space. The plot is a bit campy, but nonetheless, very fun! Recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Star Trek Redux
Review: Say what you want about Paramount and their milking the Star Trek cow dry, they definitely did right by the fans by releasing this director's cut of the first movie. Viewing it again, it's not as bad as the critics made it out to be. Visually, it's the best looking of the movies (except for those Dr. Denton Star Fleet Uniforms). Let's face it, V'ger was always just the maguffin to get the original crew back together, and I can remember back in 1979 when anticipation ran high on this picture (just like in the 1960's when a new Connery Bond was due). The enchanced effects and tighter editing definitely improves the film, and I'm glad that grandmaster Robert Wise was involved (God, we could use a director who can combine art and technique like him again). So see it again, for the first time...
Rating: 
Summary: This DVD . . . . -A, -great. -Motion Picture.!!
Review: This DVD Version. - ...! -Bad time.. -Because.. -It did
not require the; -T.V. -Version. -Which had some interesting plot moments of are; -main characters. -So. -The director
Robert Wise.! -Brings back some old footage.? -Which par
the main course of the; -Theatricle movie showing.! -So why fixing something that was not worth it's time..! -I'm not
critising the director. -Or; -The cast. -The new footage looks
great. -But; -I'm disappointed that he did not even mention
about the great. -T.V. -Version. -83. -Like; -The inept "Star Trek: -The Wrath of Khan." -82. -But; -this SCI- -FI
epic is a comparison two the great; -Stanley Kubrick. -Ho
did his; -"2001. -A Space Oddessy.!" -Which was longer
then this. -This movie; -builds up the climax of are main; -characters.! -Here is what the movie is. -Since I
might spoil this. -This is what this movie is about. Kirk and his; -crew; -are back.. -After; -Kirks. -William
Shatner. -Longest vacation from; -Starfleet. -He resides and ask Starfleet for his own job back. -So he asks; -WIl Deckker.
For his captain's chair.! -As he takes the Enterprise on it's first maiden voyage. -Too stop a mean like cloud from destroying earth..! -Stephen Collins. -Does a great job
as his commander. -Even the sexy; -Ilia. -Play by; -Kambatha.
ho gives this one last; -Triumph. -Though; -I'm a fan of the
movies. -Have seen. -"Wrath of Khan." -For the first time. -This movie blew me away. -I was amazed by it; -when I was a kid. But the suspense in this; -is pure fun. -Even no suspense
added too this; -Peice. -So. -If you want; -great fun.! -I totally you weight for the director too come out with the T.V.
Version. -And; -the; -Directors cut..! Lets just hope that; -happens.! Fans.! -Write two; -Paramount Pictures. -And bage them
four another. -Edition. -Please..!
Rating: 
Summary: As a Trek fan, I mean no disrespect, ...
Review: This may have been the most successful movie in the Star Trek franchise, but it was the least entertaining. I am also a James Bond fan. I never had anything against Roger Moore's movies, but like the Trek franchise, he made a bad first impression with his first movie. Back to Star Trek; It was simply too long and boring for me. I get more excited picking out socks. The plot sounded intrigueing (Did I spell that right?) on paper, but on screen it was a let down. Unlike its far superior sequel "Wrath of Khan" this movie was built almost entirely upon fancy special effects (Which may not be too terribly groundbreaking by today's standards, but are impressive nonetheless) little time on character development and heartfelt acting. Don't get me wrong, if the score was a measure of the movie's influence, I would give it a perfect score, but I am a man of my word, and face it, the truth hurt's sometimes. While the motion picture set the stage for one of the most entertaining franchises out there, the movie in itself just doesn't do it for me.
Rating:
Summary: The Director¿s Edition is Very Satisfying
Review: I sat in a packed theater during this film's opening weekend (back in '79), so full of enthusiastic fans of Star Trek that every seat was taken. It was one of those magical movie experiences. Plus I was just a sophomore in high school and a huge fan of the TV series (although I didn't dress up as my favorite character/alien to attend the showing like some people I saw while waiting in the ticket line). Therefore, my positive opinion of this film, STTMP, is admittedly biased. Years later, when I watched it again on a TV (from a rented VHS tape) in my quiet living room, I was somewhat disappointed. It wasn't nearly as great as I remembered. If I were rating this film from that version, I would have given it three stars tops. Well, I felt the old magic again while watching this new DVD version. I'm so glad Robert Wise was given the opportunity to "finish" his film after 20+ years, because this version is far superior. I especially admire how the new computer-generated effects were merged into the film without "out-doing" the original model and matte painting -based effects. The best example is where Kirk and Co. go up on the Enterprise saucer and cross the "bridge" to meet V'ger, but there are many other places where the new effects shots greatly enhance the experience without looking like they are the "new and improved" effects (as in the Star Wars special editions). In fact, without the commentary tracks, I would not have noticed them all. Some folks criticize this DVD version because the pace is still slow and it still has long special effects oriented sequences. That's silly... As I have heard many times, a film is the product of its time and the circumstances of its creation. I'm glad Wise and his Director's Edition team did not try to re-edit STTMP into a Matrix-generation movie. STTMP was released soon after Star Wars. Back then, seeing a great special effects sequence on the big screen was still a "special" treat. And for a Trek fan, seeing the newly updated movie version of the Starship Enterprise on the big screen for the first time was a true spectacle by itself. It deserved a 12-minute flyby. The changes made in the DVD version only serve to create the movie that Wise would have released in 1979, had he been given the time and resources to properly complete the final editing and effects. He does not attempt to create a new movie to better fit today's tastes and expectations. He and his Director's Edition team showed commendable skill as well as restraint. Every fan of the science fiction movie genre should see this Director's Edition of the STTMP, especially if old enough to have seen the original release in theaters. In the future, I hope it gets a special showing in a real movie theater, because I'd really love to see it again on the big screen in its greatly improved form. [Watch the trailers on Disk 2. They are unintentionally hilarious and really help date the film back to the late 70's.]
Rating:
Summary: A big improvement...
Review: For years fans have referred to this film as "star trek: the motionless picture", but if that was appropriate then this new version of it could be called "star trek: the 'oh my it seems to be twitching' picture". Director Bob Wise, finally able to finish the film as he had originally wanted, at last reveals to us what he was really thinking, what the film really should have been. It's still not Star Trek as we otherwise know it, but it makes sense now, holds together, feels more right. Kirk doesn't seem like such a jerk, Spock doesn't seem like such a stiff, McCoy doesn't seem to be suffering so badly from uncontrollable anger. Special effects are greatly improved and are more interesting than they were. Overall, where this used to be a film I could take or leave, it's now a film that I enjoy somewhat and watch from time to time. Friends that have watched this new version with me generally seem to agree.
Rating:
Summary: Love it or hate it, you will never forget Star Trek TMP
Review: You just can't be on the fence about this "new" cut of the first Star Trek movie -either love it or despise it. Which side you belong on depends on how much and why you liked the movie as released in 1979. I loved the first movie - enjoying other entries in the series more, but finding much to love in this one which was a hard sell to all but the hardcore trekkies in 1979. In short: Admiral Kirk, having been relegated to a desk once he completed his first 5-year mission, commandeers his beloved Enterprise when Starfleet detects a mysterious cloud heading directly for Earth - one that destroys a trio of Klingon cruisers in the opening scene. With no hint as to the cloud's origin, Earth is placed under alert, and the Enterprise is sent to intercept the "intruder". Spock, meanwhile, has long left for Vulcan, preparing to follow the way of "kolinhar" in which he will discard his emotions and embrace full logic. When he instead receives a mysterious psychic plea from deep space - possibly from the intruder - Spock hooks up with the Enterprise. Even Bones - shockingly aged with a beard - returns only when Starfleet drafts him. Getting over bugs in the radically refurbished Enterprise, the crew manages to intercept the cloud and narrowly evade defenses that claimed the 3 Klingon ships and a Starfleet relay station. Instead, the Enterprise penetrates the cloud's outer layer and finds (as the Klingons suspected) it to be an energy shield surrounding an unbelievably huge and powerful spacecraft - one based on technology far more advanced our own. Captured by the mysterious ship, the Enterprise is imprisoned for study. Ilia, a beautiful Starfleet navigator played by the now late Persis Khambatta, is apparently vaporized by an alien probe, which promptly returns to the ship in her rough likeness. Spock, further lured by the alien intelligence, goes out to investigate. Kirk and McCoy fear that Spock has fallen under control of the alien, which (through the Ilia-probe) is identified as "V'ger". The probe, having taken the form of Ilia, finds itself displaying human emotions when around Ilia's lover and now Kirk's exec-officer, Willard Decker (Stephen Collins; the script makes no mention of Matt Decker, the crazed Commodore of the "Doomsday Machine" episode). As the cloud-ship nears Earth, Kirk races to discover the secret of its mysterious crew. The film is essentially a mixed bag - the FX clearly a relic predating the use of ILM. While matte-lines are conspicuous sometimes, and editing is horrible in others (e.g. - in the scene in which the ship faces one of V'Ger's plasma-energy bolts: Spock manages to save everybody by beaming a linguacode message. The bolt abruptly winks out, but the soundtrack and sound effects seem not to have noticed), the general vision of a cold and unfriendly cosmos fit only for the bravest adventurers puts this flick above Star Trek in any of its TV incarnations. Nowhere is this made more clear than in the opening scene in which the Klingons, in their easily recognizable ships are swatted away by V'ger's awesome power. Even the score for the scene (by Jerry Goldsmith and borrowed by "Wrath of Khan" composer James Horner) seems dangerous. While the characters are cold, they are not cold and pompous as in the Nex-Gen shows (nobody here is trying to sound relentlessly British), and our heroes have to rely on more guile than on other Trek incarnations - the cloud is too powerful to succumb to randomly-modulated EM bursts or reconfigured deflector arrays, and it's too mysterious for any 16-year old to hack its prefix code). Though V'Ger's secret isn't exactly a secret anymore (it's not 1979 any more) the direction kept me guessing, heightening the tension as the Enterprise drove deeper into the cloud. Who cares if the idea was ripped-off one of Trek's episodes? The idea of computers having become so powerful or so old that they think themselves alive was an idea the series recycled itself (viewers normally point to an episode called "The Changeling" and yell "rip-off"; ask your nearest Trekkie to explain "Return of the Archons" AND "For the World is Hollow"). The script takes an even bigger step (bigger in retrospect, that is) in creating Decker and Ilia's characters as otherwise independent of any of the more familiar characters. I love the (then) new Enterprise - none of its later incarnations ever came close to matching the first movie-Enterprise's character combining beauty and function (and definitely not the aptly named "Enterprise D" - D indeed!). The new ship has claustrophobic-narrow hallways and - to remind us that headroom on spacecraft will be at a premium even in the 23rd century - a ceiling!!! It seems that there's a new version released every decade or so, but it's become impossible to really fix this flick since the multiplicity of versions effectively make the narrative irrelevant to the underlying story (i.e., if the story can be told in so many different ways, none of them can be essential). If you thought the older versions too long - obviously don't bother with this version. OTOH, if the first flick left you hungry for more, you won't miss those scenes this ed. Deletes. The film still looks grainy, reminding you that this film predated some critical advances in film preservation developed in 1983, and no tinkering can change how unentertaining the characters are (in comparison w/Trek-2) or that much of the film leaves our crew w/little more to do than watch powerlessly as they are hooked and trapped by V'Ger. I'd easily recommend this version if you've never seen any other.
Rating:
Summary: A beautiful and slow movie
Review: Star Trek: The Motion Picture-Director's Edition remains a beautiful and slow movie. It's a very very beautiful movie, to sit, relax and watch.
The new special effects don't add anything to the spirit of the movie. I really don't like changes made in original movies just to put some advanced computer effects (like Star Wars Trilogy).
This DVD has great images and good sound, but the documentaries could have been better, as it only shows William Shatner, Majel Barret and Walter Koenig interviews from the original crew.
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