Review of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) by David K — 18 Aug 2009

I don't claim to have a vast expanse of "Star Trek" knowledge. I've seen some of the TV episodes but not enough to actually comment on the world as a whole. Therefore, I went into "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" with little to no preconceived notions apart from, "This movie is slow." (Thanks Steve.) Regardless, what actually exists is a really smart and well made sci-fi film that happens to take place in the world of "Star Trek.".

The film is directed by Robert Wise, who edited "Citizen Kane" and "The Magnificent Ambersons" for Orson Welles. ("Citizen Kane" has a reputation as being the greatest American film ever made and "The Magnificent Ambersons," which was torn apart by the studio and producers, is considered a comparable film to "Citizen Kane" if it was left alone. The point is, Robert Wise knows what he's doing.) He creates an atmosphere that was in stark contrast to "Star Wars" which came out only two years before. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage.

Let's start with the bad. The disadvantages of having a science fiction epic that moves slowly is that it does, indeed, feel "boring." Granted, the trip to the Enterprise was overdone. But in the context of the entire film, it really doesn't feel that out of place. In fact, the entire first hour is really where the film lags. Even though there was a TV series preceeding this film, all of the characters from that show need to be introduced and their relationships need to be explained for an audience unfamiliar with them. In truth, all of this exposition does take up a lot of time. Luckily though, there's an entire hour and a half after the extended introductions.

This "second half" almost feels like a completely different movie. It focuses entirely on the plot and the special effects, both of which are phenomenal. The plot pertains to V'GER, an entity that is fuctioning on pure logic and is lacking any real emotion. Thus, when the crew needs to "out think" its adversary, it becomes extremely compelling. The script, in this aspect, is very smart and really saves the film from being ordinary.

As for the special effects, well, they too are breathtaking. With spectacular miniatures and wonderful cinematography, it's hard to not get sucked into this adventure in outer space.

"Star Trek: The Motion Picture" isn't the "Citizen Kane" of science-fiction movies, but it is one of the greats. Yes, it can be a bit boring, but the film has its own rhythm and style that sets it apart from "Star Wars" and "2001: A Space Odyssey." For that, the film is definitely worth a look. Who knows, maybe you'll get sucked in like I did.