Star Trek: The Motion Picture
1979
An unknown entity is discovered on a direct course to Earth and the starship Enterprise is sent to intercept it. The entire cast of the original (and the animated) television series united for the first feature-length Trek film. The big-screen Enterprise got off to a bumpy start. Episode one is a long, slow burner with some very W.T.F. moments. There’s acid-trippy editing, “subliminal” cameos from Darth Vader and Miss Piggy (really), and one of the most mind-boggling endings I’ve ever seen. The screenplay is full of the incessant “techno-babble” that made the shows so inaccessible to all but the uberest of geeks. Despite its shortcomings, the film still manages to deliver a decent sci-fi epic. The mystery surrounding the entity is very intriguing, and slowly learning more about it really held my interest. I especially liked the central theme of the film: knowledge. Each of the main characters are after it in their own individual ways. William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy were a joy to watch. They had the advantage of playing Kirk and Spock for a whole decade prior to the film and it really pays off. You can feel genuine chemistry and history between the characters. The Motion Picture is bound to please the fans, and although it does fill in newcomers on all “the basics” (Vulcans are emotionless, Klingons are assholes), I don’t think it’s a good introductory film for the franchise. I recommend trying the other films first, and only ordering this one if you’re still hungry. 3.5/5 stars.
Warp to my Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan Review
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