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Star Trek: The Motion Picture

1979, Sci-fi, 2h 12m

What to know

Critics Consensus

Featuring a patchwork script and a dialogue-heavy storyline whose biggest villain is a cloud, Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a less-than-auspicious debut for the franchise. Read critic reviews

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The Federation calls on Adm. James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and the crew of the Starship Enterprise to contain an immense nimbused object that's on a crash course with Earth. After investigating, the crew discovers that the alien cloud harbors artificial intelligence with an ominous primary directive. Crisis strikes when a probe dispatched by the energy cloud attacks the crew, abducting navigator Lt. Ilia (Persis Khambatta). An android look-alike containing her memories shows up soon after.

Genre: Sci-fi

Original Language: English

Director: Robert Wise

Producer: Gene Roddenberry

Writer: Alan Dean Foster , Harold Livingston

Release Date (Theaters): Dec 6, 1979  wide

Release Date (Streaming): Dec 16, 2009

Runtime: 2h 12m

Distributor: Paramount Pictures

Production Co: Paramount Pictures, Century Associates

Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Surround

Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

View the collection: Star Trek

Cast & Crew

William Shatner

Admiral, Captain James T. Kirk

Leonard Nimoy

Commander Spock

DeForest Kelley

Lt. Cmdr, Leonard H. 'Bones' McCoy, M.D.

Stephen Collins

Capt., Cmdr. Willard Decker

Persis Khambatta

Lieutenant Ilia

James Doohan

Commander Montgomery 'Scotty' Scott

Nichelle Nichols

Lt. Cmdr. Uhura

Walter Koenig

Lt. Cmdr. Pavel Chekov

George Takei

Lt. Cmdr. Hikaru Sulu

Majel Roddenberry

Lt. Cmdr. Christine Chapel, M.D.

Grace Lee Whitney

Lt. Cmdr. Janice Rand

Mark Lenard

Klingon Captain

Billy Van Zandt

Alien Ensign

Robert Wise

Alan Dean Foster

Harold Livingston

Screenwriter

Associate Producer

Gene Roddenberry

Jerry Goldsmith

Original Music

Alexander Courage

Non-Original Music

Thane Berti

Cinematographer

Richard H. Kline

Todd C. Ramsay

Film Editing

Marvin Paige

Harold Michelson

Production Design

Leon Harris

Art Director

Joseph R. Jennings

John Vallone

Linda DeScenna

Set Decoration

Robert Fletcher

Costume Design

Phil Rawlins

Unit Production Manager

Daniel McCauley

Assistant Director

Douglas E. Wise

Second Assistant Director

News & Interviews for Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Your Epic Movie Franchise Binge Guide: The Best Way to Watch the Biggest Series

Every Star Trek Movie Ranked from Worst to Best

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Critic Reviews for Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Audience reviews for star trek: the motion picture.

I've heard George Lucas talk about the change of pacing between films of the 1970's and of films now. He talked about how the pacing of the first Star Wars film was considered rapid at the time but by today's standards, pretty slow. I feel the same can be said about the first Star Trek film (The Motion Picture). The first hour of this film is quite a drag. The special effects are dated, but sometimes that can be forgiven if the story around it is epic (Original Star Wars). The story for this film is embroiled in mystery as we don't even know who or what the villain is for close to an hour and a half. Overall, I think I can say I enjoyed watching Star Trek: The Motion Picture as it brings back all of the same characters and dynamics from the original series, but the story dragged and I don't feel like this was the particular plot they should have revolved the first feature film around. The enterprise this time is investigating an alien spacecraft that gets mysteriously close to earth, known as V'Ger. Captain Kirk returned back to his position as head of the Starship Enterprise. Kirk replaced the new head of the enterprise, Decker. Obviously, you know that the dynamic between the two will have plenty of tension knowing there's two captains in the same ship, but it doesn't go to the extent that a normal Hollywood film would do. Yes, the tone and feel of the film is the same as the series but I think it was lacking the magic. There's a lot of time in the film spent on showing the numerous special effects shots and set pieces they created for the film. With that said, I don't feel like there was enough time spent on character development for people who didn't know the characters from the TV show. It's not that Star Trek: The Motion Picture isn't a good entry in the series, it's just that there's merely nothing special at all about the film. Its constantly told to us that this mission is to save the entire human race and has a huge scope, but we don't really see that being played out. I liked the ending reveal involving V'Ger, but it didn't save the film from being an average entry in a history franchise. +Same feel as the series +Cool reveal -Don't get a sense of the scope they were going for -Too much time spent on establishing shots and showing off average special effects 6.3/10

star trek the motion picture rating

The first Star Trek film directed by Robert Wise manages to capture the vibe of the TV show and offer fans a good two hours of entertainment. Although, this film isn't a classic by any means, it's still enjoyable for what it is. There has been far better science fiction film, but this first film in the Star Trek franchise is quite good despite the fact that it does show its age. With this film, director Robert Wise crafts something entertaining, a film that has a good storyline, impressive performances and an effective mix of action and thrills. Fans of the show will surely enjoy this picture, and it's an effective continuation of what Gene Roddenberry accomplished with his show. I enjoyed this film, but like I said, it looks dated and the effects on-screen don't hold up too well. Nonetheless it's still an effective, entertaining Sci Fi film, one that should be seen by genre fans looking for a well constructed film. The sequel;, Wrath of Kahn would definitely improve on the elements that are lacking within the film, but as it is, Star Trek: The Motion Picture is entertaining from start to finish, but as a whole, it does leave a bit to be desired, which is what the follow up would improve upon. I must admit, I never was big into Star Trek, but I enjoyed this film and I felt that director Robert Wise, of whom I've enjoyed his previous work, is well suited to tackle this first big screen outing of the classic show. Despite the fact that I don't believe that this film is a genre classic, as it really didn't break new grounds in the genre, this film will surely appeal to viewers that are looking for a good Science Fiction film to watch.

Movie made to show how far special effects advanced and to make money thanks to success of tv show.

I have to admit, I've never really been a "Star Trek" fan. It's always seemed boring to me, and over my head. Heck, most sci-fi is, except the big alien invasion movies. Not sure what it is, the just don't really do much for me. However, when the J.J. Abrams reboot came out a few years back, I gave it a chance and loved it. With the sequel coming up, I figured I would go back and watch some of the old movies to get a grasp on "Star Trek" as a whole and see if I missed something and missed out, or if it's still just not for me. I was told by a true Trekkie to just start with the second movie, and he was probably right. But, my OCD prevailed and I started with number one. This first movie is horrible. If I were a Trek fan when this was released(1979) I would have been furious and may have given up altogether. It's long(just over 2 hours) and very boring. I understand "Trek" is more hardcore sci-fi than other movies/shows, but this is ridiculous. It's pretty much everyone on the enterprise sitting and talking the entire movie. At some point you need action, and this movie fails to deliver it. As for the acting, it's not all bad, because the characters are interesting and Kirk(William Shatner) is pretty funny. Shatner is easily the best thing about the movie, and if not for him and his charisma, this would be a complete waste. Also, this movie is very dated, and time has not been kind to it at all. I plan on watching more because I've heard it gets a lot better, but this is a horrible first movie for any franchise

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Epic science-fiction stories, with their cosmic themes and fast truths about the nature of mankind, somehow work best when the actors are unknown to us. The presence of the Star Trek characters and actors who have become so familiar to us on television tends in a strange way to undermine this movie. The audience walks in with a possessive, even patronizing attitude toward Kirk and Spock and Bones, and that interferes with the creation of the "sense of wonder" that science fiction is all about.

Let's begin with the toy for the eyes. The Star Trek movie is fairly predictable in its plot. We more or less expected that two of the frequent ingredients in the television episodes would be here, and they are: a confrontation between Starship Enterprise and some sort of alien entity, and a conclusion in which basic human values are affirmed in a hostile universe. In "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", the alien entity is an unimaginably vast alien spaceship from somewhere out at the edge of the galaxy. The movie opens as it's discovered racing directly toward Earth, and it seems to be hostile. Where has it come from, and what does it want?

The Starship Enterprise, elaborately rebuilt, is assigned to go out to intercept it, with Admiral Kirk, of course, in charge. And scenes dealing with the Enterprise and the other ship will make up most of the movie if the special effects aren't good, the movie's not going to work. But they are good, as, indeed, they should be: The first special-effects team on this movie was fired, and the film's release was delayed a year while these new effects were devised and photographed. (The effects get better, by the way, as the movie progresses. The alien ship looks great but the spaceports and futuristic cities near the film's beginning loom fairly phony.)

The Enterprise, perhaps deliberately, looks a lot like other spaceships we've seen in " 2001: A Space Odyssey ," " Silent Running ," "Star Wars," and " Alien ." Kubrick's space odyssey set a visual style for the genre that still seems to be serviceable. But the look of the other spaceship in " Star Trek " is more awesome and original. It seems to reach indefinitely in all directions, the Enterprise is a mere speck inside of it, and the contents of the alien vessel include images of the stars and planets it has passed en route, as well as enormous rooms or spaces that seem to be states of a computer-mind. This is terrific stuff.

But now we get to the human level (or the half-human level, in the case of Mr. Spock). The characters in this movie are part of our cultural folklore; the Star Trek television episodes have been rerun time and time again. Trekkies may be unhappy with me for saying this, but there are ways in which our familiarity with the series works against the effectiveness of this movie. On the one hand we have incomprehensible alien forces and a plot that reaches out to the edge of the galaxy.

On the other hand, confronting these vast forces, we have television pop heroes. It's great to enjoy the in-jokes involving the relationships of the Enterprise crew members and it's great that Trekkies can pick up references meant for them, but the extreme familiarity of the Star Trek characters somehow tends to break the illusion in the big scenes involving the alien ship.

Such reservations aside, "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" is probably about as good as we could have expected. It lacks the dazzling brilliance and originality of 2001 (which was an extraordinary one-of-a-kind film). But on its own terms it's a very well-made piece of work, with an interesting premise. The alien spaceship turns out to come from a mechanical or computer civilization, one produced by artificial intelligence and yet poignantly "human" in the sense that it has come all this way to seek out the secrets of its own origins, as we might.

There is, I suspect, a sense in which you can be too sophisticated for your own good when you see a movie like this. Some of the early reviews seemed pretty blase, as if the critics didn't allow themselves to relish the film before racing out to pigeonhole it. My inclination, as I slid down in my seat and the stereo sound surrounded me, was to relax and let the movie give me a good time. I did and it did.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

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Film Credits

Star Trek: The Motion Picture movie poster

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

132 minutes

Walter Koenig as Chekov

James Doohan as Scotty

William Shatner as Kirk

George Takei as Sulu

Leonard Nimoy as Spock

Directed by

  • Robert Wise

Screenplay by

  • Harold Livingston

Produced by

  • Gene Roddenberry

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‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Director’s Edition’ Review: Honoring the Franchise Installment with Visual Effects It Always Deserved

Out on Paramount+, this new edition offers all your favorite Enterprise antics, now in 4K UHD!

Back in 1979, when Robert Wise ’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture first debuted, Wise very much viewed the film’s theatrical release as a rough cut. Over the years, the first Star Trek movie has seen a number of retoolings, from the release of its extended cut in 1983, to a revised release in 2001 which included new CGI sequences and a soundtrack remix so ominous it moved the film’s original G rating to PG. Now, in celebration of Star Trek Day, Paramount+ has released yet another new version — Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Director’s Edition — in 4K UHD.

Considering every version this first Star Trek movie has taken, its newest iteration, with its gorgeous new CGI and visual effects, most effectively-realize Special Effects Director Douglas Trumbull ’s original dream, which he discussed at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2016. Trumbull intended a beautiful space epic that really gave audiences the opportunity to bask in the glory of space travel, and the glory of Star Trek. When the original version of Star Trek was released, it received mixed reviews, as fans criticized the movie’s lack of impactful action sequences. Watching it, we do spend an awfully long time gazing at the stars and various spacecrafts. Our beloved space explorers do the same. And yet, that’s the point: a celebration of the great human adventure, and traversing this extraordinary world. The new Director’s Edition doubles down on this original intention, even more effectively realizing Trumbull’s goal. Now that four decades have passed since the film’s first release, technology has finally caught up to the Trumbull’s initial aspirations, and this cut realizes the movie’s modern space epic potential.

Originally criticized as devoid of enough action sequences and overly indulging in visual effects, this Director’s Edition turns that reaction into a celebration. This movie is now a feast for the eyes, complete with stunning new visual effects upgraded for the modern audience. A true revelry in the grandeur of space odyssey, the digital artistry, and care given to reimagining the look and feel of the original footage feels like an homage. Paired with the all-consuming soundtrack from the 2001 release, the entire movie feels crisp, bright, and exciting. When our crew struggles to regain control during a warp core malfunction, we see their essences stretch and strain through space-time, their struggle much more dynamic than in the first iteration. As the crew approaches what we’ll eventually come to know as V’ger, the cloud’s details shine brighter than ever before, giving an even stronger nod to 2001: A Space Odyssey . With glistening new motion graphics that read as clean, contextually appropriate reimaginings of the director’s original intention, the Director’s Edition is a celebration of all this movie wanted to be and has finally had the chance to become.

star trek the motion picture image

RELATED: The 4K Remaster to the Director's Edition of ‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture’ Is Coming to Paramount+

As the first Star Trek movie in the franchise, at the time of its original release, Star Trek: The Motion Picture was a reunion of sorts for the fans who had, at this point, only come to know and love the cast of the Enterprise through their television sets. The movie, flawed as it may be regarding its inactive plot, was an upgrade from the at-home experience. It’s clear everyone behind the film intended on giving fans the chance to bask in this space world, joke with their space friends, and ponder big questions. A reunion launching us into new escapades in the great unknown. Now-Admiral James T. Kirk ( William Shatner ) returns to his beloved ship after time away, hell-bent on saving humanity from an unknown existential threat. Spock ( Leonard Nimoy ) finds his way back to the Enterprise, pulled to the mission by sensing the threat all the way on Vulcan. Much of the film's tension comes from Kirk’s determination to muscle through this mission, often casting aside advice from trusted crew faithfuls like Leonard McCoy ( DeForest Kelley ), Montgomery Scott ( James Doohan ), and William Decker ( Stephen Collins ). The movie—as it did back in the ‘70s—still very much feels like one long episode of television. And yet, it eventually meanders its way toward its true purpose as an origin story.

Much like how Decker and antagonist V’Ger’s ultimate union and evolution births a new species, so too did this film birth a new chapter in the Star Trek universe. While many agree that it’s not until Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan that the franchise fully finds its footing in terms of the tone subsequent movies will take, this film was the bridge along which the Star Trek universe made its way onto the big screen. This new edition honors that legacy, matching the film’s big questions about the nature of man, machine, logic, emotion, determination, acceptance, and evolution with the visual wonder questions like these warrants.

star trek the motion picture wormhole

Other than the special effects advancements, the re-release of this particular film, a work exploring the consequences of man’s creations, feels unnervingly relevant today. What started as humanity sending a probe out into the universe searching for more ultimately devolves into V’ger’s longing to connect with its creator nearly turning catastrophic. Humanity misinterprets this yearning and curiosity as a hostile attack, a miscommunication that nearly costs everything. Four decades later, we humans continue struggling with the repercussions of our best intentions. Glorifying this version of that tale via a new director’s edition cements this take in the canon of man vs. machine science fiction, sure to offer audiences food for thought for decades to come.

The team behind this new release used CGI effects to resolve some visual effects issues that have always plagued this film. Now, the movie is the closest it’s been yet to its original vision. If you are a fan of the original, this new Director’s Edition will feel like a real homecoming. If this is your first foray into the Star Trek cinematic universe, welcome. The human adventure, after all, is just beginning.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture - The Director’s Edition is available now on Paramount+.

star trek the motion picture rating

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All Star Trek Movies Ranked by Tomatometer

Star Trek (2009) is back in theaters for Rotten Tomatoes’ 25th anniversary screening series at AMC — get tickets now !

We’re boldly ranking the Star Trek movies by Tomatometer, from the original film series (1979’s The Motion Picture to The Undiscovered Country ), into the handoff to films featuring the Next Generation cast ( Generations to Nemesis ), and through to the reboot series (2009’s Trek to Beyond ). – Alex Vo

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Star Trek (2009) 94%

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Star Trek: First Contact (1996) 93%

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Star Trek Beyond (2016) 87%

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Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) 87%

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Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) 84%

' sborder=

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) 83%

' sborder=

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) 82%

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Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984) 78%

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Star Trek: Insurrection (1998) 55%

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Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) 53%

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Star Trek Generations (1994) 48%

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Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) 38%

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Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) 21%

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Star Trek: The Motion Picture

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Star Trek: The Motion Picture parents guide

Star Trek: The Motion Picture Parent Guide

Slow pacing and sub par special effects make this a film for hardcore trekkies, not casual viewers..

After three Klingon ships are destroyed by a colossal spacial anomaly, the USS Enterprise, once again under Captain Kirk, is dispatched to stop the anomaly from reaching Earth. But with a redesigned ship, an unprepared crew, and no time to waste, Kirk will be hard pressed to save the planet once again.

Release date December 8, 1979

Run Time: 132 minutes

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The guide to our grades, parent movie review by keith hawkes.

Nearly three years after the U.S.S. Enterprise returned from her last mission, the indefatigable James T. Kirk (William Shatner) has been promoted to Admiral and removed from direct command of his ship. But when Earth finds itself threatened by a colossal cosmic entity of inestimable power and unknowable intent, Kirk resumes command of the Enterprise , to the dismay of her current Captain. With the help of Spock (Leonard Nimoy), Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley), and the rest of the crew, Kirk will have to go where no man has gone before to solve the mystery and save Earth.

The 1970’s produced some of the strongest sci-fi movies in the history of the genre. Obviously, the 1977 release of Star Wars: A New Hope transformed filmmaking and science fiction going forward, but other films stood out as well. Alien , Close Encounters of the Third Kind , and The Man Who Fell to Earth all presented unique and developed worlds and futures for humanity. Against this kind of competition, how does Star Trek: The Motion Picture hold up? Conceptually, not too badly. The premise of the film is compelling and focused enough for a good ninety-minute movie; and this is where the problems start. Clocking in at over two hours, this film feels badly bloated. Much as I loved it, the five minute shot of Kirk flying a shuttle around the Enterprise , mostly just to show off the new model, doesn’t do much to advance the plot or characters. There are a few of these lingering shots of objects in space that really drag the pacing down, potentially boring the audience.

As far as parents are concerned, there’s not much to be worried about, apart from boredom. While there are almost no serious content issues, the movie is really geared for an adult audience. It’s too slow and thoughtful to engage younger viewers. I actually remember falling asleep watching our VHS copy when I was about twelve. Take that as a good indicator of suitability.

Fortunately, later entries in the franchise learned their lesson from the critical failure of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , and upped both their special effects and writing game. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , the immediate sequel, stands out especially in this regard as a much stronger and more action-focused film. The lesson? Don’t try to be 2001: A Space Odyssey unless you’ve got Stanley Kubrick directing and Arthur C. Clarke writing your scripts.

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Star Trek: The Motion Picture Rating & Content Info

Why is Star Trek: The Motion Picture rated G? Star Trek: The Motion Picture is rated G by the MPAA

Violence: Several ships are destroyed, presumably killing all aboard. A transporter accident kills two crewmembers, and they are briefly shown screaming in pain. An individual sustains a severe burn to the hand when a control panel overloads. Sexual Content:   An individual is shown from the shoulders up in a shower. Profanity: Occasional use of mild profanity and terms of deity. Alcohol / Drug Use: None shown.

Page last updated August 15, 2019

Star Trek: The Motion Picture Parents' Guide

V’Ger struggles to communicate with “the carbon units”. Its reactions to this failure of communication seem extreme. How do you handle communication failures? What can you do to be clearer with other people? How often do you think arguments start simply due to misunderstandings?

Kirk and Decker, despite their disagreements, are committed to working together to resolve the crisis. How can you work with others who you dislike or don’t agree with? How did Kirk and Decker resolve their problems?

Related home video titles:

Star Wars: A New Hope opened a new era in space movies and jaw-dropping special effects when it opened in 1977.

Alien can’t be beat for spine-tingling space drama/horror.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind , also from the golden era of space movies, brings alien contact down to earth. Arrival provides a 21 st century perspective on communicating with alien visitors to planet Earth.

2001: A Space Odyssey is a seminal science fiction movie about space travel – and a warning about powerful computers.

Interstellar tells a time-bending story about an astronaut who travels through space to save the Earth which is experiencing environmental collapse.

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‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture’ Is the Best ‘Star Trek’ Film for Non-Trekkies

A restored version of ‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture’ starts streaming Tuesday, and the underrated first feature film is a slice of ’70s sci-fi that differs from its swashbuckling sequels

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star trek the motion picture rating

Star Trek: The Motion Picture was a lie. Imagine never having seen a frame of Trek in your life, then deciding in college that you want to watch all the movies with your friend— maybe to make fun of them, but then who knows, maybe you’ll emerge a baptized Trekkie. You rent the first one from the nearest Blockbuster, pop the DVD in … and you get a patient, proper science-fiction film, a lengthy tone poem of visual and musical wonder with a compelling story about a search for the Creator.

I loved The Motion Picture . And for me, every film that followed was a disappointment.

This is the opposite experience of most Trek fans, who seem to love TMP the least. There’s a dumb adage about the odd-numbered films ( I , III , V ) being bad and the even-numbered ones being good, and most Trekkies rank this first feature, from 1979, at the bottom of the old Captain Kirk films, alongside 1989’s The Final Frontier (also about a search for the Creator). That’s where it shook out in a 2020 ranking by Collider , which argued that the “biggest problem with The Motion Picture is that it lost Star Trek ’s sense of identity. The film is trying to ape 2001: A Space Odyssey , and so it thinks that what the audience wants is a slow, meditative motion picture, and while there’s nothing inherently wrong with that, it loses Trek ’s greatest strength.”

The film that detractors call “the motionless picture” gets a new hearing on Tuesday, Star Trek ’s “First Contact Day,” as the 2001 director’s cut debuts on Paramount+ in a 4K restoration. (The 4K cut will also play in theaters in late May and come out on Blu-ray in September.) Whether a beautified print and a (now-dated) upgrade to its special effects will win any new converts is debatable, but if you’ve never seen it and you’re not a Star Trek fan, this is the movie for you.

Of course, it was only because of the fans that the movie existed in the first place. In a 1978 Boxoffice article that had no idea what was about to happen to Hollywood, it was touted as “probably one of the few pictures, if not the only one, made by overwhelming public demands by its fans.” The original Star Trek TV series went off the air in 1969, but as the show lived on in syndication its fandom only grew—a fire fueled by conventions. In 1975, roughly 15,000 Trekkies converged on Chicago to sit at the feet of William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and the gang in the largest con yet. Paramount was paying attention, and that year the studio announced it would make a Trek film, with creator Gene Roddenberry writing the script.

But the journey to the big screen was hardly warp speed. There were reports of a “multi-million dollar” film in the summer of 1976, now scripted by Allan Scott and Chris Bryant (the team behind Don’t Look Now ), to start shooting in the spring of ’77. (Trekkies also wielded their power that fall by engaging in a massive letter-writing campaign that convinced NASA to rename its new shuttle the Enterprise .) Phillip Kaufman, who would reanimate another classic sci-fi story with Invasion of the Body Snatchers , was announced as director. But those plans fizzled, too, and the motion picture idea devolved into a new TV series to air on a proposed “ fourth network ” that Paramount intended to launch as a competitor to the big three. (The O.G. Paramount+, you might say.)

Then came Star Wars . Out of nowhere in May 1977, the biggest disruptor in the history of movies convinced every high-rolling studio executive that high-tech sci-fi was the next gold rush. Paramount (slowly) realized it was sitting on a mint, and by that December the small screen went back to big— very big. Under president Michael Eisner, the studio ultimately spent a then-whopping $35 million on The Motion Picture .

Star Wars may have inspired the suits to make a Star Trek movie, but screenwriter Harold Livingston—working from a story conceived by Roddenberry and sci-fi author Alan Dean Foster (who ghostwrote the novelization of Star Wars )—ignored the mysticism and kid-friendly adventure of George Lucas’s universe and instead plunged into mankind’s quest for meaning. For all the flak the film has taken for being too heady, it actually employs an admirably lean, focused concept for a sci-fi blockbuster: a mysterious object in space, the clash and competition between an old-school captain and a whiz kid, forbidden love between old flames, and a contemplation on the dynamic tension between emotion and logic, between carbon units (humans) and machines.

The screenplay was cleverly designed to welcome the uninitiated while tickling the nostalgia bones of the faithful at the same time. It has staggered, dramatic introductions to swaggery Captain Kirk (Shatner), then the Starship Enterprise with its diverse below-the-line crew and transporter room, then gruff Dr. Bones McCoy (DeForest Kelley), and finally Mr. Spock (Nimoy). It sets up the simple, central mystery—a deadly energy force called V’Ger that emanates pure logic—which instigates the reunification of the old team for a new mission. Attractive newcomers represent the next generation: Captain Will Decker (a pre-disgraced Stephen Collins) and navigator Ilia (Persis Khambatta, Miss India 1965), whose unrequited love serves as a pivotal plot device.

One of the key appeals of the old series was the triangle of Kirk, Spock, and Bones. Kirk represents impulse and passion, while Spock is exasperatingly logical. Their yin-yang dichotomy is at the heart of The Motion Picture , a metaphor writ large with hyper-logical V’Ger causing all the commotion. It’s established right at the outset that Spock left Starfleet to go through the Vulcan ritual of “Kolinahr” to renounce all remaining animal passions and emotion. This effectively operates as an origin story and almost a reset of the original series, even though the characters are also clearly established, older, and enthusiastically reuniting.

The movie is sort of brilliant in how it acknowledges and ports the basic setup and character relationships that fans knew while drawing in new recruits, without speaking past or down to anyone. It may have been generated because of the fans, but it doesn’t act like a modern franchise movie that’s ruled by them; it’s not stuffed with Easter eggs or inside lingo, and it’s not a widget that interlocks with a million other widgets in some cinematic universe . It merely transports Kirk and Co. into a new, movie-sized Enterprise , bringing the essentials and nothing else for a strong, self-contained adventure that cuts right to the core of the human mystery.

Director Robert Wise was more of an Old Hollywood craftsman than an auteur with his own remarkable style, but he brought some serious pedigree: He edited Citizen Kane before directing a sci-fi staple, The Day the Earth Stood Still , and two mid-century musical classics, West Side Story and The Sound of Music . In fact, he treated this film like a roadshow musical spectacular—complete with an overture and several lengthy set pieces where Jerry Goldsmith’s music takes the wheel, only instead of song and dance routines, they’re choreographed numbers for animated energy fields and ship models. One of the chief complaints people have about this movie is epitomized by the roughly five-minute, wordless sequence where Scotty (James Doohan) slowly flies Kirk around the parked Enterprise . For a film that had a rushed postproduction and was plagued with visual effects crises (the first VFX team was fired halfway through postproduction), you’d think Wise would cut around the effects as much as possible. Instead he glories in them, letting the audience leisurely drift through space and gape at the wonders in awe, mirroring the many, many reaction shots of Kirk and Spock.

In this way, The Motion Picture is much more a cousin to 2001 or Close Encounters of the Third Kind —with their shared effects wizard Douglas Trumbull, who died in February, at ship’s helm—than the whiz-bang dogfights in Star Wars . The visuals in The Motion Picture , which include everything from vintage matte paintings to animated light streaks for a wormhole scene to elaborate models, are absolutely of their time—no matter how much Wise was able to gussy them up with 2000-era CGI in his director’s cut. But it’s part of the movie’s vintage 1979 charm that it sits smack between Close Encounters and Blade Runner in a heyday of tactile, handmade illusions before computers ruled the earth. And it’s the mood of these hypnotic, psychedelic space sequences that’s timeless—mostly thanks to the symphonic majesty of Goldsmith’s cosmic French impressionism, in one of the greatest film scores (and main themes ) ever composed.

So not everyone wants a mood-altering mind trip through the heavens—fine. But Stanley Kubrick defined a very specific and very powerful template with his 1968 space movie that many others wanted to follow and revise in their own image, from Spielberg to Denis Villeneuve. Villeneuve’s epic Dune may have more jaw-droppingly realistic visuals, but it’s every bit as much a glacially patient and somber slow movement for spaceships and (electronic) orchestra.

That said, The Motion Picture is as much a character story as it is spectacle; it’s fundamentally about the necessity of “foolish human emotions,” to quote Bones. Wise managed to get far more naturalistic, grounded performances from Shatner, the Hamlet of hams, and his cohort of TV actors than they ever gave on the small screen or in later movies. This feels like a 1970s movie, and not just because it introduces Bones in a chest-hair-and-bling-bearing tracksuit and a shaggy Bee Gees beard. It drops the go-go camp of the TV show, and the performances here resonate in a similar key as the wave of smart, adult ensemble dramas by Robert Altman and Francis Ford Coppola that helped define the decade. Shatner’s still gonna shat, of course, but of all the performances he gave as James T. Kirk, this was the most … human .

Despite its modern reputation as a dud, Star Trek: The Motion Picture actually destroyed at the box office when it came out on December 7, 1979, breaking the opening weekend record and going on to make $139 million around the planet. Adjusted for inflation, that’s something like $515 million today—which makes it the second-highest earner in the entire franchise. It was also well liked by many critics. Variety called it “state-of-the-art screen magic. Exploits of Capt. Kirk and company should thrill the legions of TV Trekkies while ensnaring a galaxy of new admirers. ... The expert hand of director Wise is evident in the rising suspenseful tempo of the action and the deft blending of performances.” In a mostly positive review, The Hollywood Reporter did pick up on the main critique: “While Robert Wise’s direction keeps the human action moving briskly enough, he has a disconcerting way of letting his characters gaze off at the phenomena of outer space with a ‘gollicky mo!’ expression that is in odd conflict with their presumed experience and sophistication.”

And so it became derided as “the motionless picture,” and when the Enterprise revved its engines again in 1982 for The Wrath of Khan , these increasingly portly old TV actors went on a swashbuckling adventure with more explosions, hand-to-hand combat, and mugging. One of the most popular of their escapades, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , had the gang beaming back in time to 1986 and doing fish-out-of-era shtick with punks and pizza and a young love interest for Kirk. It’s my least favorite of them all.

These days, the fans are in charge . Directors and studio heads kowtow to their every outcry, which is how we get Star Wars IX: The Rise of Skywalker and Zack Snyder’s Justice League . Filmmakers like Rian Johnson are excoriated for daring to do something different and irreverent, and we’re stuck with bland, bloated Easter egg baskets designed by committee with all the creativity of a hostage negotiation. Trekkies succeeded in keeping their series alive, and The Motion Picture gave birth to another 40 years and counting of films , spinoff series , and a whole entertainment ecosystem (which has at times, on the small screen, offered some of The Motion Picture ’s cerebral, slower-paced appeal). But if that Byzantine empire, full of its own languages and goofy aliens and often outrageous scenarios, never spoke to you … consider embarking on the very human adventure that began, and ended, in 1979.

Tim Greiving is a film music journalist in Los Angeles and a regular contributor to NPR, the Los Angeles Times , and The Washington Post . Find him at timgreiving.com .

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Currently you are able to watch "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" streaming on Max, Max Amazon Channel. It is also possible to buy "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" on Microsoft Store, AMC on Demand, Apple TV, Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Vudu as download or rent it on Microsoft Store, Apple TV, Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Vudu, Spectrum On Demand online.

Where does Star Trek: The Motion Picture rank today? The JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts are calculated by user activity within the last 24 hours. This includes clicking on a streaming offer, adding a title to a watchlist, and marking a title as 'seen'. This includes data from ~1.3 million movie & TV show fans per day.

Streaming charts last updated: 9:22:16 PM, 02/29/2024

Star Trek: The Motion Picture is 9054 on the JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts today. The movie has moved up the charts by 5765 places since yesterday. In the United States, it is currently more popular than The Karate Kid but less popular than Dark Intentions.

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.

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After 40 Years, Director Robert Wise's 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' Is Finally Complete (Exclusive)

After more than four decades, half a dozen sequels, and multiple franchise reboots, the original Star Trek movie — 1979's Star Trek: The Motion Picture  — has finally been completed the way its director intended.

In 1978, four-time Oscar-winning filmmaker Robert Wise was tasked with adapting  Star Trek  for the big screen, a departure from films like 1961's West Side Story and 1965's The Sound of Music that made him famous . Star Trek: The Motion Picture  was a critical and commercial success, but Wise never considered it completed. It would take advances in technology, a dedicated team of filmmakers, and a green light from Paramount to finally finish one of the most ambitious restorations in recent memory.

For producer David C. Fein, one of the filmmakers responsible for realizing Wise's vision, the 4K UHD Blu-Ray rerelease is not just a passion project, but a personal responsibility.

"I would never call this a restoration," he explains to A. Frame. "It's a completion of the film. A restoration implies you were taking something that was there previously and restoring it to its original form. This [film] never had a finished form until now. I don't think there’s ever been another film that took 43 years to finish."

Launched in 1966, Gene Roddenberry's  Star Trek has more than lived up to its promise to "boldly go where no one has gone before," with forward-thinking storytelling and a diverse cast of characters. Star Trek: The Motion Picture featured the original cast of the TV series, including William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk and Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock; however, the movie's production was troubled from the very beginning.

Harold Livingston's screenplay was continuously re-written throughout production, and by the time principal photography was completed in March 1979, fewer than 20 pages from the original 150-page screenplay remained. In order to make the film's December 7 release date, much of the visual effects were left either incomplete or out of the movie entirely. The final reel of film, still wet from development, was put in a container, and Wise personally transported it to Washington, D.C. for the film's premiere.

Despite the success that followed the release, including three Oscar nominations, Wise never considered the film finished. "It was the one that got away," Fein says. "It hurt."

In 1983, Paramount released an extended cut of the film for TV, adding roughly 13 minutes of additional footage back into the movie. But it wasn't until 1999, at the height of the DVD home entertainment market, that Wise was given the opportunity to revisit the film on his own terms. Fein recalls, "Bob wrote to Sherry Lansing [Paramount's chairman at the time] and said, 'I'd like to come back, re-open post-production and see what I can do with the film.'"

"It's a completion of the film... I don't think there's ever been another film that took 42 years to finish."

Wise's new edit allowed him to undo forced editing choices and include enhanced visual effects. The Director's Edition , which Fein produced, was first released on DVD in 2001 and was embraced by fans and critics alike as a vast improvement over the original theatrical release. "Bob was thrilled, because it was a much better film," Fein says. "He was happy that his legacy wouldn't be judged by the theatrical version of the film."

However, The Director's Edition was only ever completed in standard definition. As television sets made the leap to high-def, Paramount was forced to revert back to the movie's original negative of the theatrical cut, making it the only version of the movie available in high definition — much to Wise's frustration and to the dissatisfaction of the fans of the 2001 version.

"Bob had to watch the theatrical version take prominence again," Fein explains. "After all the work we did, [audiences] had to watch his assembly cut in HD, and not his approved Director"s Edition."

Before Wise's death in 2005, Fein promised his friend and collaborator that he would find a way to do right by the Director's Edition , a promise he is finally able to say he made good on. With a new 4K scan from the original film elements, along with completed visual effects and a truly epic Dolby Atmos sound mix, this release represents the culmination of Wise's original vision.

"It’s a completed version of the film. I am thrilled beyond words," Fein says now, wearing a gold Star Trek medallion that Gene Roddenberry gave to Wise and Wise bequeathed to him. "Bob's spirit was with us all the way."

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Produced during the pandemic, the new release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture—The Director’s Edition  is nothing short of transformative. Fein and post-production supervisor Mike Matessino, a former assistant to Wise, worked meticulously to recreate and complete the film's ambitious visual effects. The Dolby Vision high-dynamic range (HDR) provides an added depth and color palette to the visuals and the new audio Dolby Atmos soundtrack brings a greater texture to the audio, elevating Jerry Goldsmith's iconic Oscar-nominated score.

Also, for the first time ever, original voice recordings of the cast, which Wise directed during ADR, have been unarchived and incorporated into the film.

This version of the film remains true to Wise's vision for the 2001 Director's Edition , while also serving as an important archival artifact: Paramount's limited-edition "The Complete Adventure" collector's set includes the original theatrical cut, the 1983 extended television edit, and an eight-part documentary,  The Human Adventure , detailing this ambitious 43-year voyage.

Fein promptly insisted that Paramount make a negative equivalent with a new digital master of this definitive edition . "It needs as much of a chance as any other film in Paramount’s collection," he says. "This needs to stand the test of time."

By Adam J. Yeend

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The adventures of Star Shrek

Report this review, wonderful film., good for trekkies, i liked it for the main characters and ship only because i am trekkie..

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Captain Kirk reunites with his old crew after five-years working a desk job and confronts an energy cloud that turns out to be a sentient being during his first new mission as the leader of The Enterprise.

It finally happened. The characters loved by millions, preserved in reruns even though the TV series was canceled nearly 10 years previously, were born again. The plot of this $40-million film sometimes gets lost amid technical gadgetry, but the generation of young adults who grew up watching one of the most successful television programs ever, found it fascinating to see what has become of the crew of the starship Enterprise. Capt. James T. Kirk (William Shatner), now an admiral, is called upon one last time to take over the command of his old ship and halt a strange alien craft that is gobbling up everything in its path and is headed directly for Earth. To undertake this mission he calls upon the assistance of all the old crew members, and some new ones as well. Unfortunately, director Robert Wise has no feeling for Trek's pop insouciance, and the movie unfolds ponderously. The next in the long-running series, STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, is much superior.

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Starring: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , James Doohan , George Takei , Majel Barrett , Walter Koenig , Nichelle Nichols , Persis Khambatta , Stephen Collins

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Screen Rant

Every star trek movie in chronological order.

With 13 entries in the Star Trek movie series from 1979-2006, there are a couple of ways to watch the films chronologically.

  • Learn how to watch all 13 Star Trek movies in chronological order by following their theatrical release timeline.
  • Dive deeper into the Star Trek universe by watching the films in their in-universe timeline order instead.
  • Keep an eye out for new Star Trek movies - one on Paramount+ focusing on Section 31 and potential future theatrical releases.

Here's how to watch the 13 Star Trek movies in chronological order in a couple of ways. Starring William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk and Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock, Star Trek: The Original Series ' 3 seasons aired on NBC from 1966-1969, but the show exploded in popularity in syndication. After the blockbuster success of Star Wars in 1977, Paramount refashioned a planned TV series revival titled Star Trek: Phase II into a feature film: 1979's Star Trek: The Motion Picture . Star Trek officially became a movie franchise.

Since the 1970s, every decade up to the 2020s thus far has seen a Star Trek movie produced. Star Trek: The Original Series ' cast starred in 6 films from 1979-1991. The torch was then passed to the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation , who starred in 4 films from 1994-2002. Producer and director J.J. Abrams then rebooted Star Trek: The Original Series , casting stars such as Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, and Karl Urban to play younger, alternate reality versions of Captain James T. Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy in a trilogy of Star Trek movies from 2009-2016. Whether you want to watch them in order of theatrical release or in order of when the films stand in the Star Trek timeline , here's how to watch the 13 Star Trek movies.

Star trek 2009 cast and characters

Star Trek 2009 Cast & Character Guide

How to watch the star trek movies chronologically in theatrical release order, the first 6 star trek movies are helpfully numbered.

Watching the Star Trek movies in their theatrical release order is the simplest way to go . The 13 films are broken up into easy-to-digest blocks: the 6 Star Trek: The Original Series films, the 4 Star Trek: The Next Generation films, and the three Star Trek movies produced by J.J. Abrams that are set in the alternate Kelvin timeline. Here are the 13 Star Trek movies in theatrical release order:

How To Watch The Star Trek Movies By In-Universe Timeline Order

From 1986 to 2379 in two different star trek timelines.

A more interesting, and challenging, way to watch the Star Trek movies is by in-universe timeline order. Although the 'present day' of the Star Trek movies is either The Original Series ' 23rd century or The Next Generation 's 24th century, some of the Star Trek movies involve time travel and flashbacks, while the J.J. Abrams films are actually before the events of Star Trek: The Original Series.

In J.J. Abrams' Star Trek 2009 , the destruction of the USS Kelvin in 2033 by time-traveling Romulans, which led to the death of James T. Kirk's father, Lt. George Kirk (Chris Hemsworth), spawned an alternate reality where numerous major events happened in an accelerated pace. Factoring in time travel and alternate universes, here's how to watch the Star Trek movies by in-universe timeline order.

What Is The Next Star Trek Movie?

The next star trek movie won't be released in theaters.

Emperor Georgiou and Section 31 in Star Trek Discovery

The next Star Trek movie won't be a theatrical release, but it will be a made-for-streaming film on Paramount+. Star Trek: Section 31 starring Academy Award-winner Michelle Yeoh is the first Star Trek movie made for Paramount+ . Section 31 is written by Craig Sweeney and directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi. A spinoff of Star Trek: Discovery , Section 31 will detail what happened to Yeoh's popular anti-heroine, Emperor Phillippa Georgiou after she left Discovery in season 3, and the film will purportedly explore Georgiou's ties to and the history of Section 31, Starfleet's infamous black ops organization.

Star Trek: Section 31 introduces a new cast of characters joining Michelle Yeoh's Emperor Georgiou. Section 31 began filming in January 2024 in Toronto and is expected to wrap in March. Although no release date has been announced yet, Star Trek: Section 31 could be released on the streamer in late 2024 if not in 2025.

Depending on Star Trek: Section 31 's success, a new Star Trek movie could be released on Paramount+ every 2 years.

Will There Be A Star Trek 4 From J.J. Abrams?

Two star trek theatrical movies are reportedly in development.

Chris Pine as Kirk and promotional artwork for Star Trek Beyond

8 years after Star Trek Beyond hit movie theaters, there is still no Star Trek 4 produced by J.J. Abrams . Star Trek 4 (AKA Star Trek 14 ) was scheduled for a December 2023 release date after audience polling by Paramount Pictures determined there was audience interest in seeing another Star Trek movie starring Chris Pine and the cast Abrams assembled. However, high-profile filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino, Noah Hawley, S.J. Clarkson, and Matt Shakman were unable to overcome the "creative differences" to get Star Trek 4 in front of cameras.

Star Trek 4 is said to be the "final chapter" of the voyages of the USS Enterprise commanded by Chris Pine's Captain James T. Kirk and his crew.

Following the resolution of the WGA writers' strike, a new report indicated two Star Trek movies are in development at Paramount. Star Trek 4 is said to be the "final chapter" of the voyages of the USS Enterprise commanded by Chris Pine's Captain James T. Kirk and his crew. Meanwhile, a Star Trek origin film set "decades before" Star Trek (2009) is being developed by director Toby Haynes ( Star Wars: Andor ) and writer Seth Grahame-Smith ( Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunte r). While it seems inevitable that a new Star Trek movie will return to the big screen one day, it looks like the long wait will continue into the foreseeable future.

Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation movies are available to stream on Max.

Star Trek (2009), Star Trek Into Darkness , and Star Trek Generations are available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

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Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber hold chimney sweeping brushes as they sit on a roof either side of Mary Poppins

Mary Poppins’ UK age rating raised to PG due to discriminatory language

British Board of Film Classification lifts it from U certificate almost 60 years after film was first released

Mary Poppins has had its age rating lifted to a PG by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) almost 60 years after it was first released.

The film’s rating has been upgraded from U – which signifies no material likely to offend or harm – to one advising parental guidance due to the use of discriminatory language, the Daily Mail reported .

It was changed because of a derogatory term for the Khoikhoi, a group of people who were among the first inhabitants of southern Africa.

Classifiers picked up on the term used by the character Admiral Boom – first as a reference to people not onscreen, then as a reference to the film’s child stars when their faces are blackened with soot.

“We understand from our racism and discrimination research … that a key concern for … parents is the potential to expose children to discriminatory language or behaviour which they may find distressing or repeat without realising the potential offence,” a BBFC spokesperson told the Mail.

“Content with immediate and clear condemnation is more likely to receive a lower rating.”

The reclassification affects only the cinema version of the film, with home entertainment versions still rated U, according to the BBFC. The word in question is “Hottentot”, an adopted name for the Khoikhoi used by Dutch settlers, thought to imitate their language, which is considered offensive. It would later be used to refer to all black people.

It is not the first classic film to have its rating upgraded in recent years. According to the BBFC’s 2022 annual report, the 1978 animated film Watership Down merited a PG rating as classifiers sought to “remain in step with societal standards”.

They said: “In their exile, the rabbits meet various challenges, some of which result in bloody bite and claw injuries caused by animals fighting. In one scene, a bird tells one of the rabbits to ‘piss off’.”

They added: “When we viewed the film under the current guidelines we reclassified it PG in line with our current policies for violence, threat, injury detail and language.”

The 1979 film Star Trek: The Motion Picture was also upgraded from a U to a PG that year as a result of its “very mild language, mild violence and threat”, the BBFC said.

When deciding on how to classify a film, the BBFC considers scenes that might show dangerous behaviour, discrimination, and references to drugs and sex. It also considers the language used in the film, scenes of nudity and of threat, horror and violence.

Classifiers particularly look out for discriminatory language or behaviour that is “unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly disapproved of, or in an educational or historical context, or in a particularly dated work with no likely appeal to children”.

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Every Star Trek Movie Comic Book Adaptation, Ranked

  • Star Trek movie comic book adaptations have been released by various publishers throughout the franchise's history.
  • Some of the adaptations took liberties with the original scripts, but still featured awesome and poignant moments.
  • The comic book adaptations provide fans with additional scenes and perspectives that were not in the final movies.

Comic books have been an essential component of the Star Trek franchise for most of its history. Publishers such as Gold Key, Marvel, DC and IDW have taken turns with the Star Trek license, giving fans new and exciting adventures in the final frontier. Nearly every incarnation of the franchise has appeared in comic book form, and some publishers have also created original material.

Another component of the Star Trek comic book experience is the movie adaptations. In the 1980s, it was common practice for major publishers to release books adapting popular movies—and Star Trek was one of them. Here are all the Star Trek movie comic book adaptations, ranked.

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

Published by dc comics, 1984.

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock is arguably the best of the odd-numbered Trek films, but its comic book movie adaptation takes some liberties with the script, namely in the sequencing of events. For example: the comic adaptation begins with the arrival of the USS Grissom at the Genesis Planet, an event that occurred a third of the way through the actual movie. However, the adaptation is not without awesome and poignant moments that did not make it into the final movie, including an epitaph spoken by Edith Keeler in “City on the Edge of Forever.”

Related: 2023 Proved Star Trek's "Deep Space Nine Sequel" More Than Deserves the Name

Star Trek: Generations

Published by dc comics, 1994.

The first Star Trek: The Next Generation movie adaptation would be the last published by DC Comics , as they would lose the license shortly afterward. Fan opinion on Generations remains divided, with its critics pointing to numerous plot holes, such as the Nexus. DC’s adaptation of Generations does not plug any of these holes, but is still an enjoyable read nonetheless. The comic book version of Generations is notable for including a scene not in the original cut of the film, such as Captain Kirk’s orbital sky-dive. While rough cuts of it are now available to watch, for many years this was the only way for fans to see it.

Related: Star Trek vs Alien Crossover Was Meant to Give Picard His Ultimate Challenge

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Published by dc comics, 1986.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is probably the most accessible of the original Trek films: a light-hearted romp with a serious environmental message. The Voyage Home’s comic book adaptation is a faithful one , largely sticking to the original film’s script. Writer Barr adds some dialogue, including a brief exchange between former Enterprise officers Doctor Chapel and Yeoman Janice Rand . Artists Sutton and Villagran are, like Barr, firing on all thrusters here. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is widely regarded as one of the best films in the franchise overall, and its comic book adaptation is worthy of the name.

Star Trek: First Contact

Published by marvel comics, 1996.

Star Trek: First Contact is a tense, nail-biting film , and its adaptation reflects that. Published by Marvel as part of their short-lived “Paramount Comics” imprint, Star Trek: First Contact stays faithful to Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore’s original screenplay, but is forced to cut some scenes due to spatial limitations. However, this does not deter one bit from the adaptation. Star Trek: First Contact’s movie adaptation was one of a few to receive a reprint years later from IDW, who currently holds the Trek comic license.

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

Published by dc comics, 1991.

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country was the last ride of the original crew of the Enterprise , a bittersweet end to a glorious run, and its comic book adaptation perfectly captures this tone. Part of the adaptation’s success can be attributed to Peter David , who has written numerous Trek comics and novels, many of which are fan favorites. David and artist Gordon Purcell, who also illustrated a good portion of DC’s Star Trek output, deliver a first-rate adaptation, one that flows just as well as the source film. The Undiscovered Country is one of Trek’s finest hours, and its comic book adaptation is just as good.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Published by dc comics, 1989.

Among fans, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is regarded as one of the weakest entries in the franchise, but its comic book adaptation shines. Peter David, who had just finished up on DC’s first Star Trek comic, turns in an excellent adaptation that makes the original shine. Drawn by James W. Fry, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier’s comic adaptation hits all the right notes, perfectly distilling the film’s best parts. The comic book version of The Final Frontier was then used to inaugurate DC’s second line of Star Trek comics, which launched shortly thereafter.

Related: 10 Biggest Changes to Star Trek Canon Delivered By Its Epic 'God War'

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Published by idw, 2009.

Despite being regarded as one, if not the best, Star Trek films, The Wrath of Khan never received a comic book adaptation when it was released in 1982, as Star Trek comics were in limbo at the time, with DC acquiring the license soon after. IDW rectified this problem in 2009, releasing a three-issue adaptation of the movie, which bucked the trend of Trek movie adaptations being one-shots. Thanks to the extra space afforded writer Andy Schmidt and artist Chee Yang Ong, this adaptation shines. Ong’s art especially compliments the movie’s dark tone.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Published by marvel comics, 1979.

The modern era of Star Trek comics began with Marvel’s adaptation of Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Initially released as the first three issues of Marvel’s Star Trek comic, The Motion Picture’s adaptation is easily the best of the franchise. Some of its success can be attributed to the legends that worked on it: writer Marv Wolfman and artist Dave Cockrum. Wolfman and Cockrum were on a roll in the late 1970s, and they brought this energy to the adaptation of Star Trek: The Motion Picture . Later released as a one-shot edition by Marvel, the adaptation was reprinted by IDW in the 2000s, giving fans the chance to experience this amazing book again.

The practice of adapting movies to comic book form has largely fallen by the wayside. While the Star Trek movie adaptations may seem relics of a bygone era, they are in fact an important part of the lore.

Every Star Trek Movie Comic Book Adaptation, Ranked

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  1. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Movie Info. The Federation calls on Adm. James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and the crew of the Starship Enterprise to contain an immense nimbused object that's on a crash course with Earth. After ...

  2. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

    Recently viewed. Star Trek: The Motion Picture: Directed by Robert Wise. With William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan. When an alien spacecraft of enormous power is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral James T. Kirk resumes command of the overhauled USS Enterprise in order to intercept it.

  3. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Parents need to know that Star Trek: The Motion Picture features sci-fi violence, including the implication of death, and some intense moments amped up by music. When it was first released theatrically, the movie received a G rating, which was revised to PG for the director's cut. There are allusions to sexual activity, but nothing onscreen.

  4. Star Trek: The Motion Picture movie review (1979)

    Epic science-fiction stories, with their cosmic themes and fast truths about the nature of mankind, somehow work best when the actors are unknown to us. The presence of the Star Trek characters and actors who have become so familiar to us on television tends in a strange way to undermine this movie. The audience walks in with a possessive, even patronizing attitude toward Kirk and Spock and ...

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    The end result was Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979, now re-released in a 4K restoration, directed by veteran all-rounder Robert Wise with Douglas Trumbull on special effects. This is the ...

  6. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture. IMDb rating. The IMDb rating is weighted to help keep it reliable. Learn more. IMDb RATING. 6.4 / 10. 94K. YOUR RATING. Rate. User ratings. Filter by Country. Countries with the most ratings. United States United Kingdom Germany Canada Sweden. 6.5 Unweighted mean. More from this title.

  7. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a 1979 American science fiction film directed by Robert Wise and based on the television series Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry, who also served as its producer.It is the first installment in the Star Trek film series, and stars the cast of the original television series.In the film, set in the 2270s, a mysterious and immensely powerful alien cloud known ...

  8. Star Trek: The Motion Picture The Director's Edition Review

    Back in 1979, when Robert Wise's Star Trek: The Motion Picture first debuted, Wise very much viewed the film's theatrical release as a rough cut. Over the years, the first Star Trek movie has ...

  9. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Oct 7, 2022. The criticisms of this movie that have been made are mostly similar and reasonable. The old pun "Star Trek: The Slow Motion Picture" neatly sums them all. And for significant stretches of time, this movie is indeed "slow." Many people have probably seen the parody vids of Kirk gazing lovingly at his old ship while the camera ...

  10. All Star Trek Movies Ranked by Tomatometer

    (Photo by Paramount) All Star Trek Movies Ranked by Tomatometer. Star Trek (2009) is back in theaters for Rotten Tomatoes' 25th anniversary screening series at AMC — get tickets now!. We're boldly ranking the Star Trek movies by Tomatometer, from the original film series (1979's The Motion Picture to The Undiscovered Country), into the handoff to films featuring the Next Generation ...

  11. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Content Rating. PG. Rated PG for sci-fi action and mild language. Producers. ... How the Greatest Scene in Star Trek: The Motion Picture Was Made. Dec 7, 2019 - As the film turns 40, ...

  12. Star Trek: The Motion Picture Movie Review for Parents

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture Rating & Content Info . Why is Star Trek: The Motion Picture rated G? Star Trek: The Motion Picture is rated G by the MPAA . Violence: Several ships are destroyed, presumably killing all aboard. A transporter accident kills two crewmembers, and they are briefly shown screaming in pain.

  13. 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' Is Great for Non-Trekkies

    A restored version of 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' starts streaming Tuesday, and the underrated first feature film is a slice of '70s sci-fi that differs from its swashbuckling sequels.

  14. Star Trek: The Motion Picture streaming online

    Streaming charts last updated: 5:13:02 AM, 02/28/2024. Star Trek: The Motion Picture is 9299 on the JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts today. The movie has moved up the charts by 5605 places since yesterday. In the United States, it is currently more popular than Destino but less popular than The Aryan Couple.

  15. After 40 Years, Director Robert Wise's 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    After more than four decades, half a dozen sequels, and multiple franchise reboots, the original Star Trek movie — 1979's Star Trek: The Motion Picture — has finally been completed the way its director intended.. In 1978, four-time Oscar-winning filmmaker Robert Wise was tasked with adapting Star Trek for the big screen, a departure from films like 1961's West Side Story and 1965's The ...

  16. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    See full company information. Domestic Opening $11,926,421. Budget $35,000,000. Earliest Release Date December 7, 1979 (Domestic) MPAA G. Running Time 2 hr 23 min. Genres Adventure Mystery Sci-Fi ...

  17. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Read Star Trek: The Motion Picture reviews from parents on Common Sense Media. Become a member to write your own review. ... a so-so rating. I really would have given it a 3-1/2 stars because it is Star Trek in general and also the awesome actors were actually really good but, unfortunately, part of a OK story line. If only they cut out some of ...

  18. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

    Check out the exclusive TV Guide movie review and see our movie rating for Star Trek: The Motion Picture. ... Star Trek: The Motion Picture Reviews. 50 Metascore; 1979; 2 hr 12 mins

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    Dive deep into Star Trek: The Motion Picture's online audience engagement with TelevisionStats.com. Explore comprehensive viewership data, ratings, and compare TV performance metrics. Stay updated with our audience ratings charts to track its popularity.

  20. Which rating (if any) did Star Trek have before the MPAA era?

    The MPAA is the Motion Picture Association of America.Their site says this (emphasis mine). Established in 1968, the film rating system provides parents with the information needed to determine if a film is appropriate for their children.. In other words, the MPAA rates movies.Star Trek TOS was television, which would not be rated until 1997, and not by the MPAA

  21. Watch Star Trek: The Motion Picture (HBO)

    Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Majel Barrett, Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, Persis Khambatta, Stephen Collins. Watch Star Trek: The Motion Picture (HBO) and more new movie premieres on Max. Plans start at $9.99/month. The crew of the starship Enterprise takes on an otherworldly force in ...

  22. Every Star Trek Movie In Chronological Order

    After the blockbuster success of Star Wars in 1977, Paramount refashioned a planned TV series revival titled Star Trek: Phase II into a feature film: 1979's Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Star Trek officially became a movie franchise. Since the 1970s, every decade up to the 2020s thus far has seen a Star Trek movie produced.

  23. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

    composer: theme "Star Trek" Jerry Goldsmith ... conductor (uncredited) Kenneth Hall ... music editor (as Ken Hall) Craig Huxley ... composer: additional music, Blaster Beam, microtonal clavichord, Tubulons, Serge Modular System, piano Francesco Lupica ... additional score sound design Arthur Morton ...

  24. Mary Poppins' UK age rating raised to PG due to discriminatory language

    The 1979 film Star Trek: The Motion Picture was also upgraded from a U to a PG that year as a result of its "very mild language, mild violence and threat", the BBFC said.

  25. Every Star Trek Movie Comic Book Adaptation, Ranked

    Star Trek III: The Search for Spock is arguably the best of the odd-numbered Trek films, but its comic book movie adaptation takes some liberties with the script, namely in the sequencing of ...