star trek trilogy blu ray

Star Trek Trilogy - 4K Blu-ray Review

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This reviewer is a little slow to update to new technologies. When it came time to replace some of my old equipment, I dove deep into the pros and cons of the next (and many say last) generation of home movies: 4K. The pros and cons of yet another format are involved and not a blanket statement. For example, when you hear that a lot of alleged 4K moves are in fact up-scaled lower resolution scans, why you drop extra money for a ‘fake’ 4K disc? Also true, is that most of the high end blockbusters we consume are still rendering their effects at 2K, because it takes forever to render the files. With the boom of physical media well and truly behind the average Joe, the advent of streaming becoming ever more favoured, why even bother going down this rabbit hole?

Having just watched the ‘ Kelvin Universe ’ Star Trek trilogy, I’ll attempt to show you why. This is what the 4K naysayers refer to as a ‘fake’ bunch of discs. IE: they are 2K up-scaled prints with the HDR. It’s HDR you should remember as we go through the movies. The film reviews are simply ported over from theatrical releases, but I’ll go into a bit of the experience of these movies on a modern system and, for the trilogy at least, show why what may be true of some discs isn’t true of all. Come to those of us who are lucky enough to indulge this wonderful pastime, and we’ll try and share our experiences as best we can.

STAR TREK (2009)

Many moons ago a younger version of myself was befriended by a fella in high school that loved Star Trek —REALLY loved it. Having always been a bit cold on the adventures of Kirk and Spock, and thinking the new bald guy in the new Star Trek show ( The Next Generation ) was a cranky old British bastard, it took him some time to bring me around. But my pal’s insistence paid off in the end, and I became an eager consumer of all the Star Trek series/films, etc. More than that, I now share in its appeal to millions of Trekkies/Trekkers/whatever the hell you like to be called, and share your passion.

Why the hell am I telling you this? Well, I am about to go see J.J. Abrams retooling of the original Star Trek characters, and no matter how much I like the creator of Alias and Lost (to name but two of his excellent works) the news that ‘ Star Trek ’ was to be remade did not sit well with me at all—I hated the idea.

Star Trek has proven time and again its legs to continue with new permutations, new characters, and its creator Gene Roddenberry was a forward-thinking man. So what possible reason could there be to rehash what has come before? Apart from the usual money hungry corporate lack of imagination that seems to be plaguing our silver screen in ever-greater volume (and robbing new generations of future classics of its own by unimaginatively re-whatever-ing ours.)

But I digress, in two hours I may have a better answer. Having been quick to reject, slow to come around the first time to ‘ Star Trek’ and its spin offs, I will not make the same mistake twice. See you in two hours.

Back. Well, there’s good news and bad. First the good: Star Trek works like Gangbusters. It’s exciting, fast-paced, has an engaging, emotional story, a powerful antagonist (Australia’s Eric Bana ), breathtaking visuals, unparalleled action, and J.J. Abrams has admirably succeeded in his intention to redefine the series.

This is an origin story for all seven iconic characters (no small task to squeeze into one film), but with Abrams’ pedigree in providing great character development with large ensemble casts—while maintaining an active pace—if anyone was going to pull it off it was him. Without spoiling the story, nor getting bogged down in the multitudes of plots and subplots, this film takes our heroes from youth to the men and woman assigned to the Starship Enterprise that we remember. Any deviation from what was canon before has been answered by the plot (whether you accept it or not is up to you). The fact that they use the legendary Leonard Nimoy to achieve this is a poignant and respectful nod to all that everyone involved wants to honour what has come before them.{googleads}

The actors inhabiting roles vacated by legends after five decades had their work cut out for them, but each and every one of them rises to the task and makes it their own. Karl Urban may be the closest to dangerously imitating his predecessor, but I suspect with another film under his belt, Leonard McCoy will become his own. Chris Pine is an outstanding leading man, has channeled some Harrison Ford into his Kirk, has an incredible sense of comic timing and was a joy to follow.

The bad: The frenetic pacing can get a little overwhelming, with very few moments of calm. There are several plot contrivances that seem a little too convenient, none the least being a cadet becoming a captain rather rapidly. Is it sufficiently explained? Sure. Is it believable? Not really. The trek techno-babble has been stripped to its bare minimum, and, being expounded in moments of crisis, it tends to get a little lost. If the intention of the makers is to make Star Trek more accessible to a wider audience (and they insist that is one of their goals) then more care is needed or the Sci-fi newbies are likely to miss something, or simply lose interest. But by far the most profound negative for this reviewer must be an unsatisfied answer to the question: Was a reboot necessary? With very little tweaking this film would have worked with new characters. Did it have to be Kirk and Spock and Co.? Why must we go back, when we could go forward? Well the answer is IP safety for the studio.

At least, in this era of unrelenting unoriginality, Paramount gave the reigns of a beloved franchise-gone-by to a very talented and respectful creator. If it had to be done, then Star Trek fans the world over can breathe a sigh of relief J.J. Abrams got the gig. Unlike a lot of remakes, this one is worth the time, this one truly has a shot of connecting with a new generation, and this one looks to be the beginning of something fresh and great.

Blu-ray Details:

Star trek (2009) / 4k ultra hd + blu-ray + digital - review.

Star Trek was shot in 35mm, and upscaled to 4K from a 2K scan. This means, if you’re buying the Fake vs Real division it’s a fake. Having just watched it, however, on an 82 inch Samsung QLED, that isn’t all she wrote. The 1080p Blu-ray looks gorgeous on this set also, and would get no complaints from anyone, but the 4K release ups the ante considerably with HDR (High Dynamic Range) and makes everything on the screen pop. Dimension in every scene is sharply and firmly on another level. The colours of the uniforms leap off the screen, with every primary-coloured seam so brilliantly rendered, you feel like you could pull one off the display. JJ’s penchant for lens flare is also emboldened and given more depth in this transfer, as is Quinto’s five o’clock shadow, but by far the greatest sharpening is in the blacks in any scene (and in a movie about space, there’s plenty). You get deeply inky blacks in this picture that go beyond the blacks of the Blu-ray while sharpening its muddy details to full potential. This is an extraordinary looking picture and in no way inferior. Could they do better with a 4K scan? I would be hard pressed to see the difference. Don’t know if Paramount employed any DNR, but the only thing I could see being better, is a truer to source grain detail in the future, should they choose to bother.

A 7.1 DOLBY ATMOS mix that is about as good as it gets, and extremely busy through all channels from the first scene. It’s bold, immersive, thrilling. Dialogue through the centre is crisp and never drowned out by the weighty and constant pounding of the sub and rears. Absolutely first rate stuff.

Supplements:

Commentary :

Special Features:

I got sent the trilogy set, which includes all three movies with the Blu-ray counterpart included and the features of those releases still there. As with most 4K discs these days, (as they take up a whole lot of storage space on a disc) there isn’t anything much. You do get the same commentary track from the Blu-ray.

Blu-ray Rating:

Star trek into darkness (2013).

 You could never accuse JJ Abrams of not having courage. Here is a near 50 year-old franchise with more television and cinematic entries than most in the world, with a rich history, and a ravenous and supporting fan base, and he decides to remake it.

2009’s Star Trek was a wake-up call to the world that the adventures of the Starship Enterprise still had some legs, and with a little modernization in pacing and some stripping back of tired old formulas, the film was a roaring success—the most successful Star Trek film ever. So a sequel was a done deal.

Where to go? They had successfully ret-conned the adventures of Kirk and Spock and could take it pretty much wherever they liked. Without getting into spoiler territory, if you thought they had balls last time, the direction they chose this time can only be described with one word: brave.

Jim Kirk and crew roar into the sequel, breaking one of Starfleet’s most sacred mandates. In the aftermath, Kirk is relieved of his command and the crew is split apart. When a 23rd century terrorist by the name of John Harrison begins attacking Starfleet and its personnel, a great loss befalls Kirk. He begs for the chance to redeem himself and bring Harrison to justice for his crimes. But all is not what it seems, and the price will be high for Kirk to learn from his mistakes and to better himself.{googleads}

Let’s go with the good first, because there’s plenty of it. Again, the pacing of this film makes it accessible to anyone. It is a fun, action packed, rollicking good ride through space. The characters, by and large, are established now and the actors playing them have settled in well. Effects are extraordinary again. Music is similar to the last movie, with no standout new themes coming through, but it’s a good continuation of the last flick. There’s great humour again, accessible and relatable characterizations, and a solid continuation of a more humanized, less sterile Star Trek universe.

The bad: the script’s attempts at complexity quite often fall flat or come across as convolution for the sake of it. They show courage in tackling things most Trekkers consider sacred, but I don’t believe it’s successful this time out—too tall an order. I was hoping to see more of Karl Urban ’s McCoy become his own in this one, but he’s really not given that much to do. Not his fault. Benedict Cumberbatch ’s character is full of surprises, but I think he is under-utilized, and considering the big reveal of his character, more screen time was required and a more exciting conclusion warranted. There are some poignant themes that are weakened by essential rehashes of scenes that have come before in other Trek movies: changing the players around doesn’t make it clever. And there are far too many tendrils set up in this film held over for another. Some are great, but it gets beyond a joke.

There is no reason you can’t come to this movie and have a good time. Set your brain to stun, and a visual, engaging feast awaits you. But if you’re at all familiar with Roddenberry’s original conception of Star Trek, this film is lacking it; added to which they gambled on using a Star Trek icon and don’t pull it off. They gave themselves free reign to change anything they want in this universe with the first one. Perhaps they should avoid what’s been done and, next time, ‘go where no man has gone before’.

Star Trek: Into Darkness / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital - Review

Expecting more of the same gushing about this upscale? You’re not gonna get it—you’re gonna get even more! While this is the weakest movie of the three, it looks even better than the first disc, and I didn’t think that was possible. The reason is that JJ shot some of the wow scenes in IMAX 65mm. That works out to be around 11K of resolution, and the detail at that level—even downscaled to a 2K master and then up-scaled back to 4K—is breathtaking. Although only certain scenes are delivered in the film this way, switching back and forth between 35mm shot scenes is never jarring. By picking his moments, JJ shows every colour, pore, explosion, and shadow with fine grain details that keep you glued. We don’t give half stars at Reel, and apart from a native scan of the camera negative, this is as good as it gets.

FLAWLESS DOLBY ATMOS 7.1 mix. Impeccable and jaw dropping sound. A good one to show off your system’s capabilities.

• Same as the other disc. Nothing new and all on the included Blu-ray, not the 4K disc.

STAR TREK BEYOND (2016)

The previous entry in the franchise, Into Darkness , left a sour taste in many people’s mouths. JJ Abrams had decided to jump onto that other little known franchise with Star in the title. There was development and script issues galore, but when all the dust settled, Justin Lin (who had come to great acclaim helming in the Fast and Furious franchise) was chosen to helm the next entry and, they hoped, bring back some good will to the franchise.

It didn’t go to plan.

Star Trek Beyond sees the crew of the Enterprise going about their exploration as normal. Their captain is starting to get itchy feet, and fears atrophy is setting into his current role. Secretly, he’s been looking for other challenges, and has put into effect plans that will see him move on. But before Starfleet starts to consider his proposal, they send Kirk and company off for a rescue mission when escape pods appear and ask for aid to rescue the remainder of their crew from a stranded ship. All, however, is not as it seems, and when the Enterprise arrives at the alleged rescue site, catastrophic events besiege our beloved crew. Their rescue mission becomes a fight for survival and the threat of being stranded themselves—perhaps forever.{googleads}

 This catalyst of this story is compelling and what befalls the crew early on is affecting and exhilarating, but what unfurls is an overly complicated reveal of who the main antagonist (wasted Idris Elba ) is, and what his true agenda will be. Elba’s bad guy is a new creation for Trek, had the potential to be something interesting, but the execution of what we learn of him is told in past tense, not shown, and slows down the pacing of the movie. He is also just not that interesting a villain, and, considering the capabilities he’s come to have, reduces his efforts to a fist fight at the end. It’s an underdeveloped character that not even Elba can sell. Sofia Boutella had very interesting make-up and a half way decent character that has more interaction with the main players than anyone. Pine ’s Kirk just seemed far too young and vital to be mentally where he is at the start of this story.  

Lin’s kinetic direction is best when he’s given terrestrial scenes. His space battles and the final charge at the end are also good, but Abram ’s hyperactive camera has a different visual and Lin’s lacks his complexity.

There are definite attempts to answer some of the criticisms from fans that these movies weren’t Trek enough, and the camaraderie between the principle actors definitely earns them points, but the sum total of this one, for me, was underwhelming. 

I came out of this feeling it was okay but not great. The first of these pictures, narrative wise, gave the chance to do whatever they wanted. Their follow up made the mistake of retreading holy ground and this one stayed so closely to well trodden (and far better executed) Trek tropes that the best I can say is its safe. Inoffensive and decently made, but not compelling the audience to come back for more. They lost an opportunity to make this their own.

Star Trek Beyond / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital - Review

Beyond, unlike the first two movies, was shot with digital cameras. Paramount didn’t even release the film theatrically at full resolution, due to the amount of effects (all rendered at 2K). This gives the film a sterile and crisp as all get out appearance. Film purists will decree this look as inferior to the detail of actual film stock, but this 2K up-scale is an awesome representation of what was shot. The subject matter kind of compliments this looks in fact. I’m going to take one point off this transfer, because at 4K resolution, every technique used to make this fantasy come alive is slightly more obvious than the previous two movies. I am only guessing, as I am no cinematographer, but I would surmise the blending of layers may be a little less razor sharp in a combination of film stock and digital effects, and therefore hid the magic a teeny, tiny fraction more.

Reference quality. Superb. Another DOLBY ATMOS 7.1 triumphant mix. How many adjectives can one repeat for this set? Have fun with it. Scare the neighbours across town.

CRAP. Again, all the features are on the Blu-ray, not the 4K disc, and are the same as the previous release, which was crap. The struggles of this film’s inception would have made for a compelling documentary, and a 5 minute nod to the late Leonard Nimoy and Anton Yelchin is a pretty insulting effort.

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Star Trek: The Kelvin Timeline / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital

Home Video Distributor: Paramount Available on Blu-ray - July 15, 2019 Screen Formats: 2.39:1 Subtitles : English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish Audio: English: Dolby Atmos; English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1; French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1; Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1 Discs: 4K Ultra HD; Blu-ray Disc; Nine-disc set Region Encoding: 4K Blu-ray: Region free; 2K Blu-ray: Region A

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Star Trek Trilogy: The Kelvin Timeline (Blu-ray)

• View history

Set contents

Star Trek Trilogy: The Kelvin Timeline is a Blu-ray Disc triple pack, first released in June 2019 , collecting the single-disc Blu-ray releases of Star Trek , Star Trek Into Darkness , and Star Trek Beyond .

It is essentially a repackaged reissue of the 2016 Star Trek - 3 Movie Collection Blu-ray release for the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the alternate reality Star Trek films launch with Star Trek in 2009. It is also the first home video release to be endowed with the " Kelvin timeline " moniker that the Star Trek franchise settled upon in 2016 as its official designation for the alternate reality on the occasion of the release of the fourth edition of the Star Trek Encyclopedia in that year.

As with the previous version, the discs are mounted in a standard plastic snapcase, accompanied by a new fold-out poster detailing the chronology of the alternate reality films, the whole packaged in the customary cardboard slipcover. As usual with these releases, (geo-restricted) redeemable codes are included to download the various digital versions, in this case the standard digital download, the UltraViolet version, and the iTunes Store version. [1]

While marketed as region-restricted, the release is in actuality region-free as this has increasingly become commonplace for the Blu-ray format, and therefore one of the two reasons why this release was not issued in the other regions, save for Hungary and Germany, the other reason having been the continued availability of the prior 3 Movie Collection Blu-ray release.

However, and unlike the previous version of the release, it is also one of the first major Blu-ray titles for which a DVD counterpart was not foreseen in the major territories, indicative of the latter format being increasingly considered for phasing out by the industry. However, since this release was in essence a reissue of Star Trek - 3 Movie Collection , the dwindling numbers of DVD hold-outs were already served by its 2016 DVD counterpart . Still, one single DVD counterpart for this release is known to have been issued in one of the smaller home video territories, the Hungarian 2019 Star Trek: A trilógia title.

Contents [ ]

Lacking on this release are the retailer exclusive special features for all three films, present in the 4K Ultra HD-counterpart , those for Beyond collected on the extra disc in that set, which were hitherto not included on any of the home video formats.

External link [ ]

• Star Trek Trilogy: The Kelvin Timeline at TrekCore

Review by Leonard Norwitz

Theatrical: Paramount Studios

Blu-ray: Paramount Home Entertainment

Region: FREE (as verified by the Momitsu region FREE Blu-ray player )

Case: 3-tiered digipak (see image below) Release Date: May 12th, 2009

Aspect ratio: 2.35:1

Resolution: 1080p

Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video

Dolby TrueHD Audio English 4509 kbps 7.1 / 48 kHz / 4509 kbps / 24-bit (AC3 Core: 5.1-EX / 48 kHz / 640 kbps) Dolby Digital Audio English 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps Dolby Digital Audio English 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps Dolby Digital Audio French 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps / Dolby Surround Dolby Digital Audio Spanish 224 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 224 kbps

English SDH, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, none

• See Below  

Introductory Comment:

Timed to coincide with the release of the new Star Trek movie, Paramount is offering a host of original cast Star Trek material on Blu-ray .  Already in print, available April 28th, 2009, is the Complete First Season of the original TV series and on the 12 th of May - two box sets: one containing all six theatrical movies from 1979-91 ( The Motion Picture Collection ) and another, cleverly packaged as a trilogy: the story of Spock's death, resurrection, and return.  This latter grouping, of course, are Star Treks II-III-IV: The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock and The Voyage Home .  

It's hard to imagine from our vantage point, what with the resounding success of The Next Generation and Voyager and to a lesser, but still influential effect, the Deep Space Nine and Enterprise series and the several TNG feature films, but there once was a time when the Star Trek franchise was pretty much dead and buried as far as its production studio and distributor, Paramount, was concerned. The TV series almost didn't make it to a third season and the studio's interest waned before it was over, as evidenced by a lowering of production values.  A dozen or so years later, the first feature film came out, spurred on by humongous fan interest and gobs of hype.  Now production values could be seen in every frame but, alas, not in the script.  And once again, the series looked it was it about to get flushed. 

Somehow, with a new director, Nicholas Meyer, and a new producer, Harve Bennett - especially Bennett, who would take the franchise all the way through the unhappy Star Trek V – the series resuscitated itself enough to find interested in what was to become The Next Generation , commanded by the redoubtable Jean Luc Picard, aka  Patrick Stewart.  Bennett and Nimoy saw the potential of the idea of a trilogy even before Spock was regenerated by Genesis , though there was no such idea, Nimoy assures us in his impassioned and candid commentary for The Search for Spock (his first voyage as a feature film director, by the way), when The Wrath of Khan was in production. 

Amid such turmoil it was no surprise that once Spock was killed off at the end of Star Trek II , it seemed to be accepted fact that this was only the beginning of the end.  And once again, with Star Trek III , the lack of sufficient money was visible for all to see on the screen.  It is no wonder that Star Trek IV was shot largely on location in and around San Francisco.  My feeling is that both Star Trek III and Star Trek IV could have been much better if it weren't for their rather shabby production values – most of what happens on the Genesis Planet and the hunt for the whales in arctic waters suck big time.

Just as with the TV series, we all have favorites and our favorite duds. In any case, Kirk and company can always be counted on for a couple of hours of predictable entertainment. The Trilogy, as we shall now refer to it, contains what is arguably the best of the original cast movies: The Wrath of Khan .  The other two suffer in comparison, especially, I think, The Search for Spock - though it does have some of the most interesting art work of all the movies - with The Voyage Home coming off more as an expanded TV movie episode, grounded as it were mostly in present day Earth.  Even so, the three movies make for a good story arc, if not a satisfying dramatic flourish.

The Wrath of Khan

As we all must know by now The Wrath of Khan is the epilogue to the TV episode from the first season titled Space Seed .  One of the best of those adventures, it starred Ricardo Montalban as Khan, the leader of a band of genetically enhanced supermenchen – "criminals" would be more apt - who escape Earth's near future in a space ship designed to keep its passengers in sleep mode until they reach their destination a few hundred years into the future.  As it happens, the Enterprise comes across them and wakes them up prematurely.  Proving once again the adage "No good deed goes unpunished" Kirk welcomes these travelers as guests, but Khan repays hospitality with an attempted mutiny, which nearly comes off.  Kirk abandons Khan and his group, along with one of his crew, Lt. Marla McGivers, who becomes Khan's wife on Ceti Alpha V, where Kirk imagines Khan will find a way to lord it over whatever he may find there.

The movie opens some 15 years later as the USS Reliant , commanded by Clark Terrell (Paul Winfield) with Chekov in tow visits what they believe is Ceti Alpha VI, a possible candidate for regeneration by the Genesis Device , but is really Ceti Alpha V, that planet's having shifted its orbit some while earlier when Ceti Alpha VI went kablooey, leaving V out of orbit and something of a wasteland.  Oops!  So who should Chekov and Terrell meet but what is left of Khan and his crew, who take advantage of the advantage he always has of surprise, ferocity, smarts and obsessive determination. (Chehov, by the way, was not in Space Seed , despite Khan's recognition of him here.)  This time around Khan succeeds in his takeover of a starship, but instead of striking out to find a more hospitable world to settle on, he first decides to learn more about Genesis . 

The Genesis Project , a sort of rapid-growth terraformer – if it should work - is led by Admiral Kirk's Starfleet Academy girlfriend of twenty-odd years ago: Dr. Carol Marcus, and her son, David.  Any guesses who he might be?  When the Enterprise arrives, following up on a distorted message from Marcus, Kirk finds nearly everyone of the scientists murdered, and his old friend Khan just waiting for an opportunity to wreak his vengeance on the man he holds responsible for the death of his wife and most of his original crew.

The Movie : 9

Image : 9/9   NOTE : The below Blu-ray captures were ripped directly from the Blu-ray disc.

The first number indicates a relative level of excellence compared to other Blu-ray video discs on a ten-point scale.  The second number places this image along the full range of DVD and Blu-ray discs.

I had forgotten just how good the 2-disc DVD looked until I popped it in for comparison to the Blu-ray.  The blacks are crushed, yes, and there is a certain amount of edge enhancement, but colors are vivid and it's remarkably sharp.  But the Blu-ray is something else again.  Putting aside for the moment, the difference in color – the Blu-ray is decidedly redder and bluer, as is often the case in this medium – there is that familiar degree of dimensionality that is occasionally jaw-dropping, even when subtle.  A good example can be seen early on at the tail end of the discussion between Kirk and Spock about the Kobayashi Maru training exercise.  They arrive at an elevator, to the left of which is a giant transparent globe.  On the DVD the globe could be mistaken for a disc, on the Blu-ray it is clearly a sphere.  There is also considerably more shadow information on the Blu-ray, as when Kirk's shuttle is heading out to dock with the Enterprise .  Nor is it a case of simply brightening the image, which I don't see as going on anyway.  We can find a wee bit of edge enhancement but only if you're looking for it instead of enjoying the movie – which is hard not to do.  There's a good deal of black in space, less so around the docking areas.  I was surprised at this, but it made a certain sense.  I noticed no noise for all the opportunity that presents.

Blu-ray TOP vs. Special Collectors Edition DVD - BOTTOM

Audio & Music : 9/8

As much of an improvement as there is over the DVD in terms of image, I was simply bowled over by the audio.  I can't remember if I've ever encountered such theatrically shaped vocal reproduction on any video.  Voices are big, as we hear them in the theater, but also focused and higher up the film plane instead of in the center.  How did they do that, I wondered?  I don't mind if this remains a mystery, but I would not hesitate to recommend the set purely for the experience.  (Curiously, nothing like this effect is the case in the succeeding movies.)  Jerry Goldsmith had been the composer for the first Star Trek movie, but the producers decided on up-and-coming James Horner, who was too young to be accused of the sort of derivative plagiarism that often beset his work.  In any case, his score here nails the duel between Kirk and Khan perfectly and the percussive elements are dynamically realized in the uncompressed audio mix.  Surround elements come into play for effects – subtle and dynamic, as well as the music.  Of particular note is how the sense of space opens up even on the bridge of a starship.  While we might expect that the bridge might actually be devoid of mechanical and deep rumbling noises, their insertion here makes for a more visceral presentation.

•  Audio commentary by Director Nicholas Meyer

• Text commentary by Michael Okuda

• Library Computer

• Captain's Log – in SD (27:21)

• Designing Khan – in SD (23:54)

• Visual Effects – in SD (18:14)

• Original Interviews – in SD (10:56)

• The Star Trek Universe: A Novel Approach – in SD (28:55)

• The Star Trek Universe: Collecting Star Trek Movie Relics – in HD (11:05)*

• The Star Trek Universe: Starfleet Brief on Ceti Alpha VI – in HD (3:02)*

• 13 Storyboard Archives

• Tribute to Ricardo Montalban by Director Nicholas Meyer (4:44)*

• Trailer in SD

As is the case with the other two movies in the Trilogy, it appears that all of the Special Features from the 2-disc Collector's Edition DVDs are imported to the Blu-ray.  What's new for all three movies is the interactive "Library Computer."  When activated, a translucent overlay appears on one side of the screen that permits clicking on various aspects of related culture, science & medicine, Starfleet operations, life forms, characters, and space ships.  Navigation is intuitive, and the selections from the computer evolve as the movie progresses.  Very cool.

The Star Trek Universe has been expanded to include an eleven-minute segment on the collecting, auctioning and archiving Star Trek memorabilia and a clever little presentation by a representative from Starfleet as to exactly what happened to Ceti Alpha VI.  Both of these are presented in HD.  There is also a memorial tribute to Ricardo Montalban offered by Director Nicholas Meyer.

I won't touch on the duplicated features except to note that perhaps even more than the commentaries for the two other films in the Trilogy, Meyer's frankness about the trials and tribulations of production and behind-the-scenes machinations is both fascinating and refreshing.

By the way, I was only able to access most of the Extra Features from the home page menu.  Beware – and also always make sure you have the latest firmware update.

The Search for Spock

Kirk, his crew and all of Starfleet mourns the loss of Spock who had sacrificed himself to save his ship and all aboard at the end of Star Trek II .  McCoy, however, seems to be uniquely affected.  He walks about like a ghost, or more like he's possessed by one – which he is.  Sarek (Mark Lenard, in perhaps the best scene in the movie) confronts Kirk about why he did not bring his son's remains back to Vulcan, insisting that Spock would have made this wish clear as he saw the inevitable coming.  Ah - McCoy!  The problem is that Genesis has since become a forbidden subject by order of Starfleet, and Kirk's plea that he be permitted to return to the Genesis Planet to bring Spock home is perfunctorily denied.  Do we think this stops Kirk – not for a parsec (sic! – in honor of Han Solo's misappropriation of time for distance.)

To complicate matters, Klingon Commander Kruge's Bird of Prey comes into possession of intelligence regarding Genesis .  Upon arriving at the planet he finds David Marcus and Lt. Saavik (now impersonated by Robin Curtis) who are looking for an unexplained life form on the Genesis Planet .  Hmmm.  Could this rapidly aging boy they find with the funny ears be Spock – or could he become so, providing the planet, which turns out to be completely unstable (way to go, David), consumes all of them.  Needless to say that Kirk and Kruge will have to explore their differences as to the fate of Genesis .

The Movie : 6

Image : 8/9

I could save a lot of space by simply saying "ditto" my remarks about Star Trek II , but alas, things aren't quite that simple.  Clearly, this transfer is not made from the same master as was the DVD.  Like the other two movies in the Trilogy, it has been seriously reconsidered.  Even so, there is less information in the shadows than in the previous movie – which is not to say that there is supposed to be more or that the transfer glosses over them.  The scenes on the Genesis Planet aside – I think it's best for all concerned that we speak in hushed tones about those – the image always looks less far two-dimensional than the DVD. Resolution and sharpness is very good and lacks that grainy pixilation we see on the DVD.  If there is edge enhancement, I did not find it noticeable, and the scenes where it leapt off the screen on the DVD did not show up on the Blu-ray at all. 

Color saturation is a marvel – like the comic book.  The scenes involving the Klingon ship and in and around Vulcan's temples are like freshly painted 3-dimensional art pieces.  Speaking of dimension, take a look at Gary's screen caps of Kirk in The Search for Spock : The longer you stare at these two frames the flatter the DVD looks.  It's not that the Blu-ray looks natural – it is, after all, the result of careful lighting to produce a desired effect, but that effect could not possibly have been what we see on the DVD.  On the other hand, the more highly resolved the image, the hokier the makeup and some of the costumes (Where did the Vulcans come up with those chin straps?)

The Search For Spock

Audio & Music : 7/8

Again, compared to the DVD, the Blu-ray high-def audio mix scores, but not nearly as large or as dynamic as with Wrath of Khan .  By comparison it's all just a little anemic.

•  Audio commentary with Director Leonard Nimoy, Producer Harve Bennett, DP Charles Correll and Actor Robin Curtis

• Audio commentary by Ronald D. Moore and Michael Taylor

• Captain's Log – in SD (26:13)

• Terraforming and the Prime Directive – in SD (25:53)

• The Star Trek Universe: Space Docks and Birds of Prey – in SD (27:49)

• The Star Trek Universe: Speaking Kingon – in SD (21:04)

• The Star Trek Universe: Klingon and Vulcan Costumes – in SD (12:16)

• The Star Trek Universe: Star Trek & the Science Fiction Museum & Hall of Fame – in HD (12:16)*

• The Star Trek Universe: Starfleet Brief on the Vulcan Katra Transfer – in HD (2:42)*

• Storyboards

• Photo Gallery

As is the case with the other two movies in the Trilogy, it looks like all of the Special Features from the 2-disc Collector's Edition DVDs are imported to the Blu-ray.  What's new for all three movies is the interactive "Library Computer."  When activated, a translucent overlay appears on one side of the screen that permits clicking on various aspects of related culture, science & medicine, Starfleet operations, life forms, characters, and space ships.  Navigation is intuitive, and the selections from the computer evolve as the movie progresses.  Very cool.

In place of the Ichuda text commentary is a new audio commentary with Ronald D. Moore and Michael Taylor (former Star Trek series producer and staffer) – a perfectly acceptable and entertaining perspective by people who had nothing to do with this movie, but were involved with the TV series franchise since. The new interactive "Library Computer" is still with us: When activated, a translucent overlay appears on one side of the screen that permits clicking on various aspects of related culture, science & medicine, Starfleet operations, life forms, characters, and space ships.  Navigation is intuitive, and the selections from the computer evolve as the movie progresses.

There are also a couple of items in HD (all the DVD features are in SD, as expected) in the Starfleet Universe, the more interesting being the featurette about the Science Fiction Museum in Seattle.

The Voyage Home

Now safely back on Vulcan, Spock seems to have regained his form and most of his marbles, and now the crew must make their way back to Earth in an appropriated Bird of Prey .  Thanks to Kirk, they are now outlaws for having visited Genesis and appropriated a starship to do so (and lost it in the bargain), but no matter, Earth is facing a serious challenge of its own.  A probe from a distant star system has taken up orbit around the planet and seems hell bent on Earth's destruction.  When their newly christened Klingon vessel, Botany Bay (a great touch, don't you think) arrives on the scene Spock determines that there can be no response to the probe because its communication is intended for a species now extinct (way to go, Earth people).  Spock suggests that if they could manage a solar slingshot they might be able to arrive in the past when humpback whales - for it is they for whom the probe tolls - still existed.

The search for whales that Kirk can transport up to the ship – a stretch, I realize, but it works better on the screen than on the page – leads him and Spock to the Monterey Aquarium, standing in for the "Cetacian Institute."  Meanwhile Chekov and Uhura are sent off to locate a power source to activate their depleted dilithium crystals and Scotty and McCoy search for a substitute for transparent aluminum, which, as we all know, hasn't been invented yet. After a hiatus of one full-length movie, wherein Kirk was distracted from romantic entanglements by more important matters, he once again finds himself the subject and object of a loose woman, so loose - in fact, she doesn't mind being shipped off to the future.

I have to confess two things about my reaction to this movie: the first is that there is an in-my-face political correctness about its basic ecological theme that I find tiresome on rewatch, and I always have.  It's a proper message – and all the more so for its being timely - but it is far from subtly dramatized.  On the other hand, and perversely, I thoroughly enjoy the crew's humorous and anachronistic adventure in our time zone – or what was our time zone 20-odd years ago, which makes for an even more textured play on the clash of cultures, looking at it from here.

The Score Card

The Movie : 7

Image : 7/8

By some measure, The Voyage Home offers the least dynamic image overall of the Trilogy. There are inconsistencies to the contrast that gives one pause. Some appear arbitrary, some are errors. Check out the Bird of Prey as it sits on its dock on Vulcan at 07:12 and 13:40 minutes: Presumably, the reason the shadowing under the ship is so strong at 13:40 is that it is now later in the day, but the shadows on the rocks behind the ship indicate that the sun is still in the same position. Looks like there wasn't enough money to repaint the matte. No matter, the Blu-ray positively wipes the floor with the previous DVD, which was thin and grainy to such a point that if there was enhancement we wouldn't be able to see it. Even the scenes on location in San Francisco now have life to them. Whew!

Audio & Music : 6/8

I can't say that there's much to the audio mix here, but that seems to be largely by design.  The story is basically a romantic comedy and is largely front-directed. The probe sounds are cool and have a rich electronic texture that is quite tingly and tangible, and the storm the Botany Bay encounters on its return have some drama, but there's little else that captures out attention.

•  Audio commentary with Director Leonard Nimoy and Actor William Shatner

• Audio commentary by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman

• Production: Future's Past – in SD (27:32)

• Production: On Location – in SD (7:26)

• Production: Dailies Deconstruction – in SD (4:13)

• Production: Sound Design – in SD (4:45)

• Production: Pavel Chekov's Screen Moments – in HD (6:09)*

• Visual Effects in SD (17:35)

• Original Interviews – in SD (43:15)

• The Star Trek Universe: Time Travel – in SD (11:15)

• The Star Trek Universe: The Language of Whales – in SD (5:46)

• The Star Trek Universe: A Vulcan Primer – in SD (7:50)

• The Star Trek Universe: Kirk's Women – in SD (8:19)

• The Star Trek Universe: The Three Picture Saga – in HD (10:12)*

• The Star Trek Universe: Star Trek for a Cause – in HD (5:40)*

• The Star Trek Universe: Starfleet Brief re The Whale Probe – in HD (3:42)*

• Tribute: Gene Roddenberry (8:17)

• Tribute: Mark Lenard (12:44)

• Photo Scrapbook (3:55)

As is the case with the other two movies in the Trilogy, it appears that all of the Special Features from the 2-disc Collector's Edition DVDs are imported to the Blu-ray.  New for all three movies is the interactive "Library Computer."  When activated, a translucent overlay appears on one side of the screen that permits clicking on various aspects of related culture, science & medicine, Starfleet operations, life forms, characters, and space ships.  Navigation is intuitive, and the selections from the computer evolve as the movie progresses.

I can't say that the Shatner/Nimoy commentary is especially informative – more like reminiscence, though Nimoy is the more interesting when he does speak.  In place of the Ichuda text commentary is a new audio commentary with Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, co-writers for the new Star Trek movie.  They come close to sharing a birthday and were kids when this movie came out.  Theirs is an interesting perspective regarding Star Trek in general and The Voyage Home in particular. The new interactive "Library Computer" is still with us: When activated, a translucent overlay appears on one side of the screen that permits clicking on various aspects of related culture, science & medicine, Starfleet operations, life forms, characters, and space ships.  Navigation is intuitive, and the selections from the computer evolve as the movie progresses. 

There are also a several items in HD (all the DVD features are in SD, as expected) in the Starfleet Universe, a ten-minute discussion about the Trilogy concept is probably the most worthwhile unless you've heard enough about it elsewhere by the time you get here.  Walter Koenig is amusing, as always (I met him a while back at a Convention in L.A.) as he talks about his moment in the sun, or at least being chased by the U.S. Navy.

Sample Supplements:

Recommendation: 10

With the exception of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , the Trilogy, as we can now call it, comprises the best of the original cast movies.  The story arc has a redemptive resonance about it at a number of levels, even if the tone of each movie is very different. 

Paramount's Blu-ray set scores in every way except perhaps the box, which isn't bad so much as it is uninspired, and that the previous DVD bonus features remain in standard definition – but that's usually the case anyhow.  It's nice that there are two commentaries by people in the Star Trek system but not involved with the movie itself.   Make no mistake: the Blu-ray image quality in each case is a significant upgrade from the DVD , and the audio is very much superior on Star Trek II , though more subtly so for the others.  Highly Recommended.

Leonard Norwitz May 10th, 2009

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Star Trek Trilogy Collection

Star Trek Trilogy Collection Blu-ray Review

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