Review Detail

The biggest tragedy regarding Star Trek: The Motion Picture is that it had the potential to be a masterpiece. If it hadn't been for its slow pace and 130-140 minute running time, I truly believe TMP could've been a worthy theatrical entry for the Star Trek franchise. Some people feel that the reason for the excessive length was because it was trying too hard to be the next 2001. I'm not so sure about that, as the logic that goes on in this movie is pretty faithful to the show. My personal opinion is that Robert Wise was simply the wrong person to direct a film about the Enterprise crew, talented though he may be. Musicals like The Sound of Music and West Side Story are Wise's bread and butter, and while the slow pacing may work for a musical, it wasn't necessary or appropriate for an adaptation of a popular sci-fi TV show.

Whatever the reason, the 103-minute runtime of TM2YC's edit was a big drawing factor for me in deciding to see this edit. Did TM2YC's cut finally give this film the justice it deserved? Well, in answer to my own question, just about.

I should note, though, that even in this edit's truncated form, there are still a few instances where the scenes go on for longer than they should. The introduction to the enterprise, for example, now only contains 6 wide establishing shots of the Enterprise, and yet, I still felt like the scene only needed two. There's another scene that occurs later on that suffers from the repetitive reaction shot/establishing shot/reaction shot/establishing shot/reaction shot/establishing shot editing pattern that was so deadly to the original cut. Still, these incidents happen so much less that it's hard to call it a problem anymore. I'm also curious to see if a second viewing will make these two issues invisible.

Overall, this is a true improvement over the original version, and if I want to prove that Star Trek: the Motion Picture really could've been a watchable movie, Reunion is one edit I'm happy to use as proof.