Star Trek: Reunion

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.

This is an edit that I've had on my hard drive for many years, yet for some reason never watched. Well, now I have & it's as technically well crafted as any TM2YC fanedit.

However, I think it could've been pushed one step further, since a lot of shots of special effects for the sake of special effects still exist. For example, Spock is still shown sensing V'Ger out in space, so that likely could've been used to cut around some of the longer shots of the Klingons firing on it.

I also don't completely agree with the removal of the "is Spock still loyal" subplot. When he's on the ship, it's properly conveyed by the crew that, even for Spock, Spock is being uncharacteristically anti-social. That subplot (and the payoff of Spock's single tear) feel organic to Spock's arc. Similarly, I could've stood to see Kirk being a little more argumentative. Kirk's protective of the enterprise & is out of practice, so likewise dealing with those character tics plays well into Kirk's arc.

All in all, I probably prefer BionicBob's version since it gets us to Ilia's assimilation faster, but as a movie-length edit. this was pretty good. It's a TM2YC edit, after all, and the technical acumen injected into the movie is worth the watch alone.

I really liked the Lovecraftian elements of the original film, but I also thought the movie was too slow paced for my taste, this version is much more straightforward but without losing character development and narrative.

Where to start?

TM2YC turns a severely slow-moving movie with good ideas into a tight, cerebral motion picture along the lines of 2001, a Space Odyssey (which ST MP was 'inspired' by) that continues the original Star Trek show, going in a new direction. The themes of dealing with change and becoming older (Kirk) works well with the theme of facing the unknown. Also gone are the distracting side plots such as the one with Ilia and the new Enterprise Captain (read for the cut list for full changes). Audiovisual wise, It was stunning, i was immersed in it completely, and this is probably the best looking version of the movie you'll get. The audio really gives it an unknown out of this vibe.
Recommended to all Star Trek fans, as TM2YC's version is the only movie to perfectly recreate the original Star Trek feel (Beyond was close, but was limited by modern blockbuster limitations) in my opinion. Also great for Sci-Fi fans who want to see a cerebral sci fi movie that reflects ideas from the 70s.

I'm torn with reviewing this edit because I really don't want to be negative about something that obviously took lots of hard work and time. However I did want to give my opinion on the edit and so I decided to write this up. First off, this is the best "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" has ever looked. It even surpasses the bluray release. There are some issues with the added sound effects and score being slightly louder than the original but it's not a dealbreaker.

My problems with the edit are the same as with the initial release, it's tedious and not very interesting. It's like watching "2001: A Space Odyssey" but with Star Trek characters. Thankfully the over-long beauty shots of the Enterprise are trimmed down. I know this is a divisive movie and I just happen to fall on the negative side I guess. I was hoping this shorter edit would turn me around but it didn't. Like I wrote before, it looks awesome and is not as long so if you like the original this will probably be your preferred version. If you didn't care for the storyline this might not be for you.