I'm floored by the number of reviews here that give this a 1 star review, and then state that they haven't seen the movies. If you actually compare the picture quality with these new BDs to previous DVDs, you do see a vast improvement. Star Trek II, III, and IV have more consistant color and detail then what I saw in the DVDs. In previous editions of ST III, I always noticed an upped contrast in comparison to II and IV: but in this set, it's in line with all the other movies. There seems to be a lot of rumors here about what "Digitally Restored" is over "Digitally Remastered" (as TWOK was the only to get "Digitally Restored"). A digital restoration is when it's accessed that there has to be a new edit of the film due to the state of the print (it could be going in and adjusting color levels for consistancy or even digitally painting out blemishes). It seems Paramount found TWOK to be the only movie in need of a restoration: when you see the other movies on a HDTV, you can easily tell that they are coming from an HD master and not an SD upconversion like some are claiming. They compare favorably to other blu-ray movies from all the big studios. I notice some of the HD interviews are the same interviews taken from the special edition DVDs: it's nice to see them in their original HD resolution (where the studio has obviously been gearing up for HD for several years). Note that there's also some interviews from the special edition DVDs that were shot in SD and have been transfered to this issue (the main one seemed to be ST V). The only gimmick I find with the movies is the "new" 7.1 sound mixes. I don't see the need in mixing 5.1 to 7.1....but the lossless audio does sound great. This blu-ray set is a definite improvement over any other issues of the movies. Issues like DNR or restorations are always subjective; but these transfers are good enough that whenever the movies get a re-issue, I suspect it will be more along the lines of adding more featurettes (or rendering out HD resolutions of the CG shots in the case of TMP).***Addition****
Since there are still more 1 star reviews, I thought I should address the misinformation about what remastering means in relation to Blu-Ray. It's impossible for any of these movies to have come from a DV (digital video: SD DVD resolution) because studios have been working in 2k resolutions for awhile. A 2k file is 2048 pixels wide by X number high (it's a standard that has varying aspects....with some of my 3D files, I work in 2048x2048). Studios are currently converting to 4k work for new movies and for film restorations of older titles. So the restoration for TWOK might have been scanned at 4k for the 35mm scenes and 8k for the 70mm VFX. The other movies could have been scanned a number of years ago, but the studio would still have masters that are at least 2k resolutions.
Now studios do not author BDs themselves: they go hire companies to do that. So for a genuine HDTV movie, Blu-Ray title, or DVD title the company is getting a copy of the 2k studio master and then remastering for that particular medium: for Blu-Ray, they rescale and process the image to be 1920x1080 at 24 fps....for HDTV, they rescale to 1920x1080 60I, and for DVD, they rescale to 720x480. At this stage, the authoring company then adds particular DNR and compression appropriate for for the medium. When it comes to DNR, some people are more against it then others. I personally don't feel the DNR is that bad here: there are some scenes in these movies that weren't processed the way I'd like them to....but if they ever do get a remaster, it's going to be at the HD level: the studio master is unadulterated.
To conclude my thoughts....it's a pity that the reviews here are getting dragged down by mis-information. I gave this set a 4 star review simply because I save 5 stars for the extremely good titles on BD. If you have a 100" TV, then maybe you want to wait for another HD remaster with less DNR. I'm not as anti-DNR as others....but I'd say that it's not as bad as some make it out to be: I still see plenty of grain for appropriate scenes, and there's not huge edge enhancement going on during scenes with too much softfocus. And for me, the softfocus issues (only in certain scenes) and certain cinematography effects are a lot more glaring then DNR: things that were harder to pick up back when these movies were made, and something that's niether correctable in a transfer and is more clearly evident in HD. For a 110" TV DNR issues might be more overwhelming, but for my more modest TV set with great 7.1 sound system, I'd say this is a no brainer purchase for any passing fan of the series. The movies are marred by some production values that prevent this set from being a "demo" set, but I think the transfers do more closely reflect the studio masters. All of the movies have never looked or sounded as good: they should be stunning for any passing fan of Star Trek.
I thought this might help, as there is very little info from Amazon on this product. This review is mostly for the content of this STANDARD DEFINITION 7 Disc ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE COLLECTION Box Set released Sept. 22, 2009.
Obviously, these are the 6 Original Paramount films with the Original Series cast.
STAR TREK THE MOTION PICTURE
THE WRATH OF KHAN
THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK
THE VOYAGE HOME
THE FINAL FRONTIER
and THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY
Every film in this set is the Original Widescreen Theatrical Version. The 7th Bonus Disc is THE CAPTAINS' SUMMIT. A 70 minute round table discussion with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, and host Whoopi Goldberg.
Each Movie Disc includes commentaries, a few short Special Features, and NO theatrical trailers. The Insert Card states: 2 1/2 hours of Special Features. My guess is that they're leftovers from the previous 2 Disc Editions for each film, none of which I've ever owned. So, don't take my word for it. (Anyone that thinks 5 Stars may be too generous for this Edition, I only really care about the films. And, the way they look and sound. SFs are of secondary concern to me.)
Sound for all the films is 5.1 Dolby Digital EX and maintains a good presence. There is NO 2.1 or DTS setting. As usual with big studio blockbusters, music is too far forward in the mix for my taste, and dialogue is at a lower volume. (For optimal home theater playback, your center channel should always be set at a hotter level than your front speakers. Here's a good starting point for louder films: The individual speaker volume levels for my surround receiver go to 12. Please, no Spinal Tap jokes. I usually leave my L/R front speakers at level 4, and make my center channel all-the-way hot at 12. I always leave my rear effects speakers at 8 or 10. My Velodyne subwoofer is usually set at -7 because I have neighbors, and the darn thing really pumps those ultra low earthquake frequencies.)
The transfers look EXCELLENT. I've perused them all, but I have only viewed the FIRST film in its entirety. Very nice. Good color timing. (NOSTALGIA ALERT: I really appreciate the primitive Special Effects, models, matte painting, and miniature photography of this era. With the advent of CG, these kinds of photographic effects are a rarity these days. The wormhole sequence is still awesome, and the VGER probe scene still looks really cool. I can't wait to view the rest of the films. Especially THE WRATH OF KHAN!)
This Box Set is a very handsome Edition. Each Disc comes in an ultra thin slipcase with a different cast member in silver on the cover of each case, with Shatner's photo on the Bonus Disc. (I would have preferred the Original movie poster art for each film, but the design is unique for this Edition.)
The Box has a 3D Trek logo on the front, is only 2" deep, and doesn't take up much shelf space. The entire Box is covered with a transparent slipcover that is open on the top and bottom. (CAREFUL: The insert card is glued to the outside and the bottom of the Box. If it comes off, the entire Box can fall thru the bottom of the outer slipcover and crash onto the floor. Remove it, put it under the slipcover, or throw it away.)
A very affordable way to own the 6 Original films.
SPOCK LIVES!
Enjoy.Having just gone through my set of the Blu-Rays, I'm very happily surprised at the content. The only aspect keeping this from being a 4 or 5 star review is the fact that only the theatrical versions are available. Blu-Ray is specifically made to hold a great deal more data than any prior video or DVD format. Aside from the issues regarding the new effects of the director's cut of TMP, there's little reason (other than monetary) for Paramount to hold back the extended cuts. Seamless branching, used so successfully on the TOS first season set, would work equally well here.
The Motion Picture is another story, since the new effects were rendered for lower resolution and it will take time and, of course, money to rerender them. We can expect to see a Director's Edition release on BD in the near future, I'm sure. However, this does not excuse the lack of the inclusion of the extended TV cut put out on video.
Having said that, it is an amazing thrill having the theatrical cuts of The Motion Picture, and The Undiscovered Country on disc for the first time ever. TUC was NEVER seen in this version since its original release and until today, I had totally forgotten how good a film it was. Many fans enjoy the additional scenes, but I always felt they brought the film down some. The scenes were obvious and amped up the silliness fact in a film that very much needed to be played straight. The two video versions really brought the maturity level of the story down some notches.
Now, however, we once again see the film as originally released 18 years ago (oh God, it's been that long). Over the years, the film had become less enjoyable and fallen down the ranks in my personal list of favorites. None of the other had, but this one a film I really loved in the theater had dropped in favor. Now, having watched it again from beginning to end, I found I loved the film once more. The story is tighter and less obvious. These changes were not major, but they made an impact. This is the best movie for the cast to exit on and is once more a 4 star film to me.
The Motion Picture: it's great to see this movie in this format again, as released without alteration. However, this film is more problematic. The extended version was just a "longer cut" with some great scenes added, but none of the fat trimmed (these scenes are included in the extras). The Directors Cut was better paced and more tightly edited and also added some amazing effects to cover some of the less successful work in the picture, but they also lost bits that made the film unique which weren't "bad." Since there never actually was a "perfect" version of this film, it's vital all three versions should be made available (or maybe someone should redo the DE).
The Wrath of Kahn: again the theatrical cut and, as we all know, this film had the full restoration, presumably because the master elements needed it badly while the other films were fine. I'll comment on picture shortly, but let's just say this is a fantastic presentation of the movie.
Finally The Search for Spock, my favorite Trek film. For those who notice such things, the video versions always screwed up the opening credits. The VHS version had them replaced by "video graphics" which looked like a cheap, high school AV squad attempt to make Star Trek movie credits. The wide screen VHS and laserdiscs were much better, givings us the titles seen in the film. However, the DVDs had a "glitched" version of the titles, with the timing off badly. It's tough to explain, but if you compare the BD and the DVD opening credits, you'll see them. And since this is my all time favorite Trek film, one I saw in the theater 7 times and memorized with obsessive Trekkie abandon, you can imagine my thrill when I saw the BD version corrected the credits. Ahhhh! :-)
Okay, my impression of the picture quality. There's been a lot said about the excessive digital noise reduction Paramount slathered on the films. I was expecting some bad stuff when I fired up my 52 inch HDTV. You know what I got? An amazing picture every time. The level of sharpness and clarity to these films is a revelation! I had NEVER seen these films looking so amazingly sharp and detailed. The Wrath of Kahn, which as noted got the real restoration, is very nice, but I didn't notice a huge difference between this restoration and the other films. Mostly, I noticed the print was a little darker than prior prints and the other films. The blacks do hold up well on BD, better than on HD-DVD, to my surprise.
I have read that those who watch the movies on HUGE screens will notice the DNR, I have to say that my 52 inch, which I sit 6 to 8 feet away from, does not reveal any obvious dullness. And, really, I would assume the great majority of people don't go much larger than 52 inch (unless you have a mansion and more money than God). Honestly, I have no issues with the picture quality, and can wholeheartedly give the picture a thumbs up.
The sound is also extremely impressive. The dialog is not lost among the music and sound effects, like so many other HD presentations. The muddiness in much of Kahn and The Search for Spock is not as strong, and the music score for the films never sounded so good.
The subtitles for various alien languages are, however, disc generated, not embedded in the films. So the "species centric" fonts are lost (and, I guess, really doesn't make these true theatrical cuts). However, they are not obviously bad or "video titles" and won't stand out to people not that familiar or who don't care.
To sum up: the only disappointment is in the fact that there's plenty of room for all versions of the films, either side by side or through branching, so (aside from the DE of TMP), there's no reason to have left them out. Having all versions would justify the price tag of this double or triple dip. Especially since you know Paramount will release these again with these versions included.
Otherwise, it's a great set. The theatrical cuts are the versions I fell in love with and it's great to have them back. The picture is outstanding, with refreshing sharpness and clarity, while the sound mix is comfortable and satisfying.
5 stars for the presentation
Subtract 2 stars for leaving out the alternate versions.
For fans of the original cuts, this is an essential set. It's up to you to decide if you want to hold out for the next and probably more complete release of these films.Firstly we are very fortunate in Australia that we get this set around 2 weeks before the US. The price we pay however is that the set costs nearly double here what it is on Amazon (and that is adjusted for the currency difference). And despite this I am still calling it a worthwhile upgrade
Firstly the good. The movies look about as good as you can reasonably expect. For something that did not go through a Lowry or equivalent frame by frame meticulous restoration this is a good looking set of movies overall (with some reservations as explained below).
As of writing I have only had a chance to fully view the first film and sample parts of II and IV. The Motion Picture was thoroughly impressive. Given low expecations that it was not a restoration like Wrath of Khan I did not expect much. The visuals were thoroughly engaging and the transfer looks like it was done off of a freshly minted print especially for this transfer. There was a visible lack of marks and scratches on the film. Do a compare against the Director's Cut DVD and you'll see a huge number of blemishes on that version. Interestingly the striking visuals of the Theatrical Version were more compelling visually (and more authentic) than the Director's Edition on DVD. For the record I DO NOT LIKE THIS MOVIE but found it compelling viewing until the last act (which becomes a little much). The visual upgrade finally shows what Robert Wise was going for as far as impressive optical effects and these hold up surprisingly well 30 years later. So #1 was a worthwhile watch, prob the most i ever enjoyed this film. The sound was also decent. Not the full range effort of today's best transfers but pleasing enough with generally clear dialogue. I also briefly sampled The Voyage Home and it was generally a pleasing transfer with a solid soundtrack. The upgrade becomes more noticeable if you then compare to the previous DVD editions. You'll find these hard to watch after Blu Ray.
Now for the not so good. Yes, these are theatrical versions and truth be told probably the optimal versions to watch (tighter, less self indulgent and "original") but it would be nice to have the choice of the Dir ed or original for completeness. However the most disappointing thing about this set (so far) has been Khan. The packaging notes that this is a fully restored transfer. When putting it in the Blu Ray player I started wondering whether someone substituted the disc on me. From the first half hour or so I watched I noticed the image had a noticeable degradation from the first movie. Likely due to the lower production budget and likely lower quality film stock used. The image had a noticeable lack of sharpness compared to the first film, the sound was rather hollow (seemed like less ADR and more location dialogue, that was at times hard to understand). If this is a restoration I'd hate to see the state of the original elements and I have to wonder whether the restoration work could have been done a lot better. I expected a real showcase for what is considered the best film in the series and so far I was thoroughly underwhelmed. Again it's better than the DVD edition but should be a lot further improved.
The other noticeable thing was the excessive use of video noise reduction or otherwise known as grain removal (esp noticeable on The Voyage Home). The transfer there was generally good, but the grain removal made all the faces look like they were rendered with putty. Unnatural and overly smooth. This made the film less engaging as subtle facial expressions are lost (or rather smeared away). The sound here also lacked the depth you would want to hear from the best High Def transfer.
But, on the whole anyone who likes their Trek should consider picking these up. Even if there is a double, or triple dip coming you can enjoy the films now in the finest quality and technology available today. In our case you pay an arm and a leg for the luxury, but hey...Life is too short. And when they release a superior edition with more compelling content, i'll probably buy it again...and then again a few years later when they come up with something better again. We keep buying new versions of software that are just different enough to warrant a respurchase why would film be any different?
My vote good enough for now, but could have been so much better...I had pre-ordered this item, and then saw some early reviews around the web stating that the video quality wasn't up to snuff. I canceled my order, and put the discs on my Netflix queue instead to evaluate them before purchase.
Well, I re-ordered the set. Let me tell you why.
The Films:
The Trek films, to my mind, are a very good capstone to the Original Series Trek characters' stories. In them, we are presented with a very good "trilogy" of sorts, ST2-4, and a few other films that retain the thematic elements of the others whilst enjoying varying quality of story.
The Motion Picture (ST1) is unfairly maligned in my eyes. It very ably presents a story of characters re-uniting after a hiatus, with all the varying emotional consequences of that separation. Grafted to this is a relatively high-concept science fiction tale of an artificial intelligence seeking its creator. If this film had been cut by 20 minutes (very long effects sequences which seem a deliberate paean to Kubrick's "2001"), people would be hailing it as a masterpiece.
ST2: The Wrath of Khan is, of course, the public's pick as the greatest Trek film. It's hard to argue. A good villain, a deep emotional core, a slam-bang space battle, and some great performances make this a film that doesn't really misfire.
ST3: The Search For Spock is the middle act of a "trilogy", and really works in my opinion. It has a lot of action, a good dose of humor, and a lot of heart.
ST4: The Voyage Home is unbridled fun from start to finish. Lighter in tone than the preceding two films, it still captures the emotional core of the story, and brings the trilogy to a satisfying conclusion.
ST5: The Final Frontier is the black sheep of the family. It introduces an unfortunate "retcon" character, does some unrealistic things in its quest to reach the "center of the galaxy," and posits an unsatisfying sci-fi story about "finding god." The characterizations are still generally good, though, and there are plenty of charming moments for fans.
ST6: The Undiscovered Country is a return to form of sorts, but I think would not be regarded as highly if it had not followed ST5. A cold-war allegory, it has some good action, but suffers from some silly sequences in the middle (a prison planet and a murder mystery spring to mind). It does have Captain Sulu, though, which is hard to dislike.
The Blu-Ray:
Well, first I'll list the negatives:
We are not presented with the "directors editions" from the last DVD box set. Thus we miss some new effects shots from ST1, one very good bit of back story from ST2, and a few negligible cuts from the rest of the films (mainly 6).
Digital Noise Reduction has been applied to at least the final 4 films and the results are not always positive. Grain has been reduced from the films with negative results some very fine detail (such as fine facial wrinkles) is scrubbed away also. It probably will not be noticeable on displays under 40 inches and I imagine it would be quite noticeable on front projection screens above 80 inches. I personally noticed it in spots on my 50" display, especially on Star Trek 4. ST4 comes off by far the worst, with many faces looking waxy and other scenes being artificially pumped up by edge enhancement to compensate (check out Kirk and Spock walking by the boat dock before Gillian picks them up). I would say ST4 and ST6 suffer the most by the out of control noise reduction. You can really see it when smoke is in a scene check out the scene in ST6 when Kirk smokes a cigar. As the smoke wafts in front of his face, you can see pores and lines under the eyes that are absent in the very next shot sans smoke. It's that extra little layer of detail we could have had, and it's missing.
The double dip conundrum: we are certain to be presented with a new set, although I will go on record betting it won't be before Xmas 2010, if even that soon. Paramount will be putting out the Abrams film this year, Seasons 2-3 of TOS this year, and the TNG movies probably next year. Surely there will be a complete box set at some point, incorporating the "directors edition" footage, but I would guess that this will not be released until the 2nd Abrams film hits theaters. It seems to takes upwards of a year to re-transfer and restore a film, the Directors footage has to be re-shot in 1080p, and logically, Paramount would not cannibalize their current retail SKUs by so quickly re-releasing them. So I would guess 2012 would be the soonest we'd see the "directors editions" with new, hopefully less DNR'ed transfers.
All right, now the good news:
These films have never looked this good. NEVER. ST1 is revelatory there are colors I've never seen, and DNR is not obtrusive at all fine detail seems quite evident. ST2, which apparently had the latest transfer, does not suffer from excessive DNR. ST3-6 are the films that have the most aggressive noise reduction, but it is only noticeable in select scenes (I am watching on a 50" 1080p display). For the most part, detail is quite strong (especially for movies shot in the 1980s), color depth blows away the DVDs (you really should compare them prepare to be dazzled), and sound quality is excellent. The worst looking of these films look as good as the best cable TV HD. The best of them (1 and 2) are competitive with some of the better Blu-Rays on the market now. Just to correct some misinformation from previous reviews, all the films are presented in 1080p. None of them are 1080i, or anything less. Also, all of the films are truly high definition. They are not some sort of pseudo-HD, as one particularly egregious review has claimed.
So it's hit or miss in terms of A/V, but light years ahead of the DVDs. The biggest gains are in color the DVDs are positively muddy by comparison. ST 1, 2, and 5 generally look pretty good detail-wise. The other films suffer from waxy faces they have strong mid-range detail (like cloth textures or scenery), but weak fine detail (like facial wrinkles). It is aggravating, because the films look so good in general, that the little details are washed away.
Extras are VERY strong. Each film gets new commentaries, and most retain a second commentary as well. MANY new documentaries supplement the older ones which are retained for this set (I would estimate about 100 minutes per film combining old and new content). "Library Computer" offers interactive text data while you watch the films. BD Live functions include the ability to create and take fan quizzes with your remote and internet connection. The one giant new inclusion, "The Captains Summit," is presented on its own disc in full HD quality. This is a 70 minute round table, hosted by Whoopie (Guinan) Goldberg, featuring actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart(Picard) and Jonathan Frakes (Riker). Wow! It is oddly titled, and I wish that they had included Kate Mulgrew (Janeway), Scott Bakula (Archer), and Avery Brooks (Sisko). The interview was a bit directionless at times, with Goldberg failing to keep her guests on track. Nonetheless, the actors are generally funny and at times engaging and insightful, and true fans will eat this up.
Atypically for CBS/Paramount, the packaging for this set is very nice. A cardboard box with a plastic slipcover holds the Blu-Ray cases, which are all of the "slim" variety. Thus, the set takes up the space of only about 3 regular Blu-Ray cases, despite having seven discs. Separate cases, though, allow you to lend out one disc, and there is never any fumbling around with the elaborate multi-disc cases that often comprise these sets.
******
In summary, it comes down to a value proposition. At Amazon's reduced price, you're getting the theatrical cuts of the films, better than they've ever looked, for $11.65 apiece. I know I've paid more for films I care about a lot less. There probably won't be superior presentations of them for at least 3 years. So for a serious Trekkie, the math is simple. This is a purchase.
For a general sci-fi fan with an HD setup, it's a maybe. If you're the type who's willing to buy "Chronicles of Riddick" for $20 just to have something HD to watch with spaceships and explosions, it's hard to see the argument against this set. If you're a new Trek fan who wants to dive in, this value is hard to beat. If you don't care much about Trek, this might be a pass, since intimate knowledge and interest for the characters really helps your enjoyment of the films.
The haters need to calm down. No, this is not a perfect set. But at this price, it is still a very strong value. The missing material is not really integral to enjoying the films (unlike the LOTR set without the Extended Edition material now THAT is a significant loss). If you want to see the films for the next 3 or 4 years at their best, this is the set to get. Otherwise, you're stuck with the dull, muddy DVD transfers for at least that long. When it comes time for the double-dip in 2012, the only ones that will probably warrant a re-purchase are 1 and 2, since they gained the most from the "Directors Edition" material.
I would have rated this 3 stars had it been significantly more expensive, or had significantly fewer extras. But for $11-$13 (depending on the set's price) per movie, I'm willing to take the plunge, come what may. I think this set is a worthwhile purchase at either price point, and I would have placed the order at 79.99 as well.
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