Star Trek VI The Undiscovered Country - 30 years on

Wedwood · 05-05-2021 11:40pm #1

This year is the 30th anniversary of Star Trek VI The Undiscovered Country. This movie is the most fitting end to what was then the 25th anniversary of the Star Trek franchise.

There’s too many positive things to list about the movie, but one thing that doesn’t get mentioned very often is how it’s also really the concluding chapter of the ‘Genesis Quadrilogy’.

It picks up the pieces regarding Kirk’s son’s death at the hands of the Klingons in ST III, as well as the vow of ‘No peace while Kirk lives’ by the Klingon ambassador in ST IV and brings a resolution to those threads from the previous movies.

It’s also the first time that Star Trek showed that prejudice and racism would be enduring issues to be overcome and each main character had to confront the issue in their own way over the course of the film. The fact this movie coincided with the fall of communism made it all the more relevant at the time and it’s message about overcoming prejudice is just as strong today.

It’s a movie (along with most of the original movies) long overdue a 4K re-release .

AMKC · 05-05-2021 11:52pm

It's an excellent movie and for me the best of the Original Series Movies.

pixelburp · 06-05-2021 10:53am

There's so little between Wrath of Khan and Undiscovered Country, you could argue into the night which one was the Original Series' high point for movie adaptations.

Watching some clips, and yowsers; it doesn't look good in HD. I had heard they had to drag old sets and costumes out from the WoK production, so maybe that accounts for the shabbiness of things. Then again, given a lot of the movies was basically about the Enterprise's encroaching obsolescence, maybe it was deliberate too.

Samuel T. Cogley · 06-05-2021 11:10am

pixelburp wrote: »

There's so little between Wrath of Khan and Undiscovered Country, you could argue into the night which one was the Original Series' high point for movie adaptations.

You could, but the ones suggesting it's not TWOK would be wrong :pac:

odyssey06 · 06-05-2021 11:15am

pixelburp wrote: »

There's so little between Wrath of Khan and Undiscovered Country, you could argue into the night which one was the Original Series' high point for movie adaptations.

And their common factor is director Nicholas Meyer, who also had a lot of input to the screenplay.

Evade · 06-05-2021 12:37pm

pixelburp wrote: »

Watching some clips, and yowsers; it doesn't look good in HD. I had heard they had to drag old sets and costumes out from the WoK production, so maybe that accounts for the shabbiness of things. Then again, given a lot of the movies was basically about the Enterprise's encroaching obsolescence, maybe it was deliberate too.

I wouldn't read that much into it. A lot of sets were re-used from TNG (granted a lot of which were originally from TMP) and TNG's HD remaster shows a lot of unintentional rough edges.

pixelburp · 06-05-2021 12:41pm

Evade wrote: »

I wouldn't read that much into it. A lot of sets were re-used from TNG (granted a lot of which were originally from TMP) and TNG's HD remaster shows a lot of unintentional rough edges.

This is the one I watched; there are a lot of scuffs, scrapes and general dishevelment that's really apparent in places. TNG had some wear & tear on the fringes but the below looks especially bad. Like I said, maybe that was part of the theme & aesthetic; poor 'aul Enterprise past its use-by date...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_a2GN0Ix4o

JayRoc · 06-05-2021 12:44pm

I cannot believe it's 30 years ago.

Which means it's been 30 years since boyhood me was invited on to Jo Maxi to talk to them about the new Star Trek film about to come out....

And this was in the days before being a nerd was cool, jesus, it was a rough few weeks in school after that.

Still one of my favourite trek films, despite the trauma

Evade · 06-05-2021 12:58pm

pixelburp wrote: »

This is the one I watched; there are a lot of scuffs, scrapes and general dishevelment that's really apparent in places. TNG had some wear & tear on the fringes but the below looks especially bad. Like I said, maybe that was part of the theme & aesthetic; poor 'aul Enterprise past its use-by date...

You're right that does look scruffy and it isn't even in HD. It looks a lot cleaner in Redemtion Part II as the Bridge of the Sutherland.

AllForIt · 06-05-2021 1:07pm

I thought it was a poor attempt at a TWOK type movie. The whole thing didn't work for me at all.

AMKC · 06-05-2021 4:45pm

AllForIt wrote: »

I thought it was a poor attempt at a TWOK type movie. The whole thing didn't work for me at all.

I disagree. I think it was a great film that came out at the right time just when the cold war was ending and thr USSR was been dismantled.
It had everything you would want in a Star Trek film or even episode.
It had The Enterprise, Excelsior and what a start with the praxis moon explosion as well as politics and scheming and plot twists.

Evade · 06-05-2021 6:01pm

And it had Colonel West who was so good at disguises you'd swear he was some sort of shapeshifter.

tromtipp · 08-05-2021 5:58pm

And the perfect last line, a literary joke to bring a something in the eye moment.

TheValeyard · 09-05-2021 10:33am

It's a great film. The perfect send off for the original crew. That soundtrack was also pretty class.

Think it only the second of the original films for the Enterprise to actually have a full crew?

Evade · 09-05-2021 12:15pm

TheValeyard wrote: »

Think it only the second of the original films for the Enterprise to actually have a full crew?

The Search for Spock was the only time they didn't have a full crew, wasn't it? And I suppose, technically, the Enterprise didn't have a full crew in the Voyage Home either.

TheValeyard · 09-05-2021 2:20pm

Evade wrote: »

The Search for Spock was the only time they didn't have a full crew, wasn't it? And I suppose, technically, the Enterprise didn't have a full crew in the Voyage Home either.

TMP full crew
TWOK was filled with trainees I think.
SFS Bridge crew
VH no Enterprise
The Final Frontier only had a Skeleton crew.
TUC, full crew

Definitely open to correction on this.

Evade · 09-05-2021 2:29pm

TheValeyard wrote: »

TMP full crew
TWOK was filled with trainees I think.
SFS Bridge crew
VH no Enterprise
The Final Frontier only had a Skeleton crew.
TUC, full crew

Definitely open to correction on this.

Actually, I think you're right.

_Kaiser_ · 09-05-2021 3:17pm

I liked TUC, but I'd rate WoK and TSFS higher to be honest. It was the last time they took things "seriously".

VH was a lot lighter/obviously comedic, ditto TFF and by TUC it was just one last party with the production not even bothering to hide the TNG sets.

TheValeyard · 09-05-2021 3:23pm

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

I liked TUC, but I'd rate WoK and TSFS higher to be honest. It was the last time they took things "seriously".

VH was a lot lighter/obviously comedic, ditto TFF and by TUC it was just one last party with the production not even bothering to hide the TNG sets.

VH really got the tone right with the rising sentiment against whale hunting.

Although that Vulcan neck pinch thing could be very handy on the Dart or Luas.

AMKC · 09-05-2021 4:13pm

TheValeyard wrote: »

VH really got the tone right with the rising sentiment against whale hunting.

Although that Vulcan neck pinch thing could be very handy on the Dart or Luas.

It is possibly. Just a matter of knocking someone out by stopping there blood flow in there neck for a second or two not sure it would be a good idea do.

Evade · 09-05-2021 4:22pm

AMKC wrote: »

It is possibly. Just a matter of knocking someone out by stopping there blood flow in there neck for a second or two not sure it would be a good idea do.

It takes a bit longer than that. Around 10 seconds to knock someone out and they wake up less than a minute later, unless it goes very wrong and they never wake up.

branie2 · 09-05-2021 6:19pm

It was the first Star Trek film that I saw on the big screen

TheValeyard · 09-05-2021 8:41pm

Love how they kept the TWOK uniforms.

Perfection.

star-trek-the-wrath-of-khan-uniforms.jpg?format=jpg&quality=80&width=440&ratio=1-1&resize=aspectfit

pah · 09-05-2021 9:52pm

branie2 wrote: »

It was the first Star Trek film that I saw on the big screen

Me too, I was 10 and went with my Dad. So so good.

We had been watching TNG and I had caught TOS and most of the earlier movies by then.

Samuel T. Cogley · 09-05-2021 10:40pm

TheValeyard wrote: »

Love how they kept the TWOK uniforms.

Perfection.

Shatner throwing up gang signs? :pac:

nyarlothothep · 10-05-2021 12:33am

It's my favourite TOS film. I like the slower pacing, the political meditations and Spock reflecting on his life (can't remember the scene but it was in his private quarters).

TomSweeney · 12-05-2021 10:42am

Wow my brother took me to see this for my 14th birthday, but it wasn't till 1992 before it was released in Ireland ...

H3llR4iser · 12-05-2021 11:19am

pixelburp wrote: »

This is the one I watched; there are a lot of scuffs, scrapes and general dishevelment that's really apparent in places. TNG had some wear & tear on the fringes but the below looks especially bad. Like I said, maybe that was part of the theme & aesthetic; poor 'aul Enterprise past its use-by date...

In all fairness, it kinda fits in with the concept that the ship has been around for a long time; Even with high maintenance standards, that kind of wear & tear on non-essential fittings is pretty normal. If you've ever been on a (sea...)ship or airplane that 15-20 years old (or older), that's exactly the kind of marks, scruffs and scratches you'll see.

The one thing in that clip that doesn't sit well is the inside lining of the doorway, which looks porous and betrays its nature of being made of something that might be foam, polystyrene or at best plaster, but certainly not any sort of metal

Star Trek VI The Undiscovered Country - 30 years on

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