A
mysterious alien power is threatening Earth by evaporating the
oceans and destroying the atmosphere. In a frantic attempt to
save mankind, Kirk (William Shatner) and his crew must travel
back to 1986 San Francisco where they find a world of punk,
pizza and exact-change buses that are as alien as anything
they’ve ever encountered in the far reaches of the galaxy.
This explanation is rather plain and simple. There is much more to
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and I’ll go into it in the
next paragraph. Paramount continues its set of Star Trek
Collector’s Edition releases. The latest installment is,
obviously, The Voyage Home. As with the previous three
releases, this fourth Trek adventure is as funny and
exciting as they’re going to get.
Rejoined
and rekindled, Kirk and his crew, aboard a stolen Klingon
vessel, attempt time travel in order to save Earth from peril.
Their attempt is successful, but the real mission is to find
their way around San Francisco and to its important resource
(two whales). Kirk and Spock (Leonard Nimoy) locate the whale
museum-of-sorts and begin preparations to bring them back to the
23rd century where they will be able to stop the alien force. As
fate has it, hurdles and problems jeopardize the mission, but we
know the formula well enough to know the outcome.
Star Trek
IV: The Voyage Home
is pure entertainment. Its got sci-fi elements, action, peril,
philosophy, romance, and, above all, a very good laugh track (in
terms of comedy, that is). While there are a few unanswered
questions, such as the concern of the alien force and the time
travel plot, Leonard Nimoy, who directed this fourth feature
from a script by four scribes, and his crew (the special effects
team deserves a mention here, no doubt) created a very well done
film.
8 out of 10
The
Video
This
transfer looks pretty clean at first, but upon further
inspection I found several places containing scratches, blurs,
and grizzly blackness. It looks like this transfer was taken
from the previous, no extras release of The Voyage Home.
Even though this transfer is not top notch, the quality and
visual mapping of the film itself preserves an experience worth
sitting through.
8 out of 10
The
Audio
There
comes joy when watching The Voyage Home with a surround
speaker system. This audio transfer utilizes all speakers, but
not every one of them at once. At times the audio seems to come
just from the front speakers, but that’s usually a given.
All in all, the audio quality here enhances the viewing
experience.
9 out of 10
The
Extras
These
special features represent exactly what “special collector’s edition”
stands for. The first disc is home to the feature film and a
commentary track by star/director Leonard Nimoy and William
Shatner (whose commentary participation was absent on the
previous releases). The track itself is very informative and
enjoyable. It’s obvious these two guys have a good time talking
about the film even though it’s been over 15 years since making
it.
The second
disc is filled with exciting extras, ranging from
behind-the-scenes footage, interviews, production featurettes,
visual effects featurettes, storyboards, trailers and more. A
breakdown of the extras:
Commentary by Leonard Nimoy
and William Shatner
Theatrical trailer(s)
Text commentary by Michael
Okuda and Denise Okuda (co-authors of The Star Trek
Encyclopedia)
The Star Trek Universe: Time
Travel--Art of the Possible, The Language of Whales, A Vulcan
Primer, Kirk's Women
Production featurettes: From
Outer Space to the Ocean, The Bird of Prey
Tributes: Roddenberry
Scrapbook, Featured Artist Mark Lenard
Original interviews with
William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley
Storyboards
Production gallery
Widescreen anamorphic format
Number of discs: 2
9 out of 10
Overall
What more
can a Trek fan want from this DVD? Not much, to tell the truth.
The Voyage Home is pure entertainment and features very
good video and audio transfers, but the special features take
notice the most. This “edition” is definitely worth buying.
