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Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review

The most accessible and perhaps most popular star trek feature film is brought into the 4k timeline in a wonderful remaster..

Ben Gourlay

The Bottom Line

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review 99

Emboldened by the strong response to The Search for Spock which turned the clock back and reunited Spock with the crew of the Enterprise crew, Paramount almost immediately turned their attention to the next installment in the series. But in lightening the tone quite significantly from its two predecessors, the studio even managed to produce a film that was more accessible to casual filmgoers, which expanded the fanbase considerably.

Following immediately from the events of The Search for Spock , Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and the Enterprise crew are summoned to Federation Headquarters to account for the consequences of their actions in returning to the restricted Genesis planet and the destruction of their flagship vessel.

En route, however, Earth becomes attacked by a powerful and mysterious entity that has paralyzed global power grids and generated crippling superstorms across the globe. The only hope for Earth is the plucky crew of the Enterprise and ancient Kington technology, which sees the crew return to Earth - circa 1986!

Universally referred to as "the one with the whales," The Voyage Home is often singled out as the standout entry in the original six feature films, earned by a refreshingly lighter change of pace, a somewhat relatable time frame, and which breaks free from the sci-fi gobbled-gook and reliance on prior Star Trek lore.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review 01

Video transfer

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with H.265 compression and graded for HDR-10 and Dolby Vision.

As with its three predecessors, Paramount has returned to the original conformed camera negative in producing this brand new 4K transfer. In doing so, it wipes memories clean of the Blu-ray transfer, which exceeds two decades of age.

The image is stable, clear and detailed, and almost entirely cleaned of film artifacts and noise, which, owing to the analog nature of post-production, have been part of the image since conception. The 1980's settings offer a bit more visual panache and more natural lighting than the overly dark and dank sets that most of the Trek films to date had been filmed on, and this is reflected in a brighter and crisper image for the most part. Color balance is excellent, with rich and saturated tones where appropriate.

Overall, this is perhaps the best looking of the first four Trek features now released on the 4K format. We can only hope that the other entries are given the same care and consideration. Owing to their more recent vintage, I'd be very surprised if they don't easily surpass what's offered here.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review 02

Audio transfer

The default audio track is a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mix, at 24 bits.

Released theatrically in six-track Dolby audio, The Voyage Home debuted in a remixed 7.1 track for the 2009 Blu-ray release, which has been repurposed for this 4K release.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, and owing to its age, the mix remains quite a front-heavy mix, despite some reasonably impressive attempts to engage the rear channels with discreet effects to match the infrequent battle sequences, but less so during more reflective ones. I noticed no problems with audio sync, and the dialogue was fine for the most part. Surround usage is a little inconsistent; the general ambiance is a tad lacking, but the surrounds spring into life during some of the numerous action sequences. The subwoofer receives sufficient attention when called upon.

Again, Paramount has provided a good, albeit conservative remix for the film, bringing it into line with modern expectations, which remains true to the original intentions.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review 03

Bonus materials

Unfortunately, at odds with the U.S. release, Paramount has not included a copy of the standard Blu-ray in the Australian release, which means all the video-based features are completely, and disappointingly absent.

However, the 4K disc does include two previously released audio commentaries , the first provided by Director/ actor Leonard Nimoy and actor William Shatner which is a lot of fun, and the duo play off each other well. While their relationship soured in the latter few years of Nimoy's life, this is a nice time capsule (circa 2003) that preserves the height of their friendship forever.

The second commentary features Star Trek: Into Darkness writing duo Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman who speak fondly of the film and what it ultimately meant for the career, noting that the latter has now received the keys to the Star Trek kingdom - for better or worse.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review 04

The lightest and most accessible of the original Trek features, The Voyage Home's 4K debut leaves the previous Blu-ray in the cold of space.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)

Ben Gourlay

Ben Gourlay

Ben joined the TweakTown team in 2008 and has since reviewed 100s of movies. Ben is based in Australia and has covered entertainment news and reviews since 2002. A student of film, Ben brings a wide understanding of the medium to the latest happenings in entertainment circles and the latest blockbuster theatrical reviews.

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Related Tags

  • high definition
  • Gene Roddenberry
  • William Shatner
  • Leonard Nimoy
  • James Horner

star trek 4 4k review

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K

Star trek iv: the voyage home 4k blu-ray review, star trek iv: the voyage home 4k blu-ray, video quality 4k.

4.0 of 5

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray, Audio Quality

4.5 of 5

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray, Special Features and Extras

5.0 of 5

  • Audio Commentary : William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy.
  • Audio Commentary : Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman.
  • Library Computer
  • Future's Past: A look Back
  • On Location
  • Dailies Deconstruction
  • Below-the-Line Sound Design
  • Pavel Chekov's Screen Moments
  • Time Travel: The Art of the Possible
  • The Language of Whales
  • A Vulcan Primer
  • Kirk's Women
  • Star Trek : Three Picture Saga
  • Star Trek for a Cause
  • Starfleet Academy SciSec Brief 004: The Whale Probe
  • From Outer Space to the Ocean
  • The Bird of Prey
  • William Shatner
  • Leonard Nimoy
  • DeForest Kelley
  • Roddenberry Scrapbook
  • Featured Artist: Mark Lenard
  • Production Gallery
  • Storyboards
  • Theatrical Trailer

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation

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Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home: Other Editions

Blu-ray bundles/box sets with star trek iv: the voyage home 4k (3 bundles).

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Are they worth the upgrade? Let’s take a look.

star trek 4 4k review

Review: Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection

Watching Star Trek movies in the best currently available display options – 4K and high dynamic range (HDR) – has been a long time coming. 4K Blu-ray discs have been around for a few years now, but classic Star Trek movies have lacked any 4K presentations, save for the Director’s Cut of The Wrath of Khan from 2016. Now in time for the franchise’s 55 th anniversary, Paramount Home Entertainment is gracing us with 4K/HDR versions of the first four Star Trek movies, meaning this is the first time you can watch The Motion Picture, The Search for Spock , and The Voyage Home in 4K.

It’s a great milestone to celebrate, but what’s equally worth celebrating is that these transfers do a remarkable service to these movies.

What’s in the box?

Let’s start with what’s in the package. The Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection includes three ways to watch these movies:

  • Four 4K/HDR Blu-ray discs (you’ll want to make sure you have an 4K/HDR-compatible TV and Blu-ray player)
  • Four Blu-ray discs (meaning these movies are displayed in 1080p with no HDR)
  • Digital copies of these movies

Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection packaging

It’s worth noting that The Motion Picture in this collection is the theatrical cut, not the Director’s Edition. You’ll have to wait for the upcoming remastered Director’s Edition if you want to see that version in 4K. This collection does include the Director’s Cut of The Wrath of Khan as well as the theatrical version, so you get to choose which one you want to watch. Star Trek III and Star Trek IV are presented in their original theatrical cuts.

Our main question upon slipping these movies into our Blu-ray players: how does the visual quality of these releases compare to the existing versions of these movies? Well, we’re happy to report that these films look great . Of course, you expect a quality increase because you’re seeing more visual data than ever before, but the addition of HDR, assuming you have an HDR-capable TV, adds so much more depth to these movies. After all, you’re seeing a wider gamut of colors than previously possible. In our opinion, seeing these movies in HDR is just as important as seeing them in 4K.

Since we here at TrekNews.net have a soft spot for The Motion Picture , we’d like to point to that movie as a fantastic illustration of how these films have transferred to 4K/HDR. For example, we found ourselves enthralled watching some of the slower, previously nap-inducing V’Ger approach sequences because V’Ger’s model work and visual effects just look amazing . The surface detail on the ship itself is much sharper than we remember it being on the DVD or even the previously released 1080p Blu-ray, and the increase in color gamut really shows off the trippy 1970s, 2001: A Space Odyssey -esque sci-fi aesthetic.

Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection packaging

Additionally, surface textures for the movie’s various sets and costumes stand out more than ever – rest assured that your eyes will be plenty busy absorbing all the movie’s detail, especially from some of the larger sets. While the increased resolution is overall a welcome improvement, it does mean that a staple of pre-CGI visual effects – matte lines – stand out a bit more. You’ll notice these lines as black outlines around ship models. We totally don’t mind the slightly distracting presence of these outlines, as they are a somewhat nostalgia staple of classic television, but don’t be surprised if you notice them a bit more.

The other perk of this release is that you can toggle the Dolby 2.0 isolated score at any time, which means you can watch the movie and hear only the soundtrack. Audiophiles will love this feature, and it’s a special treat in The Motion Picture thanks to Jeffrey Goldsmith’s classic, epic score. This feature is only available for The Motion Picture . We should note that this isolated score is the only new extra in this 2021 release for any of the included movies. Every other special feature was previously released (including the commentary, which is still super interesting if you haven’t listened to it), so if you’re looking for new special features, this package isn’t for you.

2009 vs. 2021 comparison

Please note: The 4K screencaps have not been captured

Star Trek: The Motion Picture from the 2009 HD scan

What about the extras?

Here’s a list of all the included special features in this collection, which you can see is pretty inclusive:

The Motion Picture 4K Blu-ray :

  • Isolated Score (Dolby Digital 2.0)
  • Commentary by Michael & Denise Okuda, Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens, and Daren Dochterman

The Motion Picture Blu-ray :

  • Library Computer Viewing Mode 
  • Production: The Longest Trek: Writing the Motion Picture 
  • Special Star Trek Reunion 
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 001: The Mystery Behind V’Ger 
  • Deleted Scenes 
  • Storyboards: Vulcan; Enterprise Departure; V’Ger Revealed
  • Teaser Trailer 
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • TV Spots 

The Wrath of Khan 4K Blu-ray:

  • Commentary by Nicholas Meyer (Director’s Cut and Theatrical Version)
  • Commentary by Nicholas Meyer and Manny Coto (Theatrical Version)

The Wrath of Khan Blu-ray :

  • Text Commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda (Director’s Cut)
  • Library Computer Viewing Mode (Theatrical Version)
  • The Genesis Effect: Engineering The Wrath of Khan  
  • Production; Captain’s Log; Designing Khan; Original Interviews with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, and Ricardo Montalbán; Where No Man Has Gone Before: The Visual Effects of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; James Horner: Composing Genesis 
  • Collecting Star Trek’s Movie Relics
  • A Novel Approach
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 002: Mystery Behind Ceti Alpha VI 
  • A Tribute to Ricardo Montalbán 
  • Main Title Concept
  • Kobayashi Maru
  • Ceti Alpha V
  • Chekov and Terrell Find Khan
  • Admiral’s Inspection
  • Khan’s Revenge
  • Kirk Strikes Back
  • Finding the Genesis Cave
  • The Mutara Nebula
  • Sneak Attack
  • Honored Dead
  • Theatrical Trailer 

The Search for Spock 4K Blu-ray:

  • Commentary by Leonard Nimoy, Harve Bennett, Charles Correll, and Robin Curtis
  • Commentary by Ronald D. Moore and Michael Taylor

The Search for Spock Blu-ray:

  • Ken Ralston on Models and Creature Effects Easter Egg 
  • Captain’s Log 
  • Terraforming and the Prime Directive 
  • Industry Light & Magic: The Visual Effects of Star Trek 
  • Spock: The Early Years 
  • Space Docks and Birds-of-Prey 
  • Speaking Klingon 
  • Klingon and Vulcan Costumes 
  • Star Trek and the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame 
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 003: Mystery Behind the Vulcan Katra Transfer 
  • Main Titles
  • The Klingons Attack
  • Entering Spacedock
  • Search for Life
  • Finding Spock
  • The Destruction of the Grissom
  • Stealing the Enterprise
  • Self-Destruct
  • Kirk Fights Kruge
  • The Katra Ritual

The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray

  • Commentary by William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy
  • Commentary by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman

The Voyage Home Blu-ray:

  • Library Computer Viewing Mode (HD)
  • Future’s Past: A Look Back 
  • On Location 
  • Dailies Deconstruction 
  • Below-the-Line: Sound Design 
  • Pavel Chekov’s Screen Moments 
  • Time Travel: The Art of the Possible 
  • The Language of Whales 
  • A Vulcan Primer 
  • Kirk’s Women 
  • Star Trek: The Three-Picture Saga 
  • Star Trek for a Cause 
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 004: The Whale Probe 
  • From Outer Space to the Ocean 
  • The Bird-of-Prey
  • William Shatner 
  • Leonard Nimoy 
  • DeForest Kelley
  • Roddenberry Scrapbook 
  • Featured Artist: Mark Lenard 
  • Production Gallery 
  • Encounter with the Saratoga
  • The Probe Approaches Earth
  • The Whaling Ship
  • Return to the 23rd Century
  • Communication

While we’ve spoken highly of the first movie, it’s not just The Motion Picture that benefits from increased visual clarity (but it does perhaps benefit the most thanks to its age). Watching the classic The Wrath of Khan and seeing the Enterprise and Reliant fight in the Mutara Nebula is better than ever thanks to HDR; the escape sequence from Spacedock in The Search for Spock is even cooler to watch when both the Excelsior , Spacedock , and Enterprise are seen in such exquisite detail; and seeing 1986’s San Francisco in The Voyage Home in 4K pulls you more into the setting than ever before.

The release of these films also feature a strikingly different color grade than previous releases. If you compare the 2009 Blu-ray release of these movies with this new package, you’ll notice colors take on a more natural tone than before. Whoever mastered the 2009 discs clearly favored a more purplish and bluish color grade, leading to some scenes looking cold or out-of-place. A notable example we found when doing our watch-through was at the end of The Voyage Home when the Enterprise comes out of Spacedock . Do you remember the ship looking like it was almost totally cast in shadow, and the deflector dish looking a bit too acutely blue? That shot is totally different now thanks to the more normalized color grading. Rest assured that Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection presents these films’ colors in the best, most natural way we can hope for.

Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection does a great service to these classic movies and accomplishes admirably what the project set out to do: bring these films into the 4K-era. If you want the definitive way of watching these movies, this collection is for you. If you were picking this up hoping for a refreshed selection of special features, you’ll be disappointed, as the only new feature is the aforementioned isolated track for The Motion Picture . Moreover, if we’re waiting for Paramount to release a definitive collection of all the TOS -era films, you’ll have to wait a bit longer. While no announcement has been made about the last two TOS films getting the 4K/HDR treatment, we imagine that it has to happen at some point. After seeing the first four movies shine in 4K/HDR, it’s hard to imagine Paramount wouldn’t complete the collection. For now, definitely add this release to your home media collection.

Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection is now available on Amazon .

Stay tuned to TrekNews.net for all the latest news on Star Trek media releases, Star Trek: Lower Decks , Star Trek: Prodigy , Star Trek: Discovery , Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , Star Trek: Picard , and more.

You can follow us on Twitter , Facebook , and Instagram .

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Kyle Hadyniak has been a lifelong Star Trek fan, and isn't ashamed to admit that Star Trek V: The Final Frontier and Star Trek: Nemesis are his favorite Star Trek movies. You can follow Kyle on Twitter @khady93 .

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Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection   beams the original crew of the starship Enterprise to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray in an 8-disc 4K UHD + Blu-ray + digital collection. This set marks the beginning of the franchise's cinematic affair coupled with the three-film arc representing the so-called "Genesis Trilogy." Each transfer was sourced from new 4K restorations with Dolby Vision HDR, and depending on the film, marked notable improvements over previous home video releases. Perhaps these films' 4K debut would have been better received if they were released individually, but taken as a whole this is an impressive set featuring some of Trek's best moments with the original cast and crew of the Enterprise. The overall package is  Recommended . 

Read our full reviews for:

  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
  • Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
  • Star Trek III: The Search For Spock - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
  • Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

Star Trek: The Motion Picture  - When a destructive space entity is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral Kirk resumes command of the Starship Enterprise in order to intercept, examine, and hopefully stop it. The Wrath of Khan - It is the 23rd century. The Federation Starship U.S.S. Enterprise™ is on routine training maneuvers and Admiral James T. Kirk (William Shatner) seems resigned to the fact that this inspection may well be the last space mission of his career. But Khan is back. Aided by his exiled band of genetic supermen, Khan (Ricardo Montalban) - brilliant renegade of 20th century Earth - has raided Space Station Regula One, stolen a top secret device called Project Genesis, wrested control of another Federation Starship and sets out in pursuit of the Enterprise, determined to let nothing stand in the way of his mission: kill Admiral Kirk... even if it means universal Armageddon. The Search for Spock - Admiral Kirk and his bridge crew risk their careers stealing the decommissioned Enterprise to return to the restricted Genesis planet to recover Spock's body. The Voyage Home - It's the 23rd century, and a mysterious alien power is threatening Earth by evaporating the oceans and destroying the atmosphere. In a frantic attempt to save mankind, Kirk and his crew must time 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. A thrilling, action-packed Star Trek adventure!

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek: The Motion Picture  [Review Excerpt] "Rather than follow in the footsteps of action-fantasy  Star Wars , Wise and his team conceived of a more traditional or "true" science fiction tale. Once we arrive at the surprise twist about V'Ger, it becomes clear that the plot is grappling with challenging philosophical themes about the concept of God, the purpose of existence and the difficulty of defining those observations outside of our cognitive experiences. One of my favorite aspects of Wise's film is the entity V'Ger while in a robotic replica of Ilia wrestling with understanding "carbon lifeforms" as living creatures, as opposed to being an infestation and measuring life according to the entity's own likeness. Granted, the ride getting there is arguably drawn out, and the production is not without its flaws. But for me, the journey is well earned and rewarding, and the feature-length debut of the crew of the USS Enterprise ultimately feels like a smart, elevated episode of the original television series." 4/5 

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan   [Review Excerpt] "At the center of Khan's revenge against William Shatner's Starfleet Admiral James T. Kirk is the terraforming initiative called Project Genesis and a powerful device that could be weaponized. The plot doesn't carry the same weighty, pressing subject matter of its predecessor, but the sequel's ideas about mortality, rebirth and the cycle of life and death are no less heady and substantial. From Khan grieving the death of his wife to the literal birth of a new planet, the theme is prevalent throughout, impacting characters in various ways, even in Kirk grappling with the end of his tenure as Captain of the Enterprise and reconciling with his estranged son. With Meyer all the while aptly focusing on the camaraderie of Kirk, McCoy and Spock, the story skillfully builds to that emotionally memorable climax that has become a piece of cinematic history. And revisiting the film after countless viewings, the impact of that ending has not waned in the least."  4.5/5  

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek III: The Search For Spock [Review Excerpt] "For me, this has always felt like a blatant cheat on the part of the filmmakers, a complete dodge from genuinely grappling with the aftermath of Khan in a follow-up that's reputed to be about dealing with a major blow to the spirit of the crew. Naturally, we can't really have a Star Trek movie without Spock, and I completely understand the need for this. But this is essentially the equivalent of Kirk avoiding the "no-win scenario" of the Kobayashi Maru, and it seems like a missed opportunity for something truly great. Yet, in spite of my grumblings with Harve Bennett's plot, I admit enjoying Leonard Nimoy's film directorial debut. It's a fun third entry where Nimoy proves himself a skilled and talented helmer, navigating the action and drama with a great sense of adventure. At the same time, he gives fans a memorable and ruthless adversary in Christopher Lloyd's Kruge. The second entry in the so-called "Genesis Arc" storyline is somewhat of a letdown after two excellent installments, but all things considered, it's a competent Trek movie."   3.5/5   

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home  [Review Excerpt]  "My love for this fourth installment, however, is due to deeply personal reasons, from a major part of my life that makes me forgive the film's shortcomings. When it was made available on home video the following year after its theatrical run, I had only been in the U.S. for maybe three or four years. And although I was already familiar with and a fan of the  Star Trek series , Nimoy and Harve Bennett's fish-out-of-water story about time-traveling to present-day America oddly made a more lasting impression than the other movies or the show. I instantly related to Spock trying to make sense of the cultural norms and language, and I laughed at Chekov's pronunciation of vessel. Every time I sit down to watch the movie, I still find myself giggling at the silly humor while reminiscing on my childhood. For a young teen picked on for being an immigrant, movies and shows like  Star Trek  were my escapist solace, and the fourth entry, in particular, was one I could relate with the most at the time.  The Voyage Home  remains a fun and personally loved installment."    3.5/5

Vital Disc Stats: The Ultra HD Blu-ray Paramount Home Entertainment brings the  Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection  to 4K Ultra HD as an eight-disc combo pack including a flyer with Digital Copy codes for each movie. Said code unlocks 4K UHD digital copies on services like iTunes and Vudu with Dolby Vision HDR video and Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 audio. They are not Movies Anywhere compatible. The first four dual-layered UHD66 discs are housed inside a slightly thicker black, eco-elite case with two center spindles. Meanwhile, the remaining four Region Free Blu-ray copies are packaged inside a separate thicker-than-normal blue, eco-elite case with two center spindles. The two packages come with a glossy, side-sliding slipcover. Each 4K disc loads to a static image main menu with music from the film's soundtrack playing. Nearly all bonus features for each film is found on the accompanying 1080p Blu-ray disc. 

Video Review

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek: The Motion Picture "The forty-plus-year-old movie also looks fresher and in better shape thanks to Dolby Vision HDR, which brings a welcomed improvement in contrast and brightness balance. The scenes in space display snappy, sparkling stars in the distance, engulfed in inky black emptiness, and specular highlights provide for tightly crisp whites in the lights and a realistic sheen along metallic surfaces. Shadow details could be a tad stronger, especially in the many poorly-lit interiors, but visibility in the darkest corners remains comparatively better than the HD version. Richard H. Kline's cinematography has a distinctively muted, restrained palette, favoring more browns and tans with a mix of various shades of blue, which counters the movie's campy origins. Nevertheless, those secondary hues appear fuller with good saturation levels and more variation while primaries, especially those aforementioned blues, are bolder and more animated, making for an otherwise attractive watch on 4K UHD." (Dolby Vision HDR Video Rating: 78/100)  

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan "Awash in a very fine layer of natural gain, the Dolby Vision HDR presentation also furnishes the forty-year-old film with a cleaner, livelier contrast balance and brighter whites throughout. It may not look it, at first, considering the filmmaker's deliberately dark, toned-down creative intentions, but the contrast is an improvement. And mixed with the richer, truer black levels and the strong shadow details, the 2.35:1 image comes with an attractive cinematic appeal and appreciable dimensionality, particularly in those scenes with Khan aboard the starship Reliant. Likewise, the cinematography of Gayne Rescher favors a more earthy, natural palette, bathing the visuals in richly-saturated browns, animated ginger-amber tones and deep rust-orange marigolds. Primaries are nonetheless accurately rendered and bolder than its HD SDR counterparts, such as the ruby-burgundy reds of the uniforms and vibrant, electrifying cobalt blues in the starship's computer consoles." (Dolby Vision HDR Video Rating: 82/100) 

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek III: The Search For Spock   "Unlike the previous two entries, cinematographer Charles Correll took a more colorful, vibrant approach to the second sequel, and his efforts really shine on UHD. The Dolby Vision HDR presentation displays a richly saturated palette, from the bold crimson red lighting and the deeper shade of burgundy in the uniforms to the electrifying blues and lively greens of the foliage and the Klingon ship. Moreover, the other earthy hues, oranges, and yellows are more animated and spirited, making the movie somewhat reminiscent of the original television series. Contrast and brightness balance also enjoy a welcomed boost, showering the action with brilliant, radiant whites and inky, velvety blacks with excellent shadow detail. The improved specular highlights add a crisp, tight sparkle to the stars, the lighting along the exterior of ships, and a realistic sheen to the various metallic objects."  (Dolby Vision HDR Video Rating: 84/100)  

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home  "The Genesis storyline comes to a close on Ultra HD with what appears to be the result of another true remaster of the original camera negatives although a few notable issues remain worth mentioning. For the most part, the HEVC H.265 encode shows a welcomed uptick in overall definition and clarity, from the discrete sharp details of the Klingon ship and the streets of San Francisco to the fine stitching in the costumes and the individual leaves of trees. In Dolby Vision HDR, the most striking gain comes from the improved contrast and brightness balance, bathing the 2.35:1 image with bright, vivid whites and true, inky blacks that allow for better visibility within the shadows and the darkest, poorly lit corners of the Klingon vessel. Specular highlights supply the visuals with a crisp, dynamic sparkle along metallic surfaces and a more brilliant but narrower glow in the hottest areas to reveal more of the finer details...All things considered, despite its less-than-satisfying distractions, the overall transfer is strong and marked upgrade over its HD SDR counterparts. Awash in a very fine layer of grain, the encode has a nice film-like quality fans will appreciate." (Dolby Vision HDR Video Rating: 74/100)

Audio Review

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek: The Motion Picture  "As far as I can tell, this Dolby TrueHD 7.1 soundtrack appears to be identical to the one enjoyed on the Blu-ray. Remaining faithful to the original sound design, the lossless mix is mostly a front-heavy presentation, displaying excellent acoustical details and clean separation in the mid-range, even during the loudest segments. Dialogue is intelligible and precise at all times, and an impressively robust low-end adds some appreciable weight and presence to the visuals. Although the surrounds are mostly reserved for Jerry Goldsmith's score, a few atmospherics move into the sides with satisfying effectiveness. When applying the receiver's Dolby Surround or DTS: Neural:X up-mixing functionality, the music and ambient effects effortlessly bleed and flow into the top heights to nicely enhance the soundfield."   4/5  

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan "Faithful to the original stereo design, the front-heavy presentation displays good channel balance with plenty of good background activity, especially during the action sequences to generate a relatively wide, broad soundstage. However, the mid-range isn't particularly dynamic or extensive, feeling more uniform and somewhat limited in the upper ranges, yet it maintains clarity and definition decently well in James Horner's score and during the loudest segments. The same can be said of the dialogue, but the conversations remain intelligible nonetheless. The low-end adds a bit of weight to the visuals but doesn't make much of an impression overall. There's little activity in the surrounds, mostly reserved for some mild bleeding and a few random ambient effects. The receiver's Dolby Surround or DTS: Neural:X up-mixing functionality does well in expanding some of these atmospherics into the top heights with satisfying effectiveness. All in all, it's an enjoyable lossless mix that does great to complement the on-screen visuals." 4/ 5 

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek III: The Search For Spock "Once again, the second sequel lands on UHD with an identical Dolby TrueHD 7.1 soundtrack that's relatively faithful to the original stereo design. However, the front-heavy presentation is arguably stronger than its predecessors, displaying excellent balance and good fidelity with background activity that moves convincingly between the channels and into the off-screen space. The mid-range may not be particularly dynamic or extensive, but it maintains clean definition and appreciable distinction in James Horner's score and during the loudest segments, generating a broad, spacious soundstage during action sequences. While vocals are clear and precise, a hefty low-end provides some weight and presence to the on-screen visuals. There's little activity in the surrounds, mostly reserved for some mild bleeding and a few random ambient effects. The receiver's Dolby Surround or DTS: Neural:X up-mixing functionality does well in expanding some of these atmospherics into the top heights with satisfying effectiveness. All in all, it's an enjoyable lossless mix that fairs better than the previous two entries."  4/5  

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home  "The time-traveling adventure arrives to home theaters with an identical Dolby TrueHD 7.1 soundtrack and is arguably the strongest of the lot. Almost immediately, the soundstage feels broad and welcoming as Leonard Rosenman's score fills the room with clean distinction and an extensive, room-penetrating mid-range. Background activity convincingly moves between the three front channels, generating a broad sense of space, and several atmospherics display excellent directionality, nicely extending the soundfield. When applying the receiver's Dolby Surround or DTS: Neural:X up-mixing functionality, those same effects appreciably bleed into the top heights with satisfying effectiveness. Dialogue is precise and very well-prioritized over the loudest segments, and a surprisingly robust, weighty low-end provides a palpable presence to the on-screen visuals, making for an outstanding listen and a really great lossless mix."   4/5

Special Features

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Ultra HD Disc

  • NEW Isolated Score  in legacy Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
  • Audio Commentary  featuring Michael & Denise Okuda, Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens, and Daren Dochterman

Remastered Blu-ray Disc

  • NEW Isolated Score  in legacy Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
  • Audio Commentary  featuring Michael & Denise Okuda, Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens, and Daren Dochterman
  • Library Computer Viewing Mode
  • Production: The Longest Trek: Writing the Motion Picture  (HD, 11 min)
  • The  Star Trek  Universe  (HD)
  • Special Star Trek Reunion  (10 min)
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 001: The Mystery Behind V’Ger  (4 min)
  • Deleted Scenes  (SD, 8 min)
  • Storyboards   (HD)
  • Trailers  (HD, SD, 8 min): a teaser is joined by the theatrical preview and seven TV spots. Star 

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

  • Audio Commentary  featuring Nicholas Meyer
  • Audio Commentary  (Theatrical Cut Only) featuring Nicholas Meyer & Manny Coto
  • Audio Commentary  featuring Nicholas Meyer
  • Audio Commentary  (Theatrical Cut Only) featuring Nicholas Meyer & Manny Coto
  • Text Commentary  (Director’s Cut Only) featuring Michael and Denise Okuda 
  • Library Computer Viewing Mode  (Theatrical Cut)
  • The Genesis Effect: Engineering The Wrath of Khan  (HD, 28 min)
  • Production  (SD, HD)
  • Captain’s Log  (27 min)
  • Designing Khan  (24 min)
  • Interviews  (11 min) with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, and Ricardo Montalbán
  • Where No Man Has Gone Before: The Visual Effects of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan  (18 min)
  • James Horner: Composing Genesis  (10 min)
  • The Star Trek Universe  (HD, SD)
  • Collecting Star Trek’s Movie Relics  (11 min)
  • A Novel Approach  (29 min)
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 002: Mystery Behind Ceti Alpha VI  (3 min)
  • Farewell: A Tribute to Ricardo Montalbán  (HD, 5 min)
  • Storyboards  (HD)
  • Trailer  (HD)

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek III: The Search For Spock 

  • Audio Commentary  featuring Leonard Nimoy, Harve Bennett, Charles Correll, & Robin Curtis
  • Audio Commentary  featuring Ronald D. Moore & Michael Taylor
  • Library Computer Viewing Mode 
  • Production  (HD, SD)
  • EASTER EGG! Ken Ralston on Models and Creature Effects  (7 min)
  • Captain’s Log  (26 min)
  • Terraforming and the Prime Directive  (26 min)
  • Industry Light & Magic: The Visual Effects of Star Trek  (14 min)
  • Spock: The Early Years  (6 min)
  • Space Docks and Birds-of-Prey  (28 min)
  • Speaking Klingon  (21 min)
  • Klingon and Vulcan Costumes  (12 min)
  • Star Trek and the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame  (17 min)
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 003: Mystery Behind the Vulcan Katra Transfer  (3 min)
  • Photo Galleries  (HD) contains two sets of BTS photos and publicity stills

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 

  • Audio Commentary  featuring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy
  • Audio Commentary  featuring Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman
  • Future’s Past: A Look Back  (28 min)
  • On Location  (7 min)
  • Dailies Deconstruction  (4 min)
  • Below-the-Line: Sound Design  (12 min)
  • Pavel Chekov’s Screen Moments  (6 min)
  • Time Travel: The Art of the Possible  (11 min)
  • The Language of Whales  (6 min)
  • A Vulcan Primer  (8 min)
  • Kirk’s Women  (8 min)
  • Star Trek: The Three-Picture Saga  (10 min)
  • Star Trek for a Cause  (6 min)
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 004: The Whale Probe  (4 min)
  • Visual Effects Featurettes  (SD)
  • From Outer Space to the Ocean  (15 min)
  • The Bird-of-Prey  (3 min)
  • Original Cast Interviews  (SD)
  • William Shatner  (15 min)
  • Leonard Nimoy  (16)
  • DeForest Kelley  (13 min)
  • Special Tributes  (SD)
  • Roddenberry Scrapbook  (8 min)
  • Featured Artist: Mark Lenard  (13 min)
  • Production Gallery  (SD)
  • Storyboards Galleries  (HD)
  • Theatrical Trailer  (HD)

star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection   marks Paramount's welcome return to the franchise on home video. This year marks the 60th Anniversary of the premiere of the original series on television. This collection marks the beginning of their cinematic adventures through the fan-favorite "Genesis Trilogy." While it would have been nice to see all six of the original cast and crew films on 4K at the same time, Paramount isn't done with Trek. In 2022, after a nearly year-long restoration effort, the Director's Cut of  Star Trek The Motion Picture   will be released in theaters, on disc, and on Paramount+. It's understood the remaining Original Crew films along with  The Next Generation   cast films will be following on the format shortly. But for now, fans eager to upgrade over the previous waxy DNR tragedies of the previous releases will be happy to hear that these films look terrific on 4K with HDR10 and Dolby Vision. True, some fair better than others but the overall package is impressive offering the same excellent legacy lossless audio mixes with a terrific collection of bonus features. If you can't wait for single releases, buy with confidence, the overall package is  Recommended.

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Make it so —

For the first time, you can now watch every star trek movie in 4k hdr, 13 star trek movies are available in 4k, dolby vision, and dolby atmos..

Samuel Axon - Apr 10, 2023 8:06 pm UTC

A spaceship flies into a nebula

For the first time, you can now buy or rent every single Star Trek movie in the latest 4K and HDR standards. That includes all six movies based on the original series cast, all four featuring The Next Generation 's cast, and the more recent J.J. Abrams films.

On April 4, Paramount released an UltraHD Blu-ray set that included Star Trek: Generations , Star Trek: First Contact , Star Trek: Insurrection , and Star Trek: Nemesis along with several special features. The set marks the first time these films have been available in a 4K and HDR home video release. Alongside the Blu-rays, the films also became available on on-demand storefronts like Apple's TV app.

Further Reading

So as of this week, all 13 theatrically released Star Trek films are finally available in 4K and HDR. The latest releases also support the Dolby Atmos audio standard in addition to Dolby Vision HDR.

That said, large swaths of the classic Trek TV series aren't even available in HD, much less in 4K or HDR. All three seasons of  The Original Series and all seven of  The Next Generation got Blu-ray and digital HD releases in recent years, as well as Enterprise and The Animated Series , and all the new Paramount+ shows are in HD. But Deep Space Nine and Voyager  are still only available in standard definition.

A documentary about  Deep Space Nine released a couple of years ago featured small segments upscaled to HD to show what might be possible and there have been fan projects to do the same with AI, too. However, there hasn't been much movement on an official full series upscaling project.

Update : A previous version of this article failed to properly distinguish between the non-AI and AI techniques used in prior attempts to remaster portions Deep Space Nine . It was corrected in an update.

Ars Technica may earn compensation for sales from links on this post through affiliate programs .

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Reel Reviews - Official Site

Star Trek Trilogy - 4K Blu-ray Review

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[tab title="Movie Review"]

This reviewer is a little slow to update to new technologies. When it came time to replace some of my old equipment, I dove deep into the pros and cons of the next (and many say last) generation of home movies: 4K. The pros and cons of yet another format are involved and not a blanket statement. For example, when you hear that a lot of alleged 4K moves are in fact up-scaled lower resolution scans, why you drop extra money for a ‘fake’ 4K disc? Also true, is that most of the high end blockbusters we consume are still rendering their effects at 2K, because it takes forever to render the files. With the boom of physical media well and truly behind the average Joe, the advent of streaming becoming ever more favoured, why even bother going down this rabbit hole?

Having just watched the ‘ Kelvin Universe ’ Star Trek trilogy, I’ll attempt to show you why. This is what the 4K naysayers refer to as a ‘fake’ bunch of discs. IE: they are 2K up-scaled prints with the HDR. It’s HDR you should remember as we go through the movies. The film reviews are simply ported over from theatrical releases, but I’ll go into a bit of the experience of these movies on a modern system and, for the trilogy at least, show why what may be true of some discs isn’t true of all. Come to those of us who are lucky enough to indulge this wonderful pastime, and we’ll try and share our experiences as best we can.

STAR TREK (2009)

Many moons ago a younger version of myself was befriended by a fella in high school that loved Star Trek —REALLY loved it. Having always been a bit cold on the adventures of Kirk and Spock, and thinking the new bald guy in the new Star Trek show ( The Next Generation ) was a cranky old British bastard, it took him some time to bring me around. But my pal’s insistence paid off in the end, and I became an eager consumer of all the Star Trek series/films, etc. More than that, I now share in its appeal to millions of Trekkies/Trekkers/whatever the hell you like to be called, and share your passion.

Why the hell am I telling you this? Well, I am about to go see J.J. Abrams retooling of the original Star Trek characters, and no matter how much I like the creator of Alias and Lost (to name but two of his excellent works) the news that ‘ Star Trek ’ was to be remade did not sit well with me at all—I hated the idea.

Star Trek has proven time and again its legs to continue with new permutations, new characters, and its creator Gene Roddenberry was a forward-thinking man. So what possible reason could there be to rehash what has come before? Apart from the usual money hungry corporate lack of imagination that seems to be plaguing our silver screen in ever-greater volume (and robbing new generations of future classics of its own by unimaginatively re-whatever-ing ours.)

But I digress, in two hours I may have a better answer. Having been quick to reject, slow to come around the first time to ‘ Star Trek’ and its spin offs, I will not make the same mistake twice. See you in two hours.

Back. Well, there’s good news and bad. First the good: Star Trek works like Gangbusters. It’s exciting, fast-paced, has an engaging, emotional story, a powerful antagonist (Australia’s Eric Bana ), breathtaking visuals, unparalleled action, and J.J. Abrams has admirably succeeded in his intention to redefine the series.

This is an origin story for all seven iconic characters (no small task to squeeze into one film), but with Abrams’ pedigree in providing great character development with large ensemble casts—while maintaining an active pace—if anyone was going to pull it off it was him. Without spoiling the story, nor getting bogged down in the multitudes of plots and subplots, this film takes our heroes from youth to the men and woman assigned to the Starship Enterprise that we remember. Any deviation from what was canon before has been answered by the plot (whether you accept it or not is up to you). The fact that they use the legendary Leonard Nimoy to achieve this is a poignant and respectful nod to all that everyone involved wants to honour what has come before them.{googleads}

The actors inhabiting roles vacated by legends after five decades had their work cut out for them, but each and every one of them rises to the task and makes it their own. Karl Urban may be the closest to dangerously imitating his predecessor, but I suspect with another film under his belt, Leonard McCoy will become his own. Chris Pine is an outstanding leading man, has channeled some Harrison Ford into his Kirk, has an incredible sense of comic timing and was a joy to follow.

The bad: The frenetic pacing can get a little overwhelming, with very few moments of calm. There are several plot contrivances that seem a little too convenient, none the least being a cadet becoming a captain rather rapidly. Is it sufficiently explained? Sure. Is it believable? Not really. The trek techno-babble has been stripped to its bare minimum, and, being expounded in moments of crisis, it tends to get a little lost. If the intention of the makers is to make Star Trek more accessible to a wider audience (and they insist that is one of their goals) then more care is needed or the Sci-fi newbies are likely to miss something, or simply lose interest. But by far the most profound negative for this reviewer must be an unsatisfied answer to the question: Was a reboot necessary? With very little tweaking this film would have worked with new characters. Did it have to be Kirk and Spock and Co.? Why must we go back, when we could go forward? Well the answer is IP safety for the studio.

At least, in this era of unrelenting unoriginality, Paramount gave the reigns of a beloved franchise-gone-by to a very talented and respectful creator. If it had to be done, then Star Trek fans the world over can breathe a sigh of relief J.J. Abrams got the gig. Unlike a lot of remakes, this one is worth the time, this one truly has a shot of connecting with a new generation, and this one looks to be the beginning of something fresh and great.

4/5 beers

Blu-ray Details:

Star trek (2009) / 4k ultra hd + blu-ray + digital - review.

Star Trek was shot in 35mm, and upscaled to 4K from a 2K scan. This means, if you’re buying the Fake vs Real division it’s a fake. Having just watched it, however, on an 82 inch Samsung QLED, that isn’t all she wrote. The 1080p Blu-ray looks gorgeous on this set also, and would get no complaints from anyone, but the 4K release ups the ante considerably with HDR (High Dynamic Range) and makes everything on the screen pop. Dimension in every scene is sharply and firmly on another level. The colours of the uniforms leap off the screen, with every primary-coloured seam so brilliantly rendered, you feel like you could pull one off the display. JJ’s penchant for lens flare is also emboldened and given more depth in this transfer, as is Quinto’s five o’clock shadow, but by far the greatest sharpening is in the blacks in any scene (and in a movie about space, there’s plenty). You get deeply inky blacks in this picture that go beyond the blacks of the Blu-ray while sharpening its muddy details to full potential. This is an extraordinary looking picture and in no way inferior. Could they do better with a 4K scan? I would be hard pressed to see the difference. Don’t know if Paramount employed any DNR, but the only thing I could see being better, is a truer to source grain detail in the future, should they choose to bother.

A 7.1 DOLBY ATMOS mix that is about as good as it gets, and extremely busy through all channels from the first scene. It’s bold, immersive, thrilling. Dialogue through the centre is crisp and never drowned out by the weighty and constant pounding of the sub and rears. Absolutely first rate stuff.

Supplements:

Commentary :

Special Features:

I got sent the trilogy set, which includes all three movies with the Blu-ray counterpart included and the features of those releases still there. As with most 4K discs these days, (as they take up a whole lot of storage space on a disc) there isn’t anything much. You do get the same commentary track from the Blu-ray.

Blu-ray Rating:

Star trek into darkness (2013).

 You could never accuse JJ Abrams of not having courage. Here is a near 50 year-old franchise with more television and cinematic entries than most in the world, with a rich history, and a ravenous and supporting fan base, and he decides to remake it.

2009’s Star Trek was a wake-up call to the world that the adventures of the Starship Enterprise still had some legs, and with a little modernization in pacing and some stripping back of tired old formulas, the film was a roaring success—the most successful Star Trek film ever. So a sequel was a done deal.

Where to go? They had successfully ret-conned the adventures of Kirk and Spock and could take it pretty much wherever they liked. Without getting into spoiler territory, if you thought they had balls last time, the direction they chose this time can only be described with one word: brave.

Jim Kirk and crew roar into the sequel, breaking one of Starfleet’s most sacred mandates. In the aftermath, Kirk is relieved of his command and the crew is split apart. When a 23rd century terrorist by the name of John Harrison begins attacking Starfleet and its personnel, a great loss befalls Kirk. He begs for the chance to redeem himself and bring Harrison to justice for his crimes. But all is not what it seems, and the price will be high for Kirk to learn from his mistakes and to better himself.{googleads}

Let’s go with the good first, because there’s plenty of it. Again, the pacing of this film makes it accessible to anyone. It is a fun, action packed, rollicking good ride through space. The characters, by and large, are established now and the actors playing them have settled in well. Effects are extraordinary again. Music is similar to the last movie, with no standout new themes coming through, but it’s a good continuation of the last flick. There’s great humour again, accessible and relatable characterizations, and a solid continuation of a more humanized, less sterile Star Trek universe.

The bad: the script’s attempts at complexity quite often fall flat or come across as convolution for the sake of it. They show courage in tackling things most Trekkers consider sacred, but I don’t believe it’s successful this time out—too tall an order. I was hoping to see more of Karl Urban ’s McCoy become his own in this one, but he’s really not given that much to do. Not his fault. Benedict Cumberbatch ’s character is full of surprises, but I think he is under-utilized, and considering the big reveal of his character, more screen time was required and a more exciting conclusion warranted. There are some poignant themes that are weakened by essential rehashes of scenes that have come before in other Trek movies: changing the players around doesn’t make it clever. And there are far too many tendrils set up in this film held over for another. Some are great, but it gets beyond a joke.

There is no reason you can’t come to this movie and have a good time. Set your brain to stun, and a visual, engaging feast awaits you. But if you’re at all familiar with Roddenberry’s original conception of Star Trek, this film is lacking it; added to which they gambled on using a Star Trek icon and don’t pull it off. They gave themselves free reign to change anything they want in this universe with the first one. Perhaps they should avoid what’s been done and, next time, ‘go where no man has gone before’.

3/5 beers

Star Trek: Into Darkness / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital - Review

Expecting more of the same gushing about this upscale? You’re not gonna get it—you’re gonna get even more! While this is the weakest movie of the three, it looks even better than the first disc, and I didn’t think that was possible. The reason is that JJ shot some of the wow scenes in IMAX 65mm. That works out to be around 11K of resolution, and the detail at that level—even downscaled to a 2K master and then up-scaled back to 4K—is breathtaking. Although only certain scenes are delivered in the film this way, switching back and forth between 35mm shot scenes is never jarring. By picking his moments, JJ shows every colour, pore, explosion, and shadow with fine grain details that keep you glued. We don’t give half stars at Reel, and apart from a native scan of the camera negative, this is as good as it gets.

FLAWLESS DOLBY ATMOS 7.1 mix. Impeccable and jaw dropping sound. A good one to show off your system’s capabilities.

  • Same as the other disc. Nothing new and all on the included Blu-ray, not the 4K disc.

STAR TREK BEYOND (2016)

The previous entry in the franchise, Into Darkness , left a sour taste in many people’s mouths. JJ Abrams had decided to jump onto that other little known franchise with Star in the title. There was development and script issues galore, but when all the dust settled, Justin Lin (who had come to great acclaim helming in the Fast and Furious franchise) was chosen to helm the next entry and, they hoped, bring back some good will to the franchise.

It didn’t go to plan.

Star Trek Beyond sees the crew of the Enterprise going about their exploration as normal. Their captain is starting to get itchy feet, and fears atrophy is setting into his current role. Secretly, he’s been looking for other challenges, and has put into effect plans that will see him move on. But before Starfleet starts to consider his proposal, they send Kirk and company off for a rescue mission when escape pods appear and ask for aid to rescue the remainder of their crew from a stranded ship. All, however, is not as it seems, and when the Enterprise arrives at the alleged rescue site, catastrophic events besiege our beloved crew. Their rescue mission becomes a fight for survival and the threat of being stranded themselves—perhaps forever.{googleads}

 This catalyst of this story is compelling and what befalls the crew early on is affecting and exhilarating, but what unfurls is an overly complicated reveal of who the main antagonist (wasted Idris Elba ) is, and what his true agenda will be. Elba’s bad guy is a new creation for Trek, had the potential to be something interesting, but the execution of what we learn of him is told in past tense, not shown, and slows down the pacing of the movie. He is also just not that interesting a villain, and, considering the capabilities he’s come to have, reduces his efforts to a fist fight at the end. It’s an underdeveloped character that not even Elba can sell. Sofia Boutella had very interesting make-up and a half way decent character that has more interaction with the main players than anyone. Pine ’s Kirk just seemed far too young and vital to be mentally where he is at the start of this story.  

Lin’s kinetic direction is best when he’s given terrestrial scenes. His space battles and the final charge at the end are also good, but Abram ’s hyperactive camera has a different visual and Lin’s lacks his complexity.

There are definite attempts to answer some of the criticisms from fans that these movies weren’t Trek enough, and the camaraderie between the principle actors definitely earns them points, but the sum total of this one, for me, was underwhelming. 

I came out of this feeling it was okay but not great. The first of these pictures, narrative wise, gave the chance to do whatever they wanted. Their follow up made the mistake of retreading holy ground and this one stayed so closely to well trodden (and far better executed) Trek tropes that the best I can say is its safe. Inoffensive and decently made, but not compelling the audience to come back for more. They lost an opportunity to make this their own.

Star Trek Beyond / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital - Review

Beyond, unlike the first two movies, was shot with digital cameras. Paramount didn’t even release the film theatrically at full resolution, due to the amount of effects (all rendered at 2K). This gives the film a sterile and crisp as all get out appearance. Film purists will decree this look as inferior to the detail of actual film stock, but this 2K up-scale is an awesome representation of what was shot. The subject matter kind of compliments this looks in fact. I’m going to take one point off this transfer, because at 4K resolution, every technique used to make this fantasy come alive is slightly more obvious than the previous two movies. I am only guessing, as I am no cinematographer, but I would surmise the blending of layers may be a little less razor sharp in a combination of film stock and digital effects, and therefore hid the magic a teeny, tiny fraction more.

Reference quality. Superb. Another DOLBY ATMOS 7.1 triumphant mix. How many adjectives can one repeat for this set? Have fun with it. Scare the neighbours across town.

CRAP. Again, all the features are on the Blu-ray, not the 4K disc, and are the same as the previous release, which was crap. The struggles of this film’s inception would have made for a compelling documentary, and a 5 minute nod to the late Leonard Nimoy and Anton Yelchin is a pretty insulting effort.

[tab title="4K Blu-ray Review"]

Star Trek: The Kelvin Timeline / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital

Home Video Distributor: Paramount Available on Blu-ray - July 15, 2019 Screen Formats: 2.39:1 Subtitles : English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish Audio: English: Dolby Atmos; English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1; French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1; Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1 Discs: 4K Ultra HD; Blu-ray Disc; Nine-disc set Region Encoding: 4K Blu-ray: Region free; 2K Blu-ray: Region A

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star trek 4 4k review

Star Trek 4K 6-Movie Collection Boxset Review

James Amey

Coming to our screens straight from the 70s, 80s, and 90s is this year’s Star Trek 4k 6-Movie Collection . From The Motion Picture to The Undiscovered Country . The movies have all been re-mastered for the second time this century, this time in 4K. This release follows on from last year’s I – IV set. This, at the time, oddly omitted the final two silver screen outings for the original cast on 4k and blu-ray. But what would we Trek fans be if not eagerly ready to double dip? Especially on what will likely be the ultimate releases of these films.

Fortunately, for those that purchased last year’s 4-movie set. Or those that really, really hate The Final Frontier . The films have all now been released separately. Before picking up the 6-movie set, it’s worth noting Star Trek: First Contac t was spotted in 4K on Paramount+ US earlier this year. So there’s a good chance The Next Generation movies will follow soon. So, if you want to be a little more frugal, it’s worth waiting for a complete movie set.

Although much like they did with the original blu-ray masters back in 2009, they may (and are likely to) release a TOS and TNG package separately alongside the complete set. 

star trek 4 4k review

The Packaging

The Star Trek 4k 6-Movie Collection box set includes the new masters in HDR and on standard Bluray. But trust this reviewer when he says that it’s worth buying one for The Motion Picture Director’s Cut alone. The disks themselves come in two ‘jumbo’ blu-ray cases. One for the 4K disks (in black) and one in the traditional blue for the standard Blu-Rays (including The T MP bonus disk).  The cover art continues the theme of last year’s release. A somewhat scattergun approach portraying The Original Series cast with images used from at least three different films. Also included are their villains and, oddly enough, the Phase II Enterprise again. The Star Trek 4k 6-Movie Collection’s inner cases have the same key art but are strangely utilized to create tall, cut-off portraits of Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scotty, and Uhura. Even weirder, the art is still the same on the 4K and standard Blu-ray cases. You would have thought they would swap Uhura and Scotty out for Chekov and Sulu on one, at least. 

The sets’ disks themselves are uninspired. They have the standard reflective silver no-art, an approach that has become a staple of Paramount Trek releases. Another weird addition is a disk-shaped cut-out of the boxset art that’s included in the 4K box for some reason. I can’t see the purpose of it, it certainly won’t be featured on my wall any time soon. 

star trek 4 4k review

The Films – Technical advisories and historical context

My review of the Star Trek 4k 6-Movie Collection is based on viewing via a 4K HDR display. It has been noted in other reviews that the downsampling of the 4K scans to 1080p for the Blu-ray has led to some scenes feeling overly bright. This is partly due to the lack of HDR on that format, and a soft colour shift under some lighting, the screencaps provided here are from the Blu-rays.

In another oddity of this set, the Director’s Cut of The Undiscovered Country is only available in 4K. The Dolby Atmos logo is plastered all over the sets, but The Motion Picture Director’s edition is the only film with an Atmos track. While some may fondly put their 2009 master copies of the films on the TV and enjoy the experience, as a film student at the time I always found them oddly off-putting and ‘unnatural’ looking. It wasn’t until I discovered the process that had been used in their creation – Digital Noise Reduction (DNR) – that I understood why.

star trek 4 4k review

When the prints were scanned for blu-ray, at the time it was popular to erase the 35mm film grain much loved by more ‘traditional’ directors. To do this an automated tool went through and essentially blurred the image until it was no longer apparent, then went back through and sharpened the image to give the appearance of the resolution being restored. 

The film that suffered from this the most and so is most improved since the 2009 master in this release was The Undiscovered Country . Spock especially in various shots looked like he’d been taken right off a plinth at Madame Tussauds. I’m pleased to say this release has corrected the overzealous use of DNR. However, fair warning to those used to their 2009 blu-rays – the image does now appear softer – but this is as the directors intended. 

The Motion Picture – Directors Edition

Following the Paramount+ release in the US, the director’s edition of The Motion Picture has finally hit UK shores. While it certainly is an odd choice only to give this version of the film an Atmos track, it has never sounded or looked better. A lot of work has gone into this grounds-up remaster and it shows, building on the template Robert Wise set out in 2001 this film finally feels close to what TMP should have been from day 1. For example, the wonky effects shots are gone in favor of re-composited original footage that was found during the remaster and the odd bit of CGI to fill in the gaps – but you wouldn’t be able to tell while watching. 

My memory, like I assume many others, is of TMP as a fairly colorless film (in no small part due to costuming choices). This release has turned that on its head. The film truly ‘pops’ for lack of a better term in a way I never thought possible. It’s clear it’s been a labor of love for those involved and the light bouncing off the hull of the Enterprise truly makes you appreciate the artistry of those that built that iconic model.

star trek 4 4k review

The Wrath of Khan

The most popular of the original cast’s filmography finally makes it to 4K in a physical format! After causing many raised eyebrows following the 2015 re-release of the Director’s Cut and Theatrical editions only on standard blu-ray. Only for it to be spotted in the following years on the likes of iTunes in 4K. This release is however the least interesting in this box set given that it is just a re-release (on blu-ray at least), however like with the other films the HDR really elevates the color to another level. Unsurprisingly, the later scenes of the movie are the ones that benefit the most, the iconic 1701 reaches a new level of beauty pitted against the backdrop of the Mutara nebula as James Horner’s score fills your speakers.

star trek 4 4k review

The Search for Spock

The 2009 release of The Search for Spock , often referred to as the un (or less) loved middle child of the Genesis trilogy, was plagued with several issues. Colour timing – for example, the Enterprise bridge had a blue hue, not red, after its final battle. Then the opening credits are pillar boxed – a change that wasn’t present in any previous (or now later) release. I’m happy to report these issues alongside the DNR mentioned above have been fixed. Returning the film to what is likely to be the closest to the opening night theatre experience that we will get. While some effects shots don’t hold up too well, thinking specifically about Kruge’s fall. The majority of the film makes the journey to 4K in good standing. The destruction of the Enterprise and the death of David remain an emotional one-two gut punch. Additionally, the vibrant sunset as the Enterprise streaks across the sky takes on new life with HDR.

star trek 4 4k review

The Voyage Home

The joyous time travel romp that closes out the Genesis Trilogy was one of the better, though still troubled parts of the 2009 release. It was helped in a lot of ways by the nature of the film and how it took place on contemporary Earth. I imagine this made the color timing easier for those doing the master back in 2009, but there were still plenty of issues. Most notably the odd cyan tint that seemed to affect almost everything. The film is set in the present day and uses more live locations compared to the previous TMP era films did however cause some of the effects shots to look particularly bad after they had been through DNR and sharpening. The fishing boat at the end was a prime example with it looking like a toy that had been hastily put in with Microsoft paint when superimposed with the Bird of Prey. This new master fixes those issues and returns the film to its delightfully 80s natural state. It also reflects the sunny conditions under which a number of scenes were shot instead of it looking somewhat gloomy, much in contrast to the general tone of the film.

star trek 4 4k review

The Final Frontier

Despite having a bit of a tongue-in-cheek resurgence with its many references in Star Trek: Lower Decks The Final Frontier doesn’t hold a high position in many fans’ rankings. The film suffered from budget issues that are apparent throughout, especially in the effects department with it being the first Trek film not to rely on the talents of Industrial Light & Magic due to budget constraints. The previous master of the film seemed to take the approach that as much of this as possible should be covered up by cranking the saturation up in a number of scenes, most notably the ‘God’ encounter in the final act. The final result is that you could probably light up half of New York if you paused it at the wrong moment. This is thankfully fixed in this version, while also giving us a split-second look at the cut-for-budget rock monster that was originally intended to make an appearance and later found life in Trek fan favourite film Galaxy Quest .

star trek 4 4k review

The Undiscovered Country

We now come to the final Trek film to grace our screens in 4K (at least until – fingers crossed – next year) and it’s The Original Series casts swan song. This film when released in 2009 was a tough watch. On top of the DNR, there were also the color timing changes which amongst other things made Spock look slightly green and ill in many sequences. Well, that is gone in favor of much more natural skin tones in this master. The 4K disk as mentioned also includes the Director’s Cut. Featuring the late and great René Auberjonois in the Colonel West Scooby Doo-esque subplot. Much of the effects work is improved as well with improved contrast in HDR, be fairly warned though that this does not include the very 90s CG pink blood. Which sticks out like a sore thumb to this day (while also making no sense with every other Klingon appearance).

star trek 4 4k review

If you’re looking to re-live the theatre experience of the original casts’ movies, you’re not going to get any closer than having the Star Trek 4K 6-Movie Collection editions with a good quality screen, some may argue it’s even an improved experience. Having only watched the Director’s Edition and Wrath of Khan re-release in cinemas this past summer in the UK I won’t make that claim on behalf of all of the films though.

It’s undeniable that these are improved (even on the standard Blu-ray versions) over the 2009 masters though. The films all have a much more natural look to them and are rid of (invented) excess detail. The Star Trek Original Motion Picture 6-Movie Collection is available now from all retailers.

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Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie 4k Blu-ray/Digital Collection Review

Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie Collection 4k Blu-ray

Star Trek: The Next Generation movies have been remastered in 4k with Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio for release on Ultra HD Blu-ray from Paramount Home Media. The 4-Movie Collection (Street Date: April 4, 2023) includes copies of each film on 2160p (4k) Blu-ray, 1080p (2k) Blu-ray and Digital 4k UHD (via redeemable codes exp. 4/4/2025).

Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie Collection includes Star Trek: Generations (1994), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), and Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), and Star Trek: Nemesis (2002), which are also available in single-movie editions simultaneously with the 4-movie collection.

Paramount does a nice job of restoring the TNG movies in 4k Ultra HD. The sharpness levels and depth of color is better than we’ve ever seen before in home media. Dolby Vision and HDR10 create a more realistic color rendering, allowing up to 10-bits of color. There is a gain Dolby Vision as the spec is dynamic from scene to scene, wheras HDR10 is one setting throughout the entire video stream. The increased depth adds detail in space and in the shadow areas of these dramatically-lit films.

The opening scene of Star Trek VII: Generations  (the first of the TNG movies) starts with a bottle of champagne floating through space to commerorate the maiden voyage of the USS Enterprise-B. The sharpness of the bottle is so much better than previous HD presentations. And, the interior of the Enterprise’s bridge is rendered with rich color and sharp edges so clear that on larger sceens you can see the fabric stitching of the crew’s uniforms.

The video bitrate in each film averaged around 40Mbps – 50Mbps, and at times in the 50Mbps – 60Mbps range depending on the scene. These bitrates are not quite as high as some 4k discs, but nevertheless 2-3 times better than streaming bitrates.

Audio has been upgraded to Dolby TrueHD 7.1 from the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 tracks on previous 2k Blu-rays (new 1080p Blu-rays releasing April 4, 2023 will have Dolby TrueHD 7.1). This is a 2-channel improvement for surround-sound systems that adds a more immersive, albiet not Atmos, audio experience.

Subtitles are provided in English, English SDH, and French.

Bonus Material

There is bonus material included on the 4k disc, but only text and audio commentary. The rest of the legacy bonus material is provided on the Blu-ray Disc. The 4-Movie Collection includes hours of content such as the 4-part featurette “Brent Spiner: Data and Beyond,” “The Next Generation,” “Trek Roundtables,” “Library Computer,” “Industrial Magic,” and more. The extras are, of course, provided in HD quality.

The four movies are packaged in a 10-disc capacity plastic case (the 2 disc holders on the front and back stay empty). There is an insert with 4 different digital codes to redeem with either Apple iTunes or Vudu. The plastic case is housed in a cardboard slipcover with a spec on the back.

star trek 4 4k review

Related Reviews

Also see our reviews of each individual Star Trek: The Next Generation for details, bonus materials, and review scores.

  • Star Trek: Generations (1994)
  • Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
  • Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
  • Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)

Inside Pulse

4K Blu-ray Review: Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie Collection

Brendan Campbell

April 12, 2023

Blu-ray Reviews , Reviews , Top Story

star-trek-4k-box-set-releases-scaled

Overall Rating: 5/5 Special Features: There are no new special features to go along with this set, but that’s almost because there isn’t much more that can be added that wasn’t already put out with the previous releases of each film. All the legacy features from those releases are all found on the disc of their respective movie and there is an absolute abundance of them. Since these extras have been around for years I won’t go into detail of what each is about but will post what each disc has on it. This way if you don’t own the previous releases then you’ll get to see just how many extras you’ll get to enjoy with this purchase. Try not to be intimidated because they really go above and beyond here. Star Trek: Generations (Legacy) Special Features: There are THREE commentary tracks, two audio and one text, which can be found on both the UHD and Blu-ray discs. The remainder of the special features are found solely on the Blu-ray disc. Audio Commentary: Director David Carson and Manny Coto .

Audio Commentary: Writers Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore .

Text Commentary: Michael and Denise Okuda .

Blu-ray Special Features :

Library Computer

Production – This feature is broken up into four parts

  • Uniting two Legends
  • Stellar Cartography: Creating the Illusion
  • Strange New Worlds: The Valley of Fire
  • Scoring Trek

Visual Effects :

  • Inside ILM: Models & Miniatures
  • Crashing the Enterprise

Scene Deconstruction :

  • Main title Sequence
  • The Nexus Ribbon
  • Saucer Crash Sequence

The Star Trek Universe :

  • A Tribute to Matt Jefferies
  • The Enterprise Lineage
  • Captain Picard’s Family Album
  • Creating 24th Century Weapons
  • Next Generation Designer Flashback: Andrew Probert
  • Stellar Cartography on Earth
  • Brent Spiner Data and Beyond Part 1
  • Trek Roundtable: Generations
  • Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 007: Trilithium

Deleted Scenes – There are four deleted scenes, including an alternate ending.

  • Storyboards
  • Production Gallery
  • Teaser Trailer
  • Theatrical Trailer

Star Trek: First Contact (Legacy) Special Features There are FOUR commentary tracks, three audio and one text, which can be found on both the UHD and Blu-ray discs. The remainder of the special features are found solely on the Blu-ray disc. Audio Commentary: Actor/Director Jonathan Frakes .

Audio Commentary: Damon Lindelof and Anthony Pascale .

Production – This feature is broken up into 6-parts

  • Making First Contact
  • The Art of First Contact
  • The Missile Silo
  • The Deflector Dish
  • From “A” to “E”

Scene Deconstruction – This feature is broken up into three parts

  • Borg Queen assembly
  • Escape Pod Launch
  • Borg Queen’s Demise

The Star Trek Universe – This is a massive 9-part feature

  • Jerry Goldsmith: A Tribute
  • The Legacy of Zefram Cochrane
  • First Contact: The Possibilities
  • Industrial Light & Magic The Next Generation
  • Greetings from the International Space Station
  • SpaceShipOne’s Historic Flight
  • Brent Spiner Data and Beyond Part 2
  • Trek Roundtable: First Contact
  • Starfleet Academy SciSec Brief 008 Temporal Vortex

The Borg Collective – This feature is broken up into three parts

  • Unimatrix One
  • Design Matrix

Archives – This feature is broken up into five parts

  • Photo Gallery
  • Alternate Titles
  • Ethan Phillips Cameo/Interview
  • Queen’s Demise
  • Borg Invasion Trailer

Star Trek: Insurrection (Legacy) Special Features:

There’s a measly SINGLE commentary track here (I kid, one is awesome, anything more is gravy), which can be found on both the UHD and Blu-ray discs. The remainder of the special features are found solely on the Blu-ray disc.

Audio Commentary: Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis.

Blu-ray (Legacy) Special Features :

Production – This feature is broken up into seven parts

  • It Takes a Village
  • Location, Location, Location
  • The Art of Insurrection
  • Anatomy of a Stunt
  • Making Star Trek: Insurrection
  • Director’s Notebook

The Star Trek Universe – Again we’ve got a great 7-part feature for fans to enjoy

  • Westmore’s Aliens
  • Westmore’s Legacy
  • Star Trek’s Beautiful Alien Women
  • Marina Sirtis The Counselor Is In
  • Brent Spiner Data and Beyond Part 3
  • Trek Roundtable: Insurrection
  • Starfleet Academy SciSec Brief 009: The Origins of the Ba’ku and Son’a Conflict.

Creating the Illusion – Here we’ve got a three part feature

  • Shuttle Chase

Deleted Scenes

Archives – We’ve got five parts to this feature here

  • Storyboards – Secondary Protocols
  • Worf and Troi
  • Tom Morello
  • Marina/Craft Services
  • Original Promotional Featurette

Star Trek: Nemesis (Legacy) Special Features

Here we are finishing off like we started with FOUR commentary tracks, three audio and one text, which can be found on both the UHD and Blu-ray discs. The remainder of the special features are found solely on the Blu-ray disc. UHD:

Audio Commentary: Director Stuart Baird .

Audio Commentary: Producer Rick Berman .

Audio Commentary: Michael and Denise Okuda .

Blu-ray (Legacy) Special Features

Production – Here we’ve got a beefy 7-part feature for fans to enjoy

  • Nemesis Revisited
  • New Frontiers Stuart Baird on Directing Nemesis
  • Storyboarding the Action
  • Red Alert! Shooting the Action of Nemesis
  • Build and Rebuild
  • Four-Wheeling in the Final Frontier
  • Screen Test: Shinzon

The Star Trek Universe – And to two up the last one we’ve got a 9-part feature here for your viewing pleasure.

  • A Star Trek Family’s Final Journey
  • A Bold Vision of the Final Frontier
  • The Enterprise E
  • Reunion with the Rikers
  • Today’s Tech Tomorrow’s Data
  • Robot Hall of Fame
  • Trek Roundtable: Nemesis
  • Starfleet Academy SciSec Brief 010: Thalaron Radiation

The Romulan Empire – We’ve got a five-part history lesson here for those looking to brush up on their Romulan culture.

  • Romulan Lore
  • Shinzon & The Viceroy
  • Romulan Design
  • The Romulan Senate
  • The Scimitar

Archives – Here we’ve got a five-part feature

  • Bryan Singer
  • Riker and the Beast
  • Terry Frazee

Paramount Pictures Presents Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie 4K Collection . Star Trek Created by: Gene Roddenberry. Starring: Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Whoopi Goldberg, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, John de Lancie, Wil Wheaton, Tom Hardy. Running time: 448 minutes. Rating: PG. Blu-ray Released: April 4, 2023.

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  • September 4, 2024 | ‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture’ Getting A 45th Anniversary Steelbook 4K Blu-ray Release
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‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture’ Getting A 45th Anniversary Steelbook 4K Blu-ray Release

star trek 4 4k review

| September 4, 2024 | By: Matt Wright 12 comments so far

The first Star Trek movie turns 45 later this year, to mark the occasion Paramount Home Entertainment is releasing a limited edition Steelbook 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray version of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, on November 19.

This new Steelbook is for the original theatrical cut of the film, likely the same version which was part of the 4K UHD Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection from 2021 (see TrekMovie review ). The new limited edition Steelbook will be the first time the theatrical version of The Motion Picture was released individually in 4K UHD. Also included is a standard HD Blu-ray copy, for those that haven’t made the move to 4K yet, as well as a digital copy.

star trek 4 4k review

As a bonus, inside the Steelbook you also get an exclusive booklet containing original marketing materials and behind the scenes images from the Paramount Archives. The booklet includes a reproduction of the original 1979 “Handbook of Production Information” that was used for marketing, and a group of production stills.

star trek 4 4k review

An excerpt of the 1979 marketing material

Pre-order available now

The limited edition Steelbook release for the theatrical cut of Star Trek: The Motion Picture is available now for pre-order from Amazon for $30.99 .

star trek 4 4k review

And as a reminder, in 2022 Paramount released the 4K UHD “Director’s Edition” of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (see TrekMovie review ), which is available now at Amazon for $23.55 .

DISCLAIMER: We link to products to buy on Amazon in our articles with customized affiliate links that support TrekMovie by earning a small commission when you purchase through them.

Keep up with all the  home video and streaming news, reviews, and analysis at TrekMovie.com.

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While I do like to triple and quadruple dip, I shall pass on this one. I already have the uber TMP release with 20 versions of the movie (plus the DVD releases and the Blu-Ray releases, VHS, etc etc).

Looks good though.

Are any of those 20 versions palatable?

That font on the back though :(

So no DE in this copy?

Nope. I remember reading something about the special box set they did and how the DE and the longer version of the film wouldn’t be released again – so spend your hard earned cash NOW!

I already purchased the DE ( the only version I really need) on Apple TV 4k. Was planning to wait for a good deal on the 4K discs especially since I don’t yet have a 4k player ( waiting on a deal for that aswell.) But if it’s true the DE discs will soon be out of print, I may pull the trigger sooner.

Any new deleted scenes? That would make it a must buy.

Is this is part of the new “Lipstick on a Pig” release schedule? A hard pass on this effort to squeeze every last penny out of the public from a terrible movie…

it’s a terrible movie on a home screen (especially an old CRT if that’s the last way you saw it). Went to see the re-release they did a couple years ago on the big screen and it was captivating. Much like 2001, some films really do just work better w/ the imersion

I’d settle for a replacement disc that fixed the San Francisco tram station shot on the 4K DE.

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STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE Get 4K Ultra HD Blu-Ray Steelbook for 45th Anniversary

Star Trek: The Motion Picture celebrates 45 years this year and Paramount Home Entertainment is releasing director Robert Wise’s film in a limited edition 4K Blu-ray Steelbook edition. This new 4K Blu-ray Steelbook will have the same contents as the now out-of-print Director’s Edition and limited-edition collector’s set entitled “The Complete Adventure” that came out back in 2022. The Steelbook comes with an exclusive booklet with behind-the-scenes images and info from the film, and the cover features the iconic original movie poster artwork.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture was a very expensive movie for its day and was a famously troubled production. The effects took so long to complete, they finished them literally days before the movie premiere. Although reaction to the film from audiences and critics was mixed at first, it launched a feature film franchise that’s still going today . And these days, Star Trek: The Motion Picture has many loyal fans who cite this installment as their favorite, especially for its grand ambition. It also gave us the best version of the starship Enterprise yet.

Here are the new special features for this disc of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , only available previously via the exclusive limited edition version from 2022.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Contents:

Audio Commentary with David C. Fein, Mike Matessino, and Daren R. Dochterman Audio Commentary by Robert Wise, Douglas Trumbull, John Dykstra, Jerry Goldsmith, and Stephen Collins Text Commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda

Star Trek: The Motion Picture Blu-ray Disc Bonus Features:

The Human Adventure—An all-new 8-part documentary detailing how the Director’s Edition came to life Preparing the Future – How the remastering began A Wise Choice – The storied history of Robert Wise Refitting the Enterprise – How the Enterprise design shaped future federation starships Sounding Off – Exploring new dimensions of sound in Dolby Atmos V’ger – The conception and restoration of an iconic alien antagonist Return to Tomorrow – Reaching an already high bar with new CGI effects A Grand Theme – Behind the iconic, influential music score that shaped the franchise’s future The Grand Vision – The legacy and evolving reputation of this classic movie Deleted Scenes Effects Tests Costume Tests Computer Display Graphics Additional legacy bonus content

Star Trek: The Motion Picture 4K UHD Steelbook, Blu-Ray, and Digital Copy arrives on November 19, and is already available for pre-order on Amazon.

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STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE Get 4K Ultra HD Blu-Ray Steelbook for 45th Anniversary

Star Trek: The Motion Picture celebrates 45 years this year and Paramount Home Entertainment is releasing director Robert Wise’s film in a limited edition 4K Blu-ray Steelbook edition. This new 4K Blu-ray Steelbook will have the same contents as the now out-of-print Director’s Edition and limited-edition collector’s set entitled “The Complete Adventure” that came out back in 2022. The Steelbook comes with an exclusive booklet with behind-the-scenes images and info from the film, and the cover features the iconic original movie poster artwork.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture 45th anniversary steelbook set.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture was a very expensive movie for its day and was a famously troubled production. The effects took so long to complete, they finished them literally days before the movie premiere. Although reaction to the film from audiences and critics was mixed at first, it launched a feature film franchise that’s still going today . And these days, Star Trek: The Motion Picture has many loyal fans who cite this installment as their favorite, especially for its grand ambition. It also gave us the best version of the starship Enterprise yet.

Star Trek The Motion Picture poster featuring three faces in red, yellow, and green light, and the Enterprise below them

Here are the new special features for this disc of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , only available previously via the exclusive limited edition version from 2022.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Contents:

Audio Commentary with David C. Fein, Mike Matessino, and Daren R. Dochterman Audio Commentary by Robert Wise, Douglas Trumbull, John Dykstra, Jerry Goldsmith, and Stephen Collins Text Commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda

Starship Enterprise from Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture Blu-ray Disc Bonus Features:

The Human Adventure—An all-new 8-part documentary detailing how the Director’s Edition came to life Preparing the Future – How the remastering began A Wise Choice – The storied history of Robert Wise Refitting the Enterprise – How the Enterprise design shaped future federation starships Sounding Off – Exploring new dimensions of sound in Dolby Atmos V’ger – The conception and restoration of an iconic alien antagonist Return to Tomorrow – Reaching an already high bar with new CGI effects A Grand Theme – Behind the iconic, influential music score that shaped the franchise’s future The Grand Vision – The legacy and evolving reputation of this classic movie Deleted Scenes Effects Tests Costume Tests Computer Display Graphics Additional legacy bonus content

Star Trek: The Motion Picture 4K UHD Steelbook, Blu-Ray, and Digital Copy arrives on November 19, and is already available for pre-order on Amazon.

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This Steelbook will not contain the 2022 remastered version of The Director’s Edition , which is available separately in its own 4K Blu-ray set ; it also will not contain the extended “Special Longer Version” which is only available in the multi-disc “Complete Adventure” box set (which also contains the theatrical and Director’s Edition of the film).

If you’ve already got a copy of the theatrical edition of The Motion Picture on 4K Blu-ray, then there’s nothing new here — but of course you if prefer the fancy Steelbook packaging or the included art book, which we know is a big draw to many physical media collectors, you can preorder the new  Star Trek: The Motion Picture  4K Steelbook today ahead of its November 19 release.

star trek 4 4k review

Come back to TrekCore often for the latest in  Star Trek home media news!

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Published Sep 3, 2024

Celebrate the 45th Anniversary of Star Trek: The Motion Picture with This Limited Edition Release

Bring home this release on November 19!

Stylized packshot of the 45th anniversary release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture

StarTrek.com

Set a course for the final frontier!

Celebrate the 45th anniversary of Star Trek: The Motion Picture by bringing home this limited-edition Steelbook, featuring the original theatrical cut in 4K Ultra HD, and a bonus remastered Blu-ray, from Paramount Home Entertainment on November 19.

This bold blockbuster launched one of the longest running movie franchises, reuniting the cast of the original Star Trek series, including William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Walter Koenig, and James Doohan. The adventure begins when an unidentified alien intruder destroys three powerful Klingon cruisers. Captain James T. Kirk returns to the helm of a newly transformed U.S.S. Enterprise to take command. As a bonus, an exclusive booklet boldly explores the original marketing materials and behind the scenes images from the Paramount Archives.

Open packshot of the 45th anniversary release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture featuring the film discs and booklet with images from Paramount Archives

Originally released in 1979, Star Trek: The Motion Picture became the fourth highest grossing movie of the year and earned three Academy Award nominations for Best Visual Effects, Best Art Direction, and Best Music, Original Score. The film successfully launched the Star Trek franchise beyond the original television series, despite having been rushed to theaters with incomplete special effects and forced editing choices.

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    Paramount's new stand-alone 4K UHD release is a 2-disc set (UHD and Blu-ray) featuring the exact same discs found in the 2021 Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection 4K set (reviewed here). Each disc offers a simple menu interface featuring the Bob Peak poster artwork for the film. The 4K disc includes the following special features:

  3. Review: 'Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection' 4K Ultra HD Blu

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture 4K Ultra HD Isolated score in Dolby 2.0—NEW Commentary by Michael & Denise Okuda, Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Daren Dochterman

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    Paramount gives Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home a new two-disc 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray + digital copy single-title release. The discs found in this set are identical to the previously released 4-Movie Collection and the one's found in the recently released 6-Movie Collection. The discs are housed in a standard two-disc case with identical slipcover ...

  5. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

    Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. Star Trek III: The Search For Spock - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. It's the 23rd century, and a mysterious alien power is threatening Earth by evaporating the oceans and destroying the atmosphere. In a frantic attempt to save mankind, Kirk and his crew must time travel back to 1986 San Francisco ...

  6. REVIEW: The Original Six STAR TREK Films, Remastered for 4K

    The remastered edition of Star Trek III is available in the 6-film box set, as a standalone 4K + Blu-ray release, or as a standalone Blu-ray. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home fares nicely in the remastered presentation, as the popular "one with the whales" gets its missing film grain restored and thankfully loses the 2009-era slight blue-green cast from its color timing — evident in shots ...

  7. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review

    Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Review. Emboldened by the strong response to The Search for Spock which turned the clock back and reunited Spock with the crew of the Enterprise crew ...

  8. Star Trek: The Original Motion Picture 6-Movie Collection Review: The

    Star Trek: The Original Motion Picture 6-Movie Collection. For the past year, fans have enjoyed the first four Star Trek films on 4K in high-dynamic range (HDR) thanks to The Original 4-Movie ...

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    Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4K Blu-ray Release Date September 6, 2022. Blu-ray reviews, news, specs, ratings, screenshots. Cheap Blu-ray movies and deals.

  10. Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie Collection (4K UHD Review)

    A year later, in 2022, I reviewed Paramount's subsequent 4K UHD releases of the long-awaited box set, as well as the wide-release 4K version of the , , and . And now, we finally have the new Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie Collection, which includes Star Trek: Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star ...

  11. Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection Review: The ...

    Review: Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection. Watching Star Trek movies in the best currently available display options - 4K and high dynamic range (HDR) - has been a long time coming ...

  12. Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection

    Star Trek: The Motion Picture [Review Excerpt] "Rather than follow in the footsteps of action-fantasy Star Wars, Wise and his team conceived of a more traditional or "true" science fiction tale.Once we arrive at the surprise twist about V'Ger, it becomes clear that the plot is grappling with challenging philosophical themes about the concept of God, the purpose of existence and the difficulty ...

  13. For the first time, you can now watch every Star Trek movie in 4K HDR

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    The Films - Technical advisories and historical context. My review of the Star Trek 4k 6-Movie Collection is based on viewing via a 4K HDR display. It has been noted in other reviews that the downsampling of the 4K scans to 1080p for the Blu-ray has led to some scenes feeling overly bright. This is partly due to the lack of HDR on that format ...

  16. Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection (4K UHD Review)

    I thought this (dated September 3rd) might interest people here, it's an extremely thorough review of the new 4K (and HD) Blu-ray release of the first four movies featuring the original main TOS cast. This set is due for release in the US on September 7th and the UK on September 6th, no doubt elsewhere in the world too. 6.

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  20. 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' Getting A 45th Anniversary Steelbook 4K

    This new Steelbook is for the original theatrical cut of the film, likely the same version which was part of the 4K UHD Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection from 2021 (see TrekMovie review).

  21. STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE Get 4K Ultra HD Blu-Ray Steelbook for

    Here are the new special features for this disc of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, only available previously via the exclusive limited edition version from 2022.. Star Trek: The Motion Picture 4K ...

  22. Star Trek: The Motion Picture Gets a 45th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray

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  23. STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE Get 4K Ultra HD Blu-Ray ...

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  24. STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE Theatrical Edition 4K Steelbook Coming in

    To celebrate the upcoming 45th anniversary of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Paramount Home Entertainment is bringing out the 4K edition of the film once more on home media — this time in a new Steelbook release in November. Emblazoned with Bob Peak's iconic rainbow theatrical key art, the new Steelbook will contain the theatrical edition of The Motion Picture on both 4K and Blu-ray ...

  25. Celebrate the 45th Anniversary of Star Trek: The Motion Picture with

    Set a course for the final frontier! Celebrate the 45th anniversary of Star Trek: The Motion Picture by bringing home this limited-edition Steelbook, featuring the original theatrical cut in 4K Ultra HD, and a bonus remastered Blu-ray, from Paramount Home Entertainment on November 19.. This bold blockbuster launched one of the longest running movie franchises, reuniting the cast of the ...

  26. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (steelbook) (4k/uhd)(1979)

    Shop Star Trek: The Motion Picture (Steelbook) (4K/UHD)(1979) at Target. Choose from Same Day Delivery, Drive Up or Order Pickup. Free standard shipping with $35 orders.

  27. TNG 4.6, "Legacy"

    Listen to this episode from The 7th Rule -- A Star Trek Podcast with DS9's Cirroc Lofton on Spotify. Cirroc Lofton (Jake Sisko in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) and sci-fi producer, Ryan T. Husk, review and react to Star Trek: the Next Generation, Season 4, episode 6, "Legacy."Producer: Ryan T. HuskAudio Engineer: Scott JensenExecutive Producers:Jason OkunGreg K. WickstromAssociate Producers ...