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Stars:
William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig,
Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, David Warner, and Laurence Luckinbill
Writer:
David Loughery
Based
On A Story By: William Shatner, Harve Bennet, and David Loughery
Based
On “Star Trek” Created By: Gene Roddenberry
Director:
William Shatner
Feature
length: 106 minutes
Extras:
Audio Commentary With William Shatner And His Daughter Liz Shatner, Text
Commentary By Michael Okuda and Denise Okuda, Star Trek Universe Featurettes,
Production Featurettes, Deleted Scenes, Production Gallery, Theatrical Trailers,
TV Spots
Languages:
English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and English and French Language Dolby
Surround Sound
Subtitles:
English Captions and Closed Captions and French Language Subtitles (For Select
Bonus Materials)
Packaging:
Two-Disc Alpha Keep Case
Chapter
Stops: 15
Sound:
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and Dolby Surround Sound
Year
of Theatrical Release: 1989/DVD Release: 2003
Theatrical
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Home
Video Distributor: Paramount Home Entertainment
MPAA
Rating: PG
Reviewer:
Mark A. Rivera
The
summer of 1989 was probably one of the most competitive seasons for popcorn
movies in the history of summer releases. Warner Brothers released “Batman”
while Fox would release “The Abyss” in August and Paramount released
“Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade” in May leaving “Star Trek V: The
Final Frontier” somewhere in the middle. Add to that the high expectations
that were in place after the success of “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home,” and
you have in some ways an unenviable plight for nearly any filmmaker. So “Star
Trek V: The Final Frontier” was not as huge of financial success as the fourth
film and was pretty much denounced by fans and critics alike as the weakest
entry in the feature film series. Now 15 years later home video users can watch
“Star Trek V: The Final Frontier” hopefully with a bit more of an open mind
and enjoy it for what it is.
In
some ways this is the most ambitious of the “Trek” feature films and I think
the reach exceeded what the filmmakers could grasp ultimately for that film at
that time. I also think the attempts to bring humor in a similar manner to the
way the fourth film was able to lighten the storyline was for the fifth film
misplaced. Too much buffoonery sabotages whatever goals the story tried to reach
on film, but it was not the only shortcoming. The effects in “Star Trek V: The
Final Frontier” are not up to the standards of the films the preceded it and
would follow it and that also hurts one willingness to suspend disbelief in a
big way. I mean the interactive menus on both discs look better than some of the
effects shots in the film. Ultimately though what I think hampered “Star Trek
V: The Final Frontier” the most was the whole encounter on the planet Sha
Ka Ree with the malevolent entity. I also think I have seen one too many
shots of the California desert to stand in as some alien planet not just in
“Star Trek V,” but also in “Generations” and “Nemesis” too.
Still
there are some things I do like about the film and that includes the first scene
where the renegade Vulcan Sybok (Laurence Luckinbill) looks into the eyes of
this withered looking guy digging holes in the desert. Though I have not
actually seen this happen, it is well known that the eyes are truly the windows
of and into the soul. That’s why when you see a person in a horror film
without eyes or losing their eyes it means they have lost their soul or have no
soul to begin with. In certain cultures the spiritual guru is believed to be
able to either transmit divine energy or help an initiate work out their karma
simply by a deep look directly into the eyes. Of course a person does not have
to be saint in order to do this and Sybok is no saint, but some spiritual
seekers are said to have this ability too so I like that scene because of it and
also because it bookends well with the words shared near the end of the film
between Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) and Captain Kirk (William Shatner). In his
apparent disillusionment with the events that happened on Sha Ka Ree, he
asks Kirk if God is out there and Kirk replies “He’s in here,” pointing to
his heart and ultimately that is probably the most profound truth you are likely
to find in any of the “Star Trek” films. Ultimately it is just a shame that
the execution of the film itself never lives up to its potential.
Well
faults about the film aside, “Star Trek V: The Final Frontier” is probably
the best looking of the “Special Collector’s Edition” two-discs sets to
have been released by Paramount Home Entertainment so far. Aside from the
occasional fleck, I was surprised at how clean and vibrant the transfer looked
on DVD. It is a huge improvement over the previous letterboxed DVD release.
“Star Trek V: The Final Frontier” is presented with an anamorphic widescreen
(2.35:1) aspect ratio that preserves the manner in which the film was exhibited
theatrically as close as possible for home video users. The film transfer also
benefits from being transferred onto a dual layered disc. The extra space allows
for an enhanced picture and personally I found the English Dolby Digital 5.1
Surround Soundtrack to have a higher fidelity with a more discrete quality than
I recall the other disc having. An English and a French Language Dolby Surround
Soundtrack is also encoded onto the dual layered disc with English Captions and
Closed Captions for the hearing impaired as options. The second dual layered DVD
containing the majority of the extra value features also has optional English
Captions and French Language Subtitles for most of the bonus materials.
William
Shatner and his daughter Liz Shatner, author of “Captain’s Log: William
Shatner’s Personal Account Of The Making Of Star Trek V – The Final
Frontier” provide a feature length audio commentary track on the first disc
and while Mr. Shatner sounds a bit subdued during the commentary, I personally
found the exchange between father and daughter to be charming. William Shatner
is also not afraid to note where he felt his screen direction was not theatrical
enough and whatnot. This does create a bit of sympathy for the guy, but at the
same time it lets the viewer understand in a somewhat educational manner some of
the pitfalls Shatner faced directing this installment in the franchise. If you
are looking to hear or see people talking about gossipy stuff about the making
of the film in this two-disc set, you will not find it here and personally I’m
glad. There’s enough dirt out there already as far as I am concerned.
Michael
and Denise Okuda provide another text commentary for the film as well, but it is
not as informative as one might have hoped. I can’t get match my knowledge of
“Star Trek” with Mr. And Mrs. Okuda’s, but I can point out a few anecdotes
they left out. For instance Kirk’s prediction that he would die alone does in
fact come to fruition in “Generations” both when he is presumed dead after
saving the Enterprise-B and when he finally does die in front of Captain
Picard. Now you can argue with me and say Kirk was not alone when he died
because Picard was there, but I think the term alone with regard to Kirk
extended more so due the absence of his close friends Spock and McCoy, who are
like family to him. As far as Kirk was concerned he was helping the Captain of
the Enterprise, but I do not think anyone could say Kirk knew Picard
anymore than Picard knew Kirk outside of history books. The other anecdote is
that Klingon Captain Klaa (Todd Bryant) has a cameo as a translator during Kirk
and McCoy’s trial on the Klingon homeworld of Qo’noS in “Star Trek
VI: The Undiscovered Country.”
The
balance of the extra value features is on the second disc and they are mostly
made up of a series featurettes that are within several submenus under various
banners. In “The Star Trek Universe” submenu there is a tribute to
Production Designer Herman Zimmerman (19:08), a filmed interview with William
Shatner on location at Yosemite Park during the film’s production (14:37), and
a discussion of the metaphysics in “Star Trek” with interview clips
featuring Writers David Brin, Ray Bradbury, and David Loughery. I found this to
be the best of the featurettes and really enjoyed how Brin brought out the
mythic structure that had occurred throughout the first five “Star Trek”
films and I think he’s right, but Mr. Brin you left out one important element.
Usually from a great act of hubris in mythology there is something gained that
is good too. Sort of like the phoenix rising out of the ashes or Pegasus coming
from Medusa’s head or hope coming out of Pandora’s box. Were it not for the
hubris behind “Genesis” in “Star Trek II the Wrath Of Kahn” and “Star
Trek III: The Search For Spock” there would have been no way for Spock to
return to the living. I realize that one can argue that if there was no
“Genesis” Kahn would not have gotten the missile, but does anyone really
think that given Kahn’s obsession with Kirk that he would not have found some
other way to draw him into a trap and at the same time threaten the universe?
Also
within “The Star Trek Universe” submenu are new interviews with Todd Bryant
(Klaa) and Spice Williams (Vixis) complete with behind-the-scenes photos, makeup
test footage, and deleted footage that is surprisingly not included among the
deleted scenes on the second disc (13:05). The final featurette in this section
entitled “A Green Future” (9:24) explores the hope instilled by
Roddenberry’s vision of the future for our environment.
Under
the heading of “Production” one can find “Harve Bennett’s Pitch”
(1:42) presumably to studio execs or theater chain owners, a new documentary
featuring retrospective cast and crew interview clips entitled “The Journey”
(28:54), a reel of makeup tests (9:30) and a reel of pre-visualization model
scenes (1:41), footage of the unused “Rockman” (5:37), and the press
conference held on the closing day of shooting in December of 1988 with Bennett,
Shatner doing the majority of the talking and answering questions while the main
cast members from the film make a brief appearance in the beginning. (13:42).
Under
the heading of “Archives” is a motion production still gallery (4:17) and
three storyboard galleries entitled “Sha Ka Ree,” “Face Of God,” and
“Escape” respectively. Then there are four deleted scenes entitled “Mount
Rushmore,” “Insults,” “Behold Paradise,” and “Spock’s Pain.”
These scenes can be viewed individually or as one reel (4:17) and are presented
with an aspect ratio of (2.35:1) with English Dolby Surround Sound and optional
English Captions for the hearing impaired and French Language Subtitles.
Finally
under “Advertising” are the two theatrical trailers running at 2 minutes and
40 seconds and 1 minute and 33 seconds respectively, five full framed 32 second
TV spots and two full framed 17 second TV spots.
The
menus are beautifully rendered with full motion three-dimensional transitions to
standard interactive still frame menus that are easy to navigate. Overall I
think Paramount Home Entertainment has done a great job with adding “Star Trek
V: The Final Frontier” to their growing series of “Special Collector’s
Edition” two-disc “Trek” film sets and it is definitely worth a look.
“Star Trek V: The Final Frontier: Special Collector’s Edition” is
available on DVD-Video now at retailers on and offline from Paramount Home
Entertainment.
©
Copyright 2003 By Mark A. Rivera
All Rights Reserved.
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