MovieChat Forums > Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) Discussion > Who saw this in cinemas back in 79?

Who saw this in cinemas back in 79?

posted 9 years ago by bozo_500
44 replies | jump to latest

Who saw this back in the day? What were your memories - the anticipation of seeing it in the weeks/days before, the actually seeing it and how much a big deal was it where you were back then, the crowds, audience etc and after coming out of the cinema what were your thoughts and in the days/weeks that followed.

I didn't see it (was too young) but I think about what it mustve been like to attend TMP in Xmas 79... fans/audiences went in expecting ‘Star Trek’ : The Motion Picture. but what Roddenberry actually gave them was ‘Star Trek Phase 2’ : The Motion Picture.

its like Roddenberry saw 2001 in 1968 or 1969 when his TV series was constantly under threat and thought to himself 'thats what star trek should be like..if i ever get the budget to do a star trek movie i will make it more like that'

Its funny when you think Star Wars was out just 2 years earlier and the success of that prompted Paramount to switch from doing the Phase 2 series or low budget tv movie to the big movie. one of the inspirations for Star Wars was obviously star trek with its action packed romp style...so fans will have been expecting and wanting the Trek movie to jump straight back into that feel.....yet Star Trek TMP shunned that in favour of a lofty 2001 vibe (which to be fair was the norm for SF flicks of the 70s that thoughtful, intellectual dystopian stuff which Star Trek had already been planning to go that route for 'Phase 2' before SW brought back the feel good action SF, so you had people wondering why STTMP wasn’t like that as that’s what they remembered from the tv show! So if anything SW was the anomaly and STTMP turned up too late to the party!!)...with time its interesting to see it as a more realistic '2001' version of Trek as theres the action films Wrath of Khan etc to enjoy (i.e. thats what a 'Star Trek' universe might really be like in the 23rd century more so than any other incarnations of Trek that followed in the sequels TNG and even the JJ films – these ultra advanced astronauts in their white&grey uniforms aboard a clean dangerous and powerful starship that can travel faster than light where if they dont get the instruments precise can create wormholes etc. its almost like a realistic futuristic SF movie about what humanity would be like in the 23rd century dealing with this horrific unknown cloud thing. And it just happens to star older versions of the cheapnchearful colourful 60s tv show 'star trek') but its easy to imagine the disappointment fans mustve had in 79 when theyd been waiting for the movie for the best part of a decade.

The anticipation of a huge budget Star Trek movie (with all the original cast) directed by a big name director (essentially like a Spielberg of the day) mustve been off the scale. (esp with Star Wars just out near enough the previous year whetting everyones appetite for colourful space action) ...they mustve been expecting epic space battles, hand phaser fights, Kirk Fu, nasty creepy aliens, Klingons kicking ass, Kirk Spock Bones jokes/banter, that eerie uncanny Twilight Zone vibe alot of the season 1 eps had, light comedic moments, red/gold/blue uniforms similar to the tv show, colourful Ent interiors, alien space babes for Kirk, beaming down to exotic alien planets (all done on a bigger scale/more realistic) ....and instead they got 'Star Trek: A Space Odyssey' with a dash of Close Encounters

I wonder what the reaction would’ve been had it been the movie version of the TV Star Trek?

maybe itd have made Star Wars box office !

(then again there were plenty episodes that were like TMP- Changeling, Doomsday, Corbomite, Immunity etc only with the added element of earth in peril)

[–] RIP_IMDb 9 years ago

, I did! But back then I thought it was a complete bore. Since then I've changed my opinion and now give it a rating of 7/10. I used to have the Starlog magazine for it as an upcoming film.

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[–] Porpoise01 9 years ago

I liked it. Saw it more than once.

Of course, I knew Trek well enough not to expect another Star Wars.

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[–] bjlevine 9 years ago

I saw it opening night. I wasn't bored. I was pretty much amazed by the film, and wound up watching it three times during it's initial run.

About the only thing that bugged me the first time was that Spock seemed really out of character. But by the end of the film that had been worked out nicely.

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[–] grendelkhan 9 years ago

I wanted to, badly, but didn't get the chance. Going to movies was often a luxury, in my house, and we didn't get to go often. I made up for it when I was driving and working, at 16. I ended up catching it on its first tv broadcast, then watching the special edition on vhs, later.

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[–] Samclyde2 9 years ago

I was a little kid then, but after watching TOS in reruns in the 70s, there was no movie I wanted to see more in my life, I wanted to see it more badly than Kirk wanted the Enterprise back. I found out they were coming out with it when I saw the TV spots for it, narrated by Orson Wells.

I remember in the theater lobby, they had these cardboard cut-out displays of all the characters, and I remember buying the novel and the vinyl record of the soundtrack (which I still have) before I saw the movie -- just seeing the movie poster drawing was so cool.

I liked the movie the first time seeing it, especially the FX, I just remember wishing it had a little more action.

[–] April221968 9 years ago

I was 12 and saw it on my own one cold night in a packed theater. the highlight was watching the Enterprise glide out of space dock on the big screen. I thought the plot was ingenious, really intelligent sci fi, and the score so memorable. I think it still holds up, partly because I dislike modern cgi. I watch the directors cut once a year at least.

[–] mkohary 9 years ago

I did. I was 10 years old, and I was bored to tears. I loved sci-fi then as I do now, and I was bored to tears. The theater was fairly packed, and I think they were all just as bored as I was.

[–] jgroub 9 years ago

I was 14, a total Trekkie, and I was beyond thrilled that they were bringing Trek back on the big screen. Me and my best friend were absolutely beside ourselves in anticipation.

And then we saw it, and it blew. It totally blew. Minute after minute of clouds, of ships pulling away, of ships getting eaten. Everything about this movie was tooooo sloooooow, toooo loooooong. They could have cut at least 30 minutes out of this movie to pick up the pace and made it much, much better. I'm rewatching it now, probably for the first time in at least 20 years, if not 30, and god this is a piece of sh!t.

We didn't notice the whole V-Ger/Nomad thing while watching it. But afterwards we realized, "Hey! That was just a total ripoff! Goddammit!"

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[–] Janebo 8 years ago

My older brother was a huge ST fan way back, he was also 15 years older than me so I'd sit and watch the tv show with him but was too young to really get it. I think I remember the episode with the Gorn the most lol. I eventually got into the animated series, short-lived as it was. But when the movie was released, I saw it on opening night and I loved it. The V'ger/Nomad connection didn't bother me, I wanted to be an astronaut when I was a kid so I was right up on the Voyager probes being sent and thought that was pretty cool.

It was a darker, more grownup version of ST and yes, the costumes are a bit silly but it was the 70s. It's easily one of the most sci-fi of Trek and I'm glad it sparked a renewed interest in Star Trek itself, being followed by one of the most acclaimed Trek universe movies, with that guy who used to sell Maxwell House coffee, Chryslers & had a sidekick named Tattoo.

Going to that one has turned into a tradition, now I've seen them all on their opening nights (yes, even JJ's) *^^)v And I would love to see a new tv series too.

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Janebo 8 years ago

Soooo, I'm guessing you didn't see it when it opened back in '79...

[–] ryan-anderson 8 years ago

I saw it. Was fairly excited about it because (of course) I loved the series. I don't remeber the crowd being that bad (in terms of size). Afterwards, was glad I went, but I remember talking to several people who (like me) thought the ending was a little odd.

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