BLU-RAY REVIEW

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

Featured In Issue 141, July/August 2009

Picture4.5
SoundNR
WSR Score5
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
Paramount Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
14275
(MPAA Rating):
PG
(Rating Reason):
(Retail Price):
$104.99
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
110
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
Not Indicated
(Theatrical Year):
1991
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
05/12/09
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Nicholas Meyer
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
Dolby TrueHD 7.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

In the continuing homage to Gene Roddenberry's legacy, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country finds the Federation's Admiral Kirk (Shatner) worrying over a planned peace summit with the Klingon empire. His fears are realized when a Klingon ship is attacked and the Enterprise crew is falsely accused. (Tricia Spears)


Special features include commentary by Director Nicholas Meyer and Screenwriter Denny Martin Flinn; commentary by Larry Nemecek and Ira Steven Behr; and a "Library Computer" interactive experience that allows you to access information about people, technology, locations, and more at the moment each appears in the film; the featurette The Perils Of Peacemaking (SD 26:33); and the documentary Stories From Star Trek VI (SD 57:09). "The Star Trek Universe" includes the following featurettes: Conversations With Nicholas Meyer (SD 09:33), Klingons: Conjuring The Legend (SD 20:46), Federation Operatives (SD 04:53), Penny's Toy Box (SD 06:06), Together Again (SD 04:56), Tom Morga: Alien Stuntman (HD 04:57), To Be Or Not To Be: Klingons And Shakespeare (HD 23:04), and Starfleet Academy Scisec Brief 006: Praxis (HD 02:37). There is also the Deforest Kelley: A Tribute farewell (SD 13:19) and original interviews with William Shatner (SD 05:05), Leonard Nimoy (SD 06:26), Deforest Kelley (SD 05:03), James Doohan (SD 05:33), Nichelle Nichols (SD 05:39), George Takei (SD 05:28), Walter Koenig (SD 05:31), and Iman (SD 05:07). Additionally, there is a production gallery (SD 03:24), four storyboards, the teaser trailer, the theatrical trailer, the "1991 Convention Presentation by Nicholas Meyer" (SD 04:49), BD-Live interactivity, and up-front ads.

The 1080p AVC encoding shows richly saturated reds, vibrant blues, and deep blacks; giving it a bold picture quality. Fleshtones are also nicely balanced, with good definition. The picture is sharp and detailed, with satisfying textures and clarity, although there are times when the image looks overly soft. The source element is revealing of a few flecks of dirt on occasion, but there are fewer artifacts noticed than with the previous edition. Some shimmering artifacts are noticeable, but resolution is generally impressive and edge enhancement is not noticeable. Contrast is defined nicely, though, and near-black shadows are delineated well. The combination helps provide a dimensional-looking image that is enjoyable. (Danny Richelieu/Suzanne Hodges)

The Dolby® TrueHD 7.1-channel encoding exhibits an excellently layered soundtrack that, with the addition of the back surround, really immerses the listener in a three-dimensional holosonic® soundfield. There are many instances of the very exemplary sound design, but Chapter 7 is one of the better-sounding chapters. It's a chapter of high SPLs, but wading through the constant barrage of loud audio information, there is an accurately detailed soundtrack of precisely imaged dialogue and exquisite channel separation. The Klingon court, which is filled with some very angry Klingons, surrounds the listener as we are transported (sorry, no pun intended) within the tall, cylindrical, and hollow chamber, as we are waiting with Kirk and McCoy to hear judgment from the Klingon Judge upon high. Fidelity is superb, as this mix is one of the best remastered jobs I have heard regarding the film franchise of Star Trek on DVD. Deep bass is tight, powerful, and impactful; hits you in the gut many times. The newer version gives the listener a more immersive surround envelope with a much cleaner and wide open soundtrack, with nicely crafted pans and good spatial integration.(Danny Richelieu/Jeffrey Kern)