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Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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It has been suggested that USS Saratoga (Star Trek) be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) |
| Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Leonard Nimoy |
| Produced by | Harve Bennett |
| Written by | Leonard Nimoy (story) Harve Bennett (story and screenplay) Steve Meerson (screenplay) Peter Krikes (screenplay) Nicholas Meyer (screenplay) Gene Roddenberry (creator) |
| Starring | See table |
| Music by | Leonard Rosenman |
| Cinematography | Donald Peterman |
| Editing by | Peter E. Berger |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | November 26, 1986 |
| Running time | 119 min. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $25,000,000 (estimated) |
| Gross revenue | $133,000,000 (worldwide) |
| Preceded by | Star Trek III: The Search for Spock |
| Followed by | Star Trek V: The Final Frontier |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (Paramount Pictures, 1986) is the fourth feature film based on the Star Trek science fiction television series. It is often referred to as ST4:TVH, STTVH or TVH. It completes the loose story trilogy started in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and continued in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Leonard Nimoy directed, as well as starred in The Voyage Home, which earned four Academy Award-nominations, for Best Cinematography, Best Effects, Best Music and Best Sound.[1]
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A huge alien probe approaches Earth and begins sending strange highly amplified signals which evaporate the oceans, drain the power from nearby ships and cause widespread mayhem that appears to be destroying Earth. Admiral James T. Kirk and his crew return from their mission to revive Captain Spock on Vulcan, despite knowing that they will face court-martial for the theft and subsequent loss of the USS Enterprise, when they hear about the current crisis. Spock, who is still recovering mentally, discovers that the alien ship is trying to contact humpback whales, which unfortunately were hunted to extinction three centuries previously.
After Spock reviews the calculations for time travel, as they weigh the idea as the only viable option to save Earth, Kirk orders their hijacked Klingon Bird-of-Prey, renamed the Bounty, to slingshot around the sun in order to travel back in time to the late 20th century. Arriving in San Francisco, California in the year 1986, the crew hides their cloaked ship in Golden Gate Park. Thereafter, they attempt to find both the whales needed to communicate with the alien probe, as well as materials to build an aquarium on the ship to contain the whales, as well as to restore the Bird-of-Prey's power source (Dilithium crystals), which was nearly drained in travel. Kirk and Spock eventually recruit the assistance of Dr. Gillian Taylor, a cetacean specialist, who is caring for two humpback whales in the cetacean institute in Sausalito.
After many difficulties - including trying to convince Taylor that they are actually from the future - the Enterprise crew succeed in rescuing the two humpbacks and bringing them back, saving Earth in the process. Then the crew is brought before the Federation Council facing numerous charges. Spock, though not accused, chooses to stand with his crewmates. Because of their most recent heroic actions, all charges against the accused are dropped, except for those against Admiral Kirk. Pleading guilty of disobeying a superior officer, Kirk is demoted to Captain as a token reprimand; as reward for his heroics he is given command of the new USS Enterprise-A – his preferred position, obvious to all. Dr. Taylor, who came to the 23rd century with the Enterprise crew, decides to join Starfleet as a science officer.
A sub-plot shows Spock gradually recovering his memories, the previously-earned acceptance of his human heritage, and acknowledgment of his own emotions. At first, he does not understand the relevance of being asked his feelings; by the end, he is aware enough of their importance to humans that he asks his father to tell his mother that he "feels fine".
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| William Shatner | Admiral/Captain James T. Kirk |
| Leonard Nimoy | Captain Spock |
| DeForest Kelley | Commander (Dr.) Leonard McCoy |
| James Doohan | Captain Montgomery Scott |
| George Takei | Commander Hikaru Sulu |
| Walter Koenig | Commander Pavel Chekov |
| Nichelle Nichols | Commander Uhura |
| Majel Barrett | Commander (Dr.) Christine Chapel |
| Grace Lee Whitney | Commander Janice Rand |
| Mark Lenard | Ambassador Sarek |
| Jane Wyatt | Amanda Grayson |
| Catherine Hicks | Dr. Gillian Taylor |
| John Schuck | Klingon ambassador |
| Robert Ellenstein | Federation President |
| Brock Peters | Fleet Admiral Cartwright |
| Robin Curtis | Lieutenant Saavik |
| Madge Sinclair | Saratoga captain (uncredited) |
The "double dumb-ass on you" scene was filmed on Columbus Street at Kearney in San Francisco, facing the historic green copper-faced Sentinel Building owned by Francis Ford Coppola.
In the film, Uhura and Chekov visit the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. The real Enterprise, being at sea at the time, was unavailable for filming, so the non-nuclear powered carrier USS Ranger (CV-61) was used. Since part of the ship's scenes were filmed in the engineering spaces, which on the nuclear-powered Enterprise (as with all of the Navy's nuclear-powered carriers) were deeply classified at the time, it is unlikely that the production crew would have been allowed to use it for filming even if it had been in port. The scene where Chekov asks for directions to "Nuclear Wessels" was filmed with real passers-by.
The scenes at the fictional "Cetacean Institute of Biology" in Sausalito, California were actually filmed at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, while the scenes set in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park were actually filmed at Will Rogers State Park in Los Angeles.
Amigas were used as special effects devices to create the Vulcan supercomputer used by Spock in the beginning of the movie. This is revealed by the Amiga's "Garnet" typeface, which was used to write messages on the screens that Spock was studying.
Kirk Thatcher, who played the punk on the bus who was neck pinched by Spock, also recorded the song playing on the punk's boom box. Thatcher had complained that the music that was planned to be used did not sound authentic. He was invited to create a song that would be appropriate. He did so, and the song was inserted in postproduction. The song was called "I Hate You", and Thatcher credited his band as "The Edge of Etiquette".
The film was a critical and commercial success. It grossed $109,713,132 in the U.S. and $133,000,000 worldwide, against a $25,000,000 budget.[2] In terms of absolute gross, it was the most profitable Star Trek movie of the ten released (as of 2007), and it sold the second highest number of tickets, behind only The Motion Picture.
- ^ IMDB 'Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home retrieved June 25, 2007
- ^ Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) - Box office / business. IMDb.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-05.
- Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home at the Internet Movie Database
- Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home at Rotten Tomatoes
- Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home at Box Office Mojo
- Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home article at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki
- Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home at StarTrek.com
- Interview with Robin Curtis (Lt. Saavik) in which she describes working with Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner and the rest of the cast of Star Trek III and IV
- Lost Prologue of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, seen only on European and South American release prints
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| Television series | The Original Series (Eps) · The Animated Series (Eps) · The Next Generation (Eps) · Deep Space Nine (Eps) · Voyager (Eps) · Enterprise (Eps) |
| TOS-era feature films | The Motion Picture · The Wrath of Khan · The Search for Spock · The Voyage Home · The Final Frontier · The Undiscovered Country |
| TNG-era feature films | Generations · First Contact · Insurrection · Nemesis |
| Upcoming films | Star Trek (2008) |
| Other | Star Trek: Phase II · Books · Comics · Games · Memory Alpha, the Star Trek Wiki |