Nov 17 | Originally hired as co-executive producer to help with the second half of the show's first season, Kevin Murphy has now taken the reins of Caprica, the Battlestar Galactica prequel on Syfy, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He now serves as an executive producer along with Ronald D. Moore, David Eick and Jane Espenson and oversees the day-to-day functions of the show.
Nov 12 | Star Trek star Zachary Quinto is loosely attached to star in the romantic dramedy Whirligig, reports Risky Business.Quinto would play the lead role in the independent Canadian film, which is aiming to shoot early next year. The movie centers on a man who, in a misguided attempt to woo an older woman, befriends the woman's adopted son.Chaz Thorne is directing the pic, based on a screenplay by Michael Amo, creator of the Canadian supernatural series "The Listener."
Nov 11 | The CNS Foundation, is hosting an on-line charity auction at www.charitybuzz.com. One of the items they are auctioning is a signed movie poster of the new Star Trek movie which has all the cast members and writers. The president of our organization is Carol Abrams, JJ's mother, and she arranged for the donation from Bad Robot Production Company. J.J. Abrams is also a major donor to their organization. The funds raised will go to help find a cure to neurological disorders in children. The auction link is here.
Nov 10 | Candice Bergen, Charles Lisanby, Don Pardo, Gene Roddenberry, Tom and Dick Smothers and Bob Stewart have been selected as the next inductees into the Television Academy's Hall of Fame. They will be honored at a Jan. 20 ceremony at the Beverly Hills Hotel. "This year's inductees have challenged and shaped popular culture, changed television for the better and entertained us royally while doing so," TV Academy Chairman-CEO John Shaffner said. More info at the Hollywood Reporter
Nov 08 | Unreality-SF.net has interviewed Star Trerk author James Swallow about some of his upcoming projects. He talks about Titan: Synthesis and Seven Deadly Sins: The Slow Knife, as well as some forthcoming Doctor Who and Stargate stories.
This new 2-disc version of STAR TREK: NEMESIS is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen format, with crisp rich visuals all the way through. Colors are vibrant, though some of the color muting that occurs during the film is an obvious result of the film's original processing to give some scenes a slightly older look to them.
The sound quality is simply outstanding, as you have your choice of English Dolby 5.1 Digital, English DTS Digital, or English or French Dolby 2.0 Surround. The 5.1 and DTS mixes present really balanced and wonderful sounds across the board, and for a while the original NEMESIS disc was viewed by some as serious reference quality. Why would anyone want to watch the film in 2.0 sound when you can have 5.1 or DTS? In addition, the film is presented with your selection of English, Spanish, or French subtitles as well as English closed captions.
Packaging and Menus:
Once again, the DVD animators have come up with a nice-looking collection of DVD menus for this new 2-disc set. Disc 1 introduces the Enterprise's approach to Romulus and Remus, where the main menu selection spotlights one of the Reman mines and allows you the choice to play the film or select from Scene Selection, disc set-up, or Commentaries. Select Set-up, and you will see a close-up of the Reman mines, where you can choose from English Dolby 5.1, DTS, or 2.0 surround tracks, a French Dolby 2.0 surround track, or English or Spanish subtitles. Another close-up of the Reman mines is the backdrop for the Scene Selection, where you can go to any of the film's 24 chapters. A third close-up of the mine takes you to the Commentaries section and gives you the choice of selecting the audio commentary from either Stuart Baird or Rick Berman, or selecting the text commentary from Michael and Denise Okuda.
Disc 2 takes you to the heart of the Romulan home world, where a birds-eye view of the Romulan senate is the backdrop for the disc's subtitle options, allowing you to choose from English, Spanish, or French subtitles. Another close-up of the Romulan senate allows you to select from one of the seven Production features or the Deleted Scenes section, while a third close-up of the Romulan senate gives you the opportunity to choose from the STAR TREK Universe features and the trailer gallery. An overhead angle of the Romulan capital is the backdrop for the Romulan Empire features and the Archives gallery. All of these animated menus are executed so brilliantly and so beautifully, they could have been direct lifts from the film itself, another reason why CGI animation on DVD menus just keeps getting better and better.
The disc's packaging, however, is different this time around. For the first time in the STAR TREK film series we are given a dual-disc Scanavo packaging with the discs hubbed and housed overlapping each other. This is the second time I've seen this kind of Scanavo packaging, the first being Paramount's 2-disc edition of THE TEN COMMANDMENTS last year. Who's the person who came up with this idea for NEMESIS? At least on the art for Disc 1, they got Picard's uniform right, as he is now sporting the movie uniform, and not the TV uniform he was shown wearing on the inner insert on the previous release.
The Extras:
Where the single-disc version of NEMESIS had a nice collection of extras, this two-disc version offers up more extras than before. The most important thing here is that all of the extras from the previous release have been ported over to this new set, so you can easily dispense with the single-disc version (unless, of course, you absolutely have to keep the previous disc for the OTHERS preview trailer and the original disc's Photo Gallery and animated menus).
Disc 1 offers up three commentaries. The first is the same audio commentary from Stuart Baird that was on the previous release, while the second is an all-new audio commentary from Rick Berman. Baird's commentary is extremely on the quiet side, as he tends to be soft-spoken in nature, and that doesn't help this commentary. Even worse, there are significant gaps in his commentary, which further hinders his discussion. There are times where he does pep up his talk to discuss script changes, scenes cut from the final theatrical release, visual effects sequences, and camera shots, among others. He does relate an interesting anecdote that occurred on the set with Jonathan Frakes putting his life in danger during a risky stunt. If you've heard this commentary before, you can skip right past it, because it's not as interesting as it could have been.
Berman's audio commentary is not much better, either. On this, his first-ever solo audio commentary on a STAR TREK DVD (he had previously teamed with Brannon Braga for a joint commentary on the ENTERPRISE Season 1 set), Berman covers some of the same concerns Baird addressed, among them script changes and scene edits, as well as his thoughts on casting and budget concerns. Like the Baird commentary, there are gaps in the Berman commentary as well, which doesn't help matters, either. In the end, the Berman commentary winds up feeling like the Baird commentary: boring. Pick your choice, and break out the sleeping bags for either audio commentary.
The only interesting commentary comes with the running text commentary from Michael and Denise Okuda. As they have done with previous sets, the Okudas address story concerns, scenes edited from the film, the film's many connections to past TREK outings, and various bits of trivia related to cast and crewmembers, visual effects, stunt work, and locations. We know what to expect from the Okudas, and they succinctly deliver their goods with their expert knowledge.
Going over to Disc 2, we have the lion's share of extras. All of the bonus features are divided into sections: Production, The STAR TREK Universe, The Romulan Empire, Deleted Scenes, Archives, and Trailers. All of the featurettes are presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen format with English Dolby 2.0 sound, and feature interviews with cast and production crew on all. As with many of the previous TREK DVD sets, Donald R. Beck and Stephen R. Wolcott handled the supervision of the production features on this set and the previous NEMESIS disc, so their content is well balanced overall.
Let's cut to the chase with the answer to the most obvious question many people have been asking: Are the deleted scenes from the previous disc on this new two-disc set? To sum it all up in one word: YES. When word had been originally announced about the inclusion of new deleted scenes on this 2-disc edition, speculation soon set in that the deleted scenes on the previous disc were going to be completely omitted, necessitating a forced double-dip to secure all of the NEMESIS footage. Every one of the deleted scenes from the previous disc is here once again, along with several new scenes released for the first time.
Led off by an introduction from Berman, there are a total of 13 deleted scenes on this new disc, including the original seven deleted scenes from the previous DVD, all arranged in context with the film's original script and running 27:12 in length. As with the previous release, the deleted scenes section contains introductions on three of the scenes from Baird and Patrick Stewart, all of which have been ported from the previous disc as well and adds to the overall running time. These new deleted scenes, as with the previous scenes, are presented in widescreen format and in Dolby Digital 2.0 sound, without any added visual effects, music, or sound effects, and they are culled from an early assembly of the film, most notably Berman's own copy of the rough edit.
Seven of these scenes, 'Chateau Picard 2267', 'The Time of Conquest', 'Federation Protocols', 'A Loss of Self', 'Turbolift Violation', 'Sickbay Prepares for Battle', and 'Advice for the New First Officer,' we are already familiar with. It's the six new scenes included on this disc, 'Wesley's New Mission', 'Data and B-4', 'The Chance for Peace', 'Remember Him (Extended)', 'Cleaning Out Data's Quarters', and 'Crusher at Starfleet Medical,' that offer up more character-filled moments that flesh out the NEXT GENERATION cast even more. As with the deleted scenes from GENERATIONS, some of the deleted scenes toward the end of the film could have been retained in the theatrical cut, if for no other reason than to give the entire cast one more moment in the spotlight together. The full version of Wesley Crusher's cameo is one that could have been restored back into the context of the film and given Wil Wheaton's character a proper sendoff from the franchise, instead of the final, brief, non-speaking cameo shot that was used. (And anyone who has read Wil's popular blog site knows that he was all for seeing his cameo in the film.) Shinzon's assault on Deanna in the turbolift is a creepy yet interesting sequence that should have remained in the film, since it was all over the trailers and TV spots for the film. And the Picard/Data sequence from early in the film harkens back to THE WRATH OF KHAN, echoing their earlier discussions throughout the series. The original introduction of Shinzon, however, is one that, while prominently featured in the teaser trailer, was a good candidate for the editor's blade, as it heightens the tension and character interest until later in the film. Another sequence involving Data and B-4 in the ship's lounge was trimmed because of the lighter tone's contrast to the rest of the story; though in an incomplete work print form, you can still see how the final version would have played out. Other moments were wisely cut from the film for time constraints and story considerations, and once you see these additional moments, you can understand which scenes would have worked in context with the film and which wouldn't.
Moving on to the other extra features, the Production section begins with NEMESIS REVISITED. In this opening feature, the cast, along with Berman, Logan, and Hardy, discusses their reunion after a four-year span for the latest feature film. All of the main participants address the film's story development, their characters and their hopes for the future, all buoyed by clips from the film. Some of the material from the commentaries and from the FINAL JOURNEY feature is repeated in s carried over into this new retrospective discussion, and while it seems awkwardly titled, it nevertheless is a revisit for those members who have called themselves family for 15 years both on screen and off. Running time: 25:43.
Next up is NEW FRONTIERS: STUART BAIRD ON DIRECTING NEMESIS, which was ported from the previous release. Berman, Stewart, Frakes, and Spiner give praise to Baird for his desire to make a good film, though Baird admits to knowing nothing about STAR TREK, which is either a blessing or a curse (depending on your point of view). Baird describes the relationship between Picard and Shinzon as one similar to the James Dean classic REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, with Shinzon the angry young man wanting to be understood by his elders. A series of split-screen shots of behind-the-scenes filming and the final film shots carries Baird's discussion of how he wanted to find someone who could convey that sense of anger and rebellion on screen, and how Tom Hardy brought that edginess to the role. Running time: 8:42.
Following this is a short feature entitled STORYBOARDING THE ACTION. In this brief segment, concept artist Tom Southwell describes how he illustrated the storyboards for Baird as a guide to the film's production and how it may not always be taken verbatim. There's a split screen of storyboards from the space dogfight and the final film version, which is pretty spot on. Southwell also describes how he used a miniature camera and a foam-core model of the Romulan senate to sketch out the storyboards for the sequences in the senate hall. It's an all-too-brief glimpse into the world of storyboarding, and I wish we could have been given more into this vital creative process of filmmaking. Running time: 3:37.
Next is RED ALERT! SHOOTING THE ACTION OF NEMESIS, also ported from the previous disc. Frakes, Sirtis, Spiner, and Michael Dorn all agree that having more action in their latest film was a blessing, and Patrick Stewart viewed the four-wheeler sequence with Picard, Data, and Worf as a gift from Logan. The feature includes interviews with car designer Ivan Stewart, who modified the Argo from one of his Protrucks, and stunt coordinator Doug Coleman, who took Patrick Stewart out to the desert to train on the Argo. Frakes gives credit to Coleman, Baird, and director of photography Jeffrey Kimball for executing the Riker-Viceroy fight scene very well, while Coleman and Ron Perlman describe how it took three days to shoot the firefight sequence in the Enterprise corridors between the Remans and the Starfleet officers. Patrick Stewart also describes the intensity of the Enterprise's collision with the Scimitar, accompanied by pre-visualization optical effects and behind-the-scenes model shots of the collision. All in all, it's meant to be a short, quick insight into the filming, which served its purpose well on the original disc. Running time: 10:08.
BUILD AND REBUILD looks at the construction and deconstruction process of recycling sets on the STAR TREK features. Herman Zimmerman, whose work on the TREK films and series dates back to TNG, and art director Cherie Baker describe how the art and production crew makes up half of the entire production team on this particular film. We get to see rare glimpses of the Enterprise and the Romulan senate hall under construction and Zimmerman walking the sets to survey the construction. According to Baker, sets are pre-fabricated at one stage and taken to another for the actual shooting, and with NEMESIS six soundstages were used for filming, one of which was just for set construction. There's a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the construction of the wedding hall, which was built out of solid steel, and in its place some five weeks later was the Romulan senate hall. Art coordinator Penny Juday also notes how the Enterprise bridge had been damaged and burned during the filming of INSURRECTION and how it had to be cleaned up for NEMESIS. Juday also describes how the Enterprise bridge sequences were shot first, then the set struck and reused as the Valdore set for the film, with elements from INSURRECTION and the Klingon captain's chair from many years before used for NEMESIS. Running time: 7:44.
"Nemesis gets better when it finally serves up the meat of its story, but it's ultimately just proof positive that until someone with genuine energy, enthusiasm and fresh ideas takes the reigns of this franchise, the spirit of Star Trek has decidedly left the building."
That pretty much sums things up in a respecatble way for the movie and the franchise as a whole.
Regarding the deleted scenes. I liked the Data&Picard scene. That gave me some hope and briefly felt like TNG for a small amount of time. Rick Berman's intro sucked though. He clearly has no idea what to cut and what to. He cuts out the characterization =(.
You probably know the old expression, "Hindsight is always 20/20."
Looking back and re-evaluating Nemesis with the aid of this new DVD set, in my humble opinion, I feel that Nemesis is not too bad a flick.
I was one of those fans three years ago who went and saw it in the theaters and walked away disappointed. But now, at least from my perspective, my cold distain for this film is melting, somewhat.
The zooming into Romulus and senate dissolving scene were an awesome way to start the movie.
Riker and Troi's wedding was interesting to watch. Nice idea to include Wes and Gunian, who stepped back into the dimension were the 24th century of Star Trek takes place in. After kicking around other temporal planes for the past decade and ahalf. Some people complain that Crusher should not be in a starfleet uniform but I feel that he was just wearing it to fit in and is not a real serving line officer. Still, I would have liked to have seen Barclay and maybe even a DS9 character or two. Riker was known on DS9 wasn't he?
Yes. The scene on the washed out orange planet with the dune buggies looks like a deleted scene from one of the road warrior movies, but I rationalize the use of a wheeled vehicle by starfleet as trying to blend in; instead of using a shuttle craft or open pit hover vehicle, which would stick out more on that world.
And the main plot of Picard and Shinzon, I feel works for me. Picard seems to be suffering some after effects of his midlife crisis left over from Generations (his aggressive driving, taking orders from a younger woman, seeing his first officer prepare to leave and become a captain in his own right, finally) and then meets this younger self. If they included just some of the deleted scenes which beef what Picard felt then I think the movie would be even more effective.
Ah well, like Kirk said, "C'est la vie." That's life. You don't always get a perfect product, service or experience in life. I seldom do, anyway.
Does anyone else feel that way, or has your opinion of Nemesis not changed, either negatitive or positive within the last three years?
I just saw the DVD and NEMESIS continues to look bad to me. Terrible acting, horrible directing. The F/X by Digital Domain is impressive and the Jerry Goldsmith soundtrack is beatiful as always, but that is it. Sorry.
No I think you are just coming around naturally, it was a pretty darn good movie.
I actually skipped this movie in the theaters, 1st ST movie i passed on, JUST to boycott B&B. I'm glad I did, now they are gone (I hope).
But later I saw ST Nemesis and was happily pleased how good it was, great script, good acting, great use of the characters to move the story etc...
Why was it bashed so.... because it was a Boxoffice failure and its just everyone doing the herd mentality, a sad but true commenatry on the American mindsety but that's another topic...
if they'd advertised that B&B had limited influence and released this Thxgiving w/e or a week b4 it would have met at least limited success say $85mm-90mm
I think Stuart Baird did the best job since ST VI. Its definitely my favorite TNG movie, though FC was good as well this felt more epic.
I guess most people on here would rather watch a ST Voyager episode concerning why holograms are really life forms (zzzzz) and hear useless techno babble
Or maybe I'm a fan of the original and this reminded me more of that... in any case I'm glad it was made and enjoyed it
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