Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

My Review

Director Leonard Nimoy (“Star Trek III: The Search for Spock” 1984) and producer Harve Bennett have concluded the three-movie story arc with “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.” With the Enterprise crew on the planet Vulcan, the Earth finds itself under attack by a mysterious alien probe, and Admiral James T. Kirk and company swing into action to save the day!

The usuals show up for work: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, Walter Keonig, and George Takai. They are joined by Catherine Hicks, Brock Peters, Robin Curtis, and Mark Leonard and Jane Wyatt as Spock’s parents. Majel Barrett reprised her television role as Christine Chapel, but most of her scenes were cut. Grace Lee Whitney also returned as Janice Rand from the original “Star Trek.” Madge Sinclair has an uncredited cameo as captain of the star ship Saratoga.

The watchable “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” proves that the fourth time is a charm, this time the fifth highest grossing film of 1986 for producer Harve Bennett and the brass at Paramount Pictures. George Lucas’ Industrial Light & Magic assisted in post-production and special effects. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Original Score (Leonard Rosenman), Best Cinematography (Donald Peterman), Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing. It was filmed in and around San Francisco, Monterey, and Los Angeles, California.