Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)

On the eve of retirement, Kirk and McCoy are charged with assassinating the Klingon High Chancellor and imprisoned. The Enterprise crew must help them escape to thwart a conspiracy aimed at sabotaging the last best hope for peace.

Director:

Nicholas Meyer

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (television series "Star Trek"), Leonard Nimoy (story)

Stars:

William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Shatner	...	Kirk
Leonard Nimoy	...	Spock
DeForest Kelley	...	McCoy
James Doohan	...	Scotty
Walter Koenig	...	Chekov
Nichelle Nichols	...	Uhura
George Takei	...	Sulu
Kim Cattrall	...	Lt. Valeris
Mark Lenard	...	Sarek
Grace Lee Whitney	...	Excelsior Communications Officer
Brock Peters	...	Admiral Cartwright
Leon Russom	...	Chief in Command
Kurtwood Smith	...	Federation President
Christopher Plummer	...	Chang
Rosanna DeSoto	...	Azetbur (as Rosana DeSoto)

Storyline

After an explosion on their moon, the Klingons have an estimated 50 years before their ozone layer is completely depleted, and they all die. They have only one choice - to make peace with the Federation, which will mean an end to 70 years of conflict. Captain James T. Kirk and crew are called upon to help in the negotiations because of their experience with the Klingons. Peace talks don't quite proceed, and Kirk and McCoy are convicted of assassinating the Klingon High Chancellor, and imprisoned on Rura Penthe, a snowy hard-labor prison camp. Will they manage to escape? And will there ever be peace with the Klingons?

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Plot Keywords:

male alien | type 2 phaser | ship's surgeon | pavel chekov character | spock character | 

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Taglines:

The crew of the starship Enterprise fights not to win battles, but to end them forever.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Startrek.com startrek.com

Country:

USA

Language:

English Klingon

Release Date:

6 December 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Star Trek 6: The Undiscovered Country

Filming Locations:

Alaska, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$74,888,996

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$96,888,996

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby Digital (some test prints) Dolby Stereo (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gene Roddenberry expressed his displeasure with this film's storyline after viewing a rough cut, complaining that the Klingons were simply used as generic villains and their society and cultural viewpoints never really explored. After the release of the film and Roddenberry's death, Executive Producer Leonard Nimoy admitted that Roddenberry had been right. Subsequent episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993) explored Klingon society and culture extensively.

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Goofs

In the early scene in Kirk's quarters, the right eyebrow of Lieutenant Valeris becomes loose at the outer tip. The first time it is visible is at the line "Permission to speak freely, sir. It is an honor to serve with you." By her next line, "I've always wanted to try that, sir", the eyebrow has been reaffixed.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Captain Hikaru Sulu: Stardate 9521.6. Captain's Log, USS Excelsior. Hikaru Sulu commanding. After three years, I have concluded my first assignment as master of this vessel, cataloguing gaseous planetary anomalies in Beta Quadrant. We're heading home under full impulse power. I'm pleased to report that ship and crew have functioned well.

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Crazy Credits

The opening titles shift color - pink, purple, blue, green, and around again.

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Alternate Versions

The DVD Special Edition includes all the new scenes from the home video releases, and a few new minor changes to certain scenes and effects exclusive to this DVD.

• There is a new wide shot of Scotty reading the blueprints of the Enterprise in the dining hall.
• Valeris's interrogation scene has been entirely reedited. There are now close up shots of Kirk and McCoy when they speak their lines instead of being in wide shots. When Spock and Valeris name a particular conspirator, the face of that person briefly appears in a flashback like style.

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Connections

Referenced in Atop the Fourth Wall: Batman: Odyssey #1 (2017)

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Soundtracks

Theme From Star Trek TV Series
Music by Alexander Courage

User Reviews

Excellent. Utterly compelling.

This is a taut political thriller that rivals Dune for impact, if not for complexity. The issues explored here are both timely and universal. Somehow, this mixes the Star Trek mythos with commentary on the Cold War, race relations and military down-sizing. It is indescribable how cool this movie is.