The Klingons in this film, their ships and ship interiors, the way they speak, are ALL superior to any other incarnation of them that I have seen anywhere since. Even the little details, like the sound the torpedoes make when launched, are just brilliant. They really nailed it with this movie. Very underrated.

Criminally underrated film. This entire opening is told visually with virtually no dialogue. Fantastic storytelling.

The camera tracking over the Klingon ship still brings a smile to my face. In 1979 that was mind blowing in the days before CG. And Jerry Goldsmith's music is just perfect.

I know TMP gets a lot of rap for being slow or boring. But can we take a moment to appreciate the LEGENDARY musical score it gave the franchise? This Klingon theme is iconic, as is the Enterprise reveal, which itself would go on to be the theme for TNG.

The music in this scene is phenomenal.

Jerry Goldsmith deserves an Oscar for this score, simply magnificent!!!!

I saw it ´79 and it still get goose bumps watching it. The music and suspense was great. Trek of today is nothing compared to it.

Like everyone else, I LOVE the score to this movie! The Klingon leitmotif is made up of open fifths (a perfect fifth with no third so you can't tell if it's major or minor), which is the Western mind is associated with a sense of strangeness (often associated with Asian music). The notes bum BAM bum BAM bum BAM--those are three open fifths in a row. And the syncopation (it's not in a straight rhythm, it's an eighth note followed by a quarter note) gives the theme a jittery, aggressive feeling--so appropriate for the Klingons. Such a clever score! I also love Ilia's theme. Just brilliant.

Jerry Goldsmith's music for this is beautiful, perfect.

I saw this at the theater in1979...

I remember seeing this in the theaters in 1979. Particularly spectacular on the big screen was the scene at 00:28 where the camera focuses on the bridge of the approaching middle ship until it's directly below, then turns 180 degrees as the ship passes. The whole field of stars rotated, and it almost made you dizzy.

In many ways, Star Trek - The Motion Picture was the purest expression of the original spirit of Star Trek.

This movie had a whole bunch of firsts in it, quite apart from the fact that it was the first of what would become a whole movie franchise. The interesting points I'll list here are the only ones relevant to this clip. This was the first time we saw the inside of a Klingon Bridge. The first time we saw Klingons in their bumpy-forehead Samurai death metal form. The first time any Star Trek story opened with Klingons - even if they were only the warmup act here to let V'Ger show off its combat moves by putting down J Random Badguy. The Klingon speaker on the Bridge was Mark "Sarek" Lenard. This was the first time an actor had played three different roles in Star Trek, each time playing a member of a different species (that record has since been comprehensively smashed by Jeffrey Combs, who has played Weyoun, a human, Shran, Brunt, and at least one other Ferengi, not to mention his appearance in Voyager). It was the first time Klingon was ever spoken - five years before Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, and six years before the 1985 release of The Klingon Dictionary by Marc Okrand, who'd worked on the Klingon and Vulcan dialogues in the sequels. Okrand claimed to have been inspired by the Klingon words used in this movie - but he did not write the TMP monologue. The inventor of the Klingon language was, in fact, James "Scotty" Doohan.

Only those (like me) who went to see this movie at the theater in 1979 (in glorious Dolby stereo) can truly appreciate how amazing this film really was. No one who left that theater criticized the film (as far as I can recall). The audience was in awe.

Honestly, I'm really glad The Motion Picture is becoming more popular nowadays, because I really think it's a pretty good Trek film. The scenes might be a bit on the lengthy side, but the score is phenomenal, and the whole thing feels like it could have legitimately been an episode of TOS.

One of the most under-rated Trek films - the sound design and look of Klingons shown here changed Star Trek forever

Mysterious, menacing, and possibly sinister space cloud way bigger than your ship? FIRE TORPEDOES AT IT!

I love the sound V-Ger makes. It's like a high-tension cable being whacked inside of a cathedral.

This music has THRILLED me for 40 years. It is my theme song! Long Live the Klingon Empire!!

The total screen scheme is fabulous. Short shot sussequent scenes, dynamic but not violence. Superlative in this few minutes the Klingon psychology description and the sociological positive future human society of ultimate seconds of scene in Federation space station. And over all... The unknown presence of V'ger. Masterpiece.

It's the music that makes this so good...a great opening sequence and even better when you think it was filmed in 1979.

The section of music by Jerry Goldsmith is stunning

As great as this scene is, the best thing about it is the music. So much about it is perfection. The two memorable melodies (Klingon and Epsilon station), the ever-present menacing waterphone-and-blaster beam accentuations that represent V'Ger, the atonal and cacophonous mayhem as the Klingon ships are digitized by V'Ger's torpedos, the dark restatement of the Epsilon theme followed by the MASSIVE two exclamation points of orchestral tutti at the end (headed for Earth!)... all just so amazing. Simply one of the greatest action cues ever written -- by a master of action music. It doesn't get any better than this.

Who wishes they could hear this music played LIVE by an orchestra ?

Did you know the Klingon captain was played by Mark Lenard? The same guy who played Ambassador Sarek.

The script was underdeveloped, but it is still the most impressively realistic depiction of. futuristic society and technologies of any Star Trek film. The production values, the amazing music, Douglas Trumbull's effects, the sets, everything was first rate.

Klingon battlecruiser is so badass looking. Best ship design ever. Love the way those torpedoes shot out of the ship like pure energy weapons.

The special effects have aged no doubt but are still great for their time. The music however is timeless. Mr Jerry Goldsmith is in my opinion one of (if not) the greatest music composer for movie soundtracks in terms of variety and depth.

VFX are incredible. The ships are amazing because they´re not CGI, are real physical models.

K't'ingas are just badass. The best alien ship design ever in my opinion.

Damn this scene never fails to give me chills.

With the first movie especially, I think you get a really good sense for how absolutely gigantic and mysterious space really is.

I was born in 1976 and I still have to apologize to my parents for watching this SO many times on Betamax that I can literally recite all the dialogue from memory to this day. One of my all time favorite movies as a kid to watch (to also include "The Black Hole, Tron, and of course, Star Wars"). So many memories :).

I was blown away the first time I saw this movie. I still love it. I think my favorite scene is when Captain Kirk is being taken to the Enterprise on a shuttle piloted by Scottie. You can sense the Captain's love of ship and crew. Great movie.

The Motion Picture was brilliant in many ways, and my favorite is it re-established the Klingons in a major way. And I'd still love a pair of Starfleet issue pajamas.

This was such an epic intro for the Klingons. Plus that music really made it.

The best Star Trek movie opening sequence hands down and that blaster beam sound is like no other.

4:00 I like this one particular shot, it being only seconds long. This was the very first movie and the Klingons were the proverbial bad asses of Star Trek. This short clip, with that slightly more urgent burst of music, made you take in what was happening in an instant. They Klingons had went from three heavy cruisers to one, and now they were running for it? You sat there thinking what could possibly make KLINGONS run for it? So you got the impression that this cloud was something truly powerful before Kirk and crew ever found out. Sure people say this one is slow and boring, but they knew what they were doing by showing, not telling, and this opening battle still gives me chills for that fact alone.

Not only were the visual effects, in this film, great but the sound effects were terrific as well. Especially luv the way the torpedoes sounded & also the entire sequence of the Klingon ship when it got zapped by V’ger.

I forgot what a classic scene this was, with an awesome soundtrack. I love that no frills Klingon bridge; minimal aesthetics and maximum utility. I remember seeing this as a kid and thinking, Wow! Those Klingons look cool!!

That klingon ship is a beautiful design.

Klingon Battle Cruisers. King of the badass spacecraft.

This movie was ahead of its time in visual andd sound effects, I still remember seaing this in the theater when I was a kid. Boy do I feel old.

Imagine seeing this movie for the first time in theatres, and the only other Star Trek you've seen was TOS or TAS years earlier. They came a long way, and even though the story may be slow, it more than makes up for it IMO by setting the new stage for Trek and future movies. New ship, more experienced crew, badass models and FX.

This was the best part of the whole film for me!

their was something about this movie i really liked. it made space feel scary with all its very cool but creepy sound track.

The Klingon commander was played by the late Mark Lenard. He also played The Romulan commander in "Balance of Terror" and the Vulcan ambassador "Sarek" (Spock's father) in classic,/new generation Star Trek TV episodes and movies.

Ah, the Klingons... Their usual shoot first and ask questions later mentality.

0:10 to 0:55 Fun Film Fact: this opening passing shot was the very thing George Lucas had originally wanted in Star Wars during the battle of the Death Star showing the X-Wings approaching and then passing open their wings in the process all as one single passing shot, but ILM at the time couldn't figure out how to shot it given the level of camera control technology and the amount of shooting time they had at the time. They instead used two shots, one approaching, and one from the rear showing the wings opening. Given time they eventually did figure out how to shoot it but it was too late for SW. Only two years later, John Dykstra who had led the ILM team creating Star Wars FX was subcontracted by Trumbull to help with ST-TMP shooting the starships FX. Given the opportunity to actually now do the shot they hadn't been able to do in SW Dykstra used what he learned at ILM here in the opening shot, its not the same angle, overhead vs side view, but the technic was what was desired for SW. Lucas eventually got his single pan side shot, but by then ILM was using CGI entirely. Lucas always claimed the shot he wanted was impossible with the cameras ILM was using, but ST-TMP proves no such thing was the case.

Still the best opening of any Star Trek film, bar none.

The best of all the Star Trek films on every level of cinema.

The music in this clip sets the atmosphere perfectly

After that first ship got destroyed, I'd be like, "Warp 11! Get us out of here, Mr. PtchVk!!!"

these were the best Klingon ships ever

IMO Jerry Goldsmith's musical score is the best ever of all the ST films.

The camera movement and panning around the Battlecruiser is way ahead of its time.

The Klingons are intercepting something moving at close to warp 9 (original series warp scale). The Klingons fire a spread of torpedoes in to it and discover to their horror that they are about to have a very high speed collision with something very big and are likely to be bugs on its windshield. They have to out run it and get out of its way at the same time. It's why V'ger had an easy time turning them in to gif files.

The Sad Loss of a LEGEND....has Taken me Here! R.I.P SPOCK.

I remember when my sister in law took me to see the film the first time in 1980, at the now defunct Westcove theater in West Covina, CA. That changed my life.

Star Trek is a phenomenal franchise! I love this movie!

Despite the inconsistencies in the Star Trek universe , is by far the best opening sequence of the entire filmography of the franchise .

That opening sequence hasn't been topped by ANY of the subsequent films.

I was 4 years old when I saw this opening and it has stayed in my imagination as a near religious experience for nearly 40 years. It was my first introduction to the concept of an overwhelming force. I was terrified and far too fascinated to look away.

I've always loved this Klingon theme music and was thrilled when Goldsmith used it again for Worf's introduction in Star Trek: First Contact.

Klingon diplomacy in action. If it move blast it. It moves again,blast it some more until it stops moving!

These Klingon ships look 10000 times better than the crap Klingon redesign ships in STD.

Two points: 1) *Opening* this movie with the Klingons was, in itself, a stroke of genius. 2) We tend to talk about which *movie* is the best in a given franchise. I'm wondering if it might be fun to discuss which *sequence* is the best. And I think *this* sequence gives all others in "Trek" a run for their money.

Remember when Star-Trek was actually GOOD?!

This film had such a great sense of scale that I've not seen in many sci fi films. V'ger was COLOSSAL

my favorite starships ever.. i absolute loved the way this movie opened!the music the camera work..all of it

'I have an exterior visual'. God bless that yet another cameraman survives.

The sound from that Blaster Beam is still one of the scariest sound effects I've heard in any movie. And yet it's so awesome to hear.

I can't understate how utterly this sequence blew my mind the first time I saw TMP in the cinema. I'd seen the original series (although I was a kid and didn't really 'get' it) but the quality jump of VFX just blew my mind. That aside... Am I the only one who's noticed that these giant doomsday machines always seem to be on a precise heading for Earth? ;-)

This is a great opener, perhaps the best opener of all Trek films.

could listen to that music all day

Just love the music. It became the Klingon theme music later on.

My big sister and I took a cab to see this film when we were kids. It was showing at the Century theaters in San Jose CA. The theater was all decked out in Star Trek props, costumes and posters. The Century theaters were these large dome shaped theaters that could hold huge audiences and had state of the art sound and projection systems. This went perfect with this movies state of the art special effects. The coolest thing was the mock transporter they set up in the lobby.

"Shoot first and ask questions later" is their motto.

The change in key at 3:36 with that sound is breathtaking

The D-VII was a thing of beauty. Truly the most incredible warship of her time.

Best part of the entire film

I always found this first part of the movie to be my favorite part of the movie...got to love the torpedo sound and visual style...not the cheapened torpedos of later films but these old screaming, flaring red suckers that looked like they packed a real punch......later movies cheapened them and made them as expendable as bullets, but they had real value and weight in this.....

This is the most epic battle ever in science fiction, topping the Death Star battle in Star Wars, and that battle was epic also.

I remember watching this on opening night so many years ago. Heart pounding for the entire scene.

When the Klingons leave its time to leave!

This was the best scene in the film! I love the complete silence after the Klingon ships are destroyed. I do wonder why they did not "Warp" out of there though?

I miss these pre-CGI special effects.

I now understand the purpose of this scene: to introduce a new, hidden enemy so powerful, even the Klingons couldn’t stand a chance.

When I saw this on the Movie release date they had the volume up so loud you could feel the firing of the torpedoes sound thru your body. Amazing

This is a slow movie, especially after Star Wars with its snappy editing, intuitive storytelling, and big archetypes. But I think of it as a great example of "old fashioned" sci-fi, based on mystery and wonder in the face of something new, and full of allegory. On the allegory note, most people don't realize this is really a movie about Spock and his coming to grips with his human side. A character piece, really. Still one of my favorites.

I still remember watch this first of many Star Trek Movies in 1979. i was 21 years-old.

First time I ever cheered for the Klingons.

loved the look of the klingons.. very alien looking vs. tv series

Klingon ships all massive and made out of actual objects, with a musical score made out of an actual orchestra. Robert Wise, and Jerry Goldsmith, you just keep bringing it to me.

Love the Klingon theme tune. It finds it way into later films and tv episodes too.

I love this kind of directing style in space movies.

EXCELLENT movie...! CLASSIC Trek is BEST...! I saw the movie TWICE the first day it opened...!

Props to Jerry Goldsmith, who not only composed this movie's rousing theme music (the best thing in the movie, and thankfully revived for ST TNG), but was a master of colorful Sonic touches. Listen to the primal, "chirping" percussion when we first see the Klingon battle Cruisers. Perfect. other examples are the hunting horn in Planet of the Apes, and the "wash" of piano strings in Chinatown.

I love the Klingons music with the classic clicking. Fond memories.

Best scene in the movie, by far. One of the best theme musics ever made. And for those who didn't know: that Klingon commander was Mark Lenard (SAREK!!). The very first Klingon with the new looks and the first to speak Klingonese.