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STAR TREK (2009)—Directed by J.J. Abrams.
Stars Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Bruce Greenwood, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Simon Pegg, Anton Yelchin, Eric Bana,
Leonard Nimoy. The new STAR TREK is STAR TREK for the Xbox Generation. Sleek, rapidly paced, and appealingly acted by a young
cast of CW-friendly faces, Paramount’s attempt to revitalize its 43-year-old franchise is also as emotionally void as
the black holes artificially generated by the film’s villain.
That said, STAR TREK is rousing fun, for the most part. Sets,
costumes, and ship designs are spot-on. Most importantly, the filmmakers demonstrate a respect for those who came before them.
Instead of taking the easy way out with better-than-thou potshots at green space babes and security guards in red shirts,
STAR TREK works in these cultural quirks in a natural manner that accepts them as part of it, not below it.
What has traditionally set previous STAR TREK films and TV
series apart from most other science fiction is its willingness to be about something. Even the tremendously disappointing
STAR TREK V: THE FINAL FRONTIER delves into mankind’s continuous search for a higher being and the way in which we are
defined, not just by our good experiences, but by our traumas as well.
In contrast, TV director J.J. Abrams (FELICITY) and writers
Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman—a duo that specializes in emotionally unfulfilling multiplex fare, including two Michael
Bay blockbusters about toy robots—have created a dramatically empty space opera that manages to rise above their meager
ambitions, thanks to a very sharp cast, a strong Michael Giacchino score (that desperately cries out for a memorable theme),
and a positive outlook on Earth’s future 300 years.
I only wish we could have seen more of that future, but Abrams
is ill-suited to the material. His decision to shoot STAR TREK in an anamorphic 2.35:1 ratio makes no sense, considering
half his shots are either in extreme close-up or with the camera jumping around like a Vietnam combat photographer. At one
point, he tries to punctuate a key moment in young Spock’s career by moving in for a close-up, but it means nothing,
since the scene is mostly comprised of close-ups. Abrams, whose TV series LOST and ALIAS have provided him with a certain
hipster cachet, may have some skills as a screenwriter and/or producer (even though his thankfully aborted SUPERMAN script
is notoriously awful), but he’s seriously lacking as a film director. It would be interesting to know what a master
craftsman like Martin Campbell—who successfully revived the Zorro and James Bond characters—or even Nicholas Meyer—who
directed the two best STAR TREK films—would have done with this cast.
For more than twenty years, Paramount has flirted with the
concept of Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock’s early days as cadets at Starfleet Academy. Having apparently running out of
viable ideas for the future of STAR TREK, the studio looks to the past—all the way back to the very birth of James Tiberius
Kirk, who pops out of his mother at the same time his father George Kirk is sacrificing his life to save the evacuating crew
of his ship, the U.S.S. Kelvin.
As Jim grows into a cocky delinquent played by Chris Pine
(SMOKIN’ ACES), Spock (Zachary Quinto, Sylar on NBC’s HEROES) struggles with his unique half-Vulcan/half-human
heritage, which ultimately causes him to eschew his expected acceptance into the Vulcan Science Academy for a career in Starfleet.
There, we ultimately meet the rest of the household names—cantankerous physician McCoy (Kiwi Karl Urban channeling the
beloved DeForest Kelley), provocative communications expert Uhura (Zoe Saldana), instantly likable engineer Scott (Simon Pegg),
fresh-faced Russian Chekov (Anton Yelchin), and fencing enthusiast Sulu (John Cho).
All find themselves about the U.S.S. Enterprise under calamitous
circumstances. A rogue Romulan named Nero (HULK’s Eric Bana) has transported himself and his pirate crew back in time
to kill the younger Spock, whom Nero blames for the destruction of his homeworld, Romulus. After Nero takes the Enterprise’s
captain, Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood in the film’s strongest performance), hostage, it’s up to the inexperienced
Kirk, Spock, and the rest to save the Earth from annihilation.
With ten minutes or so chopped from its 126 minutes and a
steadier hand behind the camera, STAR TREK would have likely been a terrific film. As it stands, it’s still a good one,
mixing rousing space adventure with smart character-based humor. Where Abrams succeeds the most is his casting. It’s
difficult to imagine any contemporary performer replacing the iconic William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, et al.,
but without exception, the new STAR TREK cast fits in very nicely. For instance, it’s not impossible to imagine Pine
growing into the swaggering Shatner, and Quinto manages to inhabit Spock’s shell quite comfortably, although Orci and
Kurtzman’s script provides little of dramatic substance for the actors to sink their teeth into.
It’s quite a lazy screenplay, which is most obvious
in its treatment of “old” Spock, played wonderfully, of course, by Leonard Nimoy. Nimoy’s entire appearance
is, simply, a transparent deux es machina built on a tremendously silly coincidence (which I won’t spoil).
However, I’d rather have Nimoy in the film this way,
than to not have had him at all. Not only is it just great to see him again as Spock, but his scenes with Pine remind us what
it is we love about STAR TREK in the first place. It isn’t phaser battles or world-eating villains or cool spaceships.
It’s the characters, who have become as much of a family to us as they are to themselves.
STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE (1979)--Directed
by Robert Wise. Stars William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Stephen Collins, Persis Khambatta. Ten years and five
months after the last STAR TREK episode aired on NBC, Paramount released this big-budget ($40 million) SF epic in theaters.
It almost didn't make it--the movie's post-production schedule was so rushed in order to meet the locked-in release date (December
7, 1979) that it was never actually finished! There was no time for a sneak preview so Wise could engage in some final tweaking,
and legend has it the print used for the Washington, D.C. premiere was rushed straight from the lab and was still wet.
ST:TMP
gets off to a rousing start, as a trio of Klingon battle cruisers are zapped by a gigantic space cloud on a direct heading
toward Earth. The upgraded U.S.S. Enterprise, under the command of Captain Will Decker (Collins), is the only starship close
enough to engage the cloud before it reaches Earth, but is still being rebuilt after eighteen months in drydock. The Enterprise's
former captain, Admiral James T. Kirk (Shatner), uses the mission as an excuse to wrestle command of the vessel away from
Decker, leaving the younger officer on board as his first officer. Reunited with much of his original crew, including irascible
physician Dr. "Bones" McCoy (Kelley), Kirk and Co. set off in search of the cloud creature, which has now added space outpost
Epsilon Nine to its destruction tote board. Along the way, the Enterprise picks up a surprise passenger--former science officer
Mr. Spock (Nimoy), whose journey towards inner peace on his home planet of Vulcan has failed and who now joins his old friend
Kirk. Approaching the cloud outside the solar system, the Enterprise crew is stunned when new navigator Ilia (Khambatta),
a sensual bald alien from the Delta system, is abducted and then returned to the ship...but in another form. The entity, which
calls itself "V'Ger", has sent a robot probe in the form of Ilia (in a fetching white minidress and lighted button on her
throat) to the Enterprise to learn more about the carbon units inhabiting it. It appears V'Ger wants to meet its "Creator",
and plans to wipe out Earth's population unless it gets some answers ("Answer?" asks Kirk. "I don't know the question.").
Although it was one of the most anticipated films ever released up to that time, the final result is a hit-or-miss
affair. Seeing Kirk, Spock et al. on the big screen after a decade of syndicated reruns was a huge thrill for TREK fans and
the Oscar-nominated visual effects by John Dykstra (STAR WARS), Douglas Trumbull (CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND), Richard
Yuricich (SILENT RUNNING) and several others are often poetic and awe-inspiring. What doesn't work are the flat screenplay
by Harold Livingston (THE HELL WITH HEROES), in which the cast is forced to spend too much time staring gape-mouthed at a
blue screen, and the stodgy direction of Wise (THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL), which doesn't breathe much life into the proceedings.
Except for a Spock mindmeld (often overused as a deux es machina on the TV show), the original cast barely engage in the plot,
and, even during the colorful and even thought-provoking climax, Kirk, Spock and McCoy are left standing around watching others
do all the work.
It's a tribute to the talent and imagination of composer Jerry Goldsmith that ST:TMP works as well
as it does. His majestic score, capped by a heroic theme that was appropriated by producer Gene Roddenberry for the STAR TREK:
THE NEXT GENERATION series, is not only one of his best, but one of the best scores ever written and performed for a SF film.
Take, for instance, the extended sequence in which Kirk, riding in a shuttlecraft, sees his beloved Enterprise floating in
space for the first time. Goldsmith's grand music cue can be construed as a love theme, and, combined with magnificent FX
work and Shatner's reactions, the scene, although lengthy, is one of ST:TMP's best.
Newly released on a 2-disc DVD
set, STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE--THE DIRECTOR'S EDITION gives Wise a chance to go back and revisit his penultimate film,
fixing the problems he didn't have time to fix originally because of the tight post schedule. The visual effects upgrades
range from very good (the new wormhole explosion) to just okay (the spacewalk sequence contains a CGI bridge formed by lights).
Wise also took the opportunity to cut a few instances of weak dialogue (Kirk's "Oh, my God" following the transporter accident
is one) and tighten the pace. I didn't really feel that Wise's new cut was any improvement upon the original film, although
he doesn't really harm it either. Since he isn't making changes just for the sake of it, but only to make the film he wanted
but was unable to in 1979, I can tolerate Wise's indulgence.
Not much remastering seems to have gone into restoring
the print used for the DVD--portions still appear a bit fuzzy and a few scratches appear. It looks good in its 2.35:1 form
though, and is more than matched by the powerful Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack (there's also a Dolby Surround 2.0 option),
which booms the Goldsmith score through your speakers. Included is an audio commentary chat by Wise, Goldsmith, Collins, Trumbull
and Dykstra, as well as a text commentary by STAR TREK ENCYCLOPEDIA author Michael Okuda, which is pretty dry, but does occasionally
reveal some interesting TREK tidbits.
Disc Two contains a trio of documentaries, which are slick but ultimately disappointing.
ST:TMP had a long and frustrating pre-production period in which it was to be, at various times, a new TV series, a series
of made-for-TV movies, a low-budget theatrical potboiler and the big-budget epic that finally emerged. The documentaries sadly
don't go into much detail, although there is some neat test footage of the proposed STAR TREK: PHASE II series that would
have spearheaded a fourth Paramount-financed broadcast network (two decades before UPN). All the footage snipped by Wise for
the Director's Edition has been retained as an extra, as well as footage inserted by ABC into their 1983 broadcast (including
one notorious shot of Kirk floating away from the Enterprise airlock, clearly showing the rigging and girders of the unfinished
set and even a crew member moving around in the back of the shot!). There are three trailers (some very cheesy electronic
videogame-sounding music was used) and eight TV spots narrated by Orson Welles (Wise edited CITIZEN KANE) included--it's very
odd to see how Paramount chose to market ST:TMP.
The new DVD is a must for TREK fans. While it would have been nice
to hear a commentary by the major cast members and to receive more candor in the documentaries concerning the production hassles,
Paramount's new release is a very nice package, and makes me salivate in anticipation of 2002's projected Special Edition
DVD of STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN.
Also with James Doohan as Scotty, George Takei as Sulu, Nichelle Nichols as
Uhura, Walter Koenig as Chekov, Majel Barrett as Dr. Chapel, Grace Lee Whitney as Janice Rand, Mark Lenard (who would appear
in later TREK films as Spock's father) as a Klingon, Shatner's wife Marcy Lafferty, David Gautreaux (who would have been a
regular cast member in the proposed PHASE II series) and Jon Rashad Kamal. Alan Dean Foster's story was originally intended
as a two-hour pilot called IN THY IMAGE, which was adapted by Livingston after writer B.W.L. Norton (GARGOYLES) left the project.
Goldsmith's score contains brief snippets of Alexander Courage's TV theme. Kelley died of cancer in 1999. Indian actress Khambatta,
who went on to MEGAFORCE and then obscurity, was only 48 when she died of a heart attack the year before. The main cast members
reunited for five more theatrical sequels, and Shatner, Doohan and Koenig appeared in STAR TREK: GENERATIONS, the first film
to feature the NEXT GENERATION cast.
STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN (1982)--Directed
by Nicholas Meyer. Stars William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Ricardo Montalban, Kirstie Alley, Bibi Besch,
Merritt Butrick.
"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."
"Or the one."
The best STAR TREK film made (to date), thanks to snappy direction
by Meyer, outstanding visual effects and music, and the best acting in the series. This spinoff of the first season
episode "Space Seed" finds superman Khan Noonian Singh (Montalban) escaping from a barren prison planet and seeking revenge
against the man who had exiled him there fifteen years previously, Admiral James T. Kirk (Shatner).
Set several years after the events of STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE
and more than a decade after the end of the TV show's original "five-year mission", STII opens with an exciting sequence on
what looks like the bridge of the starship Enterprise in which young half-Vulcan cadet Saavik (Alley in her first major film)
is unable to defend herself against three Klingon vessels, resulting in the ship's destruction and the apparent deaths of
her crew, including Mr. Spock (Nimoy) and Dr. McCoy (Kelley). It turns out the disaster was merely a training exercise
under the tutelage of Spock and the observation of Kirk, now manning a desk at Starfleet Command in San Francisco. It's
Kirk's birthday, presumably his 50th, which prompts the gift of reading spectacles from his old friend McCoy.
The Enterprise, captained by Spock and only set for a short training
cruise for the benefit of its very green rookie crew, is suddenly ordered into action when mysterious troubles occur on the
Regula 1 space station, a scientific outpost run by Dr. Carol Marcus (Besch) and her son David (Butrick). Marcus and
her team have been developing the top-secret Genesis Device, amazing technology able to create life from scratch, to turn
a completely dead rock of a planet into one blooming with water, plants and everything needed to sustain human existence.
In the wrong hands, Genesis could be a devastating weapon, one capable of destroying entire civilizations. Those "wrong
hands", in this case, belong to Khan, festering with obsession since his banishment to Ceti Alpha V and, later, the death
of his wife (originally one of Kirk's crew, Marla McGivers, played in "Space Seed" by Madlyn Rhue). Although Khan, who
has captured a starship and imprisoned its crew, has possession of Genesis, his ultimate goal is vengeance ("He tasks me and
I shall have him.") against Kirk, leading to a cat-and-mouse "dogfight" within the Mutara nebula and the death of Kirk's closest
friend.
After the lumbering STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE, Paramount handed
the reins of its potentially profitable franchise to a new executive producer, Harve Bennett, who had successfully run several
hit TV shows, including THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN (TREK creator Gene Roddenberry was removed from day-to-day decision making
and credited as "executive consultant"). Although neither Bennett, writer Jack B. Sowards or director Meyer (TIME AFTER
TIME) had ever been involved with STAR TREK in any of its incarnations, this turned out to be to the film's benefit, since
they were able to bring fresh thinking to the projects and weren't saddled with preconceived notions of how TREK was "supposed
to be". Perhaps their best decision was upping the action content, and, indeed, STII is the fastest paced and most violent
of the series. Another smart decision came about when Nimoy was hesitant to return as Spock, perhaps the series' most
popular character. Bennett was able to coax Nimoy back into the fold by promising to kill Spock off, believing that
no actor could resist performing a dramatic death scene. When word of Spock's death leaked to the fans, it spawned a
heap of publicity that, whether or not the fans approved of the idea, couldn't help but benefit the film's release.
STAR TREK's most exciting movie is also its most militaristic (despite
Roddenberry's protests), clothing its actors in thick Napoleonic uniforms, bathing the sets in red mood lighting and even
installing a manually operated photon torpedo bay. The result is a tense action picture anchored by its two charismatic
stars: Shatner, whose middle age adds surprising depth and vulnerability to his swaggering hero, and Montalban, whose
robust vitality and megalomaniacal preoccupation with Kirk's death makes Khan a worthy adversary, despite the fact the two
actors never appear together on screen (Kirk and Khan communicate with each other only over radio). Adding piquancy
to Shatner's performance is his superlative work in the film's closing sequence, in which he and Nimoy say goodbye to each
other in one of science fiction's most powerful moments. Shatner has perhaps never been better than when he delivers
Spock's eulogy at the funeral.
Working with a budget less than half of ST:TMP's, Industrial Light
and Magic, using both cunning and models and FX leftover from that movie, demonstrate excellent visual effects, especially
in the final confrontation between the two ships, which may be scientifically implausible, but is undoubtedly one hell of
an action scene. Equally as important is James Horner's majestic score. Following Jerry Goldsmith's extraordinary
music in ST:TMP, among the finest of his legendary career, must have been nerve-wracking, but Horner's confidence shows no
bounds, leaping in with a rousing soundtrack that includes an instantly hummable main theme and a menacing one for Montalban's
lionhearted antagonist.
STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN is a rare breed in modern moviemaking--an
action movie that simultaneously thrills, enlightens and touches the souls of its audience. A summer blockbuster with
allusions to literature and philosophy? You don't see that often. It's a formula that would be repeated the next
time Meyer took over the helm of a STAR TREK movie, his Glasnost-influenced STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY.
Also with TV regulars James Doohan, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Walter Koenig and John Winston and (an unbilled) Judson
Scott, Paul Winfield, Ike Eisenmann (as Scotty's nephew, a subplot that was mostly deleted from the theatrical release version,
but was later reinstated for TV airings and the 2002 DVD) and John Vargas.
Paramount's 2002 DVD is a 2-disc set that includes Meyer's "Director's
Edition", which runs 116 minutes. It isn't much longer than the theatrical release, reinstating only a few scattered
lines and alternate takes. The result is a film that fills in a few story holes (like why Scotty is so distraught over
the death of one crewman) and provides slightly more characterizations. Extras include short documentaries on the making
of the film, including two devoted to STII's production design and visual effects. A third, CAPTAIN'S LOG, features
interviews with Shatner, Nimoy, Montalban, Meyer and Bennett discussing the movie's "genesis". It isn't fascinating
or anything TREK fans probably won't already know (although Meyer claims the then-61-year-old Montalban's buff bod actually
was real and not a special effect-enhanced chest, one of the production's strangest rumors). The original theatrical
trailer, like those for ST:TMP, indicates Paramount had little idea of how to sell this movie. Of course, highlighting
Spock's death would have been too much of a spoiler, but the trailer doesn't play up the film's action or dramatic quotients
very well. Storyboards for several sequences are also included, as well as a perplexing featurette dedicated to a pair
of authors who have written novels about STAR TREK. Most interesting are a series of 1982 interviews given by the cast
to promote the movie--interesting mainly because of the wild fashions. Just check out Nimoy's pink suit and Kelley's
funky green scarf! Two commentaries are also included. One is a text commentary that runs beneath the picture
and consists of various trivia and facts compiled by TREK historian Michael Okuda. The other is an audio track by Meyer,
in which the filmmaker candidly points out a few of his objections towards the film and its producers.
STAR TREK III--THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK (1984)--Directed
by Leonard Nimoy. Stars William Shatner, DeForest Kelley, Christopher Lloyd, James Doohan, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols,
Walter Koenig, Mark Lenard, Merritt Butrick, Robin Curtis. After the critical and popular success of STAR TREK II: THE
WRATH OF KHAN, Paramount greenlighted this good space opera that emphasizes relationships rather than action.
The crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise is still hurting after the death
of Mr. Spock (first-time feature director Nimoy) at the end of STII. Limping back to a space station orbiting Earth,
Admiral James Kirk (Shatner) and friends are even further saddened to learn that the Enterprise, considered by the Federation
to be old and obsolete, will be decommissioned. Meanwhile, Dr. McCoy (Kelley) has been acting strangely, attempting
to buy passage aboard an illegal spaceship and speaking in Spock's voice. A visit from Spock's father Sarek (Lenard)
convinces Kirk that McCoy is the keeper of Spock's katra--his essence, soul, spirit, knowledge, whatever you want to call
it--and that his old friend can be resurrected in an ancient Vulcan ceremony that hasn't been performed in centuries.
Turning renegade after the Federation refuses his request to visit
the Genesis Planet where Spock's corpse lies, Kirk recruits shipmates Scott (Doohan), Sulu (Takei), Chekov (Koenig) and Uhura
(Nichols) to help him steal the Enterprise, kidnap Spock's body and take it, along with McCoy, to Vulcan. However, Klingon
commander Kruge (Lloyd) has discovered the secret of Genesis, and has kidnapped Kirk's son David (Butrick), Lieutenant Saavik
(Curtis, replacing STII's Kirstie Alley) and a young Vulcan lad on the planet's surface, holding them hostage in exchange
for the Genesis formula.
Although STIII's story is self-contained, the film still plays more
like the middle chapter of a trilogy (which it is), bookending a couple of tense action sequences with scenes of great poetry
and power. What Nimoy brings to the film is a strong theatrical sense, directing his actors to not be afraid to go too
far and cinematographer Charles Correll to paint dark shadows and dramatic lighting across the set. While this may have
partially been done to mask the low budget (less than $20 million), it does give STIII more of an operatic feel than the other
films in the series. Themes of sacrifice, friendship, loyalty and family float across the screen, as the Enterprise
crew risks everything they have, including their very lives, to bring one of their own back from beyond. One scene near
the end is a perfect example of STAR TREK's essential quality, a beautifully edited and scored (by James Horner) sequence
involving dissolves from one familiar face to another as they await news of their fallen friend.
Pure action hasn't been neglected, however. The crisply edited
scene in which the Enterprise goes against a bigger, newer and better respected rival starship is a highlight, as is Kirk's
hand-to-hand battle with Kruge as the planet cracks up around them (elaborate fight scenes, a staple of the original TV series,
often featuring Captain Kirk's trademark two-legged kick to the chest, were absent from the films to this point). Each
of the supporting actors has a chance to briefly shine this time around, from Takei's "Don't call me 'Tiny'" to Nichols' repartee
with a cocky young crewman. None of the performances is a particular standout (although Shatner's emotional response
to one character's death is among his best work) with the possible exceptions of Lloyd, normally a comedic actor who brings
much over-the-top menace to his role, and Curtis, who mistakes wooden acting for playing someone without emotions.
Also with John Larroquette, James B. Sikking, Robert Hooks, Miguel
Ferrer, Dame Judith Anderson, Branscombe Richmond, Phil Morris, Philip R. Allen and Grace Lee Whitney. Nimoy was not
a complete directing neophyte prior to STIII; he had helmed episodes of NIGHT GALLERY, THE POWERS OF MATTHEW STAR and Shatner's
T.J. HOOKER series. Paramount must have liked what he did on STIII, since they let him direct the follow-up, STAR TREK
IV: THE VOYAGE HOME, which turned out to be the highest grossing TREK film ever.
Paramount's 2-disc Collector's Edition DVD contains an audio commentary
by Nimoy, Bennett, Correll and Curtis, as well as a text commentary by TREK expert Michael Okuda, a theatrical trailer (TREK
movies have notoriously poor trailers), storyboards, stills and several making-of featurettes, one of which, CAPTAIN'S LOG,
contains on-camera interviews with Nimoy, Shatner, Bennett, Correll and Curtis. For some reason, none of the original
TREK actors besides Nimoy and Shatner (and the late DeForest Kelley) have ever been tapped for commentaries or interviews
on the Special Edition DVDs, poor judgment on Paramount's part. However, Nimoy states in his audio commentary that he'll
be joined in his upcoming STIV commentary by none other than William Shatner, his first appearance on a TREK DVD commentary.
STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME (1986)--Directed
by Leonard Nimoy. Stars William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Catherine Hicks, James Doohan, George Takei,
Nichelle Nichols, Walter Koenig. After the Sturm und Drang of the previous two TREK films, in which there was much death,
destruction and operatic drama, returning director Leonard Nimoy (STAR TREK III) and producer Harve Bennett decided the fourth
film needed to be something lighter in tone, a story involving time travel in which there would be no standard villain.
The result was an enormously crowd-pleasing adventure that not only became the top-grossing TREK film to date, but also the
only one to reach a more mainstream non-Trekker audience.
After their mutinous actions in STAR TREK III, in which they stole
the starship Enterprise, kidnapped the corpse of Mr. Spock (Nimoy) and took it to Vulcan so they could restore it to life,
Admiral James T. Kirk (Shatner), Dr. McCoy (Kelley), Scotty (Doohan), Chekov (Koenig), Uhura (Nichols) and Sulu (Takei) return
to Earth to face court-martial. They discover a planet in turmoil; a mysterious probe is causing climatic chaos--tidal
waves, evaporating oceans, blinding winds, etc. Kirk and crew discover the only way to save Earth from destruction is
to travel backwards in time to the late 1980's and fetch a pair of humpback whales, which have become extinct by the 23rd
century. The whales are the only species that can communicate with the probe and find out what it wants, so, using the
"slingshot" method of time travel first seen in the 1966 episode "The Naked Time", the gang lands in 1986 San Francisco, where
Chekov and Uhura search for a "nuclear wessel" (sic) containing dilithium crystals for their return trip; Sulu, McCoy and
Scotty build a tank large enough to transport a pair of humpback whales; and Spock and Kirk attempt to talk pretty marine
biologist Gillian Taylor (Hicks) into giving them her whales, named George and Gracie.
STIV is the first TREK movie that could accurately be described
as "charming". Brightly photographed by Oscar-nominated cinematographer Don Peterman, vigorously scored by Leonard Rosenman
(who also received an Academy Award nod), fluidly directed by Nimoy and smartly acted by a veteran cast, STIV is loads of
fun from beginning to end, mixing comedy, action and social commentary. Of course, commenting on timely social issues
was a hallmark of the original television series, which disguised its probes into racism, Vietnam, overpopulation, xenophobia,
religion and other touchy issues by presenting them inside an extraterrestrial setting, thus fooling the NBC censors.
The screenplay, credited to Steve Meerson, Peter Krikes, Bennett and Nicholas Meyer (who directed STAR TREK II and VI), wisely
wraps its Save the Whales message in a light covering of humor, which is played beautifully by its cast--particularly Shatner
and Nimoy, whose chemistry is impeccable and provides some nice improvisations. Hicks is a winning addition to the TREK
family--perky, earnest and a sweet romantic distraction for Kirk, who stopped making out with women once he hit middle age,
it seems.
Paramount's penchant for using classically trained supporting actors
is in full force again in STIV, including Robert Ellenstein, Madge Sinclair, John Schuck and Brock Peters. Regulars
Mark Lenard and Jane Wyatt (as Spock's parents), Robin Curtis (Saavik), Majel Barrett (Chapel) and Grace Lee Whitney (Janice
Rand) are also back. Also with Jane Wiedlin of the Go-Gos, tennis champ Vijay Amritraj, Michael Berryman, Bob Sarlatte,
Alex Henteloff (a regular on the Bennett-produced THE YOUNG REBELS), Jeff Lester, Joe Lando (DR. QUINN, MEDICINE WOMAN) and
associate producer Kirk Thatcher as a memorable bus rider. The film was nominated for four Oscars: original score,
cinematography, sound and sound effects editing--more than any other TREK movie. STAR TREK IV was such a financial success
that another sequel was a no-brainer of a decision. What wasn't was Paramount's agreement to hire Shatner to direct
STAR TREK V, a choice that may have been forced upon them because of a "favored nations" clause in the actor's contract.
Paramount has chosen to release STAR TREK IV in a 2-disc Special
Collector's Edition DVD set that contains a wide array of extra features that should appeal to every type of TREK fan.
The film itself, released in a 2.35:1 anamorphically enhanced print with 5.1 Surround and Dolby Surround mixes, is presented
with two optional commentaries. One is a text commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda, similar to the ones they prepared
for the first three TREK DVDs, but much sloppier, riddled with spelling errors, poor syntax and even missing sentences.
The other is an historic occasion: an audio commentary by Shatner and Nimoy recorded together (Nimoy recorded one for
STAR TREK III as well). The old friends appear to have a grand time reminiscing about making the film. Nimoy's
remarks are more technical in nature, as they should be, since he directed the film. Shatner, who often seems bored
in interviews (not surprisingly, since you can imagine how many times he's answered the same TREK-related questions), doesn't
seem to be putting on a show, as he is wont to do. His remarks on the craft of acting may surprise many viewers who
believe Shatner is not a performer to be taken seriously. Both he and Nimoy come across as intelligent, incisive filmmakers
who are clearly proud to have been a part of this movie. Shatner also indicates he'll be providing a commentary for
STAR TREK V, which is certain to be interesting, considering that film's post-production travails and critical lambasting.
Disc 2 contains too much material for me to go into here.
Some may be interesting to the more technical-minded fan, such as featurettes on "The Language of Whales", "Time Travel: The
Art of the Possible" and "A Vulcan Primer". "Kirk's Women" features Hicks and three actresses who guest-starred on the
original series--Kathie Browne, Louise Sorel and Celeste Yarnall--talking about how sexy Shatner is/was. Oscar-nominated
soundman Mark Mangini receives his own featurette. There's a newly produced "making of" documentary, two "visual effects
featurettes", storyboards, production drawings, dailies, a theatrical trailer, unexpurgated 1986 interviews with Shatner,
Nimoy and Kelley, a tribute to Gene Roddenberry by his son, and plenty more. Perhaps my favorite extra is a short tribute
to Mark Lenard, in which his daughters (who look remarkably like him) and wife reflect warmly upon the late actor with anecdotes
and candid photographs.
STAR TREK V: THE FINAL FRONTIER (1989)--Directed
by William Shatner. Stars William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Laurence Luckinbill, David Warner. After Nimoy's
two shots at directing STAR TREK movies, Captain Kirk himself took the helm of this space adventure--which is its biggest
fault. Despite an interesting premise--the U.S.S. Enterprise meets God--Shatner's direction is confusing and sloppy, which
makes number five the worst TREK film. David Loughery's screenplay doesn't make much sense at times, the actors play their
characters inconsistently with established tradition, and the special effects look cheap. From a story by Shatner. Exciting
musical score by Jerry Goldsmith. Bringing Goldsmith back to score the film was Shatner's best move.
STAR
TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY (1991)--Directed by Nicholas Meyer. Stars William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest
Kelley, Christopher Plummer, Kim Cattrall, David Warner, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig. My favorite
TREK film. Glasnost between the Klingons and the Federation is threatened when a prominent Klingon ambassador (Warner) is
assassinated, and Captain Kirk (Shatner) and Dr. McCoy (Kelley) framed for the crime. While Kirk and McCoy try to escape sentence
on a barren prison planet, Mr. Spock (Nimoy) plays detective in an attempt to find the real murderers. Meyer, who directed
STAR TREK II and co-wrote STAR TREK IV, proves he understands the TREK myth as well as anyone. The plot is filled with interesting
twists, and the action scenes are truly exciting. You'll cheer when the bad guys get their comeupance! A truly worthy farewell
to the original Enterprise crew.
STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT (1996)--Directed by Jonathan Frakes. Stars
Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, Alice Krige, James Cromwell. Eighth in the Paramount series was surprisingly
acclaimed by many mainstream critics, but scorned by Trekkers and SF fans. The Federation's mortal enemy, a race called the
Borg, travels back in time to the 20th century in order to conquer the Earth before its inhabitants have discovered interstellar
space travel, and Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Stewart) orders his U.S.S. Enterprise crew to follow. While members of the Borg
invade the Enterprise in an effort to assimilate the ships crew, many crewmembers beam to the Earth's surface, where hippie-like
scientist Zefram Cochrane (Cromwell) is thisclose to discovering warp drive.
Frakes (who directed a number of STAR
TREK TV shows) proves to be a very capable film director; the film, while not making much sense at times (blame that on writers
Ron Moore, Brannon Braga and Rick Berman) moves very quickly, contains some nice Northern California locations, and features
some good performances, notably by Stewart, Spiner and Alice Krige as the sexy Borg Queen who tries to lure android Data to
the dark side. Unfortunately, the material with Cochrane is just plain silly (Cromwell is all wrong for the part), and Trek
fans will be disappointed that most of the show's regulars have little to do. Visual effects by Industrial Light and Magic.
Also with LeVar Burton, Marina Sirtis, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden and Alfre Woodard. Music by Jerry Goldsmith and Joel Goldsmith
(Jerry's son who had to finish the score when Dad couldn't work it all into his busy schedule).
STAR TREK:
GENERATIONS (1994)--Directed by David Carson. Stars William Shatner, Patrick Stewart, Malcolm McDowell, Whoopi Goldberg.
Silly film that only illustrates how much better the original series and characters were. In the prologue, Captain James T.
Kirk (Shatner in hero mode) saves the U.S.S. Enterprise once again, but loses his life in the process. Decades later, the
revamped Enterprise, captained by STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION skipper Jean-Luc Picard (Stewart), is sent to prevent mad
scientist Soren (an overacting McDowell) from destroying a quarter billion people with some sort of time ribbon called the
Nexus. Using the Nexus, Picard finds Captain Kirk living a peaceful life on some sort of dream world, and convinces Kirk to
be a hero one last time.
Screenplay by TV writers Rick Berman and Brannon Braga makes very little sense, and NEXT
GENERATION's supporting cast is grossly underused. The novelty here is the death of James Kirk, and while Shatner and Stewart
try hard and do function well together as a team, Kirk's death will leave you dry. Contrast that scene with the demise of
Mr. Spock in STAR TREK II. GENERATIONS only comes alive when Shatner is on screen; he seems to be the only member of the cast
with any energy. Good score by Dennis McCarthy and photography by John A. Alonzo. Also with Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner,
Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, LeVar Burton, Marina Sirtis and original series co-stars James Doohan and Walter Koenig.
STAR TREK: NEMESIS (2002)--Directed by Stuart
Baird. Stars Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, Tom Hardy. Just so you know where I'm coming from,
let me state that I am a STAR TREK fan, but my allegiance lies with the original television series and cast only.
Whereas I consider the 1960's show, which starred William Shatner as fiery Captain Kirk, to be lively and topical, STAR TREK:
THE NEXT GENERATION was drab and PC. Or perhaps I could never wrap myself around a Starfleet captain who let children
and psychics frolic on the bridge and sat on his rear sipping tea while his underlings were risking their lives on strange
new worlds. The first feature to star the ST:TNG cast, GENERATIONS, was a colossal bore so devoid in emotional impact
that its highly publicized death of Kirk was both tearless and anti-climactic. FIRST CONTACT was silly but fun space
opera, and INSURRECTION, well, I never saw it, TREK no longer a priority for me. STAR TREK: NEMESIS, the tenth entry
in the cash cow Paramount calls a franchise, is the best TREK film I've seen since STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY,
mixing solid action, a couple of very good performances, a rousing Jerry Goldsmith score and strong themes of individuality,
social responsibility and humanity, the sort of optimistic horizon the TREK of yore was so good at exploring.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the crew of the Enterprise
is summoned to Romulus, the home planet of the Federation's archenemy, the Romulans. The new leader, Praetor Shinzon
(Tom Hardy), who toppled the previous government in a coup d'etat, wants to engage the Federation in peace talks. Or
so he says. Picard remains dubious, partially because of Shinzon's striking resemblance to himself as a young man.
That's because Shinzon is a clone of Picard who was originally created to infiltrate the Enterprise, but was sentenced to
a childhood of slavery when the Romulans canceled their plan. That's right--Shinzon is a human, brought to power with
the aid of his Reman viceroy (an unrecognizable Ron Perlman). With all that pain and anger, it doesn't come as a big
surprise to learn Shinzon is not interested in peace after all, but in destroying the Earth with a new doomsday device.
Meanwhile, the rest of the crew fiddles with B-4, a broken prototype found on a desert planet of android Data (Brent Spiner,
who receives a story credit) whose Trojan horse attributes go curiously unnoticed. And wouldn't you know it all takes place
during the honeymoon of Commander Riker (an increasingly doughy Jonathan Frakes) and Counselor Deanna Troi (the still-lovely
and still-wooden Marina Sirtis).
STAR TREK has always worked best when concentrating on the human
condition instead of hardware, and this is where NEMESIS shines. Picard and Shinzon are formed from the same DNA, yet
one is good and the other evil. How could Shinzon have fallen so far off the moral path? And is there enough humanity
buried deep inside of him to allow him to finally do the right thing and call off his invasion of Earth? This father/son
dynamic is echoed by Data and his newfound "brother", a banged-up dupe confused by loneliness and innocence.
Not that NEMESIS doesn't contain its fair share of action.
I loved the first car chase (!) in STAR TREK history, a thundering western-style exchange of dust and phaser fire, and Picard
and Data's rousing escape from Shinzon's massive spaceship, although the overlong and confusingly edited climax is a bit of
a snoozer and contains yet one more Enterprise destruction (how many times has Picard crashed this thing anyway?). While
the action/adventure elements are, I suppose, de rigueur in science fiction today, they certainly run counter to the NEXT
GENERATION episodes that I've seen, which contain more talk than C-Span. They also appear to have brought out something
new in Patrick Stewart, a vim and looseness I haven't before seen in him. He actually appears to be enjoying himself
this time out, making jokes, ripping donuts in his space dune buggy, and discovering that being a starship captain can be
a fun gig (one area where Shatner has always bested Stewart is the joy and energy he projected as Captain Kirk).
Besides Stewart, of the regular cast, only Spiner has much to do.
At least Frakes gets to bed a woman and punch out a bad guy. LeVar Burton (as Geordi LaForge) spends his screen time
sticking coaxial cables into Spiner's neck, Gates McFadden (Dr. Beverly Crusher) looks on in a motherly manner, Michael Dorn
(Klingon Worf) grumbles as comic relief, and Wil Wheaton as the much-hated Wesley...well, let's just say his presence is so
negligible, don't expect to spot him in panned-and-scanned television broadcasts. Although Hardy doesn't look much like
Stewart (he has bad teeth, for one thing), his petulant performance is a NEMESIS highmark, threatening enough to be a convincingly
formidable foe for the Enterprise, yet imbued with enough sympathy to color Shinzon as one of the NEXT GENERATION crew's most
well-rounded antagonists.
NEMESIS was directed by Stuart Baird, a crackerjack editor (SUPERMAN)
whose specialty as a director is straightforward, solid action fare like EXECUTIVE DECISION, and written by GLADIATOR's John
Logan. Both are outsiders to a series that has generally been handled in-house by television veterans. Baird provides
some fresh air with an unassuming journeyman approach that doesn't get in the way of the action or characterizations.
Logan's pedigree was considered a big deal by TREK fans who conveniently forgot all the terrible screenplays on his resume
like THE TIME MACHINE and BATS. NEMESIS is filled with plotholes, clunky dialogue and hamfisted foreshadowing.
It's difficult to cry about the noble death of a major character after the method of his "resurrection" is so obviously spelled
out early on. Shinzon's motive for genocide is murky at best. And, after V'Ger and Genesis and Nexus, does the
TREK universe really need another Doomsday Weapon?
If NEMESIS is indeed the final STAR TREK film, as the trailers imply,
it can at least be said that the franchise ended on a bang, rather than a whimper. It isn't the best or the worst of
the series, but it is a solid space opera reuniting us with old friends. And friendship has always been the cornerstone
of STAR TREK. Also with Whoopi Goldberg, Kate Mulgrew, Dina Meyer and X-MEN director Bryan Singer. Goldsmith's
marvelous music contains snippets of his theme from STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE and Alexander Courage's from the original
TV show.
STAR WARS (1977)--Directed by George Lucas.
Stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Alec Guinness, Peter Cushing. Probably the most influential and popular movie
of all time. The simple story is familiar to everybody by now: teenager Luke Skywalker (Hamill) teams up with a pair of robots
(R2D2 and C3PO), soldier-of-fortune Han Solo (Ford) and Solo's gorilla-like partner Chewbacca to rescue Princess Leia (Fisher)
from the evil Darth Vader (voice of James Earl Jones). Along the way, Luke is taught the "force" by legendary Jedi warrior
Obi-Wan Kenobi (Guinness). Exciting space fantasy is a mixture of pulp science fiction, cliffhanger serials, World War II
movies and especially Akira Kurosawa's THE HIDDEN FORTRESS. The acting by the three leads is stiff most of the time (the performers
aren't helped by Lucas's somewhat clichd dialogue), but the fast pace and hip humor keep things moving. Winner of six Academy
Awards including Editing, Art Direction, Visual Effects, Costume Design and Original Score (John Williams). Also nominated
for Best Picture and Director. The budget was an astonishingly low $7.5 million! That wouldn't even pay Harrison Ford's salary
today!
STAR WARS: EPISODE I--THE PHANTOM MENACE (1999)--Directed by George Lucas. Stars Liam Neeson,
Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd. The most highly anticipated blockbuster in film history. Fans camped out weeks
in advance to buy tickets to the first new STAR WARS in 16 years, and its Wednesday, May 19, 1999 opening grossed $28.5 million,
the largest debut ever. Lucasfilm and 20th Century Fox reportedly did very little advertising, since the mass media fell all
over themselves to run stories, photos, reviews and interviews with cast members. Is the movie worth the hype? Well, no. No
mere movie could. Is it good? Well, sorta. Kids should definitely eat it up. Lucas has filled his epic with more imagination,
wonderment and visual eye candy than any ten Hollywood projects. His (and Industrial Light and Magic's) landscapes, spaceships,
underwater cities, vistas and alien designs are often breathtaking. It's too bad he didn't take as much care in developing
the people in his movie.
The complicated plot involves a trade dispute between the Trade Federation and the tiny planet
of Naboo, which is ruled by young Queen Amidala (Portman). Jedi Knights Qui-Gon Jinn (Neeson) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (McGregor)
are sent as ambassadors to negotiate an end to the trade blockade, but they run into a trap instead, and after an extended
action sequence, they are forced to escape, picking up the Queen, her entourage and an annoying, completely CGI character
called Jar Jar Binks, which seems to have been added for comic relief, but is actually about as funny as a dentist's drill.
Their escape takes them to the desert planet of Tatooine, where they meet a young slave named Anakin Skywalker (Lloyd), who
will eventually grow up to be Darth Vader. Old friends R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) and C3-PO (voiced by Anthony Daniels) join the
party too, and they're all being stalked by the film's most interesting character, a black-and-red, horned martial-arts expert
named Darth Maul (Ray Park), who carries a double-edged light saber. Other familiar characters include Darth Sidious (Ian
McDiarmid), who plans to take over the Empire (and eventually succeeds, as we already know from the earlier movies), Yoda
(again voiced by Frank Oz), and even Jabba the Hutt drops by.
Unfortunately, Lucas seems much more concerned with
giving the inanimate characters quality screen time than his human actors. Neeson, McGregor and Portman are good actors, yet
they seem to flounder with Lucas' screenplay, filled as it is with clunky dialogue and scant character development. It would
have been wonderful to learn more about the Jedi, particularly Kenobi, since we grew to know him so well in the earlier films
(as played by Alec Guinness), but instead Lucas just plunks us in the middle of the story, and hopes we can catch up. There's
no warmth or soul to this movie--we don't care about any of the characters the way we did about Luke, Leia and Han Solo--and
what we're left with are a lot of pretty pictures, rousing action scenes (like an eye-popping Tatooine pod race obviously
based on BEN-HUR), and the best computer gimmickry Lucas millions can buy.
It's enough fun for the 135 minutes you're
in the theater, but the thrill wears off not long afterward, and I doubt it'll stick in your memory the way the original STAR
WARS has over the last two decades. John Williams' music is brilliant as usual; he cleverly mixes themes from the earlier
trilogy into the original score as a form of foreshadowing. Also with Terence Stamp, Oliver Ford Davies, Pernilla August,
Ahmed Best, Sofia Coppola and Samuel L. Jackson as a councilman named Mace Windu. Produced by Rick McCallum.
STAR
WARS: SPECIAL EDITION (1997)--Director and cast same as above. George Lucas celebrated STAR WARS's 20th anniversary
with a major re-release; the revamped film made over $30 million its opening weekend, and topped the $400 million mark altogether
to make it the highest-grossing movie of all time until TITANIC came along later that year. Lucas spent $10 million in changes:
remastering the soundtrack, using new technology to spruce up the visual effects, and even reshooting new scenes. One extended
sequence involving Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Jabba the Hut has been added to the new version (it's pointless, and obvious
why Lucas cut it originally). New creatures have been added to the Mos Eisley cantina scenes, and the destructions of the
Death Star and Aldebaran boast new CGI explosions. None of these "improvements" actually improves the film; in some cases
(bounty hunter Greedo fires first(!) at Han Solo in the cantina scene, changing Ford's space pirate from a roguish "scoundrel"
into a guy just defending himself) they work to the film's detriment. However, the film still works in every way just as it
did in 1977. A true wonder in American cinema, and one that will be wowing crowds for the next hundred years.
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