An ambitiously different idea that ultimately falls flat.
With series star William Shatner directing, this science fiction film premiered in June
of 1989, receiving poor reviews - even winning a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture
- it even failed to double its $33 million dollar budget.
I suppose it didn't help that it was up against one of the most stacked summers in Hollywood
history, suffering competition from "Batman", "Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade", "License
To Kill", "Lethal Weapon 2", and "Ghostbusters II".
And you thought sequel-itis was a new thing...
Fresh off his demotion back to Captain, Kirk and his crew must deal with Spock's long-last,
half-brother who hijacks the Enterprise in an obsessive search for God at the center
of the galaxy.
The PG-rated plot is handled well-enough, but there's just something about secret relatives,
and confronting the almighty himself that feels very soap-opera-esque and unrealistic.
And sure enough, the script fabricates yet another convoluted reason why this group of
geriatrics would all be together manning a star ship in the first place.
William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley and all the rest are back, meshing together
like the lifelong friends they really are - the chemistry between this group is practically
tangible.
And early scene with the aforementioned trio bond over a campfire is particularly enjoyable,
as Shatner and Kelley try to coax Nimoy into singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat".
The standout addition to the group is adversary-turned-allied, turned-adversary again, Laurence Luckinbill
- who portrays Spock's emotionally expressive Vulcan brother.
Through a therapeutic form of brain-washing, he convinces the Enterprise crew of his mission,
but when it comes time for her captain to have his guilt-stricken memories absolved,
Shatner emphatically protests, "If we lose them, we lose ourselves.
I don't want my pain taken away!
I need my pain!"
There's a fun scene where Kirk and company overtake a desert outpost on horseback, but
besides that - a large majority of the PG rated film is quite forgettable.
I've seen it three times over the past 15 years (including this week) - and even still,
if pressed; I couldn't describe more than three scenes in this film from memory.
There are a couple of narrow-escapes involving anti-gravity boots though, which I guess were
pretty neat.
With hardly any struggle or conflict at all, the group finally reaches the magical "God
planet" at the center of the galaxy.
But it's just another boring-looking desert, where someone forgot to set the white balance
correctly.
The unconventional story sort of plods along without an clear-antagonist, instead opting
for more existential threats and ideas.
It's the kind of concept that would have served as an above-average episode of the TV show,
but as a 106-minute film, it just isn't particularly exciting.
But hey, at least Jerry Goldsmith returns with another excellent score.
With any other cast, this would be a disposable failure of late-80s sci-fi; but despite its
many faults (not the least of which being a half-finished climax), the familiar group's
charismatic camaraderie make it somewhat worthwhile.
Casual-viewers need not apply, this is really only enjoyable for the dedicated fans.
Speaking of which, let's see what you had to say.
You were pretty harsh on this one, calling it a "silly", "over-developed" "failure" - with
a final score of MEH...
"Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" is a scattershot and uneven experience without much action.
I thought it was ALRIGHT.
That does it for this quick excerpt - but if you'd like to watch full episodes of "Movie
Night", and submit your own reviews to be included on the show, please visit the Jogwheel
YouTube channel.
My name is Jonathan Paula, thanks for watching and have a good Movie Night!