Yet another of the dozen or so reports we at Geek Headquarters have received concerning the new TREK film. Folks, I wish I could say otherwise, but I can't , all but one have been less than flattering. Oh well, as 7 of 11 says, " the curse is alive."
Sadly, Star Trek's even/odd curse is alive and kicking.
There have been Star Trek movies I've loved and Star Trek movies I've hated -- but the most annoying kind are the ones that fall somewhere in-between, smack dab in the middle of Mediocrity Land. And in that regard, Star Trek Insurrection is the most annoying Trek movie of all. This film is tired (but not terrible), uninspired (but not worthless) and just plain boring (but occasionally effective.) Arrggggh! I hate these types of films!
Having read the script for Insurrection several months ago, I went into this test screening expecting the worst -- and you know what? It was bad, yes, but somehow, not nearly as bad as the dreadful script. I'll skip a synopsis. You know the basics: Picard & Co. must protect a magically ageless civilization from an evil alien force and their shady Starfleet allies. Yawn.
And that's the main problem with Insurrection -- it's just a flat-out lousy idea. The Next Generation crew no longer has the luxury to indulge in a loose, low-stakes TV episode with annoymous aliens we'll (hopefully) never see again. Considering we only get to see Picard and the gang once every few years now, it would be nice if the Trek films were special -- an important event that warrants the re-teaming of the Next Gen crew, and not just another lame episode we can sigh at and say, "Oh well, hopefully next week's show will be better."
Jonathan Frakes has matured slighty as a director -- but only slightly. He still blindly slops together a unpolished visual style marred by unmotivated camera moves and indecisive composition, but on the plus side, he has allowed this film more room to breathe, allowing for his fellow actors to enjoy their work and not be so worried about kicking Borg ass, as in First Contact. There is a mostly welcome playfulness to the proceedings and although many of the jokes induce extreme eye-rolling, the characters seem to be more alive and believable than ever before.
(Note to Rick Berman: Giving Data lines like "Saddle up! Lock and Load!" isn't the only way to get an audience to cheer -- oh, but wait...they didn't cheer. What are you going to try next? Have Data say "Captain, I intend to open up a receptical of whup-ass?" Actions speak louder than words -- remember Kirk lowering Reliant's shields in Star Trek II? Remember Khan's reaction? Get the picture?)
The entire cast (with one exception) delivers a smooth, unforced performance. Particularly good this time out are Marina Sirtis (nicely rebounding from her ham-fest in First Contact,) Frakes (having good, clean-shaven fun,) Patrick Stewart (taking Picard off auto-pilot and actually delivering a heartfelt, if at times, overly-goofy performance) and Anthony Zerbe as Picard's Starfleet adversary (in a nicely restrained turn on what could have been an over-the-top government wacko.) But on the downside, there is F. Murray Abraham -- easily the least impressive and most forgettable of all the Trek movie villains. Hell, give me Sybok over this guy!
There were some effective romantic moments. Picard's relationship reminded me of Doc Brown's romance in Back to the Future Part III, and it was fun to see Riker and Troi gettin' jiggy with it. They share a candlelit bathtub that seemed to be an audience favorite.
I'd say a good half of all the visual effects were in various states of uncompleted development, but the FX shots that were finished seemed spectacular, for the most part. There are some very visceral airborne battle shots and beautiful space vistas for the Enterprise-E to glide through, reminding one, at times, of the opening title sequence to Voyager. And music- wise, it was a temp track mish-mash of cues from many of the Trek films, plus some music from Contact and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, among others.
This is the fourth Trek film I've seen at a test screening and, believe it or not, it's the first one that didn't seem to "sell-out." There were a few empty seats at Paramount's Studio Theater. There was some applause at the end -- but of course, the clapping of hands will always be louder than the silence of displeasure. Overhearing many conversations on the way out, it seemed that reaction to the film was decidedly mixed, leaning slightly negative.
It's not the worst Star Trek film ever made, but with Deep Space Nine's swan song on the horizon and with Voyager being the only new Trek show to keep things going, Paramount MUST take serious action if they want to keep this franchise alive. My prescription? Dump Rick Berman. His TV influence has only been destructive on the Next Gen films. Get some fresh writers in there, get a competent producer and please, please, please, oh baby, please get a director in there who has somekind of cinematic flair and knows how to use the medium to its fullest.
Star Trek seems to be rapidly approaching a crossroad, and if it hopes to survive into the 21st Century, it can't afford any more films as mediocre as Star Trek Insurrection.
7 of 11
