I don't understand why everyone freaks out about this. Who is that guy? Yes I know, he's another actor who played a lot of roles in a lot of movies. But what is the significance that makes people go "OMG IT'S HIM"????
Nicholas Meyer famously not a Trek fan and often at odds with Roddenberry directed two of the best Trek movies. Almost as if Roddenberry wasn't that good at directing/producing.
Thanks for that thought, i honestly never thought about that. As Gorbatchew said, it was his oppinion, that the desaster of Chernobyl quickend the decline of the Soviet Union. But i somehow never matched the movie and the real life events, even tho i know that the Klingons where somewhat a symbol for the Soviet Union as a counterpart for the Federation.
@@voldavkuk Gorkon/Gorbachev, Gulags, explosion at an energy facility with environmental contamination, Nixon going to China, all the clues were there. Part of why I like this film so much.
Gotta love it when the toxic fanbase today whines about new Trek being overtly political and "woke"... Like, what Star Trek have you morons been watching? Trek 4, save the whales, save the planet, overly green peace movie. Trek 6, the analogy of making peace with your enemy after an energy crisis.
Agree completely about Shatner and Nimoy in this film. Very powerful performances. By the way, "the game's afoot" is originally from Henry V: I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips, Straining upon the start. The game's afoot: Follow your spirit, and upon this charge Cry 'God for Harry, England, and Saint George!' But of course most people these days do know it best from Sherlock Holmes.
In case you missed the quote, "Second star to the right and straight on 'till morning" is from Peter Pan. It marks the entrance to Neverland, where no one ever grows up. Fitting that this is the final course for this Enterprise crew.
It is also has another meaning, as the lyrics to Peter Pan explain that following that star will lead to your wishes coming true. So Kirk is looking towards a hopeful future.
The Kim Catrall character was supposed to be Saavik from Trek II, III, and IV which would have made the murder mystery more complex and poignant. However, Saavik had already been recast with a different actress ( Robyn Douglas taking over for Kirstie Alley) and Robyn did not want to come back for this film. Rather than recast the character of Saavik for a third time, the movie just uses another character.
I wonder if the character was supposed to be a "Lt Cmdr Saavik" thus the rank insignia. Maybe they prepared the uniform for Curtis but then rewrote the character.
@@daveautzen9089 I don't think however that using a new character instead of Saavik has the same impact. Movie makers should have some respect for a fandom, but they should also not be too limited sometimes of doing something that goes against fan wishes and expectation if it is done in order to tell a strong story. The spirit in which such a decision is made plays an important role. Is it done in order to keep the universe 'dynamic' so that it doesn't grow stale and predicable, or just just a cheap trick to create fake drama.
Shan, I strongly recommend that if you end up watching The Next Generation movies, you should watch four particular episodes of the TNG show, as movie #8 (First Contact) is a sequel to them: *Q, Who?* (S02E16), *The Best of Both Worlds*, parts I & II (S03E26 & S04E01), and *Family* (S04E02) Preferably watch them even before movie #7 (Generations), as it will help you get your bearings with the characters (not to mention, the last of those four episodes is also followed up on in movie #7)
Seconded, with maybe the addition of Encounter at Farpoint and All Good Things to help put a nice opening and closing to the series to illustrate how far the characters of Picard and Q had come by the end. Encounter at Farpoint will also introduce the concept of the Holodeck which is used several times in the TNG movies.
id say watch all the next generation episodes do 2 or 3 episodes in one day and have a few days gap after finishing a season before doing another season
I think while the extra context is nice, it is unnecessary to understand what's going on with those films. While those that watch those episodes will enjoy it more, the movies themselves do a pretty good job of explaining who, what, and why without those episodes.
Yes, this! Without knowing the background given in those four episodes, "First Contact" loses _so_ much impact, arguably doesn't even make sense in some places (or at the very least it's extremely hard to understand the behaviour of certain characters).
One of my favorite quotes from the movie: Chang:(On speaker) I am constant as the northern star! Bones: (While setting the torpedo) I'd give real money if he'd shut up....
A bunch of great lines in this film. I think my favorite is Chang shouting "Don't wait for the translation, answer me now." Similar to Adlai Stevenson during the Cuban Middle Crisis.
I still remember watching this in the theater as a kid and there wasn't a dry eye in there at the end, everyone stood up and gave a huge round of applause. That line from Peter Pan is just a perfect cap to a stellar franchise, Its amazing that even after all these years they never cease to make me emotional.
I was there too as a kid... I was young, but i knew this was the last. I didnt really understand the politics at the time, but now i do. We really need to chase down peace, even if it conflicts w/ our own emotions. Now i sound like Spock...
Star Trek II had an amazing CGI segment when you consider how early it was for a CGI shot (the section showing the terraforming of the Genesis Device). It was developed by the computer department at ILM to show off what they could do. Those developers would then eventually be part of Pixar. When Star Trek VI came out, morphing effects were becoming really popular (it's more of a video effect where the computer shifts pixels around). The Klingon blood was really hard because fluid simulations didn't exist. They had to animate spheres and figure out cheats for making them look like they were merging. Proper raytracing (which renders reflections) also hadn't really been developed since computers weren't really capable then. The refit Enterprise/Alpha is my favorite Enterprise design and the detail of the practical model is amazing to look at (especially when it had iridescent patterns in Motion Picture).
I believe the defense attorney at the trial was played by Michael Dorn, (Worf) from the Next Generation series. The tribute at the start for Gene Roddenberry was because of his passing before this film was completed. The Next Generation movies are worth watch. I believe every other one is a good movie if memory serves. Thx again for another great reaction Shan...
@@anonimuso That episode, "Judgement", had Archer represented by an advocate named Kolos, played by J.G. Hertzler (Martok) and was not a relation of Worf's.
@@lordmortarius538 Thanks. I guess I was completely wrong. I swore there was someone from the House of Mogh in that episode. But maybe it's just because Worf is my favorite character. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
"If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?" is from Shakespeare. Just in case anyone thought that this movie made it famous, no, it's much older.
What I think you take for granted with the Klingon blood is that CGI was still very new at the time, and to me the mere fact that they showed blood floating was great. At that point I had never seen a sci-fi show/movie acknowledge how blood would react in zero gravity, so I was always able to look back the cartoon look of it just for that.
On the day this movie came out I was at my very first Star Trek convention in Sacramento with William Shatter, Leonard Nimoy and De Forest Kelly. I’ll never forget it.
Great review as always. I think you should at least watch the next two next generation films (Star Trek: Generations and the great Star Trek: First Contact) after that.....well...lol, I love Star Trek the next generation, and I think First Contact was the best of the Next Generation films.
I drove 2 hours to see this in a theater with a larger screen than what was in the local theater. I wanted to see the original crew and the Enterprise-A in the best viewing possible. At the end of the movie, just before the credits, each actor signed their name on the screen. My eyes got misty and I felt a feeling of a sad goodbye for this crew.
That scene and when Kirk says, "Second star to the right and straight on until morning." That reference to Neverland I always found to be rather poignant.
One of the best subtle connections. Kirk and McCoy's Klingon lawyer is played by Micheal Dorn as the "grandfather" of the character he would play for "The Next Generation", "Deep Space 9" and 4 feature films. Lt. Comm. Worf.
The poster on the screen behind you is one of my favourite movie posters of all time, it's gorgeous. Also the soundtrack is holy crap levels of amazing especially given the composer didn't have much experience.... Sadly his career didn't reach the heights it should have. Also you asked what the aftermath is. The Khitomer peace accords are mentioned many many times throughout the rest of the trek...most notably in the show Deep Space Nine where the Klingons rip them up and re-declare war on the Federation for a short time.
@@scottjo63 at the time it came out a lot of Trek traditionalists didn't like it, but for me it is right up there with James Horner's score from Wrath of Khan. The two best TOS movies also had the best scores, IMO. I love Eidelman's score.
@@WrathOfTheGoth Actually, what I couldn't believe, that I loved this score more then Horner's and Goldsmith's. I only wonder what John Williams would have brought if he did the music for any of the Star Trek movies.
The score was actually intended to evoke Gustav Holst's The Planets. Meyer actually wanted to use the suite for the soundtrack, but they didn't have the money for the licensing. The opening titles were written as a reference the Mars movement. Nick Meyer also lamented that he's the one who got Horner started in the industry, but by the time it came to make Star Trek VI they could no longer afford him!
The Klingon defense attorney is played by Michael Dorn, who played Worf in Star Trek The Next Generation. They gave him different hair and slightly different head ridges, but he is supposed to be Worf' grandfather.
Trivia: The "public defender" who speaks for Kirk and McCoy at their trial is called Colonel Worf, played by Michael Dorn. The actor was already a regular on "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (and later, ST:DS9) as Security officer Lt. Worf, grandson of the character in this film. In other words, he played his own grandfather in the film. ;-]
Another bit of trivia is that Chang's demand to Kirk during the trial, "Don't wait for the translation, answer me know!" is based upon U.S. ambassador to the UN Adlai Stevenson's demand to the Soviet Ambassador during a UN Security Council meeting regarding the Soviet missiles in Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Skip generations....it's garbage. Go directly to first contact... after that the only interesting one is Nemesis...but most people hate that one for weird reasons.
YES.I saw this film at the cinema and felt sad this was the original crews last film.I watched TOS in syndication during the late 70s ( The original series was a MASSIVE hit in syndication ) introducing an entire new generation to Star Trek.With the success of Star Wars,Star Trek MP was green-lit.
The Movie was basically "What if the Iron Curtain came down in space?". It was the then-current End of the Cold War transposed into the Star Trek-Universe, with Sci-Fi-Equivalents of Chernobyl, Glasnost, Perestroika, Gulags, Gorbachev, Bush, Hardliners and Show Trials. When "Wrath of Khan" was made, Jerry Goldsmith was considered to write the Score but he was deemed to expensive for this deliberately lower budgeted movie so Meyer went with the then-unknown James Horner instead and the movie put Horner on the map. Likewise, Horner was considered to score "The Undiscovered Country" but had become so sought after that he too was probably too expensive. Meyer thus chose another Newcomer. Sadly, this Movie still continues to be the Highpoint in Eidelmans' career. He continued to write music for films, but the projects he was assigned to became smaller in scale and visibility as the 90s and 00s went on. And he hasnt scored a single film since 2012. The Klingon Cruiser Gorkon arrived on belonged to the same class as the Three Klingon Vessels "deleted" by V'ger at the start of the first movie. The Rura Penthe-Exteriors were filmed in Alaska, I believe. This was the final time the Enterprise-Miniature originally built for the first movie appeared on-screen. It was hauled out of storage in 2001 to serve as a reference point for new Effects Shots made for the Directors Edition of "The Motion Picture". A few years later it was auctioned off. I think its now owned by Jeff Bezos. This was the final on-screen appearance of DeForest Kelley (Bones) before his death in 1999, the first of the Original Cast to go. *Definately* continue with the TNG-Movies after this, but some TV-Episodes are neccessary for context. I suggest: - Encounter at Farpoint; Season 1, Episode 1&2 (The Pilot, does a good job introducing the Setting and the Characters) - Q Who; Season 2, Episode 16 - Best of Both Worlds; Season 3, Episode 26 & Season 4, Episode 1 - Family; Season 4, Episode 2 - I, Borg; Season 5, Episode 23 - All Good Things...; Season 7, Episode 25&26 You should be able to tackle these Episodes in three batches.
👉 _Time After Time_ (1979) - Nicholas Meyer directed few films, each a classic - _STII:TWOK,_ _The Day After,_ _STVI:TUC_ - but his 1979 "HG Wells vs Jack The Ripper" debut film is a _Star Trek-adjacent_ time travel caper masterpiece worth watching. Keep going with _Trek_ - _Generations_ is great - it's a good idea to watch the tie-in _TNG_ episodes "Q Who?", "The Best Of Both Worlds", & "The Inner Light" as prep.
If I remember correctly, because this movie was 1991, ILM said they had to invent these liquid blood blobs for this film. That had never been done before. So I cut them a little slack as you look at a 31 year old movie. Also, interestingly, this is the first Star Trek film that was rated PG - 13 for the violence, and I believe they had to quickly change the Klingon blood color from red to pink because it was going to get an R rating for its gore at the time and Paramount was not going to allow that. Love your analysis and I love that you did Star Trek. Please do the Next Generation films as well, but you’re going to have to add in a few episodes first for them to be fully impactful.
@@ArtisticMysticSoul pink blood was a really weird choice, though. Orange or rust or something could’ve been better. I always thought the Klingon blood looked like Pepto-Bismol. Lol
I want to thank you for taking on the Star Trek movies in a serious and respectful way. Not many people give these movies a chance because of all the negative attention the hard core fans have caused. These movies are special to me because my father and I bonded over our love of Star Trek and all good Science fiction movies line Aliens and T2. Great job sir!
You should definitely continue with the next generation films! Sure it’s great if you’ve seen the episodes that tie in but they provide context during the films so you’re not lost. At the very least you need to watch the very next one called Generations!
"2nd star on the right and on until morning" is from Peter Pan, the boy who wouldn't grow up, which also was I think about Kirk's boyish wonder with exploration and space. A stark contrast to the heavier Shakespeare quotes by Chang,
Movie starts with a bang, with George Takei being the first actor on screen. George Takei was made a starship Captain ( not even Spock was a Starship Commander) and yet he still complains that his character did not have enough screen time. What a bitter man, but then I forget about his huge acting career outside of Star Trek.
This is such a great submarine movie. Every computer, device, or instrument is constant alt making some noise filling out the atmosphere and tight quarters.
Alas! We’ve arrived at the bittersweet end to the Star Trek journey. I originally subscribed to this channel when your reaction to the Wrath of Khan was released. I appreciate your enthusiasm & respect for the industry at large, you’ve made me tune into who’s to credit for the production & music in other movies as well. Personally, subjectively, I’m not as much of a fan of TNG movies, though I encourage you to judge for yourself if you’re so inclined to watch & I’ll be along for the ride either way. Thank you for your thoughtful perspective once again!
I found your reaction to the CG blood interesting. When the film came out, i didn't find the blood very distracting. However, the blood quality wasn't just due to the era. The production was under enormous time and budget constraints. The first budget for the Nimoy script (which was the second story attempt) came in at $41m, but the studio then forced them to cut $11m from that. And after that Nimoy script was finished, it spent six months in "development Hell" with the actors, producer, director, and Gene Roddenberry banging each other up over details. (They all knew it would be the last TOS film.) Consequently, with a studio-imposed hard release deadline of December 1991, principal photography did not begin until April 1991. So all of the above surely had a big effect on that blood scene, which was indeed far from being a trivial job for the tech of early 1991.
It was actually pretty impressive for the time. Particularly things like Gorkun's legs scattering it as he spins. It looks very artificial now, but for a pre-Jurassic Park (which came out two years later) movie, it is a really ambitious scene.
@@WrathOfTheGoth 👍🏼 I agree, i remember being very impressed after seeing the entire scene for the first time! My initial thought on seeing the first spurt was "Come on guys, get it together," but by the time i'd seen the whole scene, i was slack-jawed. 😮
@@no_rubbernecking And the only reason it was purple was for the age rating. Which actually broke established canon, previously the Klingons had regular red blood. When people pretend Discovery broke established canon over the Klingons, ST6 did it first.
Some fun little bits of continuity that are often overlooked: FROM THE MOVIES: When Spock is taking the test on Vulcan at the beginning of _ST4_ there is a question about one ship following another so closely the sensors on the ship being followed indicate both ships are occupying the same space; this is the trick the Bird-Of-Prey uses to make it look like the _Enterprise_ is firing on _Qo'noS One._ Also, the interpreter at the trial is played by the same actor who portrayed Captain Klaa in _ST5,_ so fans often assume they're both the same character, and Klaa got busted down to translator for his actions in that movie. FROM NON-CANON SOURCES: A novel published in the early '80s, titled _Enterprise: The First Adventure_ details James T. Kirk's fist outing as captain of the legendary ship, and provides the likely source of the Klingons' interest in Shakespeare. There is also a 1990s video game called _Klingon Academy_ - possibly one of the best Star Trek games ever made - which tells of a civil war in the Klingon Empire some two years prior to the events of _ST6_ and which ends with Gorkon's rise to power, Chang's descent into villainy, and Praxis being overused for energy production, leading to the explosion at the start of the movie. (And yes, David Warner and Christopher Plummer both reprise their roles in it.)
That's not the trick the Bird of Prey uses. She was cloaked, so Qo'noS One wouldn't have been able to see her regardless. She had to park so close to Enterprise to create the illusion that is where the torpedoes came from. Had they fired from any other angle, it would have been obvious the shots didn't come from Enterprise. Also, I believe Mike Okuda himself has encouraged the whole, "Klaa got demoted" thing.
@@Ambaryerno When Spock notices the surge in neutron radiation (which we find out is from the Bird-Of-Prey being so close), he tells Kirk "it appears to emanating from us" - i.e., sensors could not distinguish between the two ships.
While the CGI was iffy (it was good enough to scare the crap out of 10-year-old Me at the time), there was a point to the Klingon blood, as in deleted scenes (that would find their way into the film in subsequent home video releases, and are therefore canon) the assassin is outed as a Human (who we also meet in an earlier scene, working for Admiral Cartwright) when his red blood is seen where he landed, a Klingon picking up some on his fingers and saying audibly (for the audience) "This is not Klingon blood!" But then, the reason for it being purple in the first place was to prevent the film from getting an R-rating, so there's also that. It may be the fact it was not red that made it look so fake as well.
@@TheOneTrueChris The interesting thing about it is, I used to think that he was brought in for the guest role because of his role as Odo, but no, this movie was two years before DS9 so it was the other way around LOL
The autograph capture technology was fairly new, used primarily for sportscasts (for example, John Madden used it for discussing plays during football games). The cast had been signing autographs at conventions for decades and they thought it was a way to give every fan, no matter where they were, the autograph of each cast member. A great idea and for me the only way I'd ever get DeForrest Kelly's or James Doohan's autograph.
"They're animals." "Jim, there is an historic opportunity here." "Don't believe them. Don't trust them." "They're dying." "Let them die!" Fun Fact: Christian Slater framed his $750 paycheck for his walk-on role. Slater wore the trousers made for William Shatner in Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan (1982). He quipped it was an "honor" during a BBC interview. Hair Character Fact: Christopher Plummer's character, General Chang, was originally to have had hair, but as his make-up was being applied for the first time, Plummer liked the bald look, and had the make-up technician omit the hair. Kim Cattrall designed her own hairstyle for the role of Valeris, and also came up with the idea to completely shave off her sideburns in order to more prominently show her Vulcan ears. Historical Fact: Spock's line "Only Nixon could go to China" refers to the 37th U.S. President Richard Nixon having been seen as the best American politician to be sent to China to discuss detente. His strong anti-Communist stance avoided giving the impression that the United States had "gone soft" and sent a sympathetic negotiator. The film is largely an allegory about the fall of Soviet Communism. When General Chang demands that Captain Kirk answer a question without waiting for the translation, it is an allusion to the real-life exchange at the United Nations between U.S. Ambassador Adlai Stevenson and Soviet Ambassador Valerian Zorin during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Also, the explosion on Praxis due to "insufficient safety measures" is akin to the meltdown at Chernobyl nuclear power plant in present-day Ukraine, which is believed to have contributed to the decline of the Soviet Union. Spock says that there was seventy years of "unremitting hostility" between the Klingon Empire and the Federation, which is not how long the Cold War lasted, but is the approximate length of time that the USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) existed in the twentieth century, with a communist form of government.
The most 'fun fact' I can give you about the filmis that Christopher Plummer had worked with Shatner back in the mid 50's. Plummer had been appearing as the lead in Henry V at the Stratford (Ontario, Canada) Shakespeare Festival, with Shatner as his understudy. Suffering from a kidneystone, he was unable to perform, but sat in the audience and watched. “He didn’t do what I did at all,” Plummer recalled in a separate interview. “Where I stood up to make a speech, he sat down. He did the opposite of everything I did. And I knew that son of a bitch was going to be a star.” When Plummer passed away last year, Shatner tweeted this: “A gentleman whose name is Christopher Plummer died today. He was what I call a friend. What is the definition of a friend? Somebody you know intimately whose every breath and every thought that is so much like yours or can a friend be someone whose life is intertwined near and afar with great gaps of time between meetings? That was the kind of friend Chris Plummer was to me. I think the final picture of our friendship was in a documentary I was making in which I interviewed him at a theatre that we both played at - the [Stratford] Ontario Festival. We spent the afternoon laughing and rejoicing in our mutual experiences. That afternoon defined my friendship with Chris. I am so sad to lose him.”
Shatner really doesn't get enough credit as an actor. People love the mock and exaggerate his mannerisms, but if he has a weakness, it's that he throws himself into every part he does with passion. Sometimes it comes on a little strong, but when Shatner is good, he is DAMNED good.
A real cool continuity detail that doesn't get enough love are the digital clocks on the Enterprise bridge. If you watch them you'll see that they keep perfect time in sync with the passage of actual time.
This one is my favorite, more due to it being the only original series movie I got to see in the theater. Also may have been the first time I went to a movie without any adults...aside from being driven to the theater.
My favorites are 4 and 6. 2 is good but it's more pew-pew. Those three are my top favs. Two of my favorite scenes in this one is when Sulu messages the Enterprise and simply says that the Excelsior is standing by and the other is when the engineer tells Sulu that they are pushing as hard as they can, they might fly her apart and Sulu says to fly her apart, then.
The Next Generation crew is my favorite, no knocks to the OG crew bc they’re also amazing, but I grew up with TNG. This movie and the next two movies in the Star Trek universe are my faves! So good, great directing and storylines. Hope you give it a shot!
i kinda grew up with both, My first trek was the movies, not the TOS. after this film, i went right into TNG. Eventually i went back and watched iconic moments in the TOS.
In case you were unaware, the subtitle of this movie is a reference to Shakespeare's famous "To Be or Not To Be" speech from Hamlet. In that monologue, Hamlet feared death and called it the Undiscovered Country, however in this film, the Undiscovered Country is the unknown future. It's well worth listening to Hamlet's monologue, as whilst the film is not about the exact same thing, many of the themes of the monologue are definitely played out here, namely being so afraid of the unknown, that people would willingly embrace the familiar, even if what's familiar is objectively bad. "Who would fardels bear, To grunt and sweat under a weary life, But that the dread of something after death, The undiscovered country from whose bourn No traveler returns, puzzles the will And makes us rather bear those ills we have Than fly to others that we know not of?"
Most people don't realize that the "course heading" that Kirk gives at the very end when they decide to ignore orders are the directions to Neverland ("second star to the right and straight on till morning"), which is absolutely brilliant writing. It's the call to adventure and exploration, which was always the true purpose of the Enterprise. This and Wrath of Khan are my favorites. And both directed by Nicholas Meyer! He really got the battle sequences right. I think it's because they felt like a naval battle. One of the things I love about this movie (and Trek in general) is that many of the writers are very well read on the classics and are influenced by them. That's also why TNG was so good. Here, they also include many Shakespeare lines throughout the movie, most notably at the end during the final battle. And that includes "the game is afoot", which people know as Sherlock Holmes but it's originally Shakespeare!
I paused the video to grab something to drink and it paused with a smile on your face at the 5:37 mark and I just want to say that watching you enjoy these movies for the first time makes me think of the first time i saw them as well Thank you for that
One of the better ones in the franchise so great thank you for this one. As you have deep appreciation for practical things in films, may I suggest "Towering Inferno", or "Gold" or good old fashioned car chase, there is "Bullitt"? I did see a bit of a deep dive into one of my old psychological films which is still very creepy, "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane". This Star Trek film does have very good points in it. Great Reaction so big Thank you for a wonderful watch! Very happy you enjoyed this as much as many others have done over the years.
Shan, I love your reviews and your reactions. It's like I'm watching the movie again for the 1st time when I watch it with you. I'd give Star Trek a rest at this point, before you get into the next generation movies. There are so many other movies that deserve your review. Please try some of the following, if you haven't seen them already. -Ronin -The Piano, with Holly Hunter. -Unbreakable -The Red Violin
R.E. Sulu being Captain of the Excelsior. There is a very small cut in Star Trek 2, where Admiral Kirk is on final approach to the Enterprise for his inspection. Sulu says "I'm delighted, any chance to go aboard the Enterprise" then it cuts away and returns with Kirk saying "I'm glad to have you at the helm, I don't think these kids can steer". Sulu's full line was actually "I'm delighted, any chance to go aboard the Enterprise, however briefly, is always an excuse for nostalgia", which is then followed by Kirk saying that Spock is Captain of the Enterprise but he'll be in command of the Excelsior "by the end of the month", McCoy congratulates him, and Sulu thanks them both. Then we get Kirk's unedited line.
We are lucky enough to still have William shatner and I implore you to check out his interviews he's done on the Adam carolla podcast. The man sounds sharper than certain people that are 30 years younger than him who are in charge of nuclear weapons. He seems like a very kind and knowledgeable soul.
I’m glad you enjoyed it. This movie took place during the time of Gorbachev and glasnost so that we were working with peace with the Russians and the movie mirrored that conflict of those who won peace with the Russians, and those who didn’t clans always represent the Russian empire throughout the Star Trek universe, and Starfleet represents the US whereas in case you didn’t know, Vulcan represent Japan and Roman represent China, other films are good to watch. If you want to see Kirk again, he is in the next movie and starts in generations. It’s a handoff from the previous generation to the next generation starts seven generations. Yeah, prison shots to place very near Siberia in Alaska but near Siberia. Thanks for the fun.
15:52 In my memory of seeing this in the cinema thirty-two years ago, the scenes shot on the ice in Alaska did not have that purple tint. I may be right: there have been at least three published cuts of this movie.
I was 9 or 10 when I saw this. I think it was the first Star Trek feature I saw, although I watched The Next Generation religiously. I remember being amazed at the assassination sequence. I knew the blood was a special effect, but CGI was not in common usage, and it simply looked otherworldly in a captivating way. I've come to see the flaws in the film: it is overly reliant on literary references, to the point that it feels as if Meyer is impressed with his own education, and the whodunit aspect is a little clumsy, but the acting is phenomenal and it looks gorgeous thanks to Hiro Narita's cinematography. I still love it. Great reaction.
One of the developments of the Next Generation was that, decades after the original Star Trek, the Federation and the Klingon Empire had become allies. This movie was a bridge to the Next Generation by setting up that development.
Michael Dorn, who played Kirk and Bones' Klingon lawyer, played Worf, the only Klingon serving the Federation from The Next Generation. The Klingon lawyer he played was his character's grandfather in The Next Generation.
Ah finally my favorite Star Trek captain from all the films and TV. They do not give Capt Sulu a lot of screen time but IMHO he makes the most of the limited time he was given. His actions and reactions strike me as spot on, especially the short scene with Christian Slater (doing his cameo). 'Do you have hearing problems Mister?' He doesn't shout, he doesn't need to. Being called Mister no rank no name is not a good sign in anyone's Navy. Questioning the Captain, even one skirting the edge of his orders; is a dicey buisness at best. Sulu doesn't 'bring the hammer down' but the rebuke is quick and reflexive. 'She'll fly apart!' 'Fly Her Apart Then!'; Ships and their crews are entrusted to Captains. They are charged to not hazard them NEEDLESSLY, but there are times when to save nations, ships must be lost. Admirals and Captains are the folks handed the weight of making those calls. No bravado, no posing; if we do not get there in time the peace talks are doomed, ergo we will continue and if she blows up she blows up.
"Second star to the right, and straight on 'til morning..." - Peter Pan :o) This movie also bridges into The Next Gen show & films as when that show was in the 24th century - 70/80 years later, the Klingon's were already in a truce, or peaceful with the Federation - this helps the road to that peace.
The visual effects for Star Trek 6 was again made by George Lucas's Industrial Light and Magic as for Star Trek 2-4 (ILM was unavailable for Star Trek 5 because all teams were busy working with Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Ghostbusters 2 so a lower-budget studio was chosen for ST5). The effects were pretty much at their best for the time.
Great reaction! I definitely think you should continue with the Next Generation films, but as stated there are a few episodes that are essential to invest in the new characters and setting. Another reactor I watch has been doing three episode blocks of select episodes to react to and I think that is the way to go. It also let's you stretch out your Star Trek content without committing to reacting to the entire TNG series. The following list is one I have curated myself. It includes many fan favorite episodes, several that are excellent character showcases, and many that will add context to events in the films. From my point of view I would recommend: *S1E1 Encounter at Farpoint pt.1 *S1E2 Encounter at Farpoint pt.2 S1E9 Measure of a Man (key Data episode) *S2E16 Q-who? (Directly informs First Contact) S3E Booby Trap (key Geordi Laforge episide) S3E15 Yesterday's Enterprise (key Tasha Yar episode) S3E17 Sins of the Father (key Worf episode) S3E23 Sarek (original series tie-in) *S3E26 The Best of Both Worlds pt.1 (directly informs First Contact) *S4E1 The Best of Both Worlds pt. 2 (directly informs First Contact) *S4E2 Family (directly informs Generations) S4E7 Reunion (informs Generations) S4E9 Final Mission (key Wesley Crusher/Picard episode) S4E26 Redemption pt. 1 (informs Generation) S5E1 Redemption pt. 2 (informs Generations) *S5E8 Unification pt.1 (directly informs Star Trek 2009) *S5E9 Unification pt.2 (directly informs Star Trek 2009) S5E14 Cause and Effect (top 10 episode) S5E25 Inner Light (key Picard episode) *S6E4 Relics (original series tie-in) S6E10 Chain of Command pt.1 (top 10 episodes) S6E11 Chain of Command pt.2 (top 10 episodes) S6E15 Tapestry (key Picard episode) S7E16 Thine Own Self (key Troi Episode) *S7E25 All Good Things pts. 1&2 (bookends the series and sets up Generations) *= essential. The key difference between the original series(and their films) and the Next Generation is that TNG is much more of an ensemble, but the rest of the cast is largely under utilized in their films. So when there are stakes, they are diminished by unfamiliarity with those characters and their relationships. It is definitely a flaw in their films, but it also shows how much more the continuity mattered with these characters because they are more developed.
Chancellor Gorkon was a composite character based on Mikhail Gorbachev and Abraham Lincoln. Both men seeking peace and one assassinated for it. Other film facts, the Enterprise's dining room and the Federation President's office were sets from the tv show Star Trek The Next Generation, specifically, the conference room and the crew lounge called Ten Forward from the Enterprise D.
As I recall, there were actually parts of the conference room set that were lost during the making of this film, so when they redressed it to resume filming for TNG I believe the display with the models of the previous Enterprises was no longer present. The bridge sets for Enterprise and Excelsior were redressed from the Battle Bridge in TNG, and they also reused Enterprise-D's engine room for this film. In fact, I think there's parts where if you look REALLY closely you can see some of the Okudagrams or other markings from TNG.
It is fitting that Christopher Plummer used lots of Shakespeare quotes with William Shatner. Back in '56 Plummer was playing Henry V at the Stratford Festival in Ontario, Canada and ended up being hospitalized one night after dislodging a kidney stone. This rendered him unable to take the stage the following evening which meant his understudy, Shatner, would have to take his place.
The peace (and later alliance) between the Federation, and the Empire that factor so heavily into shaping the future, flow from this key series of events. To me it feels like a story that takes place in a world populated by many contrasting interests, rather than an incidental story about the crew of one ship. It took decades, but Star Trek is one of the few concepts to create a world with what could be called a Tolkien'esque depth. As others said below, of the Next Generation films, it's really the first two that matter. Generations is the hand-off, and First Contact is the Star Trek film I'd been waiting my whole life to see without knowing it. It's absolutely fantastic.
Sulu in command of Excelsior was something that was introduced as early as Star Trek II. Dialogue filmed but cut from the final film (it can be found on UA-cam) indicated that Sulu was due to take command sometime after Enterprise's training mission, had it not been interrupted by Khan and the events surrounding Genesis. This also explains his fascination with the ship in Star Trek III and IV. The original plan for the film was for Saavik to return and be the traitor, however there's a combination of factors that led to her being replaced with an original character: First, Gene Roddenberry quite vehemently objected, and insisted Saavik would never betray Spock and the Enterprise crew. This led to a fight with Meyer, who claimed as her creator that he could do with her what he wanted. Roddenberry refused to back down and this caused considerable tension between them, with the studio siding with Roddenberry. Second, they first wanted to bring Kirstie Alley back, but she wanted WAY more money than the role called for (by this time, Alley had become known for being difficult and having a tremendous ego). Robin Curtis, who portrayed Saavik in III and IV, was unavailable due to other projects. This mean they were faced with casting a THIRD actress in the role. Between the prospect of having to recast, and Roddenberry's continued attempts to overrule Meyer, the role was ultimately rewritten as an original character, Valeris. In hindsight, while Roddenberry often had questionable judgment towards the latter part of his control of the franchise, in this case I think he was absolutely right. Had they made Saavik the traitor, the fanbase likely would have CRUCIFIED Meyer. I think he was underestimating just how beloved she was by the fans. So while there's distinct elements in Valeris's characterization that makes it obvious she was originally written as Saavik, the decision to make her an original character was ultimately the right one. This movie was made after the 1989 death of Merrit Butrick, who played David, from AIDS complications. The scene with Butrick's photograph was included by Meyer as a tribute. Roddenberry himself died shortly before the film made its debut in theaters. The Federation President is played by Kurtwood Smith. AKA, Red Foreman. If you watch closely, the President has a pair of glasses that he periodically puts on, and he's often not looking directly at people addressing him. And in the climax when Kirk is calling "Mr. President!" he's looking around in confusion. It was actually written into the story the President was BLIND. His glasses are a primitive precursor to Geordi LaForge's VISOR in TNG. The translator during Kirk's trial is played by Todd Bryant, who also portrayed Captain Klaa in the previous film. It's popular among fans, encouraged by Mike Okuda, to say that the translator IS Klaa, who got busted in the aftermath of his attack on Enterprise. Kirk and McCoy's lawyer, Colonel Worf, is portrayed by Michael Dorn, who more famously played Enterprise-D's LIEUTENANT Worf in Star Trek: The Next Generation (which debuted in 1987). Colonel Worf is Lieutenant Worf's grandfather. The commandant of Rura Penthe is played by Morgan Sheppard. Sheppard appeared in several other iterations of Star Trek, including TNG, Voyager, and the JJ-Verse. Brock Peters - Admiral Cartwright - would later play Ben Sisko's father on Star Trek: Deep Space 9. Yet another major Star Trek connection here is the character of Colonel West who, depending on the version of the film you're watching, may not appear (he was excised from the theatrical cut, but the original VHS and DVD releases restored him). In the full version of the film, West is one of the conspirators who proposes a military raid to rescue Kirk and McCoy after their arrest. In the full cut, the Klingon sniper Scotty kills in the climax is NOT a Klingon at all. Worf realizes he's not bleeding Klingon blood, and he and a Starfleet officer remove his prosthetics and reveal that it's actually Colonel West. West is played by the late Renee Auberjonois, who is better known for his role as the shape-shifter Odo in Star Trek: Deep Space 9 (who, amusingly had to masquerade as a Klingon in one episode...using prosthetics because he couldn't shape-shift at the time). Christian Slater's mother was on the production crew for the film, and Slater himself was a big Star Trek fan, so managed to wrangle his walk-on part as one of Excelsior's junior communications officers. The exterior scenes on Rura Penthe were filmed in Alaska. While the film does a great job with its continuity, it does make one mistake: Kirk knew how to fight a cloaked ship! The Season 1 episode of TOS, Balance of Terror, saw Kirk engaged with a Romulan Bird of Prey (originally, the Bird of Prey in III was meant to be a Romulan ship stolen by the Klingons, though this was dropped). It was very much a pastiche of the classic WWII film, The Enemy Below. Even though the Romulan ship was unable to fire while cloaked, Kirk was able to use Enterprise' phasers to find the ship by, basically saturating space around the cloaked ship. While it might have made for a less tense climax, it does create something of a plothole that Kirk would forget how to fight a cloaked ship. In the original script, it was Excelsior that rigged the seeker torpedo, which was set up by Sulu's mission cataloguing gaseous anomalies in the opening scene. Enterprise, having been in space dock, would not have been carrying the specialized equipment. However, Shatner insisted that Enterprise should save herself in the final movie, which a lot of fans would agree with. Plus, Shat's delivery of the order to fire is absolute badassery. A Bird of Prey is nominally no match for even ONE Federation cruiser without its cloak (Kruge only disabled the original Enterprise because of circumstances, and Chang only did as well as he did because Enterprise basically had to just sit and take the pounding). Against two it wouldn't have a prayer.
I love this film, yet I rank it below 2 and 4. That's just a testament to how good this series is. For TNG, you don't need to watch many episodes to be caught up enough. The only really essential one is The Best of Both Worlds two-parter, but to get full context to really get the most from the films I'd go for: S2.16: Q Who S3.26 The Best of Both Worlds p1 S4.1 The Best of Both Worlds p2 S4.2 Family
@@Iymarra good episodes, but as far as the context needed for the films goes, you really just need the history of who Locutus is, which is "Best of Both Worlds". I say this from experience as I had only seen a handful of episodes of Next Generation when I saw the movies.
@@newfate26 I know, I'm just thinking those for the philosophical debate on data and his desire to know about humanity, the series opener/closer and BoBW
The one thing that really got me in this movie and actually made me forget about Jerry Goldsmith and James Horner was that music by Cliff Eidelman. My favorite scenes were the beginning credits, the "guess who's coming to dinner" Chekov quote from a movie title of the same quote. And that music again, intense. Of course, my absolute favorite scene, and THAT MUSIC again, the assassins beam on, WOW. That Cliff Eidelman went way beyond music and I couldn't believe it. Again, cudos for Jerry Goldsmith (who does come back for Star Trek 7 or rather Star Trek: Generations) and James Horner but Cliff Eidelman cremated them for this music for Star Trek 6. Just my opinion. Goldsmith and Horner are certainly missed especially with the music of today's movies.
I'd agree with you if he hadn't shamelessly copied Holst's "Planets" for some pieces AFTER the producers decided not to license it because it was too expensive. Listen to Holst's "Mars - the bringer of war". Mind you, I love the soundtrack, but this was a pretty sad thing to do.
Nicholas Meyer wanted to use Holst but couldn't afford it, so he asked Eidelman for something Holst-like. In fact, he asked Eidelman for a combination of the beginning of Stravinsky's Firebird Suite and Holst's Mars, and I'd say Eidelman delivered. Film music is full of quotations and inspirations from the classical repertoire. You know who else wanted to use Holst's Planets for one of his films, but ended up a score which sounds a lot like it in places? George Lucas.
Oh, I most certainly hope you will continue with the Next Generation films! Absolutely. I'll leave it to others to suggest whether it may be to your best advantage to see a few Next Generation episodes to get to know the characters beforehand, or just start cold. Maybe you already have some ideas of them, through cultural osmosis, or maybe it's unnecessary. I couldn't guess, as they were longtime acquaintances to me by the time of the films.
You have to watch the next two Shan!! Generations isn’t great but it’s a good bridge film and First Contact is one of the best in the whole series. Watching Next Generation helps but isn’t necessary
Sulu being appointed Captain of the Excelsior was actually mentioned originally back in Star Trek 2 in the book. He was just supposed to be on the Enterprise for a last little training voyage. However, because of the events surrounding the Genisis device and Starfleet anticipating a long down time for the crew for an investigation/inquiry, Sulu gets passed over for the Captain we see in Star Trek 3.
Great review, Shan. One comment though, regarding your comments on the subject of the "blood looks fake" - Klingon blood doesn't look like ours; that's why the kinda purple color to it. You didn't include the scene where Worf (the grandfather 😃) examines the human, red blood and states that it's not Klingon blood. I hope that once you saw that, you realized why the Klingon blood looked "fake." 😉
Hot Damn, Shan! I forgot you were doing these. Before going into the Next Generation movies, there are a few episodes of the series you may want to watch. "Q-Who", "The Best of Both Worlds" (2 parts), and "Family". Those should be enough to get you into who the crew is, and some other background information you'll need going forward. That's a total of 4 episodes, and that should really cover enough information. Roly Poly Ollie did the same thing, but he also watched the first 2 part episode "Encounter at Farpoint", but I don't think that's absolutely necessary. It's up to you, though.
The lawyer representing Kirk and Mccoy in the Klingon trial is played by Michael Dorn. The character is called Colonel Worf, and while it's not outright stated on-screen (it's in the script), the character is intended to be the grandfather of Worf in TNG.
Little known fact: The explosions seen in the movie Stargate and both remastered Death Star explosions are referred to as "The Praxis Effect". Also, originally Meyer wanted to use Saavik as a conspirator. He thought the fall from grace of a regular would have more impact but the studio said absolutely not. As a result, we got Saavik 2.0.
Such a great sendoff. On of, if not the best of the movies. YES you should definitely continue. You don't need much back-story from the episodes. You could get away with just 2 (The Best of Both Worlds 1 & 2), though ideally 4 episodes (Q Who / Family) and you have everything you need for First Contact, the only movie you need any backstory for, to understand the villains and the baggage Picard carries into the movie. His headspace is pretty important
CORRECTION: You do NOT have to watch any TNG episodes to fully enjoy the movies. If you watch max three episodes from the show (Q Who, and Best of Both Worlds pts. 1 & 2) you will have a greater emotional connection to the plot of the second Next Gen movie (First Contact). But it is not required to understand and enjoy any of their movies. And you definitely need to see GENERATIONS. Peace!
Plummer and Shatner knw each other well, as they both came up through the theatre system in Canada. They acted together in Shakespeare plays, as i recall.
Christian Slater's mother, Mary-Jo Slater was the casting director of this film. That's how he was able to score a cameo in the film. I will soon provide you with a suggestive list of Next Generation episodes to watch to better understand the films.
As for the Next Generation films, I recommend "Star Trek: Generations" and "Star Trek: First Contact." The rest I don't know as I haven't seen them due to the lackluster reviews. I do recommend watching the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episodes "Q Who" (Season 2, Episode 16), and "The Best of Both Worlds" Part 1 (Season 3 Episode 26) and Part 2 (Season 4 Episode 1) prior to watching "First Contact"...or at least read the synopses on those episodes for background!
It's interesting that while the Khitomer Accords were signed in this movie, which came out in 1991, already in The Next Generation (1987-1994) the Federation and the Empire were at peace. Though the exact details were not set in stone before this film. In the 1990 aired episode Yesterday's Enterprise, the peace between the Federation and the Empire was attributed to the sacrifice of Enterprice C, some 50 years after the Khitomer Accords were signed in The Undiscovered Country. Gowron, leader of the Empire during TNG era, withdrew from the Accords when the Federation condemned their attack on the Cardassians (Deep Space 9 episode Way of the Warrior), but later reinstated them to fight with the Federation against the Dominion (DS9 episode By Inferno's Light).
Fun fact: The Klingon Prison Commander's (Morgan Sheppard) speech is ALMOST the same as Col. Saito's speech in "Bridge on the River Kwai" I mentioned it to Mr. Sheppard at Comic-Con and he said he was told "If you're gonna steal, steal from the best".
I would recommend watching the next two Star Trek movies, as they are decent. Generations is pretty good and First contact is the best of the Next Gen movies, however, I don't think many people are going to argue that Insurrection and Nemesis are pretty bad. The FX are decent throughout, but story wise .......... not so much. Also, the extra context of watching particular episodes is nice, but unneeded in order to understand the next few movies. They do a pretty good job of explaining things and being self-contained, while giving easter eggs for those that watched those episodes.
Ironically, Chang is a better example for Human Klingon peace than anyone else on the scene. Not only does he clearly love Human literature but he's built up an effective conspiracy alongside Starfleet Officers.
Christian Slater is a Star Trek fan, his mother was in charge of casting for the film, so he got a cameo.
He also owns Capt. Kirk's command chair. If you've seen his series "Breaking In" he often sits in it. Lol
He still has the cheque for his role in ST6, he never cashed it in, instead he framed it.
@@hyzenthlay7151 that's such a sincere baller move.
Wow i love ST and i like Slater. I never knew that.
I don't understand why everyone freaks out about this. Who is that guy?
Yes I know, he's another actor who played a lot of roles in a lot of movies.
But what is the significance that makes people go "OMG IT'S HIM"????
everytime Nicholas Meyer was in the building everything improved, shout out to this underrated writer/director
When he was included in the pre-production and development team for "Discovery", I knew they weren't playing around with that show.
Just from the opening credits it feels like a much more serious movie 👍🏼
it should be added the "ey" in his last named is pronounced like "uy" in the word "buy", instead of what he said in the video.
@@silkwesir1444 no one cares
Nicholas Meyer famously not a Trek fan and often at odds with Roddenberry directed two of the best Trek movies.
Almost as if Roddenberry wasn't that good at directing/producing.
Yes. My personal favorite of the series. You may have noticed the parallels with the Chernobyl disaster and the cold war in the story
Thanks for that thought, i honestly never thought about that. As Gorbatchew said, it was his oppinion, that the desaster of Chernobyl quickend the decline of the Soviet Union. But i somehow never matched the movie and the real life events, even tho i know that the Klingons where somewhat a symbol for the Soviet Union as a counterpart for the Federation.
yeah nimoy said that the basic idea for the movie was "what if the wall came down in outer space?"
@@voldavkuk Gorkon/Gorbachev, Gulags, explosion at an energy facility with environmental contamination, Nixon going to China, all the clues were there. Part of why I like this film so much.
I never considered this, but it makes total sense.
Gotta love it when the toxic fanbase today whines about new Trek being overtly political and "woke"...
Like, what Star Trek have you morons been watching?
Trek 4, save the whales, save the planet, overly green peace movie.
Trek 6, the analogy of making peace with your enemy after an energy crisis.
Agree completely about Shatner and Nimoy in this film. Very powerful performances.
By the way, "the game's afoot" is originally from Henry V:
I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips,
Straining upon the start. The game's afoot:
Follow your spirit, and upon this charge
Cry 'God for Harry, England, and Saint George!'
But of course most people these days do know it best from Sherlock Holmes.
In case you missed the quote, "Second star to the right and straight on 'till morning" is from Peter Pan. It marks the entrance to Neverland, where no one ever grows up. Fitting that this is the final course for this Enterprise crew.
It is also has another meaning, as the lyrics to Peter Pan explain that following that star will lead to your wishes coming true. So Kirk is looking towards a hopeful future.
The Kim Catrall character was supposed to be Saavik from Trek II, III, and IV which would have made the murder mystery more complex and poignant. However, Saavik had already been recast with a different actress ( Robyn Douglas taking over for Kirstie Alley) and Robyn did not want to come back for this film. Rather than recast the character of Saavik for a third time, the movie just uses another character.
I wonder if the character was supposed to be a "Lt Cmdr Saavik" thus the rank insignia. Maybe they prepared the uniform for Curtis but then rewrote the character.
I understood that the fans disliked Saavik being a traitor and that was why a new character was used in her place.
@@MichaelJohnson-vi6eh they messed up with the red undershirt and blue trim on the jacket
@@daveautzen9089 I don't think however that using a new character instead of Saavik has the same impact.
Movie makers should have some respect for a fandom, but they should also not be too limited sometimes of doing something that goes against fan wishes and expectation if it is done in order to tell a strong story.
The spirit in which such a decision is made plays an important role. Is it done in order to keep the universe 'dynamic' so that it doesn't grow stale and predicable, or just just a cheap trick to create fake drama.
Saavik being half-Romulan would have played into why she would be willing to take part.
Shan, I strongly recommend that if you end up watching The Next Generation movies, you should watch four particular episodes of the TNG show, as movie #8 (First Contact) is a sequel to them: *Q, Who?* (S02E16), *The Best of Both Worlds*, parts I & II (S03E26 & S04E01), and *Family* (S04E02)
Preferably watch them even before movie #7 (Generations), as it will help you get your bearings with the characters (not to mention, the last of those four episodes is also followed up on in movie #7)
Seconded, with maybe the addition of Encounter at Farpoint and All Good Things to help put a nice opening and closing to the series to illustrate how far the characters of Picard and Q had come by the end. Encounter at Farpoint will also introduce the concept of the Holodeck which is used several times in the TNG movies.
I would add the pilot episode. Not the greatest episode, but it sets up Q Who. Otherwise agree.
id say watch all the next generation episodes do 2 or 3 episodes in one day and have a few days gap after finishing a season before doing another season
I think while the extra context is nice, it is unnecessary to understand what's going on with those films. While those that watch those episodes will enjoy it more, the movies themselves do a pretty good job of explaining who, what, and why without those episodes.
Yes, this! Without knowing the background given in those four episodes, "First Contact" loses _so_ much impact, arguably doesn't even make sense in some places (or at the very least it's extremely hard to understand the behaviour of certain characters).
One of my favorite quotes from the movie:
Chang:(On speaker) I am constant as the northern star!
Bones: (While setting the torpedo) I'd give real money if he'd shut up....
Sulu's "Target that explosion and fire!" is one of the best-delivered exciting lines in the Star Trek movies.
A bunch of great lines in this film. I think my favorite is Chang shouting "Don't wait for the translation, answer me now." Similar to Adlai Stevenson during the Cuban Middle Crisis.
I still remember watching this in the theater as a kid and there wasn't a dry eye in there at the end, everyone stood up and gave a huge round of applause. That line from Peter Pan is just a perfect cap to a stellar franchise, Its amazing that even after all these years they never cease to make me emotional.
I was there too as a kid... I was young, but i knew this was the last. I didnt really understand the politics at the time, but now i do. We really need to chase down peace, even if it conflicts w/ our own emotions. Now i sound like Spock...
Star Trek II had an amazing CGI segment when you consider how early it was for a CGI shot (the section showing the terraforming of the Genesis Device). It was developed by the computer department at ILM to show off what they could do. Those developers would then eventually be part of Pixar. When Star Trek VI came out, morphing effects were becoming really popular (it's more of a video effect where the computer shifts pixels around). The Klingon blood was really hard because fluid simulations didn't exist. They had to animate spheres and figure out cheats for making them look like they were merging. Proper raytracing (which renders reflections) also hadn't really been developed since computers weren't really capable then. The refit Enterprise/Alpha is my favorite Enterprise design and the detail of the practical model is amazing to look at (especially when it had iridescent patterns in Motion Picture).
I believe the defense attorney at the trial was played by Michael Dorn, (Worf) from the Next Generation series. The tribute at the start for Gene Roddenberry was because of his passing before this film was completed. The Next Generation movies are worth watch. I believe every other one is a good movie if memory serves. Thx again for another great reaction Shan...
He is Michael Dorn, and the attorney is called Worf, father of Mogh, grandfather of Worf.
@@hyzenthlay7151 Thx for the info...
@@hyzenthlay7151 If I remember correctly, they also had a similar trial scene in Enterprise with one of Worf's ancestors.
@@anonimuso That episode, "Judgement", had Archer represented by an advocate named Kolos, played by J.G. Hertzler (Martok) and was not a relation of Worf's.
@@lordmortarius538 Thanks. I guess I was completely wrong. I swore there was someone from the House of Mogh in that episode. But maybe it's just because Worf is my favorite character. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
"If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?" is from Shakespeare. Just in case anyone thought that this movie made it famous, no, it's much older.
@Darkstar I'm pretty sure a whole lot more people have read Shakespeare or seen the play than the number of people that have seen Star Trek VI.
“Second star to the right” is a reference to Peter Pan. Fitting given that Kirk’s character always had a bit of that “boy who never grows up” element.
What I think you take for granted with the Klingon blood is that CGI was still very new at the time, and to me the mere fact that they showed blood floating was great. At that point I had never seen a sci-fi show/movie acknowledge how blood would react in zero gravity, so I was always able to look back the cartoon look of it just for that.
My older brother was into star trek and took me to see this in the theatre. The best one
On the day this movie came out I was at my very first Star Trek convention in Sacramento with William Shatter, Leonard Nimoy and De Forest Kelly. I’ll never forget it.
Great review as always. I think you should at least watch the next two next generation films (Star Trek: Generations and the great Star Trek: First Contact) after that.....well...lol, I love Star Trek the next generation, and I think First Contact was the best of the Next Generation films.
Yeah, the Borg one is the last good movie
First Contact is good, a couple of amazing scenes with Jean Luc!! 🐋😡😂🤣😂
Insurrection has great story and nemesis is excellent
Seconded
First Contact is my favorite of the Next Gen.
I drove 2 hours to see this in a theater with a larger screen than what was in the local theater. I wanted to see the original crew and the Enterprise-A in the best viewing possible.
At the end of the movie, just before the credits, each actor signed their name on the screen. My eyes got misty and I felt a feeling of a sad goodbye for this crew.
That scene and when Kirk says, "Second star to the right and straight on until morning." That reference to Neverland I always found to be rather poignant.
Yes. My parents drove across town for THX and the 70mm presentation.
You picked a good one to travel for its such a great film.
One of the best subtle connections. Kirk and McCoy's Klingon lawyer is played by Micheal Dorn as the "grandfather" of the character he would play for "The Next Generation", "Deep Space 9" and 4 feature films. Lt. Comm. Worf.
BEEN WAITING FOR THIS. I really love VI, the whodunnit mystery, the scenery chewing villain, the humour, it's great. RIP David Warner, a genre legend.
And the "Nixon" line, which got a HUGE laugh in the theatre!
RIP David Warner and the great Christopher Plummer as well!
@@ianwestc oh yes, you just reminded me about Inside Man, fantastic Spike Lee movie with Plummer, Clive Owen and Jodie Foster
They shot the outside prison stuff on a glacier in Alaska. I lived there at the time and remember hearing all about it on the news. 🙂
The poster on the screen behind you is one of my favourite movie posters of all time, it's gorgeous.
Also the soundtrack is holy crap levels of amazing especially given the composer didn't have much experience.... Sadly his career didn't reach the heights it should have.
Also you asked what the aftermath is. The Khitomer peace accords are mentioned many many times throughout the rest of the trek...most notably in the show Deep Space Nine where the Klingons rip them up and re-declare war on the Federation for a short time.
I agree, Cliff Eidelman really went above and beyond for Star Trek 6.
@@scottjo63 at the time it came out a lot of Trek traditionalists didn't like it, but for me it is right up there with James Horner's score from Wrath of Khan. The two best TOS movies also had the best scores, IMO. I love Eidelman's score.
@@WrathOfTheGoth Actually, what I couldn't believe, that I loved this score more then Horner's and Goldsmith's. I only wonder what John Williams would have brought if he did the music for any of the Star Trek movies.
The score was actually intended to evoke Gustav Holst's The Planets. Meyer actually wanted to use the suite for the soundtrack, but they didn't have the money for the licensing. The opening titles were written as a reference the Mars movement.
Nick Meyer also lamented that he's the one who got Horner started in the industry, but by the time it came to make Star Trek VI they could no longer afford him!
The Klingon defense attorney is played by Michael Dorn, who played Worf in Star Trek The Next Generation. They gave him different hair and slightly different head ridges, but he is supposed to be Worf' grandfather.
Trivia: The "public defender" who speaks for Kirk and McCoy at their trial is called Colonel Worf, played by Michael Dorn. The actor was already a regular on "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (and later, ST:DS9) as Security officer Lt. Worf, grandson of the character in this film. In other words, he played his own grandfather in the film. ;-]
Another bit of trivia is that Chang's demand to Kirk during the trial, "Don't wait for the translation, answer me know!" is based upon U.S. ambassador to the UN Adlai Stevenson's demand to the Soviet Ambassador during a UN Security Council meeting regarding the Soviet missiles in Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
@@JoseyWales44s Oh, wow, I did not know that! Fascinating!
You should definitely continue with Next Gen, at least the first two
Only with the first two. :)
@@tsogobauggi8721 I personally like all 4 but I know some donty
Skip generations....it's garbage. Go directly to first contact... after that the only interesting one is Nemesis...but most people hate that one for weird reasons.
@@0PsychosisMedia0 I love generations, I think it’s much better than best of both worlds
@@TheTTGibson I like Generations too. Malcolm McDowell was awesome in that. But First Contact is definitely the guy.
A great farewell to the original STAR TREK cast! 🖖
YES.I saw this film at the cinema and felt sad this was the original crews last film.I watched TOS in syndication during the late 70s ( The original series was a MASSIVE hit in syndication ) introducing an entire new generation to Star Trek.With the success of Star Wars,Star Trek MP was green-lit.
The Movie was basically "What if the Iron Curtain came down in space?". It was the then-current End of the Cold War transposed into the Star Trek-Universe, with Sci-Fi-Equivalents of Chernobyl, Glasnost, Perestroika, Gulags, Gorbachev, Bush, Hardliners and Show Trials.
When "Wrath of Khan" was made, Jerry Goldsmith was considered to write the Score but he was deemed to expensive for this deliberately lower budgeted movie so Meyer went with the then-unknown James Horner instead and the movie put Horner on the map. Likewise, Horner was considered to score "The Undiscovered Country" but had become so sought after that he too was probably too expensive. Meyer thus chose another Newcomer. Sadly, this Movie still continues to be the Highpoint in Eidelmans' career. He continued to write music for films, but the projects he was assigned to became smaller in scale and visibility as the 90s and 00s went on. And he hasnt scored a single film since 2012.
The Klingon Cruiser Gorkon arrived on belonged to the same class as the Three Klingon Vessels "deleted" by V'ger at the start of the first movie.
The Rura Penthe-Exteriors were filmed in Alaska, I believe.
This was the final time the Enterprise-Miniature originally built for the first movie appeared on-screen. It was hauled out of storage in 2001 to serve as a reference point for new Effects Shots made for the Directors Edition of "The Motion Picture". A few years later it was auctioned off. I think its now owned by Jeff Bezos.
This was the final on-screen appearance of DeForest Kelley (Bones) before his death in 1999, the first of the Original Cast to go.
*Definately* continue with the TNG-Movies after this, but some TV-Episodes are neccessary for context. I suggest:
- Encounter at Farpoint; Season 1, Episode 1&2 (The Pilot, does a good job introducing the Setting and the Characters)
- Q Who; Season 2, Episode 16
- Best of Both Worlds; Season 3, Episode 26 & Season 4, Episode 1
- Family; Season 4, Episode 2
- I, Borg; Season 5, Episode 23
- All Good Things...; Season 7, Episode 25&26
You should be able to tackle these Episodes in three batches.
👉 _Time After Time_ (1979) - Nicholas Meyer directed few films, each a classic - _STII:TWOK,_ _The Day After,_ _STVI:TUC_ - but his 1979 "HG Wells vs Jack The Ripper" debut film is a _Star Trek-adjacent_ time travel caper masterpiece worth watching.
Keep going with _Trek_ - _Generations_ is great - it's a good idea to watch the tie-in _TNG_ episodes "Q Who?", "The Best Of Both Worlds", & "The Inner Light" as prep.
If I remember correctly, because this movie was 1991, ILM said they had to invent these liquid blood blobs for this film. That had never been done before. So I cut them a little slack as you look at a 31 year old movie.
Also, interestingly, this is the first Star Trek film that was rated PG - 13 for the violence, and I believe they had to quickly change the Klingon blood color from red to pink because it was going to get an R rating for its gore at the time and Paramount was not going to allow that.
Love your analysis and I love that you did Star Trek. Please do the Next Generation films as well, but you’re going to have to add in a few episodes first for them to be fully impactful.
That's interesting. I wondered why the blood was pink. I just assumed the weird look was due to the gravity being out.
@@ArtisticMysticSoul pink blood was a really weird choice, though. Orange or rust or something could’ve been better. I always thought the Klingon blood looked like Pepto-Bismol. Lol
I want to thank you for taking on the Star Trek movies in a serious and respectful way. Not many people give these movies a chance because of all the negative attention the hard core fans have caused. These movies are special to me because my father and I bonded over our love of Star Trek and all good Science fiction movies line Aliens and T2. Great job sir!
You should definitely continue with the next generation films! Sure it’s great if you’ve seen the episodes that tie in but they provide context during the films so you’re not lost. At the very least you need to watch the very next one called Generations!
"2nd star on the right and on until morning" is from Peter Pan, the boy who wouldn't grow up, which also was I think about Kirk's boyish wonder with exploration and space.
A stark contrast to the heavier Shakespeare quotes by Chang,
Movie starts with a bang, with George Takei being the first actor on screen. George Takei was made a starship Captain ( not even Spock was a Starship Commander) and yet he still complains that his character did not have enough screen time. What a bitter man, but then I forget about his huge acting career outside of Star Trek.
Spock was Captain of the _Enterprise_ as seen in the start of Wrath of Khan
This is such a great submarine movie. Every computer, device, or instrument is constant alt making some noise filling out the atmosphere and tight quarters.
Alas! We’ve arrived at the bittersweet end to the Star Trek journey. I originally subscribed to this channel when your reaction to the Wrath of Khan was released. I appreciate your enthusiasm & respect for the industry at large, you’ve made me tune into who’s to credit for the production & music in other movies as well. Personally, subjectively, I’m not as much of a fan of TNG movies, though I encourage you to judge for yourself if you’re so inclined to watch & I’ll be along for the ride either way. Thank you for your thoughtful perspective once again!
Over many years and rewatches, this has surpassed "Wrath of Kahn" as my favorite. Great writing, character development, and...
...Christopher Plummer
I found your reaction to the CG blood interesting. When the film came out, i didn't find the blood very distracting. However, the blood quality wasn't just due to the era. The production was under enormous time and budget constraints. The first budget for the Nimoy script (which was the second story attempt) came in at $41m, but the studio then forced them to cut $11m from that. And after that Nimoy script was finished, it spent six months in "development Hell" with the actors, producer, director, and Gene Roddenberry banging each other up over details. (They all knew it would be the last TOS film.) Consequently, with a studio-imposed hard release deadline of December 1991, principal photography did not begin until April 1991. So all of the above surely had a big effect on that blood scene, which was indeed far from being a trivial job for the tech of early 1991.
It was actually pretty impressive for the time. Particularly things like Gorkun's legs scattering it as he spins. It looks very artificial now, but for a pre-Jurassic Park (which came out two years later) movie, it is a really ambitious scene.
@@WrathOfTheGoth 👍🏼 I agree, i remember being very impressed after seeing the entire scene for the first time! My initial thought on seeing the first spurt was "Come on guys, get it together," but by the time i'd seen the whole scene, i was slack-jawed. 😮
@@no_rubbernecking And the only reason it was purple was for the age rating. Which actually broke established canon, previously the Klingons had regular red blood.
When people pretend Discovery broke established canon over the Klingons, ST6 did it first.
@@RichO1701e Interesting. I didn't remember that, but i did think the purple was a curious choice.
I believe the deal was that if they used red blood, they’d get an “R” rating. So with purple blood, they could swing a “PG-13”
I just looked it up. The gulag, Rura Penthe, was filmed on an Alaskan glacier.
Some fun little bits of continuity that are often overlooked:
FROM THE MOVIES: When Spock is taking the test on Vulcan at the beginning of _ST4_ there is a question about one ship following another so closely the sensors on the ship being followed indicate both ships are occupying the same space; this is the trick the Bird-Of-Prey uses to make it look like the _Enterprise_ is firing on _Qo'noS One._ Also, the interpreter at the trial is played by the same actor who portrayed Captain Klaa in _ST5,_ so fans often assume they're both the same character, and Klaa got busted down to translator for his actions in that movie.
FROM NON-CANON SOURCES: A novel published in the early '80s, titled _Enterprise: The First Adventure_ details James T. Kirk's fist outing as captain of the legendary ship, and provides the likely source of the Klingons' interest in Shakespeare. There is also a 1990s video game called _Klingon Academy_ - possibly one of the best Star Trek games ever made - which tells of a civil war in the Klingon Empire some two years prior to the events of _ST6_ and which ends with Gorkon's rise to power, Chang's descent into villainy, and Praxis being overused for energy production, leading to the explosion at the start of the movie. (And yes, David Warner and Christopher Plummer both reprise their roles in it.)
That's not the trick the Bird of Prey uses. She was cloaked, so Qo'noS One wouldn't have been able to see her regardless. She had to park so close to Enterprise to create the illusion that is where the torpedoes came from. Had they fired from any other angle, it would have been obvious the shots didn't come from Enterprise.
Also, I believe Mike Okuda himself has encouraged the whole, "Klaa got demoted" thing.
@@Ambaryerno When Spock notices the surge in neutron radiation (which we find out is from the Bird-Of-Prey being so close), he tells Kirk "it appears to emanating from us" - i.e., sensors could not distinguish between the two ships.
While the CGI was iffy (it was good enough to scare the crap out of 10-year-old Me at the time), there was a point to the Klingon blood, as in deleted scenes (that would find their way into the film in subsequent home video releases, and are therefore canon) the assassin is outed as a Human (who we also meet in an earlier scene, working for Admiral Cartwright) when his red blood is seen where he landed, a Klingon picking up some on his fingers and saying audibly (for the audience) "This is not Klingon blood!"
But then, the reason for it being purple in the first place was to prevent the film from getting an R-rating, so there's also that. It may be the fact it was not red that made it look so fake as well.
And the actor in that deleted scene was the late Rene Auberjonois, who returned to Star Trek several years later as Odo, in Deep Space Nine.
@@TheOneTrueChris The interesting thing about it is, I used to think that he was brought in for the guest role because of his role as Odo, but no, this movie was two years before DS9 so it was the other way around LOL
one of the best star trek films and the signing of there names at the end such an emotional moment.
The autograph capture technology was fairly new, used primarily for sportscasts (for example, John Madden used it for discussing plays during football games). The cast had been signing autographs at conventions for decades and they thought it was a way to give every fan, no matter where they were, the autograph of each cast member. A great idea and for me the only way I'd ever get DeForrest Kelly's or James Doohan's autograph.
"They're animals."
"Jim, there is an historic opportunity here."
"Don't believe them. Don't trust them."
"They're dying."
"Let them die!"
Fun Fact: Christian Slater framed his $750 paycheck for his walk-on role. Slater wore the trousers made for William Shatner in Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan (1982). He quipped it was an "honor" during a BBC interview.
Hair Character Fact: Christopher Plummer's character, General Chang, was originally to have had hair, but as his make-up was being applied for the first time, Plummer liked the bald look, and had the make-up technician omit the hair. Kim Cattrall designed her own hairstyle for the role of Valeris, and also came up with the idea to completely shave off her sideburns in order to more prominently show her Vulcan ears.
Historical Fact: Spock's line "Only Nixon could go to China" refers to the 37th U.S. President Richard Nixon having been seen as the best American politician to be sent to China to discuss detente. His strong anti-Communist stance avoided giving the impression that the United States had "gone soft" and sent a sympathetic negotiator. The film is largely an allegory about the fall of Soviet Communism. When General Chang demands that Captain Kirk answer a question without waiting for the translation, it is an allusion to the real-life exchange at the United Nations between U.S. Ambassador Adlai Stevenson and Soviet Ambassador Valerian Zorin during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Also, the explosion on Praxis due to "insufficient safety measures" is akin to the meltdown at Chernobyl nuclear power plant in present-day Ukraine, which is believed to have contributed to the decline of the Soviet Union. Spock says that there was seventy years of "unremitting hostility" between the Klingon Empire and the Federation, which is not how long the Cold War lasted, but is the approximate length of time that the USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) existed in the twentieth century, with a communist form of government.
The most 'fun fact' I can give you about the filmis that Christopher Plummer had worked with Shatner back in the mid 50's. Plummer had been appearing as the lead in Henry V at the Stratford (Ontario, Canada) Shakespeare Festival, with Shatner as his understudy. Suffering from a kidneystone, he was unable to perform, but sat in the audience and watched.
“He didn’t do what I did at all,” Plummer recalled in a separate interview. “Where I stood up to make a speech, he sat down. He did the opposite of everything I did. And I knew that son of a bitch was going to be a star.”
When Plummer passed away last year, Shatner tweeted this:
“A gentleman whose name is Christopher Plummer died today. He was what I call a friend. What is the definition of a friend? Somebody you know intimately whose every breath and every thought that is so much like yours or can a friend be someone whose life is intertwined near and afar with great gaps of time between meetings? That was the kind of friend Chris Plummer was to me. I think the final picture of our friendship was in a documentary I was making in which I interviewed him at a theatre that we both played at - the [Stratford] Ontario Festival. We spent the afternoon laughing and rejoicing in our mutual experiences. That afternoon defined my friendship with Chris. I am so sad to lose him.”
Shatner really doesn't get enough credit as an actor. People love the mock and exaggerate his mannerisms, but if he has a weakness, it's that he throws himself into every part he does with passion. Sometimes it comes on a little strong, but when Shatner is good, he is DAMNED good.
This is definitely my favorite of the original cast, and probably my favorite Star Trek movie overall. This or First Contact. A perfect ending.
First Contact is so bad
No love for Wrath of Khan?
A real cool continuity detail that doesn't get enough love are the digital clocks on the Enterprise bridge. If you watch them you'll see that they keep perfect time in sync with the passage of actual time.
The movie is a metaphor to the end of the Soviet Union. Praxis, the energy production facility that blew up, represents Chernobyl.
This one is my favorite, more due to it being the only original series movie I got to see in the theater. Also may have been the first time I went to a movie without any adults...aside from being driven to the theater.
My favorites are 4 and 6. 2 is good but it's more pew-pew. Those three are my top favs. Two of my favorite scenes in this one is when Sulu messages the Enterprise and simply says that the Excelsior is standing by and the other is when the engineer tells Sulu that they are pushing as hard as they can, they might fly her apart and Sulu says to fly her apart, then.
Um, this one is more pew pew than two. Two had the subplot of Kirk's character arc.
10:28 It's Red Foreman from that 70's show
You should watch "Time Bandits" and see Chancelor Gorkon again in red as a different charactor
The Next Generation crew is my favorite, no knocks to the OG crew bc they’re also amazing, but I grew up with TNG. This movie and the next two movies in the Star Trek universe are my faves! So good, great directing and storylines. Hope you give it a shot!
i kinda grew up with both, My first trek was the movies, not the TOS. after this film, i went right into TNG. Eventually i went back and watched iconic moments in the TOS.
Excellent review! This is my fav Star Trek movie. Not only a good Star Trek movie but just a great movie by any standard.
In case you were unaware, the subtitle of this movie is a reference to Shakespeare's famous "To Be or Not To Be" speech from Hamlet. In that monologue, Hamlet feared death and called it the Undiscovered Country, however in this film, the Undiscovered Country is the unknown future.
It's well worth listening to Hamlet's monologue, as whilst the film is not about the exact same thing, many of the themes of the monologue are definitely played out here, namely being so afraid of the unknown, that people would willingly embrace the familiar, even if what's familiar is objectively bad.
"Who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscovered country from whose bourn
No traveler returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?"
Most people don't realize that the "course heading" that Kirk gives at the very end when they decide to ignore orders are the directions to Neverland ("second star to the right and straight on till morning"), which is absolutely brilliant writing. It's the call to adventure and exploration, which was always the true purpose of the Enterprise.
This and Wrath of Khan are my favorites. And both directed by Nicholas Meyer! He really got the battle sequences right. I think it's because they felt like a naval battle.
One of the things I love about this movie (and Trek in general) is that many of the writers are very well read on the classics and are influenced by them. That's also why TNG was so good. Here, they also include many Shakespeare lines throughout the movie, most notably at the end during the final battle. And that includes "the game is afoot", which people know as Sherlock Holmes but it's originally Shakespeare!
I paused the video to grab something to drink and it paused with a smile on your face at the 5:37 mark and I just want to say that watching you enjoy these movies for the first time makes me think of the first time i saw them as well Thank you for that
One of the better ones in the franchise so great thank you for this one. As you have deep appreciation for practical things in films, may I suggest "Towering Inferno", or "Gold" or good old fashioned car chase, there is "Bullitt"? I did see a bit of a deep dive into one of my old psychological films which is still very creepy, "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane". This Star Trek film does have very good points in it. Great Reaction so big Thank you for a wonderful watch! Very happy you enjoyed this as much as many others have done over the years.
Shan,
I love your reviews and your reactions. It's like I'm watching the movie again for the 1st time when I watch it with you. I'd give Star Trek a rest at this point, before you get into the next generation movies. There are so many other movies that deserve your review. Please try some of the following, if you haven't seen them already.
-Ronin
-The Piano, with Holly Hunter.
-Unbreakable
-The Red Violin
R.E. Sulu being Captain of the Excelsior. There is a very small cut in Star Trek 2, where Admiral Kirk is on final approach to the Enterprise for his inspection. Sulu says "I'm delighted, any chance to go aboard the Enterprise" then it cuts away and returns with Kirk saying "I'm glad to have you at the helm, I don't think these kids can steer".
Sulu's full line was actually "I'm delighted, any chance to go aboard the Enterprise, however briefly, is always an excuse for nostalgia", which is then followed by Kirk saying that Spock is Captain of the Enterprise but he'll be in command of the Excelsior "by the end of the month", McCoy congratulates him, and Sulu thanks them both. Then we get Kirk's unedited line.
We are lucky enough to still have William shatner and I implore you to check out his interviews he's done on the Adam carolla podcast. The man sounds sharper than certain people that are 30 years younger than him who are in charge of nuclear weapons. He seems like a very kind and knowledgeable soul.
Hey Shan, now who is your favorite James T. Kirk? Pine or Shatner?
I’m glad you enjoyed it. This movie took place during the time of Gorbachev and glasnost so that we were working with peace with the Russians and the movie mirrored that conflict of those who won peace with the Russians, and those who didn’t clans always represent the Russian empire throughout the Star Trek universe, and Starfleet represents the US whereas in case you didn’t know, Vulcan represent Japan and Roman represent China, other films are good to watch. If you want to see Kirk again, he is in the next movie and starts in generations. It’s a handoff from the previous generation to the next generation starts seven generations. Yeah, prison shots to place very near Siberia in Alaska but near Siberia. Thanks for the fun.
15:52 In my memory of seeing this in the cinema thirty-two years ago, the scenes shot on the ice in Alaska did not have that purple tint. I may be right: there have been at least three published cuts of this movie.
I was 9 or 10 when I saw this. I think it was the first Star Trek feature I saw, although I watched The Next Generation religiously. I remember being amazed at the assassination sequence. I knew the blood was a special effect, but CGI was not in common usage, and it simply looked otherworldly in a captivating way. I've come to see the flaws in the film: it is overly reliant on literary references, to the point that it feels as if Meyer is impressed with his own education, and the whodunit aspect is a little clumsy, but the acting is phenomenal and it looks gorgeous thanks to Hiro Narita's cinematography. I still love it. Great reaction.
One of the developments of the Next Generation was that, decades after the original Star Trek, the Federation and the Klingon Empire had become allies. This movie was a bridge to the Next Generation by setting up that development.
Michael Dorn, who played Kirk and Bones' Klingon lawyer, played Worf, the only Klingon serving the Federation from The Next Generation. The Klingon lawyer he played was his character's grandfather in The Next Generation.
Ah finally my favorite Star Trek captain from all the films and TV. They do not give Capt Sulu a lot of screen time but IMHO he makes the most of the limited time he was given. His actions and reactions strike me as spot on, especially the short scene with Christian Slater (doing his cameo). 'Do you have hearing problems Mister?' He doesn't shout, he doesn't need to. Being called Mister no rank no name is not a good sign in anyone's Navy. Questioning the Captain, even one skirting the edge of his orders; is a dicey buisness at best. Sulu doesn't 'bring the hammer down' but the rebuke is quick and reflexive. 'She'll fly apart!' 'Fly Her Apart Then!'; Ships and their crews are entrusted to Captains. They are charged to not hazard them NEEDLESSLY, but there are times when to save nations, ships must be lost. Admirals and Captains are the folks handed the weight of making those calls. No bravado, no posing; if we do not get there in time the peace talks are doomed, ergo we will continue and if she blows up she blows up.
"Fly her apart then!" -Captain Sulu Such a great movie!
"Second star to the right, and straight on 'til morning..." - Peter Pan :o) This movie also bridges into The Next Gen show & films as when that show was in the 24th century - 70/80 years later, the Klingon's were already in a truce, or peaceful with the Federation - this helps the road to that peace.
The visual effects for Star Trek 6 was again made by George Lucas's Industrial Light and Magic as for Star Trek 2-4 (ILM was unavailable for Star Trek 5 because all teams were busy working with Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Ghostbusters 2 so a lower-budget studio was chosen for ST5). The effects were pretty much at their best for the time.
Great reaction! I definitely think you should continue with the Next Generation films, but as stated there are a few episodes that are essential to invest in the new characters and setting. Another reactor I watch has been doing three episode blocks of select episodes to react to and I think that is the way to go. It also let's you stretch out your Star Trek content without committing to reacting to the entire TNG series.
The following list is one I have curated myself. It includes many fan favorite episodes, several that are excellent character showcases, and many that will add context to events in the films. From my point of view I would recommend:
*S1E1 Encounter at Farpoint pt.1
*S1E2 Encounter at Farpoint pt.2
S1E9 Measure of a Man (key Data episode)
*S2E16 Q-who? (Directly informs First Contact)
S3E Booby Trap (key Geordi Laforge episide)
S3E15 Yesterday's Enterprise (key Tasha Yar episode)
S3E17 Sins of the Father (key Worf episode)
S3E23 Sarek (original series tie-in)
*S3E26 The Best of Both Worlds pt.1 (directly informs First Contact)
*S4E1 The Best of Both Worlds pt. 2 (directly informs First Contact)
*S4E2 Family (directly informs Generations)
S4E7 Reunion (informs Generations)
S4E9 Final Mission (key Wesley Crusher/Picard episode)
S4E26 Redemption pt. 1 (informs Generation)
S5E1 Redemption pt. 2 (informs Generations)
*S5E8 Unification pt.1 (directly informs Star Trek 2009)
*S5E9 Unification pt.2 (directly informs Star Trek 2009)
S5E14 Cause and Effect (top 10 episode)
S5E25 Inner Light (key Picard episode)
*S6E4 Relics (original series tie-in)
S6E10 Chain of Command pt.1 (top 10 episodes)
S6E11 Chain of Command pt.2 (top 10 episodes)
S6E15 Tapestry (key Picard episode)
S7E16 Thine Own Self (key Troi Episode)
*S7E25 All Good Things pts. 1&2 (bookends the series and sets up Generations)
*= essential.
The key difference between the original series(and their films) and the Next Generation is that TNG is much more of an ensemble, but the rest of the cast is largely under utilized in their films. So when there are stakes, they are diminished by unfamiliarity with those characters and their relationships. It is definitely a flaw in their films, but it also shows how much more the continuity mattered with these characters because they are more developed.
Chancellor Gorkon was a composite character based on Mikhail Gorbachev and Abraham Lincoln. Both men seeking peace and one assassinated for it. Other film facts, the Enterprise's dining room and the Federation President's office were sets from the tv show Star Trek The Next Generation, specifically, the conference room and the crew lounge called Ten Forward from the Enterprise D.
As I recall, there were actually parts of the conference room set that were lost during the making of this film, so when they redressed it to resume filming for TNG I believe the display with the models of the previous Enterprises was no longer present.
The bridge sets for Enterprise and Excelsior were redressed from the Battle Bridge in TNG, and they also reused Enterprise-D's engine room for this film. In fact, I think there's parts where if you look REALLY closely you can see some of the Okudagrams or other markings from TNG.
It is fitting that Christopher Plummer used lots of Shakespeare quotes with William Shatner. Back in '56 Plummer was playing Henry V at the Stratford Festival in Ontario, Canada and ended up being hospitalized one night after dislodging a kidney stone. This rendered him unable to take the stage the following evening which meant his understudy, Shatner, would have to take his place.
The peace (and later alliance) between the Federation, and the Empire that factor so heavily into shaping the future, flow from this key series of events. To me it feels like a story that takes place in a world populated by many contrasting interests, rather than an incidental story about the crew of one ship. It took decades, but Star Trek is one of the few concepts to create a world with what could be called a Tolkien'esque depth. As others said below, of the Next Generation films, it's really the first two that matter. Generations is the hand-off, and First Contact is the Star Trek film I'd been waiting my whole life to see without knowing it. It's absolutely fantastic.
Sulu in command of Excelsior was something that was introduced as early as Star Trek II. Dialogue filmed but cut from the final film (it can be found on UA-cam) indicated that Sulu was due to take command sometime after Enterprise's training mission, had it not been interrupted by Khan and the events surrounding Genesis. This also explains his fascination with the ship in Star Trek III and IV.
The original plan for the film was for Saavik to return and be the traitor, however there's a combination of factors that led to her being replaced with an original character:
First, Gene Roddenberry quite vehemently objected, and insisted Saavik would never betray Spock and the Enterprise crew. This led to a fight with Meyer, who claimed as her creator that he could do with her what he wanted. Roddenberry refused to back down and this caused considerable tension between them, with the studio siding with Roddenberry.
Second, they first wanted to bring Kirstie Alley back, but she wanted WAY more money than the role called for (by this time, Alley had become known for being difficult and having a tremendous ego). Robin Curtis, who portrayed Saavik in III and IV, was unavailable due to other projects. This mean they were faced with casting a THIRD actress in the role.
Between the prospect of having to recast, and Roddenberry's continued attempts to overrule Meyer, the role was ultimately rewritten as an original character, Valeris. In hindsight, while Roddenberry often had questionable judgment towards the latter part of his control of the franchise, in this case I think he was absolutely right. Had they made Saavik the traitor, the fanbase likely would have CRUCIFIED Meyer. I think he was underestimating just how beloved she was by the fans. So while there's distinct elements in Valeris's characterization that makes it obvious she was originally written as Saavik, the decision to make her an original character was ultimately the right one.
This movie was made after the 1989 death of Merrit Butrick, who played David, from AIDS complications. The scene with Butrick's photograph was included by Meyer as a tribute. Roddenberry himself died shortly before the film made its debut in theaters.
The Federation President is played by Kurtwood Smith. AKA, Red Foreman. If you watch closely, the President has a pair of glasses that he periodically puts on, and he's often not looking directly at people addressing him. And in the climax when Kirk is calling "Mr. President!" he's looking around in confusion. It was actually written into the story the President was BLIND. His glasses are a primitive precursor to Geordi LaForge's VISOR in TNG.
The translator during Kirk's trial is played by Todd Bryant, who also portrayed Captain Klaa in the previous film. It's popular among fans, encouraged by Mike Okuda, to say that the translator IS Klaa, who got busted in the aftermath of his attack on Enterprise.
Kirk and McCoy's lawyer, Colonel Worf, is portrayed by Michael Dorn, who more famously played Enterprise-D's LIEUTENANT Worf in Star Trek: The Next Generation (which debuted in 1987). Colonel Worf is Lieutenant Worf's grandfather. The commandant of Rura Penthe is played by Morgan Sheppard. Sheppard appeared in several other iterations of Star Trek, including TNG, Voyager, and the JJ-Verse. Brock Peters - Admiral Cartwright - would later play Ben Sisko's father on Star Trek: Deep Space 9.
Yet another major Star Trek connection here is the character of Colonel West who, depending on the version of the film you're watching, may not appear (he was excised from the theatrical cut, but the original VHS and DVD releases restored him). In the full version of the film, West is one of the conspirators who proposes a military raid to rescue Kirk and McCoy after their arrest. In the full cut, the Klingon sniper Scotty kills in the climax is NOT a Klingon at all. Worf realizes he's not bleeding Klingon blood, and he and a Starfleet officer remove his prosthetics and reveal that it's actually Colonel West. West is played by the late Renee Auberjonois, who is better known for his role as the shape-shifter Odo in Star Trek: Deep Space 9 (who, amusingly had to masquerade as a Klingon in one episode...using prosthetics because he couldn't shape-shift at the time).
Christian Slater's mother was on the production crew for the film, and Slater himself was a big Star Trek fan, so managed to wrangle his walk-on part as one of Excelsior's junior communications officers.
The exterior scenes on Rura Penthe were filmed in Alaska.
While the film does a great job with its continuity, it does make one mistake: Kirk knew how to fight a cloaked ship! The Season 1 episode of TOS, Balance of Terror, saw Kirk engaged with a Romulan Bird of Prey (originally, the Bird of Prey in III was meant to be a Romulan ship stolen by the Klingons, though this was dropped). It was very much a pastiche of the classic WWII film, The Enemy Below. Even though the Romulan ship was unable to fire while cloaked, Kirk was able to use Enterprise' phasers to find the ship by, basically saturating space around the cloaked ship. While it might have made for a less tense climax, it does create something of a plothole that Kirk would forget how to fight a cloaked ship.
In the original script, it was Excelsior that rigged the seeker torpedo, which was set up by Sulu's mission cataloguing gaseous anomalies in the opening scene. Enterprise, having been in space dock, would not have been carrying the specialized equipment. However, Shatner insisted that Enterprise should save herself in the final movie, which a lot of fans would agree with. Plus, Shat's delivery of the order to fire is absolute badassery. A Bird of Prey is nominally no match for even ONE Federation cruiser without its cloak (Kruge only disabled the original Enterprise because of circumstances, and Chang only did as well as he did because Enterprise basically had to just sit and take the pounding). Against two it wouldn't have a prayer.
I love this film, yet I rank it below 2 and 4. That's just a testament to how good this series is.
For TNG, you don't need to watch many episodes to be caught up enough. The only really essential one is The Best of Both Worlds two-parter, but to get full context to really get the most from the films I'd go for:
S2.16: Q Who
S3.26 The Best of Both Worlds p1
S4.1 The Best of Both Worlds p2
S4.2 Family
You should definitely continue with the series. You only need to watch like 6 episodes of TNG to follow and they're great episodes.
Honestly, you just need "The Best of Both Worlds" two parter, and just have general knowledge of the Next Generation series and Deep Space Nine.
Farpoint 1 and 2, best of both worlds 1 and 2, family, the measure of a man, all good things
@@Iymarra good episodes, but as far as the context needed for the films goes, you really just need the history of who Locutus is, which is "Best of Both Worlds". I say this from experience as I had only seen a handful of episodes of Next Generation when I saw the movies.
@@newfate26 I know, I'm just thinking those for the philosophical debate on data and his desire to know about humanity, the series opener/closer and BoBW
The one thing that really got me in this movie and actually made me forget about Jerry Goldsmith and James Horner was that music by Cliff Eidelman. My favorite scenes were the beginning credits, the "guess who's coming to dinner" Chekov quote from a movie title of the same quote. And that music again, intense. Of course, my absolute favorite scene, and THAT MUSIC again, the assassins beam on, WOW. That Cliff Eidelman went way beyond music and I couldn't believe it. Again, cudos for Jerry Goldsmith (who does come back for Star Trek 7 or rather Star Trek: Generations) and James Horner but Cliff Eidelman cremated them for this music for Star Trek 6. Just my opinion. Goldsmith and Horner are certainly missed especially with the music of today's movies.
I'd agree with you if he hadn't shamelessly copied Holst's "Planets" for some pieces AFTER the producers decided not to license it because it was too expensive. Listen to Holst's "Mars - the bringer of war". Mind you, I love the soundtrack, but this was a pretty sad thing to do.
Denis McCarthy scored ST7: Generations. Goldsmith returned for First Contact.
Nicholas Meyer wanted to use Holst but couldn't afford it, so he asked Eidelman for something Holst-like. In fact, he asked Eidelman for a combination of the beginning of Stravinsky's Firebird Suite and Holst's Mars, and I'd say Eidelman delivered. Film music is full of quotations and inspirations from the classical repertoire. You know who else wanted to use Holst's Planets for one of his films, but ended up a score which sounds a lot like it in places? George Lucas.
Oh, I most certainly hope you will continue with the Next Generation films! Absolutely. I'll leave it to others to suggest whether it may be to your best advantage to see a few Next Generation episodes to get to know the characters beforehand, or just start cold. Maybe you already have some ideas of them, through cultural osmosis, or maybe it's unnecessary. I couldn't guess, as they were longtime acquaintances to me by the time of the films.
You have to watch the next two Shan!! Generations isn’t great but it’s a good bridge film and First Contact is one of the best in the whole series. Watching Next Generation helps but isn’t necessary
Sulu being appointed Captain of the Excelsior was actually mentioned originally back in Star Trek 2 in the book. He was just supposed to be on the Enterprise for a last little training voyage. However, because of the events surrounding the Genisis device and Starfleet anticipating a long down time for the crew for an investigation/inquiry, Sulu gets passed over for the Captain we see in Star Trek 3.
Even Uhura's act of sabotage was because of what they did to Sulu. Check out the novelization of The Search for Spock.
Great review, Shan. One comment though, regarding your comments on the subject of the "blood looks fake" - Klingon blood doesn't look like ours; that's why the kinda purple color to it. You didn't include the scene where Worf (the grandfather 😃) examines the human, red blood and states that it's not Klingon blood. I hope that once you saw that, you realized why the Klingon blood looked "fake." 😉
Hot Damn, Shan!
I forgot you were doing these. Before going into the Next Generation movies, there are a few episodes of the series you may want to watch. "Q-Who", "The Best of Both Worlds" (2 parts), and "Family". Those should be enough to get you into who the crew is, and some other background information you'll need going forward. That's a total of 4 episodes, and that should really cover enough information. Roly Poly Ollie did the same thing, but he also watched the first 2 part episode "Encounter at Farpoint", but I don't think that's absolutely necessary. It's up to you, though.
Only Nixon could go to China. One of the top 10 lines in movie history
The lawyer representing Kirk and Mccoy in the Klingon trial is played by Michael Dorn. The character is called Colonel Worf, and while it's not outright stated on-screen (it's in the script), the character is intended to be the grandfather of Worf in TNG.
Little known fact: The explosions seen in the movie Stargate and both remastered Death Star explosions are referred to as "The Praxis Effect". Also, originally Meyer wanted to use Saavik as a conspirator. He thought the fall from grace of a regular would have more impact but the studio said absolutely not. As a result, we got Saavik 2.0.
Please, continue, not only with the Next Generation movies, but also with the new Star Trek movies. As always, great reaction and review.
Such a great sendoff. On of, if not the best of the movies. YES you should definitely continue. You don't need much back-story from the episodes. You could get away with just 2 (The Best of Both Worlds 1 & 2), though ideally 4 episodes (Q Who / Family) and you have everything you need for First Contact, the only movie you need any backstory for, to understand the villains and the baggage Picard carries into the movie. His headspace is pretty important
CORRECTION: You do NOT have to watch any TNG episodes to fully enjoy the movies. If you watch max three episodes from the show (Q Who, and Best of Both Worlds pts. 1 & 2) you will have a greater emotional connection to the plot of the second Next Gen movie (First Contact). But it is not required to understand and enjoy any of their movies. And you definitely need to see GENERATIONS. Peace!
Plummer and Shatner knw each other well, as they both came up through the theatre system in Canada. They acted together in Shakespeare plays, as i recall.
Yes, I would strongly recommend watching the Next Generation films 👍👍👍👍
Christian Slater's mother, Mary-Jo Slater was the casting director of this film. That's how he was able to score a cameo in the film. I will soon provide you with a suggestive list of Next Generation episodes to watch to better understand the films.
As for the Next Generation films, I recommend "Star Trek: Generations" and "Star Trek: First Contact." The rest I don't know as I haven't seen them due to the lackluster reviews.
I do recommend watching the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episodes "Q Who" (Season 2, Episode 16), and "The Best of Both Worlds" Part 1 (Season 3 Episode 26) and Part 2 (Season 4 Episode 1) prior to watching "First Contact"...or at least read the synopses on those episodes for background!
It's interesting that while the Khitomer Accords were signed in this movie, which came out in 1991, already in The Next Generation (1987-1994) the Federation and the Empire were at peace. Though the exact details were not set in stone before this film. In the 1990 aired episode Yesterday's Enterprise, the peace between the Federation and the Empire was attributed to the sacrifice of Enterprice C, some 50 years after the Khitomer Accords were signed in The Undiscovered Country. Gowron, leader of the Empire during TNG era, withdrew from the Accords when the Federation condemned their attack on the Cardassians (Deep Space 9 episode Way of the Warrior), but later reinstated them to fight with the Federation against the Dominion (DS9 episode By Inferno's Light).
Fun fact: The Klingon Prison Commander's (Morgan Sheppard) speech is ALMOST the same as Col. Saito's speech in "Bridge on the River Kwai" I mentioned it to Mr. Sheppard at Comic-Con and he said he was told "If you're gonna steal, steal from the best".
This and The Wrath Of Khan are definitely my favourite Original Startrek Movies 🎬 😊👍
6:03 - This is Merritt Butrick, who played Kirk's son, David, in the ST2 and ST3. He died in 1989 - which is why his photo is in black-and-white.
Kurtwood Smith (Red Forman) as the Federation President.
I would recommend watching the next two Star Trek movies, as they are decent. Generations is pretty good and First contact is the best of the Next Gen movies, however, I don't think many people are going to argue that Insurrection and Nemesis are pretty bad. The FX are decent throughout, but story wise .......... not so much.
Also, the extra context of watching particular episodes is nice, but unneeded in order to understand the next few movies. They do a pretty good job of explaining things and being self-contained, while giving easter eggs for those that watched those episodes.
Ironically, Chang is a better example for Human Klingon peace than anyone else on the scene. Not only does he clearly love Human literature but he's built up an effective conspiracy alongside Starfleet Officers.
You can tell that he genuinely liked and admired Kirk. A very interesting villain.