STAR TREK NEMESIS

Starring:
Patrick Stewart, Brent Spiner, Jonathan Frakes, Levar Burton, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis, Gates McFadden, Tom Hardy, Ron Perlman and Dina Meyer

Director:
Stuart Baird

Running Time:
116 mins

Out to buy on DVD 11th August

The Romulan senate has a new leader, Praetor Shinzon (Hardy) and his first request is for the Federation to send a representative to Romulus to talk peace. Star Fleet Command sends the flagship, Enterprise and gives Captain Picard (Stuart) orders to proceed with caution after centuries of mistrust.

There is an adage among Trekkers that the even numbered Star Trek movies are the best and with this been the tenth picture in the franchise hopes were very high but they have gone unfounded as Star Trek Nemesis is a complete mess.

Things did look promising in the beginning. This was to be the first movie to be written by someone who had nothing to do with Star Trek franchise, Jonathan Logan, who co-wrote the screenplay for Gladiator, and there was a new director, Stuart Baird (US Marshals) who was to bring a fresh approach to the series. All the cast were back, guest star cameos were plenty, the supporting cast, especially Ron Perlman and Dina Meyer were very good and in Tom Hardy they had a villain with a lot of potential. So it couldn't go wrong could it?

The answer is a resounding yes. There are so many things wrong with this movie, this could end up been one of the longest reviews I've ever written but to be honest it doesn't deserve the attention. At the end on the day the movie's main problem is that writer Jonathan Logan is quoted to have loved Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and it shows, as this film is almost the same, even down to the self-sacrifice ending. Opening with a large action sequence and ending with another is good and what we'd expect but the middle act is a complete bore. Nothing goes on, Picard and Shinzon have many discussions about how it is to be human, living up to your potential and how your past can shape your destiny. Character development is all well and good but this is a sci-fi adventure movie and we need some adventure.

The main cast seem to be bored of the entire Star Trek experience. As with all of the New Generation movies, Picard and Data take centre stage but Patrick Stuart's heart seems to be missing from his performance. It looks like if just turned up for the pay cheque and gave the minimal amount of effort. Brent Spiner is the same and the rest of cast especially Geordi, Worf and Beverley Crusher have hardly any screen time to make an impact. Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis look like they have taken classes in overacting to prepare for their roles of Will Riker and Deanna Troi. The supporting cast is criminally underused, with Ron Perlman's Viceroy and Dina Meyer's Commander Donatra characters frustratingly underdeveloped when they are both good character actors. Tom Hardy's Shinzon had the potential to be the best Trek villain since Khan but while Hardy's performance is the highlight of the film, the character's motivations for his hatred of the Federation are never really explained. For a man that had been treated as a slave and an embarrassment to the Romulan Empire, you'd think it would be his oppressors he hated.

I didn't hate everything however. The desert jeep chase was something different for a Trek movie and the end battle special effects were very good but these did nothing to drag the movie out of the very average category.

So where does the blame lie? It has to be at the feet of one person, the man in charge, Rick Berman. Over the years he has lost the plot. Many of the TV episodes are rehashes of old ideas and now he has taken this trend on the big screen. Star Trek needs to be taken out of his hands or it will die. The tag line for this movie is "A generation's final journey begins", after watching this I think it has now ended.

Audio commentary from director Stuart Baird, 'A Star Trek Family's Final Journey' featurette, 'New Frontiers': Stuart Baird on directing, 'Nemesis' 'A Bold Vision Of The Future' featurette, 'Red Alert! The Shooting Of Nemesis' featurette, Deleted scenes, Photo gallery, Interactive menu & Scene access


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2003