When some of the most memorable scenes of a “Star Trek“The movie isn't epic starship showdowns with laser beams, but rather Kirk (William Shatner), Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and Bones (DeForest Kelley) sitting around a campfire eating beans mixed with Tennessee whiskey and singing “Row, Row.” , Row Your “Boat”, you know you could be in trouble.
Oh yeah, and how can we stop watching Uhura's (Nichelle Nichols) naked fan dance? “Star Trek V: The Last Frontier“has the ignoble distinction of being perhaps the lowest point on the list of “Star Trek” feature films from that era starring “The original series“The team and their forced banter, nightmares of budget cuts, rushed reshoots, terrible special effects by Associates and Ferren, and a strange mission to meet their Creator in the middle of the galaxy have been dissected to infinity and beyond.
Dating back to more character-driven episodes of “The Original Series,” it was an ambitious existential narrative about deep spiritual and philosophical ideas like the nature of life, the inevitability of death, a literal and figurative search for God, and necessity. of all sentient beings to accept and integrate all the pains of life.
However, the actual execution of the script and the filming problems that resulted in some of the cheesiest lines ever uttered in a “Star Trek” film have branded this unloved 1989 entry with a bold badge of shame. But does it really deserve such criticism in a modern review?
While it's certainly light on action and features ridiculous production design that often seems straight out of a bad high school play or micro-budget fan film, it features some touching character moments among the “Trek” trifecta. ” by Kirk, Spock and Bones. and relevant humanistic themes that don't seem as uncomfortable today as they would have been 35 years ago.
After the success of the lighter film “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” in 1986, Paramount was eager to get the script approved and rushed into production. Although he had never directed, Shatner's “equal compensation” clause in his contract gave him the director's job because Leonard Nimoy directed “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock” and “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home”, which had become the most profitable film to date in the venerable “Star Trek” franchise.
Sure, it all starts with a bit of silliness with Spock (sporting jet-powered ski boots) rescuing Kirk from a rock-climbing accident on Yosemite National Park's famous El Capitan granite face and the physics-defying cartoon which is shown as they hug each other and descend. to Earth. But he doesn't shy away from his strong notions of spirituality and his poignant questions about faith and self-forgiveness.
Co-written by Shatner, producer Harve Bennett and writer David Loughery, “Star Trek V: The Final Frontier” was released on June 9, 1989, and earned a respectable $17.3 million on opening weekend, but suffered a sharp decline after that promising debut, and finally bottomed out with a worldwide gross of just $70.2 million.
The plot follows Sybok (Laurence Luckinbill), a charismatic Vulcan cult leader and Spock's half-brother, who recruits acolytes and hostages on the desert planet of Nimbus III, then hijacks the USS Enterprise to search for God on the legendary planet of Sha Ka Ree. in the heart of the galaxy. Then he descends into absurdity when Kirk, Spock and Bones join the madman in setting out to meet a cunning entity who is actually an alien charlatan posing as God to commandeer a starship and escape his own exile from the Great Barrier.
Shatner was honest about his debacle in a recent The Hollywood Reporter interview:
“I wish I had had the support and courage to do the things I felt I should do,” he admits. “My concept was, 'Star Trek is looking for God,' and management said, 'Well, who is God? We'll alienate the nonbeliever, so no, we can't make God.' And then someone said, ' What's up with an alien who thinks he's God?' Then it was a series of my inabilities to deal with management and budgeting. In my mind, I failed terribly. When asked, “What do you regret most?”, I regret not being emotionally equipped to deal. with a great movie, so in the absence of my power, the power vacuum was filled with people who didn't make the decisions that I would have made.
Another aspect of the film's failure was the fact that Gene Roddenberry was only an executive consultant on the project, having had all creative control taken away from him after “Star Trek: The Motion Picture.” “The Final Frontier” was an entry that the legendary “Star Trek” creator once considered “apocryphal,” as he believed Shatner had conveniently borrowed the concept of “The Final Frontier” from Roddenberry's initial draft for “Star Trek.” : The Motion Picture” titled “The God Thing.”
While “Star Trek V: The Final Frontier” is certainly a strange and unappetizing entry in the “Star Trek” canon, it is nonetheless an official member of the family and perhaps deserves a new viewing in celebration of its 35th anniversary this month. .
Don't forget the beans and marshmallows!
