1984 / 105 Minutes / PG
Reviewed by Dale J. Nauertz

Poor Leonard (Lennie?) Nimoy. Where Shatner has a thriving career making cameos, doing Priceline ads, recording questionable albums (though, truth be told, his most recent album isn’t half bad), and starring in several television series (”Tonight on Rescue…Nine…One…One”) aside from his iconic role in “Star Trek”, what does Old Pointy Ears have to his credit? One questionable single (a song about Bilbo Baggins that can be seen below and a book consisting of nude photos of fat ladies. Ah, but there is one other achievement Spock has under his belt: a mediocre directorial career!

I managed to steer clear of Spoiler Territory last time, but I’m afraid there’s no avoiding it now. At the end of “Khan”, Spock dies. It’s a glorious, Christ-like death by nuclear radiation (no, Christ didn’t die of nuclear radiation…at least not in my Bible) to save the rest of his crewmates from annihilation at the hands of Ricardo Montalban. After a stirring eulogy by Shatner, Spock’s body is shot out of a torpedo tube onto the Genesis Planet (which was created by technology created by Kirk’s ex-lover and his son that can make a living, vibrant planet out of a dead one…or destroy all life on a currently vibrant planet). After which, Kirk and the others head back to Earth.

Before they even land on Earth, however, things start going screwy. McCoy (the incomparable DeForest Kelley) starts acting strangely and hanging around Spock’s old quarters. After landing on Earth, McCoy starts trying to book passage back to the Genesis Planet with an odd alien that talks kind of like Yoda and, generally, seems to have wandered in from a “Star Wars” set not far away. Eventually, Kirk and the others realize that Spock has passed his “katra” (or essence) to the crotchety old doctor and that they must go to the Genesis Planet and retrieve Spock’s corpse in order to set everything right again. That’ll teach Kirk for not showing more interest in Vulcan customs and religious beliefs!

Here is where the crew hits a snag. For one thing, The Genesis Planet is strictly off limits, the subject of a Starfleet galactic quarantine (I find my sudden compatibility with the “Trek” universe as disturbing as the rest of you, trust me) until Kirk’s son (portrayed by boring slab of meat Merrit Butrick) and the Vulcan trainee from the first movie (who is no longer played by Kirstie Alley but by the charisma-free Robin Curtis) have finished investigating it. For another, a splinter faction of particularly irate Klingons (led by Christopher “Doc Brown” Lloyd) have taken an interest in The Genesis Planet and wish to discover the technology that created it and use it to gain leverage over the rest of the universe. (Fun fact, one of Lloyd’s crew is played by John “Night Court” Larroquette! When my Trekkie cousin told me this, I thought he was completely full of shit, but IMDB proves him right. I am stunned.) So Kirk and his faithful crew steal The Enterprise and make off for The Genesis Planet, which is becoming more and more unstable by the moment.

Watching the old crew disregard Starfleet orders and go rogue to save their old friend is pretty fun. In fact, it’s easily the high point of the movie. Shatner, Kelley, Doohan, Takei, Koenig and Nichols are dependable as ever. Shatner doesn’t reach the heights of his revelatory performance in “Khan”, but he’s still pretty good. His reaction to the death of someone close to him proves that dialing his performances to “11″ sometimes pays dividends (it’s a powerful moment). And Lloyd chews scenery like the master that he is. He’s never going to be confused with Robert DeNiro, but he’ll always be one of my favorite character actors. Aside from Christopher Plummer, perhaps, no one has ever given a better performance with large bumps on their forehead. His fight with Shatner on an exploding planet is one of the film’s unquestionable highlights.

Unfortunately, this film is hamstrung by Nimoy, whose direction could best be described as “pedestrian”. The plot isn’t as strong as “Khan” (though it’s not horrible) and, since this was the movie immediately following “Khan”, that’s a major disappointment. But the plot would be perfectly serviceable in the right hands. Nimoy’s are, unfortunately, not those hands. The pacing is sluggish (not slow-but-with-a-purpose like “Star Trek: TMP”), the action scenes lack the punch of those in “Khan” and far too much screen time is spent on the Genesis Planet with Robin Curtis and Merrit Butrick…neither of whom has much charisma. When Butrick’s character dies, Shatner’s powerful reaction is the only thing that gives it heft. Not only does Butrick lack charisma, but the film seems to have gone out of its way to make him a prick. There may have been a good movie in here somewhere (not, perhaps, a “Great” movie, but definitely a “Good” one) if the screenplay had gone through another draft and been put in the hands of someone who knew how to tighten the screws and generate suspense. Nimoy, as a first-time director, just doesn’t have such skills. (Though maybe the first-timer thing has nothing to do with it. He did go on to direct “Three Men and a Baby”, a likable enough movie that plays like a two-hour sitcom.)

The movie’s biggest problem, however, is that it’s all about getting Spock back and when he does return…nothing really happens. He just acts even more aloof than usual. This makes the movie almost terminally anti-climactic. I hate to say it, but it almost would have been better to let Spock stay dead. As is, this movie amounts to a lot of fighting and running around the solar system…for nothing. Spock doesn’t even say “Thanks”. He looks at Shatner for a moment, basically shrugs, and saunters off in his intergalactic bathrobe. But, once again, Shatner almost saves it. He’s so happy to have Spock back, even if Spock is acting like a dousche, that his enthusiasm is almost infectious. If Kirk is happy, well, shucks, maybe we should be too.

All things considered, this film isn’t as bad as everyone makes it out to be, but it has an abundance of flaws. It’s a necessary movie for Trekkies and those who are trying to be, bridging the gaps between the excellent “Khan” and the uber-fun “Voyage Home” (the next movie I shall review), but it’s not a very good one. It has its moments (stealing the Enterprise, McCoy haggling with an unscrupulous alien in a dive bar, Christopher Lloyd, the awesome explosion of the Enterprise and the crew’s rather moving reaction to it)…just not nearly enough of them. If you’re going to start with any “Trek” film, it’s best not to start with this one. Only Trekkies need apply.

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