STAR TREK THROUGH FRESH EYES, PART EIGHT

I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to state that the release of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home on November 26, 1986, marked one of the biggest milestones in the history of Star Trek.

The film served as the main event in the franchise’s 20^th anniversary celebration—and it turned out to be a big hit, one of the highest high points in the movie series. It attracted Star Trek fans and “mainstream” audiences alike, resulting in a significant increase in ticket sales over its predecessors. In fact, The Voyage Home remained the most successful Star Trek movie until J.J. Abrams’s 2009 restart of the series.

Star Trek IV also marked the last time that the original cast would have the stage all to themselves. Less than a year later, Star Trek: The Next Generation would premiere on television, introducing a whole new group of characters and marking the end of Star Trek as we knew it.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

After the destruction of the Enterprise and three months in exile on the planet Vulcan, Admiral James T. Kirk and his senior officers decide to return to Earth to answer for the crimes they committed in their effort to rescue Captain Spock from the forbidden Genesis Planet. Meanwhile, on Earth, a special session of the Federation Council is underway, overseen by the Federation President himself, in which the fates of Kirk and his crew will be decided. Spock’s father, Ambassador Sarek, shows up to defend Kirk, but a Klingon ambassador declares that there will be no peace as long as Kirk lives. Spock, his memory restored but not yet fully recovered, chooses to join his former shipmates on their voyage home aboard their captured Klingon bird-of-prey. En route to Earth, Kirk and crew discover that an enormous, mysterious, vastly powerful alien probe has appeared above the planet and is vaporizing the oceans while attempting to communicate with an unknown life form that has failed to answer. Spock determines that the probe is seeking to make contact with Earth’s humpback whales—a species that has been extinct for several centuries. The only way to get the probe to break off its attack on Earth is to find some humpback whales to respond to its call. That means a trip into the past—specifically the year 1986. In that backward, primitive, tumultuous era, Kirk befriends Dr. Gillian Taylor, a lovely female cetacean biologist, who may be able to provide exactly what he—what future-Earth itself—needs so desperately...

After the high drama and literally world-shattering events of the two previous films, Star Trek IV goes in a completely different direction. There’s no real villain, no battles, no fight scenes. The stakes are certainly high—namely, the survival of 23^rd century Earth—but the film is a lighthearted romp that masterfully recaptures the spirit and the feel of the original series, particularly such comedic episodes as “A Piece of the Action” and “The Trouble With Tribbles.”

Star Trek IV is blessed with a top-notch creative team, all of whom had already played key roles in making the film series a success after Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Harve Bennett is still onboard as producer/co-writer, providing continuity and consistency. Leonard Nimoy is back as director, having proven himself on Star Trek III. And I remember being particularly excited when I first heard that Nicholas Meyer, the director/co-writer of Star Trek II, was returning to the fold to help write the screenplay. (Meyer had turned down the offer to work on Star Trek III because he didn’t want to be involved in undoing the death of Spock. So it must have been somewhat strange for him to sit down and start writing new scenes for a character he’d killed off so effectively several years earlier!)  

Before re-watching Star Trek IV for this blog entry, it had been quite a while since I’d last seen it, so I was able to come at it with a somewhat fresh perspective—though not nearly as fresh as my eight-year-old daughter Maddie’s, of course! But what I found was that, 25 years after its release, The Voyage Home holds up extremely well. Sure, certain elements are dated—particularly the Cold War references, with Chekov, a Russian, sneaking aboard a U.S. nuclear-powered naval vessel (or should I say, “wessel”?) in Ronald Reagan’s America. I had to explain the significance of this to Maddie to put it in the proper context, but she seemed to get it. 

But overall, the film is just damned entertaining. The humor works extremely well because, first and foremost, it’s very funny! But also because it feels very natural, never forced, and never at the expense of the characters. The laughs come primarily from the situations in which the characters find themselves, and their reactions to those situations. My favorite bits are Kirk and Spock on the bus with the punk rocker, their response when Gillian asks them if they like Italian food (a bit supposedly improvised by William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy on the spot), Kirk’s reaction when he sees Spock in the water tank mind-melding with one of the whales, McCoy’s biting comments about 2oth century medicine, and Scotty trying to interact with a Macintosh computer. Wonderful, wonderful stuff! 

The central plot doesn’t tie in with those of the two previous films. In fact, this story could have been told when Kirk and crew were still aboard the Enterprise. And yet, thanks to the opening and closing scenes, the film ends up being a very satisfying follow-up to—and wrap-up of—the events that began all the way back in Star Trek II. As a cinematic trilogy—a completely unintended one, mind you—The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock, and The Voyage Home work together even better than the much beloved original Star Wars trilogy, which George Lucas has claimed for many years was all planned out from the start. Harve Bennett has never hidden the fact that the “Genesis Trilogy” was totally made up on the fly, as he and his collaborators went along. No one knew when Spock’s death scene was filmed that he would come back in the next film. No one knew what his brief “remember” mind-meld with McCoy meant. Showing Spock’s coffin on the Genesis Planet was just meant to give audiences a feeling of hope—it wasn’t a guarantee. While making The Search for Spock, there was no master plan for how to resolve the crew’s outlaw status, or where to place them after the destruction of the Enterprise. (According to some accounts, Bennett hoped to put them on the brand-new Excelsior.) But even with no clear road map, these three films ended up flowing into each other extremely well, with tight continuity and a highly satisfying resolution with no major copouts (“Leia is my sister!”) or recycled concepts (“…the Galactic Empire has secretly begun construction on a new armored space station even more powerful than the first dreaded Death Star…”).

The film’s not perfect, of course. For one thing, there’s the casual, downright reckless attitude some of the crewmembers display with regard to preserving the timeline. It was stressed in such episodes as “The City on the Edge of Forever” and “Tomorrow is Yesterday” how important it is not to change anything in the past because it could have devastating effects on history. But in The Voyage Home, while operating in the 20^th century, Chekov leaves behind a Klingon weapon on a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier—the Enterprise, amusingly enough. And Scotty and McCoy visit the owner of a manufacturing plant, offering to trade the formula for the not-yet-invented transparent aluminum for its 20^th century equivalent, so that Scotty can build a water tank for the whales. To McCoy’s credit, he warns Scotty, “If we give him the formula, we’ll be altering the future.” Scotty replies, “Why? How do we know he didn’t invent the thing?” McCoy grins and says, “Yeah.”

It’s a very cute bit, for sure. But I think it would have been just as cute, and would have made Scotty seem less irresponsible, if his line had been, “Why? Don’t ye know? He invented the thing!”

And then there’s the matter of Kirk’s eyeglasses, the ones McCoy gave him in The Wrath of Khan. In The Voyage Home, Kirk sells them to an antique shop, so that he and his companions will have spending money in 20^th century San Francisco. During the transaction, Spock asks him, “Weren’t those a gift from Doctor McCoy?” Kirk replies confidently, “And they will be again—that’s the beauty of it.”

Another very cute bit, one that’s always gotten laughs from audiences. But from a logical standpoint, it doesn’t really work. When Kirk returns to the 23^rd century, the glasses won’t suddenly reappear in his pocket. Given his experience with time travel, you’d think he’d be aware of this. (Come to think of it, the same can be said about Nicholas Meyer, who had already written and directed the excellent time-travel adventure Time After Time!)

But really, these are just minor nitpicks. My only major beef with the film is the musical score by Leonard Rosenman. It’s not bad, it just… doesn’t really feel like Star Trek. Which, to be fair, may have been exactly what the filmmakers wanted, since this isn’t a typical Star Trek movie. But the thing is, The Voyage Home completes a trilogy. The previous two installments of this trilogy had the same composer, James Horner, so there was very tight musical continuity between them. Not to mention the fact that Horner’s work was magnificent. Sure, The Voyage Home goes off in a different direction for the most part, but it’s still linked to its two immediate predecessors in a strong way, and it would have been more effective to have Horner return and both touch upon his previously established themes and explore new musical territory, just as the film itself does. (It’s certainly possible that Horner was asked to return and declined. However, the liner notes for the recently released expanded edition of the Star Trek III soundtrack reveal that director Nimoy had actually wanted Rosenman for The Search for Spock, but was ultimately convinced by producer Bennett and Paramount brass to bring back Horner to keep the film tightly connected to The Wrath of Khan.)

So the shift in musical styles is a bit jarring. I liken it to having John Williams compose the scores for Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back and then bringing in Henry Mancini for Return of the Jedi.

While I don’t have a whole lot of enthusiasm for the music, the exact opposite is true with regard to the cast.

William Shatner wraps up the trilogy with another winning performance as James Kirk. Regardless of whatever behind-the-scenes rivalry may have existed over the years between Shatner and Leonard Nimoy, it’s clear from watching both The Search for Spock and The Voyage Home that Nimoy the director was very good at getting the best out of Shatner the actor. In The Voyage Home, Shatner is in total command, as much The Leader as ever, but he’s also likable, witty, charming, funny, eloquent, and under certain circumstances, even a bit goofy—but in a very endearing way.

Shatner’s onscreen chemistry with Nimoy is magical—they really are a great team. He also has strong chemistry with Catherine Hicks, who plays Gillian. It’s very interesting that Kirk’s relationship with Gillian is purely platonic—with just the slightest hint that maybe it could turn into something more if their paths were to ever cross again. Alas, this was the closest Kirk ever came to having a romance in the film series.

Nimoy shows off his multitasking abilities by returning to full-time acting duty as Spock while also directing the whole shebang. And he brings new dimensions to the character. Nimoy doesn’t simply slip back into the role, he gives us a Spock we’ve never really seen before: naïve, out-of-step, occasionally befuddled, sometimes childlike—but certainly on his way to recovery. And Spock’s final scene with his father, in which they acknowledge their past differences and put them aside once and for all, is quite touching.

As always, it’s a delight to watch DeForest Kelley portray Dr. McCoy. Since this movie is more comedic in tone, McCoy’s not the only one delivering the funny lines. But he has a crucial role in the story, functioning as Spock’s guardian (“Someone’s gotta keep an eye on him!”), Scotty’s sidekick, and, most importantly, the best damn doctor in the galaxy. His scenes at the hospital are an absolute triumph.

James Doohan gets a rare opportunity to shine as Scotty this time around. He’s responsible for two of the film’s most iconic moments: the aforementioned bit with the Macintosh computer and “Admiral—there be whales here!” Doohan and Kelley play off each other very well—we discover a whole new relationship that was there all along but we just never got to see it before.

Walter Koenig also gets some nice time in the spotlight. It would seem Nicholas Meyer has a real soft spot for Chekov, since most of the character’s best moments are in the movies that Meyer wrote. The scene where Chekov is interrogated by federal agents aboard the aircraft carrier is a highlight. (I remember that when I saw this movie on opening night, at the moment when Chekov tells the lead agent his Starfleet serial number, some uber-Trekkie sitting behind me blurted out, “Oooooh! New trivia! New trivia!”)

 Speaking of Uhura, Nichelle Nichols doesn’t get as much to do, and neither does George Takei as Sulu. There’s only so much screen time available, after all, and with such a big regular cast, not everyone can get a plum role every time. But Nichols and Takei make important contributions nevertheless.   

As Gillian, Catherine Hicks is charming, intelligent, funny, warm, and a very good fit with the rest of the cast. I would have liked to see her again—the same way I felt about Bibi Besch’s Dr. Carol Marcus. (Interestingly, Nicholas Meyer wanted Gillian to remain in the 20^th century, where she would work tirelessly to prevent the extinction of humpback whales, but Harve Bennett overruled him. I agree with Bennett on this—if Gillian were to stay in the 20^th century and actually succeed in her work, the events in this movie would never happen!)

Mark Lenard is back once again as Sarek, which is always a treat, and this time, we actually get to see him interact with Nimoy.

And as an added treat, Star Trek IV features the return of Jane Wyatt as Spock’s mother, Amanda, who was mysteriously missing from the Vulcan ceremony in Star Trek III that restored Spock’s katra to his reborn body. (Why wasn’t she there, dammit?) It’s great to see her back, and while it’s not a big part, it’s a crucial one, as it helps set up Spock’s character arc.

Also making a welcome (though brief) return is Robin Curtis as Lieutenant Saavik, playing the character for the last time. I wish more had been done with her, but the fact is, if you’ve got Spock back full time, you don’t really need Saavik anymore. We learn that she’s staying behind on Vulcan. Why isn’t she going to Earth, to provide testimony on behalf of Kirk and the others? After all, she was an eyewitness to what happened on Genesis, even moreso than Spock. Unfortunately, most of Saavik’s dialogue in The Voyage Home is just her retelling Kirk information about his son that she’d already told him in The Search for Spock—though, oddly enough, she says that she hasn’t had the opportunity to tell him. Weird.

There was actually more stuff written for Saavik in the screenplay. It may have even been filmed. She would have appeared in one additional scene, in which she hands Kirk a deposition that she recorded for the hearing on Earth. And it would have been revealed that she was granted leave from Starfleet, and was staying on Vulcan, because of a medical issue.

The implication—and the actual intention on the part of the filmmakers—was that Saavik was pregnant with Spock’s child, the result of her helping him through the Vulcan mating cycle in Star Trek III. Apparently, Nimoy, Bennett, and Paramount ultimately decided not to take Saavik (and, by extension, Spock) in this direction. If the scene was filmed, that footage has never seen the light of day, and it’s safe to assume that the pregnancy is sure-as-hell not canonical.

There are some other notable appearances in the film, including Brock Peters as Admiral Cartwright. (The character was originally written as Admiral Morrow, who appeared in Star Trek III and was played by Robert Hooks. I’d love to know why the switch to Cartwright happened—I liked Hooks as Morrow.) Majel Barrett pops up as Doctor Christine Chapel, as does Grace Lee Whitney as Janice Rand, both of whom are now stationed at Starfleet headquarters—but don’t blink too often, or you’ll miss them. Sharp-eyed viewers will also catch Jane Wiedlin, of the Go-Go’s, as a Starfleet officer on a viewscreen.

But without a doubt, the final “cameo appearance” in the film is also the most important: the U.S.S. Enterprise. NCC-1701-A.

At the end of The Voyage Home, our heroes truly have come home. After all the death, destruction, personal losses, and uncertainty they’ve faced throughout the trilogy, they are restored to their rightful positions—particularly James T. Kirk, no longer an admiral but once again a captain, the commander of a starship. They have a new—though strangely familiar—vessel on which to live and follow their mutual true calling: the exploration of the unknown. It’s a fresh new start, a clean slate, for Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu, Chekov, and the Enterprise. They—and the movie series—can go pretty much anywhere from here. With the great success of The Voyage Home, there was a lot of enthusiasm—throughout Paramount and the now-growing audience—for the inevitable Star Trek V.

Now, I’ll turn things over to Maddie…

MADDIE: “I thought it was okay, I liked it. It’s not my favorite so far. The Wrath of Khan is still my favorite. I thought this one was a little too long.

“I thought the probe was going to attack people and blow up Earth.

“I was surprised that the movie turned out to be about time travel. I liked how they went back in time to the 20^th century.

“I was happy that Spock was going to join everyone on the bird-of-prey, because I like it when Spock is with them.

“I was happy to see Saavik again, but I was sad that she wasn’t going to go with them. I would have liked to see more of her.

“I liked seeing Spock’s mother Amanda again. I thought it was weird when the computer asked Spock, ‘How do you feel?’ and he didn’t understand the question. And then Amanda explained to him that the computer knows that Spock is half human.

“Sarek looked very old. It was very nice of him to go to Earth to defend Kirk and everyone.

“It was interesting to see them in 1986. Kirk was cursing! ‘Double dumb-ass on you!’ It was great when Spock did the Vulcan neck pinch on the guy who wouldn’t turn down his radio—and then the people on the bus started clapping! And then when Gillian asked Kirk and Spock if they like Italian food and they keep saying, ‘Yes/no, yes/no,’ and then Kirk finally says, ‘I love Italian—and so do you,’ and then Spock says, ‘Yes.’

“I liked Gillian. She was pretty. She was making fun of Spock a lot. She was very close to the whales—she reacted the right way when she found out that the whales were taken away the night before. She was really angry and she slapped that man.

“I thought Gillian and Kirk had the start of a relationship going on. I was disappointed that they didn’t end up together.

“I guess there won’t be peace with the Klingons, because at the end, Kirk is still alive and Starfleet gave him a new ship!

“I was happy that Kirk got what he wanted by being bumped down from admiral to captain and getting a ship. I thought he was going to get the Excelsior. I was surprised to see that they built a new Enterprise!

“I wanted Kirk to change his hair. It’s always up and puffed and curly now. I want it to be like his hair on the TV show.

“I liked the music that was playing when Kirk, McCoy, and Gillian were trying to get Chekov out of the hospital. That was great, it was perfect for that scene. The music in this movie was funnier than in the others. I liked it.

“All the stuff with Kirk and Spock was very good. But I wanted more McCoy. I felt like I didn’t see him enough. And I would have liked to see more of Scotty—but it was very good when he made the aquarium for the whales. And it was very funny when he was trying to talk to the computer and he was speaking into the mouse.

“It was also funny when Chekov and Uhura were trying to find the ‘nuclear wessels’ and no one would talk to them! It was cool when they were on the ‘other’ Enterprise—the big U.S. Navy ship.

“I was happy that no one died in this one. There was too much death and explosions in the last two movies and this one was more calm and more of a clean slate.

“Gillian going into the future was cool. She needed to, because that’s where the whales were going and she wanted to be near the whales.

“I hope the next movie is a continuation of this one. I hope to see Gillian Taylor again and I hope to see more of the Klingons. And I hope to see the Romulans again too. I haven’t seen them in a long time.

“I’m excited for the fifth movie, because I wonder what the Klingons will do. The ambassador said, ‘There will be no peace while Kirk lives,’ and Kirk is alive and has a new ship. I think the next movie will be about the Klingons, because if it’s not, if it’s about something totally different, then it would be silly for that line to be in this movie.”

COMING SOON: Uh-oh.

© All text copyright Glenn Greenberg, 2011.

STAR TREK THROUGH FRESH EYES, PART SEVEN

By the time of Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, I was neck-deep in Star Trek fandom, devouring every rerun of the original series, every novel and comic book, and attending every New York City convention that had an admission price I could afford. They were all fun diversions during the long wait to find out what would happen in the wake of The Wrath of Khan. As I recall, the first bit of news was that the next film would be directed by Leonard Nimoy, the recently departed Mr. Spock himself—fascinating!

I saw Star Trek III on opening night, June 1, 1984, not with my older sister, who had taken me to see the previous two movies, but with two pals from junior high school: Nick Guarracino, with whom I would see several of the other films in the series (including the most recent one, released in 2009), and Craig Chamides, who I remember literally hauled himself out of a sickbed to join us that night. I also recall that just before the movie began, Craig, who back then had a tendency to, shall we say, overdramatize situations, tried to hand me a big spoon and told me to use it in case he swallowed his tongue. I looked at him incredulously and replied, “What are you, crazy? I’ve been waiting two years for this movie—I’m not taking my eyes off the screen.” (Cut me some slack—I was 14 at the time.) Fortunately, Craig’s tongue remained in its proper place throughout the screening and we—well, Nick and I, at least—were able to sit back, relax, and experience the next adventure of the crew of the Enterprise.   

And it was a very good experience. I can’t say I was as blown away by The Search for Spock as I was by The Wrath of Khan. They’re two very different films, even though they’re tightly interconnected. The Wrath of Khan is more fast-paced, more intense, with a story driven primarily by anger, hatred, and a quest for revenge. The Search for Spock is more intimate, more subdued, with an emphasis on friendship, loyalty, devotion, and sacrifice. It does its job and does it extremely well, though it doesn’t have quite the power of its immediate predecessor.

Also, part of what made The Wrath of Khan so exciting and intriguing is the fact that it presented Star Trek with a new sensibility, as it was directed by an outsider with a totally fresh perspective. The Search for Spock, however, was directed by an insider, someone who had been involved with the series since the first pilot, and it went a long way toward taking Star Trek back to its roots.

Still, The Search for Spock is a bit of a departure, in that it’s the first film in the series in which the story springs forth from members of the crew instead of an outside element. Star Trek: The Motion Picture was driven primarily by V’ger and its quest to find its identity and its purpose in the universe. As noted above, the driving force of Star Trek II was Khan and his obsession with getting revenge on Admiral Kirk. But here, the main events are set in motion by the regular Star Trek “family”—particularly Dr. McCoy, who’s finally an integral part of the plot.

Considering how shocked and upset my eight-year-old daughter Maddie was by the death of Spock in Star Trek II, and how McCoy is probably her favorite character in the series, I was anxious to see how she would react to what happens to both of them in this next installment.

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

Following the death of Captain Spock, the battle-damaged Enterprise returns to Earth, where it is to be decommissioned. Dr. Leonard McCoy is behaving very erratically, breaking into Spock’s quarters and speaking with Spock’s voice. Meanwhile, the Federation science vessel U.S.S. Grissom begins to study the newly created Genesis Planet, an expedition led by Dr. David Marcus—the son of Admiral James T. Kirk—and Spock’s protégé, Lieutenant Saavik. They discover that the photon torpedo tube containing Spock’s body soft-landed on the planet—and a life-form is detected nearby. Elsewhere, Commander Kruge, an ambitious and power-hungry Klingon officer, obtains the top-secret information on Genesis and decides to claim it in the name of the Klingon Empire. He orders his bird-of-prey, equipped with a cloaking device, into Federation space to see the new planet for himself. On Earth, Spock’s father, Ambassador Sarek, visits Kirk and together they discover that Spock left his living spirit in McCoy just before he died. The only way to put Spock’s soul to rest and restore McCoy to normal is for both to be brought to Vulcan for a special ritual. But Kirk is forbidden from returning to the Genesis Planet to retrieve Spock’s body—Genesis has become a galactic controversy and travel to the planet is forbidden to any vessel but the Grissom. Kirk is determined to go anyway, even if he has to steal a starship to do it. And he has some friends who are willing to help him…    

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock has a very simple, straightforward plot—some might argue too simple and straightforward. The film’s screenwriter/producer, Harve Bennett, has even acknowledged, “Seventeen other people could have written [it].” I read at least one article that declared that it’s basically a retelling of the resurrection of Jesus, right down to having Spock’s protégé—his disciple—Saavik returning to his resting place to discover that his body is missing and his shroud has been left behind.

Regardless, the film works very well as a sequel, in that it successfully follows up on the events of its predecessor and moves things forward. And it works very well as Star Trek, in that it fully embraces the television series that started it all. Overall, Star Trek III is a highly enjoyable film, one of my favorites in the series, and a strong argument against the notion that all of the odd-numbered movies suck and all of the even-numbered ones are winners. (Another argument: Star Trek: Nemesis was the tenth in the series, and not only was it awful, it was a bona fide box-office bomb. So there!)  

But The Search for Spock is hardly perfect. For one thing, there are a number of plot holes and some areas of disjointedness in the storytelling, many of which were created in post-production as the film was being edited. In most cases, these problems were not present in Bennett’s screenplay.

For example, to this day, I’ll read the occasional retro-review in which the writer wonders how Kirk and Sarek knew that Spock’s body was intact on the Genesis Planet when, at that point in the film, only the crew of the Grissom should have known that Spock’s coffin had soft-landed instead of burning up in the atmosphere. Well, in the screenplay, Scene One is the Grissom arriving at Genesis, locating Spock’s tube on the surface, and transmitting this news to Starfleet Command. In Scene Two, the battle-scarred Enterprise is heading back to Earth, with Kirk mentioning in his personal log entry that he feels uneasy. The main reason? “The news of Spock’s tube has shaken me,” he says. So clearly, Starfleet Command informed Kirk about the message from the Grissom.      

But during the editing stage, it was decided to begin the film with the Enterprise. So Scene Two became Scene One, and the Grissom’s arrival at Genesis was moved to a later point. Kirk’s log entry was revised to reflect this change—in the finished film, the line is, “The death of Spock is like an open wound.”

As a result of the editing, the scene that introduces the Grissom and shows its discovery of Spock’s tube is immediately followed by Sarek’s first appearance, in which he shows up at Kirk’s apartment. It’s never specified in the film how much time passes between these two scenes. The implication is, not much. But since it’s clear that both Sarek and Kirk now know that Spock’s body is intact on Genesis, it’s safe to assume that enough time has passed that each of them was informed about it by Starfleet Command. But that’s the problem—it’s never made clear. So the folks in the audience have to assume, have to do more reasoning and more connecting of the dots than they should. It’s a bit of a distraction.

Then there’s the question of what exactly will be done with Spock’s consciousness—his katra—once it’s removed from McCoy’s mind. In the film, it’s never addressed. It’s important to note that neither Kirk nor Sarek know until much later in the film that Spock is alive again. When Sarek explains to Kirk that he must bring McCoy and Spock’s body to Vulcan, both are under the impression that Spock is still dead. Which means the goal could not have been to place Spock’s katra back into his body.

So what was the goal, then? Well, in Bennett’s screenplay, it’s established that the plan is for Spock’s consciousness to be deposited in a special place on Vulcan called the Hall of Ancient Thought. But the unexpected regeneration of Spock’s body means the Vulcans have to shift gears and attempt to reunite Spock’s consciousness with his now-living physical form. For some reason, all references to the Hall of Ancient Thought were cut from the finished film.

Finally, why exactly was it necessary to retrieve Spock’s body from Genesis? As noted above, as far as Sarek and Kirk knew at the time, Spock was dead. If the goal was to help McCoy and put Spock’s katra to rest, it would seem that the only thing necessary would be to bring McCoy, who was carrying Spock’s katra, to Vulcan. For what purpose was Spock’s thought-to-be-dead body needed? Actually, neither the film nor the screenplay answers this question.  

So yeah, there are flaws. But the film’s strengths far exceed its weaknesses. For one thing, the regular cast is in top form, especially William Shatner and DeForest Kelley.

Shatner turns in probably his most vulnerable, most sympathetic, most stripped-down performance as James T. Kirk, rivaling his spectacular work in The Wrath of Khan. Kirk is pushed to the absolute limit in this story, and Shatner rises to the challenge every step of the way. There’s one particularly daring acting choice he makes during a key dramatic scene—it’s the moment when he learns of the death of his son—that elicited gasps of surprise from the audience back in 1984, and is still talked about today.  

Once again, Doctor McCoy gets most of the best lines, and Kelley is a master at delivering them. It’s a terrific performance, and it’s great to see McCoy with an expanded role, one that’s absolutely essential to the story.

The other regulars all get their moments to shine, though Walter Koenig’s Commander Pavel Chekov ends up with less to do this time—a bit of a comedown after the fairly meaty role he had in Star Trek II. James Doohan’s Scotty and George Takei’s Sulu each end up with some of the film’s most memorable bits.

Since director Nimoy knows these characters—and the actors who play them—so well, he makes some excellent storytelling choices. Whenever the focus is on Kirk grieving for his son, Nimoy throws in sympathetic reaction shots of McCoy and Scotty, which is totally appropriate, since they, aside from Spock, are his closest friends and confidants. Little touches like that are much appreciated by longtime fans and help convey to newcomers the bonds between these characters.    

As Commander Kruge, Christopher Lloyd gives us the last truly big, bad Klingon that we’d ever see in Star Trek. Three years after this movie came out, Star Trek: The Next Generation would premiere and establish that the Federation and the Klingon Empire had become allies.

Kruge is one of my favorite Klingons—right up there with John Colicos as Kor, from the first-season TV episode “Errand of Mercy.” He’s ruthless, clever, and nihilistic, yet he clearly cares about his crew (well, the ones who don’t make mistakes, at least) and he even appears to be capable of love. Lloyd seems to relish the role, giving Kruge all sorts of interesting mannerisms and quirks. Apparently, a lot of people haven’t been able to separate Kruge from Reverend Jim, the memorable character that Lloyd played on Taxi. That’s their loss. When I’m watching Kruge, I’m not thinking of Reverend Jim, the same way I’m not thinking about Mister Roarke from Fantasy Island when I’m watching Khan.

(By the way—Kruge’s underling Maltz is played by John Larroquette, who would go on to win millions of fans and four Emmys for his work on Night Court.) 

I mentioned above that the film embraces the original television series, and nowhere is that more evident than in the welcome return of Ambassador Sarek, who made his debut in Season Two’s “Journey to Babel.” It’s wonderful to see Mark Lenard in the role again, and his performance is both powerful and moving.

There are other flourishes: Grace Lee Whitney, who played Yeoman Janice Rand during the first season of the TV series, has a brief cameo. And if you look closely during one scene, you’ll catch a glimpse of a tribble or two.

After his memorable debut in The Wrath of Khan, it’s nice to see Merritt Butrick back as Kirk’s son, Dr. David Marcus, who seems to have mellowed a little between films. I have to say that it was surprising, and a little disappointing, that Harve Bennett decided to do away with the character after setting him up so nicely in the previous film, but clearly, Bennett felt the story called for it. It was also disappointing that Bennett and Nimoy did not bring back Bibi Besch as Dr. Carol Marcus, David’s mother. Considering the events of this film, an encounter between her and Kirk in the aftermath would have made for one hell of a scene.  

And then there’s Saavik—one of the most controversial elements of the movie. Long story short: Paramount couldn’t make a deal with Kirstie Alley to return. There are conflicting accounts as to why, some more salacious than others. Bennett and Nimoy wanted Saavik in the film, as she was a crucial part of the story. Apparently, they felt that introducing a totally new character wouldn’t work. So they decided to keep the character and simply recast. Enter Robin Curtis.

In addition to the recasting, Nimoy seemed to have a significantly different take on Saavik than Nicholas Meyer, who created the character and hired Alley. Nimoy apparently wanted to deemphasize Saavik’s innate, exotic sexiness and the strong emotions within her that lurked just under the surface in The Wrath of Khan. Curtis is certainly very attractive—I met her in person and she’s also very warm and friendly. But her Saavik wasn’t nearly as curvaceous or as alluring as Alley’s. Also, it’s well known that Nimoy took Curtis under his wing and personally instructed her on how to portray a Vulcan—and it’s clear that he didn’t want a lot of what Alley brought to the role to carry over, particularly that memorable mixture of innocence and “come hitherness.”

Then there’s the overall look of the character. On Star Trek III, the makeup artist was apparently told to really play up Saavik’s Vulcan features, far more so than was done with Alley. So Curtis’s Saavik has the slanted upswept eyebrows whereas Alley’s did not. Plus, Curtis was given a less than flattering hairstyle. The end result is a more elfin-looking Saavik. Presumably, this is exactly what Nimoy wanted. To this day, fans debate which Saavik is better. Personally, I would have preferred Kirstie Alley remaining in the role, but I don’t think Robin Curtis did a bad job. There are hints of emotion in her eyes during key dramatic moments, and when David Marcus is killed, you get a sense that she’s barely containing her anger. Still, I wish Nimoy had been more faithful to the previous interpretation of Saavik, and allowed Curtis to base her performance more on Alley’s.            

As for the movie’s other most controversial element, namely the destruction of the Enterprise, it’s an undeniably powerful scene, expertly executed. I love the fact that the ship’s self-destruct sequence from the third-season episode “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield” is used again here, word for word—another great callback to the original TV series. It’s tough to watch that beautiful vessel go down in flames—it saddens me every time. But it’s not quite as much of an emotional blow as the death of Spock.

Which brings me to the whole matter of Spock coming back from the dead. Many felt that it cheapened his sacrifice at the end of Star Trek II. My argument: No it didn’t. It didn’t change or undo the fact that Spock willingly gave up his life to save the Enterprise, with no expectation that his body would be regenerated. His sacrifice was very real.

Others said that bringing characters back from the dead stretches believability past the breaking point, even in science fiction. Dead should mean dead, just like in real life. Otherwise, you’re dealing in fantasy—and death becomes meaningless. Okay, those points are harder for me to argue against. And to be honest, by the time Star Trek III came out, I had accepted Spock’s death and had decided that if he stayed dead, I’d be okay with it. But that didn’t stop me from being absolutely thrilled that he was back. And let’s face it—once Nimoy said he was willing to bring Spock back to life and keep on playing him, the folks at Paramount would have been utterly insane not to take him up on it.

Another thing the movie has going for it is a great musical score. Thankfully and appropriately, composer James Horner returns, providing tight continuity by revisiting and expanding upon many of his pieces from Star Trek II while introducing several new themes, including one for the Klingons that’s not quite as memorable as Jerry Goldsmith’s, but effective nonetheless. Horner also continues to utilize Alexander Courage’s iconic “Star Trek Fanfare” from the original TV series, weaving it in and out of his own compositions seamlessly.

Finally, The Search for Spock ends on a somewhat uncertain note—much like The Empire Strikes Back, another movie that served as the second part of a cinematic trilogy. The Enterprise is gone. Spock is clearly not himself, though he’s at least starting to remember his past life. Can he ever be fully restored? What will become of our heroes now that they’ve disobeyed direct orders from Starfleet, gone AWOL, and broken several laws? Apparently, the folks at Paramount knew even before Star Trek III was released that they had a hit on their hands and would be able to wrap up these dangling story threads in another movie—the film confidently proclaims just before the end credits roll, “… And the adventure continues…” And just like with The Empire Strikes Back, you’re left satisfied, but eager to see what happens next.

Okay, enough from me. Now I’ll turn things over to Maddie…

MADDIE: “I liked it, it was good. But I liked The Wrath of Khan more, because I felt like it had more to it—I liked seeing Khan again, I liked how we got to meet Kirk’s son and Carol Marcus, and we learned about Genesis. But I liked how this one picked up a short time after the second movie.

“I thought Spock wasn’t going to be in this movie because Leonard Nimoy’s name was not in the cast at the beginning. I thought, ‘Oh no, this is going to be a terrible movie!’ I was very surprised when I saw that Leonard Nimoy directed the movie—I thought, ‘Okay, this is going to be a good movie because Leonard Nimoy does such a good job as an actor that I bet he’ll do a good job as a director.’ And he did—he did a very good job!

“I was happy that the Klingons came back again in this movie, and I liked how they had a new ship. I really liked the look of that ship—the bird-of-prey. It was cool that they were using a cloaking device. The special effects were really good showing the bird-of-prey turning invisible and then back to visible.

“The Klingons were really good—I liked how they were speaking in their language. The actor who played Kruge was very good. Kruge was a mean guy and he really wanted Genesis. I liked how he killed his gunner for accidentally destroying the Grissom.

“I was really sad when Kirk was told that the Enterprise was going to be decommissioned. The Enterprise is a main character in Star Trek, and it’s like saying that a main character is going to die and never come back.

“I liked how Kirk and the other guys stole the Enterprise to get Spock’s body. It was the only thing they could do. They had to get Spock’s body back from Genesis and Starfleet wouldn’t let them. I thought it was very funny that the Excelsior was going to chase the Enterprise and stop it from going, but it broke down when it tried to go to warp speed!

“I liked that we got to see Spock’s father Sarek again. And I thought it was very cool to see the tribbles again—I thought, ‘Oh no, is there gonna be more trouble with the tribbles in this movie?!?’

“I was surprised that Saavik was played by another actress. The new Saavik was a lot like Kirstie Alley, but Kirstie Alley’s Saavik showed emotions more. I thought Kirstie Alley was prettier, but I thought the new Saavik was good at not showing her emotions. I’d want to see Robin Curtis as Saavik again, because I thought that Robin Curtis was more like a Vulcan and she really seemed to get into the character more. If Spock hadn’t come back in this movie and Saavik took over for him, I’d want her to be more like Spock and not show her emotions so much.

“I really liked seeing David again. I liked him in Star Trek II. I thought it was nice of him to risk his life for Saavik. It was very sad that he died—I thought he and Saavik would make a really good couple!

“The way Kirk reacted when David was killed was how any father would react when hearing that his son had died. He was moving back to sit in his chair but he was so stunned that he missed the chair and he fell down.

“I was really sad when they blew up the Enterprise, but it was the right thing to do. If they didn’t blow it up, the Klingons would’ve taken it over and Kirk and everybody would be prisoners. But ever since the first episode of Star Trek, the Enterprise was there and now she’s gone and will never come back. What ship are they going to fly now? That was their personal ship! Who knows if they’re even going to get another ship—they’re criminals now because they stole the Enterprise!

“McCoy was great in this movie. Even though he had Spock’s soul, he did not change at all! He was so funny. ‘Where’s the logic in offering me a ride home, you idiot?’ ‘How can you be deaf with ears like that?’ ‘That green-blooded son of a—’ I can’t repeat that word. ‘It’s his revenge for all those arguments he lost!’ I thought that at the end, when McCoy tells Spock that he missed him and couldn’t stand to lose him again, it showed that even though they fought a lot, they had a very strong friendship.

“It was brilliant—very, very clever—when McCoy tried to do the Vulcan nerve pinch on the Federation security officer in the bar!

“I was very happy to find out that of all the people that Spock could leave his soul with, it turned out to be McCoy! Because McCoy would be the last person who’d want to mind-meld with Spock and carry his soul around!

“It was so funny when Kirk visited McCoy in his cell and did the Vulcan hand salute and he asked McCoy, ‘How many fingers am I holding up?’ and McCoy said, ‘That’s not very damn funny.’

“I thought it was very weird that Genesis made Spock come back as a child—I thought it meant that something was wrong with Genesis. It was a surprise that Spock was a little boy when he was found—but then again, it was a surprise to me that Spock was alive at all! I didn’t think he’d be coming back. I was happy he was alive again.

“I felt like clapping when Spock turned around and took his hood off and we could see that it was Leonard Nimoy as Spock again. And it was nice how Spock remembered Jim. But it was kind of weird when Spock first went over to Kirk and said, ‘My father said you came back for me.’ He seemed like an 8-year-old boy!

“Everybody was having a bad hair day in this movie—

Sulu’s hair was greased down.

Uhura’s hair was long, down, and curly.

Kirk’s hair was up and puffy and curly, as usual in these movies.

Scotty’s hair looked greased down on top.

McCoy’s hair was too wavy.

Saavik’s hair was puffy and curly—she looked like a toy poodle or something!

Chekov was okay, though.

“I hope the next movie picks up where this one left off. I hope they teach Spock everything he needs to know and that he can go back to being Science Officer. And I hope Admiral Kirk can negotiate with Starfleet to get another ship. If they got the Excelsior, I’d be happy that they got another ship, but I’d be sad because it wouldn’t be the Enterprise.”

COMING SOON: … And the adventure continues …

© All content copyright Glenn Greenberg, 2011.