(Here goes my "Insurrection" review, which I thought I'd get out the way before the ol' memory cells start to fade. Look out for the final three episodes of DS9's sixth season within the next week or so...)
** SPOILERS BELOW **
STAR TREK: INSURRECTION --------- Screenplay by Michael Piller Story by Rick Berman and Michael Piller Directed by Jonathan Frakes
Although they've ditched the numerals, believe it or not "Star Trek: Insurrection" is the ninth entry in the STAR TREK film legacy, and the third to feature the cast of THE NEXT GENERATION. First of all, those of you aware of the "curse of the odd-numbered TREK films" (ie, they're somehow never as good as the even-numbered) may well be wondering whether or not they've finally broken the jinx. The answer is both yes and no; while "Insurrection" isn't on a par with the best of the TREK films, it's certainly not the worst and beats the other odd-numbered entries, such as "The Motion Picture" and "Generations" and certainly the dismal "The Final Frontier". In itself "Insurrection" is a reasonably good film, if sometimes a little patchy in execution.
Things start off with a beautifully-shot montage of scenes featuring the serene village of the Ba'ku, a peaceful, spiritual race who have put aside technology to build themselves a paradise. This is a particularly Trekkian statement; that the future of mankind lies not so much in technology and space as it does exploring the *real* Final Frontier -- the human spirit. The Ba'ku represent what humanity is capable of becoming. Of course, they are helped along by the fact thheir world contains rejuvenating radiation which keeps them forever young. This energy captures the interest of the Son'a (there's nothing like an apostrophe to make a name look cooler is there? I'm half-thinking of changing my name to Sc'ott Andre'sson ;-)).
The Son'a are a dying race, and at first glimpse the exact opposite of the Ba'ku -- materialistic, vain and bitter. I do suspect that if the Ba'ku represent what humanity is capable of becoming, then the Sonn'a are what we currently are (one can't help but notice we live in a very materialistic, consumer-driven, dare I say *greedy* society). Incidentally there's a clever convergence of the Ba'ku/Son'a storylines at the end which further emphasise the choice that each of us has today (we can be a Ba'ku or a Son'a, to put it quite simply). Yeah, well I won't go into the philosophical side of it too deeply, needless to say this is an intelligent, sophisticated story with a very relevant, positive message for today. The Son'a attempt to relocate the Ba'ku in a bid to use the planet's regenerating energy and this is nicely paralleled with the tragedy of the Native American West. STAR TREK is often at its best when it explores deeper issues in a positive light and although this is h! ardly TREK at its finest (by a long shot) this is a pretty good attempt. Given that the majority of sci-fi films nowadays have about as much depth and I.Q. as a blade of grass (which in some cases is probably unfair on the grass!) that's a welcome thing, indeed.
Unfortunately, while the basic storyline is strong and intelligent, the film flounders a bit on its execution. Generally it was fine, but on occasion rather patchy. For a start, there was *way* too much "technobabble". Now it's fine in very small doses, because it makes the characters look like they can do their job, but particularly towards the end, there was far too much "scientific" mumbo-jumbo, constituting plot. Incidentally, Michael Piller's script was generally proficient, although the dialogue sometimes lacked that all-important sparkle. There were a number of rather wordy expositions which I guess were necessary, but there was perhaps a slight predisposition to *tell* instead of *show*.
It transpires that the Federation (represented here by the sleazy Admiral Dougherty, the latest in a long line of corrupt Starfleet Admirals) are conspiring to work with the Son'a to move the Ba'ku in order to share the secret of the planet's "fountain of youth". Whilst intriguing, the conspiracy aspect wasn't handled as deftly as it has been before on THE NEXT GENERATION and particularly DEEP SPACE NINE. But any attempt to inject some shades of grey and make the good guys seem less cardboard is always welcome. And it wasn't an especially clear-cut issue, either -- the Son'a were a dying species and as Admiral Dougherty said, the planet's radiation would have helped billions of people. Would relocating the Ba'ku really have been so much given that? Of course, I'd tend to side with Picard and the Ba'ku (as we're obviously meant to) but I'm just going to show that there's a degree of moral ambiguity and certainly no easy answers. Yet one of the film's main problems is that it d! oesn't capitalise on this, and there's absolutely no hint of doubt on Picard's side -- for him there *is* an easy answer! It would have been a lot more dramatically-sound had his decision been made tougher. DS9 does an excellent job of portraying rounded, three-dimensional characters by instilling a degree of moral ambiguity. "Insurrection" would have benefited from that, and it would certainly have made Picard and co seem a bit less cardboard (and more human) under the circumstances.
Incidentally, I'd heard that they were aiming to give "Insurrection" a lighter tone, likened to "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home". I'm not quite sure they pulled it off; the comedy didn't *blend* as well as it did in "First Contact" and while there were some nice amusing touches, this aspect was a bit hit-and-miss. I got a giggle out of the exchange on the shuttle; Picard: "Do you know Gilbert and Sullivan?" Worf: "I have not had the opportunity to meet all the new crew." Picard: "They're *composers*, Worf!", but having Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner singing a song from HMS Pinafore was...icky. The gag about Data repeating Beverly and Troi's comment about "have you noticed your boobs getting firmer?" to Worf *was* funny, even though it made Data look a bit dim in the process!
The rest of the comedy was largely down to the characterisation of the regulars. The writers evidently tried to have some fun and it works to varying degrees as the crew are affected by the planet's rejuvenating radiation. Riker and Troi prance about like gormless teenagers, resuming a relationship they had several years prior to the television series while Riker finally gets rid of the beard -- and not a moment too soon for Troi. Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis have a nice, light chemistry and their scenes togetheer are pleasant enough, even if none of it felt especially true-to-character. Geordi's regaining his sight was rather touching, however brief. And while Picard loses a few wrinkles around his neck, there's no sign of any hair sprouting up! Was he always bald? Poor Beverly again has next to nothing to do -- was it even worth having Gates McFadden there at all when she was so superfluous to the plot? Worf seems to be the butt of much of the humour with most of the jo! kes on him and his pimple as he once again undergoes Klingon puberty. Speaking of Worf, it would have been nice to have had some reference to Dax, or better yet, an appearance (even just a brief one) by Terry Farrell herself! Even a small cameo by TREK's most engaging, charismatic actress certainly wouldn't have gone astray. By the way, where was Quark?! I thought he was supposed to have a quick cameo? And although I spotted Max Grodenchik's name in the end credits (billed as "alien ensign"), I evidently missed him. D'oh!
Anyway, "Insurrection" had two little sub-stories alongside the main plot. The first, Picard's relationship with Anij (Donna Murphy) was amiable, if a bit insipid (it would have been nice if they'd actually *kissed*! Even just a peck on the cheek). Stewart and Murphy didn't quite have the chemistry to make it work, but it was quite sweet nonetheless (I loved the bit with the hummingbird!). And I liked Anij -- here we have a mature, strong, intelligent woman who doesn't have to display an acre of flesh or become a vulnerable damsell in distress (though, yes, she did get injured at one point).
Another sub-story was shared by Data and the kid (can't remember his name). Anyone who's ever watched THE NEXT GENERATION will immediately experience deja vu -- the Data-befriends-frightened-child storyline was a stock TNG cliche. Apparently its only reason for being here was to up tthe "cuteness" factor. It was harmless enough, but I think I'll pass. As far as Data was concerned, there was more character *regression* than development. Have the writers already tired of his "emotion chip" (which, we're told, he didn't take with him on this trip)?
The performances are all enjoyable, even though the script doesn't really tax anyone too much. Patrick Stewart does his usual great job, and the rest of the regulars are obviously having some fun. The guest cast were generally solid; Donna Murphy did a good job as Anij, even if she was a little low-key for some tastes, and Anthony Zerbe made a suitably slimy Admiral Dougherty. As Ru'afo, the leader of the Son'a, F Murray Abraham was a rather forgettable villain (mind you, it didn't help that all the Son'a looked virtually the identical) although he did have his moments (one of them *not* being that laughably exaggerated "Nooooooooooooooooo!!!" when his mission is aborted).
Once again Jonathan Frakes does an exemplary job directing. He's certainly got an eye for visual flair, and whilst he's not exactly James Cameron quite yet, for a relative beginner I'm very impressed. On the other hand the special effects were surprisingly mixed -- whilst the explosions were quite spectacular, the close-ups of the ships were unconvincing. The robotic "tagging" devices llooked fake and the shot of Data in the Son'a ship attacking Ru'afo was unintentionally funny. I assume they used CGI, which has its virtues (like I said, the explosions were great), but as far as the ships go, actual models are far more convincing. I did love the music, though! Jerry Goldsmith is one of Hollywood's finest composers and he does an absolutely tremendous job. His opening theme was superlative and he keeps the momentum going right through the film.
One niggle I had with "Insurrection" was it's climax; not so much because of what happened, but more the *way* it happened. The final ten minutes are a flurry of beaming on and off different ships, activating particle collectors, being transported aboard holographic ships, chasing the bad guy before he can carry out his planÖoh, and it's all seasoned with a dash of technobabble, of course! Thing is, you have to concentrate exceptionally hard if you're to follow the plot. There's fast-paced and then there's so-fast-paced-it's-difficult-to-follow.
Some other thoughts;
* OK, so Riker piloted the Enterprise manually using what looked like a home PC *joystick*?! I'm not quite sure whether that was meant to be funny or taken seriously...
* The "Collector" ship immediately reminded me of the Bajoran light ship Sisko built in DS9's "Explorers". The "sails" looked almost identical. Oh, and did it strike anyone else as odd that this technology was utterly beyond the grasp of Starfleet?
* There were about three references to the Dominion. I had hoped that the film would tie-in closer with the events of the past season's DS9. There was no mention that the Federation was actually at war, but an interesting observation on Ru'afo's part that the Federation may be crumbling. Picard also mentioned "negotiations with the Dominion" -- huh? And on researching the Son'a, Riker claims that they manufacture the drug Ketracel-white. This strikes me as extremelyy unlikely, as it's previously been established that the drug is specific to the Founders, who use it to control the Jem'Hadar.
* Did I mention that the location work was absolutely gorgeous? Well, it was! I wonder where it was? Wouldn't mind a holiday thereÖ
* The scenes of Son'a skin-stretching were rather vile. Mind you, they don't bear a patch on the Vidiians from VOYAGER (who would just as happily graft *your* face onto theirs!). Admiral Dougherty met with a particularly nasty end -- in fact I'm surprised the film was only a PG certificate.
That's about it, I think you get the idea by now! I'm not sure how accessible it is for those completely unfamiliar with TREK and I suspect the uninitiated might go away feeling rather more confused than they were to begin with! But as far as I'm concerned, "Insurrection" may have its flaws and it's certainly not TREK at its best, but it's still an intelligent, thoughtful film that works reasonably well. The only major disappointment was that they never blew up the Enterprise at the end! It has to be one of the ugliest ships I've ever seen on TREK. Ah, well, there's always the next movie...or the one after that...or the one after that...
Rating: 7
-------- *Scott Andresson
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