Star Trek - Insurrection (1998)

Insurrection Interlude

The Good Things
*Good action and special effects. Love the nebula battle scene.
*Good filming style. Generally more colorful and upbeat.
*Pretty good storyline.
*Good characters.
*Good writing. Contains some comedy and a nice love story. Also some interesting content concerning immortality and having two species of the same genetic root fighting each other.
*One or two interesting themes about youth.
*Pretty good music.

The Bad Things
*Nothing particuarly special; the movie feels more like a two-hour long episode.

The Questionable Things
*This film is called "Insurrection," but it's not that big of an insurrection. I expected the Enterprise to oppose the entire Federation or something, but it's more like a small isolated incident.
The Questionable Things

This film is nothing too big, dramatic, or exceptional, and plays out more like another typical episode. Still, it is pretty fun, as it contains some good action, special effects, and comedy. It is also stylistically interesting, with some very slick ship designs and colorful settings. It's good fun for Star Trek fans, but most other people may be dissapointed.

The one-disc version has good video and sound quality. The two-disc version also has good quality, and includes a number of featurettes and trailers. August 4, 2008

Another Trek !!!

Patrick Stewart (Like Bill Shatner) takes the crew to another crisis with the Federation gone amok. It takes a while, but Ol' Patrick ferrets out the baddies and rights the ship. We are entertained in the meantime in the Trek Universe, with various tangents to the storyline. This one is better than the sum of its parts. Visually impressive ... great storyline and not an overabundance of un-necessary padding. July 17, 2008

The Battle For Utopia

Something is wrong with Data (Brent Spiner). On what seems to be a standard observation and research mission, Data's programming goes haywire. He turns on the Starfleet personnel he is working with and exposes the entire operation to those being observed: the peaceful, seemingly simplistic Ba'ku. When Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) and company gets wind of these events, they set out to find their friend and hopefully save him. A Starfleet Admiral who's part of the compromised mission (Anthony Zerbe) orders the Enterprise and her crew to get Data and then get out while he "ties up a few loose ends." As usual with Star Trek, things aren't always what they seem and the Enterprise uncovers a Starfleet scheme that goes directly against the Prime Directive and an alien race that's out for revenge. Will Picard go against his own loyalties with Starfleet in order to do what's right or will he be a good captain and accept his orders? It's time to watch "Star Trek: Insurrection" and find out.

Many fans of Star Trek find this particular film to be a bland and contradicting addition to the Trek catalogue. They state that Starfleet Command would never pull a stunt such as the one in this film. They gripe that the humor that litters this story is too distracting or out of character for the TNG cast. Some of them have even gone so far as to say that this story is too sugary sweet. In my opinion, it's all of these supposed contradictions that make "Insurrection" such a solid film.

Granted, it does play out somewhat like an extended episode of the TNG series, but it's still highly entertaining. For one, the humor is a welcome addition to this tale. So often I've felt that TNG was much too serious and needed to lighten up. Enter Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Troi (Marina Sirtis) and Worf (Michael Dorn) to add much needed doses of comedy throughout this tale. From the "frisky" feelings between Riker and Troi to Worf's puberty re-awakening, there's plenty to laugh at. Having Starfleet go against the Prime Directive due to misdirection is nothing new. Through technicalities and greed, their actions against the Ba'ku are justified. As far as all of the sugary sweet moments go, it's actually rather touching to experience a sunrise through Geordi's (LeVar Burton) eyes and the interaction between Data and a young Ba'ku child.

This film also features some excellent space battles. Perhaps some of the best in all of the TNG films. The effects (except for a couple of obvious CGI "face stretching" moments) are top notch, and the make-up is flawless. The musical score skillfully swings from threatening to lighthearted without skipping a beat.

The cast is top-notch. The key members of the Enterprise crew really get to shine here. From Stewart to Gates McFadden, the entire group does an excellent job. F. Murray Abraham (in heavy make-up) provides a wonderful but somewhat hammy villain as the leader of the So'na. Zerbe comes off a little bit stiff in his role, but does manage to convey the internal struggle he is suffering from quite well. Of special note is Donna Murphy as Annij. Not only is she strikingly beautiful, but her performance is one of the most heartfelt in the entire film.

Jonathan Frakes is at the helm of "Insurrection" as the director. It amazes how well he does behind a camera. I'm impressed each time I watch his work.

The DVD extras are great. There are plenty of Easter eggs to be had for those with the patience to find them. There's a fun look at the female aliens who've put sparkles in the eyes of numerous men aged twelve to ninety since the original series aired. There's a few excellent deleted scenes, an archive, making-of documentaries, and a wonderful look at the creation of the aliens for both the films and the various television series.

Overall, I highly recommend "Star Trek: Insurrection." While it may be nothing more than a long episode of TNG, it's still a fantastic story. With space battles, romance and plenty of humor, I give it four strong stars. July 10, 2008

Beautiful

A film I can watch over and over.

Set in a classic Star Trek realm with a music score worthy of the gods. June 16, 2008

An Underrated Effort

Though often reviewed as a typical "odd numbered" Star Trek movie (for some reason, the even numbered movies in the series have performed much better than the even numbers), Star Trek: Insurrection is actually a rather strong forte into the Trek universe.

The conflict of this film works on two levels: First, there is the conflict between two races of people (a plot point as old as time but one that, if done right, can be quite effective). Second, there is the conflict between Captain Jean-Luc Picard (and thus his crew) against upper-ranking Federation officials, who want to violate the sacred Prime Directive of the universe. Both of those areas of conflict, acting simultaneously throughout the movie, are surprisingly effective and compelling.

Besides the effectiveness of the main plot, however, this film also (much like the previous First Contact film) contains some interesting and humorous character development. While trying to rescue a persecuted race of people, the crew of the Enterprise investigates a planet on which the effects of aging are reversed. Thus, while the android Data is unaffected, other characters are taken on an interesting hormonal journey: Worf begins acting like a typical (violent!) Klingon youth, Crusher and Troi notice certain, um, body parts firming up, and Geordi LaForge regains the use of his natural eyes.

To conclude, Star Trek: Insurrection, while generally regarded as a sub-par effort, actually breaks the "odd-bad, even-good" chain of Star Trek movies. If you are new to the Star Trek universe and are interested in this movie, I would recommend watching the previous film, First Contact, in order to get a better handle on the Next Generation characters before watching this film. If you thoroughly enjoyed First Contact, this movie (with its action/adventure combined with great human drama and humor) will not disappoint you. June 11, 2008

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