One could approach it from the POV of the Abramsverse: "The more they overthink the plumbing, the easier it is to stop up the drain."
What do the Abrams films have to do with this discussion? Star Trek III is a fun romp, one of my favorite Trek movies.
Because, like politics, some people feel the need to bring it up even when the discussion has nothing whatsoever to do with it.
"That's what you get for missing staff meetings, doctor." Not a great movie, but a fun one, especially for Star Trek fans, and I revisit it often.
Calling SFS a fun romp is like calling ALIEN3 lightweight summer fare. They blow up the ship, kill Kirk's son, invalidate pretty much every good thing from the previous film, and even when they do something right, like casting Robin Curtis, Nimoy blows it by mutating the character into a full Vulcan stuck with the lamest possible lines, pretty much like sending the actress into battle with an arrow already stuck through her head. Now if you said it was operatic, then yeah, I'd go with that, since there is plenty of sturm and drang. Mostly dumbass sturm and drang, but even so ...
Yeah a very frustrating watch for me---from one classic scene I like to a scene I don't like all the way thru for 105 minutes.
As a boy back then, I enjoyed the breakout of McCoy from starfleet security to the stealing of the Enterprise from spacedock.
Fantastic movie - easily in my top five. I have some really fond memories of early VHS rentals/purchases... and watching, rewind... watching, rewind... watching...
Star Trek III is my second-favorite as well. It exemplifies what my favorite elements of TOS have always been: drama, adventure, some light-heartedness, and the emphasis on friendship and family. It is also a unique story (stealing the ship and sacrificing everything for friendship and loyalty) and did a fantastic job of expanding the Star Trek universe (modern Klingons, bird of prey, Oberth class, Excelsior class, spacedock, etc). Great flick, and a great companion piece to Wrath of Khan.
I'm a big fan of III, preferring it to II. I loved the epic sense of adventure, and how it seemed to open up Trek's world. Not a fan of Saavik Mk 2, though.
Kirk: My God, Bones... what have I done? McCoy: What you had to do, what you always do. Turn death into a fighting chance to live. Sums up the movie for me. It doesn't live up to TWoK, and there are better Trek films besides, but it most certainly has its moments.
I think III got a bum rap because it was sandwiched between an all time classic movie and one of the biggest box office draws in the franchise so it always seemed to be looked upon unfavorably and is where the bullshit 'odd movie curse' sprang from. I look back on it now in a much better light - like other posters have remarked it brought so many firsts for the franchise, and aside from the odd slow part or cheap looking set remains an entertaining movie and I rank it above TVH these days, and definitely above the likes of Generations, Insurrection and The Final Frontier. The theft of the Enterprise remains the movie's best scene and one of my favorite sequences in all of Trek, not only that it captured just the right blend of drama and humor which TFF failed to do (bar the campfire scenes), TVH went way over the top with and TMP which didn't even try. The special effects were pretty good too - standouts werethe Enterprise on approach to the first spacedock reveal, the theft and destruction of the ship itself were all well done for 1984. The only things I didn't really care for were the story itself, which was bordering on the preposterous, and the slow ending with all the Vulcan mumbo-jumbo comes across as very cheesy these days, but at least it tried to capture the spirit of TOS. I'm a big fan of Star Trek III
"I choose the danger.... hell of a time to ask!" Fun movie. Not perfect, but enough to love within that I don't feel the need to bitch about it. And it has a superb score from James Horner.
Grab the soundtrack and listen to Horners "Stealing the Enterprise" with headphones and some volume, truly an outstanding piece.