I agree. Shatner was constantly criticized for his directing. It didn't help that Nimoy had earlier received much praise for his direction of III and IV. Every single time I watch Star Trek V, I enjoy it and also notice something new.
The Most Underrated Movie?
- Thread starter M-Red
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I had to go for Generations, there's just something about that film that I really like and always enjoy watching it (even if I do fast forward through the Nexus scenes). Picard has a really touching storyline that would've been great to have fleshed out more in the other films, whilst Data gets a little closer to understanding humanity. Granted most of the others don't get enough to really do, but they all chip in where relevant (it's not like the other TOS character were given lots more to do in their feature films). I was close to picking TSFS and might've done had they kept Alley-Saavik.
The Final Frontier wasn't that bad, let alone the complete, embarrassing trainwreck it's often claimed to be. Pretty good interactions with the big three, interesting if out-there story, decent resolutions. Plus I tend to enjoy slapstick in general and most of it in the movie was at least OK. A lot of the complaints seem centered on there's too much humor, especially slapstick, or hating the idea that Spock had a half-brother.
The Final Frontier wasn't that bad, let alone the complete, embarrassing trainwreck it's often claimed to be. Pretty good interactions with the big three, interesting if out-there story, decent resolutions. Plus I tend to enjoy slapstick in general and most of it in the movie was at least OK. A lot of the complaints seem centered on there's too much humor, especially slapstick, hating the idea that Spock had a half-brother or considering the special effects to be bad.
It really is. I'm sure there's a good movie in there, it just didn't make it to the screen.
Yeah I have to agree, TFF takes a lot of shit and not entirely undeservedly, the film is plagued with issues to be sure and a lot of those really do have to do with Shatner and you'd think the experience and subsequent reviews would have humbled him slightly.
But if you peel some of the Cheese, there is a lot to like in TFF.
I mean shit for me, I still geek at:
"Jim, you don't ask the almighty for his ID!".
Do you dislike slapstick humor in general?
Not at all. But there's a difference between slapstick and plain stupidity. The humor in The Final Frontier mostly falls in the latter category, for me.
Search for Spock. It gets flack for the draggy ending on Vulcan and for spending the whole movie undoing the ending of the prior film, but the first two acts are perfect to me. I think it may be my second favorite ST film besides Khan.
Thought about that one, but it still isn't that good, even if it's not nearly as bad as people say, so I went with one I liked.
Thought about that one, but it still isn't that good, even if it's not nearly as bad as people say, so I went with one I liked.
I don't think there's any series of movies in the history of motion pictures I feel are as vastly OVER-appreciated as the LOTR films. Good mercy, hire an editor. Saw each one once...felt I had made a vast mistake wasting my time every single time. Never bothered with the Hobbit trilogy.
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I have a theory on The Final Frontier.
It's hard for me to say, because I'm one of the few human beings on the planet who actually really like the movie (I actually put it higher in my ranking that TVH and TUC)...but objectively, it is a mess. It looks bad, has sloppy writing, and some unnecessarily silly moments that just kill the momentum.
That said, it is also the closest in tone and plot as anything else produced in the entire franchise to the original classic series, which I love! So, why was it so hated? Here's my theory: Shatner. For the most part, people were prepared to hate it because of the polarizing effect William Shatner has on the fans and pop culture in general. Shatner told us to "get a life" in 1986 (in a totally tounge-in-cheek moment, btw)...and damnit...the fans were ready to make him pay for that. So, when a relatively decent but certainly flawed film premiered in June of 1989 with his creative fingerprints all over it, it was the perfect opportunity to get all that frustration out on the guy who made everyone feel like a worthless geek and who had been rumored for decades to be an insufferable jerk with his peers and fellow actors. And people pooped all over it as a result.
It's funny, because TMP was criticized at the time of its release for being too sterile, boring, and ponderous...and not having the heart of the original series. TFF was almost the exact opposite of that, and it is equally (if not more) criticized.
It makes me wonder how TFF would have been received, given the same production values as TMP and a little clean-up on the script and story, if it had been the first Star Trek movie.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture (DIRECTOR'S EDITION) is my favorite star trek film (undiscovered country comes in at #2). I feel it is underrated because it established a truly cinematic language for the movies that few of the rest of the films could live up to. It aspired to touch the infinite. Ask bold questions, while not necessarily giving any answers. It has the same kind of polarizing effect that most "Big Question Sci-Fi" has on people (2001, Interstellar, Contact). It was subtle (perhaps too much so), and whatever problems I remember having with the theatrical were totally fixed with the director's edition (CAN WE GET THIS ON BLU-RAY PLEASE?!?)
"Each of us has a time where we turn to someone, a father, a brother, a god, and ask...why am I here? What was I meant to be? Is this all I am, is there nothing more?"
That to me is the heart of the movie. It also has my favorite Kirk/Spock moment of the movies:
(Spock clasps Kirk's hand)
"...this...simple feeling...is beyond V'ger's comprehension."
There are so many loaded glances between characters (we do not need dialogue). McCoy's look to Kirk on the bridge, confirming his own uncertainty in reassuring command.
Great stuff. I like all the original series movies, but this one is special.
"Each of us has a time where we turn to someone, a father, a brother, a god, and ask...why am I here? What was I meant to be? Is this all I am, is there nothing more?"
That to me is the heart of the movie. It also has my favorite Kirk/Spock moment of the movies:
(Spock clasps Kirk's hand)
"...this...simple feeling...is beyond V'ger's comprehension."
There are so many loaded glances between characters (we do not need dialogue). McCoy's look to Kirk on the bridge, confirming his own uncertainty in reassuring command.
Great stuff. I like all the original series movies, but this one is special.
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