I don't usually participate in this forum because my philosophy is that Star Trek really belongs on TV with movies just as snacks between the main courses. I've only seen the movies once for the most part. But recently I just re-viewed TWOK (possibly for the first time since 1982! yes, the plot twists took me by surprise, all I remembered was the earwig and Spock's death!
) It really reinvigorated my appetite for more TOS era movies from the recast crew. Anyway, my ranking, hazy as it may be...
1. The Voyage Home - did the best job with the interpersonal chemistry and underlying hippie-ness that for me, is the essence of Star Trek (at least until DS9 came along)
2. TWOK - also great for interpersonal chemistry and a good story
3. First Contact - mainly for the story; the TNG crew were lacking in the chemistry I liked in TOS
...those are the three I definitely like (and the only ones I've seen more than once). From there:
4. The Search for Spock
5. The Undiscovered Country
...are ones I recall pretty much liking despite being disappointed in the recasting of Saavik when Kirstie Alley got the gig on
Cheers. I also recall being nonplussed by Christopher Lloyd as a Klingon (this will crack you people up: originally I remember Lloyd being in TUC and had to go check imdb to find out he was in SFS instead.)
After that, there are the disappointments, which generally reflect my indifference to the TNG era:
6. Generations
7. The Motion Picture
8. Insurrection
9. The Final Frontier, which I would have thought would stand for all time as the worst Trek movie, but amazingly...
10. Nemesis
)
