the Captains; Shatner's Documentary

[pbot]

I saw it a little while ago and I liked it a lot. I really enjoyed listening to them speak of the toll that trek took on their families. Mulgrew was my personal favorite of the bunch. She really gave a feet on the ground account of trek, and even being a woman! Its certainly changed my perception of women.

Anyways, a lot of people thought Avery Brooks was high. I don't think he was high, I honestly just think the man is a metaphor for jazz. He answered Shatner's questions in a way that made sense to him. Sometimes you may have to listen to him answer a question a few times, but his answers are certainly there. (I found so anyway.)

Something unusual happened to me as I watched it though. I found that as Patrick Stewart spoke on, I realized that perhaps, as wonderful as he is as an actor, would I really want to get to know him as a person? I'm not sure.

Shatner was his usual self, which to me is fine. Scott Bakula was great, and Chris Pine was fine. I personally was very excited to listen to Avery Brooks because DS9 was my favorite of the series.

I liked this documentary a lot, I thought it was wonderful, especially towards the end, when Shatner reflects that although he seems (in Mulgrew's words) "dapper" at the age of 80, he has a very real fear of death. It really brought it all home to something larger.

Well, that was my take on it.

 

[Miss Lemon]

Thanks for the review!

I really want to see this, but unfortunately I haven't been able to put my hands on a copy yet.

 

[Harvey]

It is available via Netflix's streaming service, if you have access to that. I haven't watched it yet. The reviews weren't great, and I've been (sort of) busy lately.

 

[Miss Lemon]

Thanks for the tip, but sadly Netflix doesn't exist where I live.

 

[AcousticKoi]

It is available via Netflix's streaming service, if you have access to that. I haven't watched it yet. The reviews weren't great, and I've been (sort of) busy lately.

Thanks for the heads up. I'm definitely going to watch this soon.

 

[CaptainMatt]

I own this DVD and watched it with great interest with my mother. I enjoyed watching the various captains share their lives with the Shat-and thus the audience. I especially loved seeing Avery Brooks play the piano and think hard nearly every time Shat asked a question. Well worth getting a copy if you can wrangle it.

 

[shivkala]

I usually avoid documentaries or behind the scenes, since after a while, all actors sound the same to me. I feel as if the more I hear interviews with them, the more alike they sound. I listened to Patrick Stewart on the Nerdist podcast a while before seeing this movie and I enjoyed him talk there a lot more.

I think that's why I was riveted every time that Avery Brooks was on the screen. The man avoided the cliches that actors usually give and really showed flashes of his own, unique, free-form/improvised jazz infused thinking. I really enjoy listening to jazz music and learning about Eastern philosophies and I think that's why I enjoyed his interview segment the most.

 

[CaptainMatt]

He was brilliant, wasn't he? I rate him the best on the disc.

 

[Gagarin]

It's time for one of the cast to do "The Crew" doc.

 

[Random_Spock]

Finally got to see the Captains -- really liked it. Nice job on the review, pbot. You hit the nail on the head. There were times when I didn't always understand what Avery was saying, but it did seem like jazz improv. His view on the world and his life in general was pretty interesting.

The best was Kate Mulgrew for me as well. Never knew she raised her children on her own while the show was on the air. I have a whole lot more respect for her, both as an actress and as a person.

As for Scott Bakula, he cracked me up as usual, and Patrick Stewart... I kind of felt sorry for somewhat. Not sure if I'd want to know him as a person either, but it was good to see that he realized that he'd made some real mistakes in his life.

Chris Pine was pretty good as well, and as for Shatner, he did a nice job keeping people watching the documentary.

 

[BriGuy]

Watched it on Netflix not long ago.

Brooks comes off as losing his grip on sanity, IMO. That may be nothing new, from what I recall hearing about him. Too bad, as Sisko was a fine character; but actors are not their characters.

 

[A beaker full of death]

Anyways, a lot of people thought Avery Brooks was high. I don't think he was high, I honestly just think the man is a metaphor for jazz. He answered Shatner's questions in a way that made sense to him. Sometimes you may have to listen to him answer a question a few times, but his answers are certainly there. (I found so anyway.)

And to Shatner's credit, he tried his damnedest to follow along and speak the same language.

 

[indranee]

Brooks is like that in real life. Always has been. He's not "losing" anything... it's just the way he is. Oh, and he's not "stoned" either. I say this because I've heard a lot of people insinuate he was... on the documentary. Nope.

I loved this documentary. The Shatman did a wonderful job.

 

[ChristopherPike]

Definitely worth watching. Shatner does his best as interviewer to get under his fellow Captains' skins and find out what they're like as people, with families and passions outside Star Trek. The hook, set-up, whatever, in which he meets them is thrilling. The best, Shatner hiding in a cardboard box, outside a NYC theatre Kate Mulgrew was appearing at, still makes me laugh everytime.

Kind of makes me sad, they never got to cross paths in Star Trek as their characters (aside from Patrick Stewart who did in Generations obviously).

 

[Mr_Homn]

I came away liking Bakula a lot more. He comes across as an incredibly nice person.

Avery Brooks... I don't know. I feel as if he's pretending to be unique and different and overly deep. But if he's really like that, and he's just being himself, more power to him. He was definitely entertaining, and that's all that really matters, right?

Kate Mulgrew... Honestly I haven't seen the doc in a few months, and I only watched it once, and I think since Voyager was my least favorite Trek, I forgot much of her interview. I vaguely remember her and Shat speaking about Shat when he was on stage in the 50/60s , and that was really cool.

Patrick Stewart: That man has exquisite taste in furniture. That was my first impression. Every time he speaks I am reminded that he is one of the greatest actors of our time. I agree though that it seems that he was true to his character in many ways, putting his career ahead of his family. I am glad that like his character, he realized some of his mistakes. In my opinion he seems like a heartfelt good man who has made some personal mistakes. He honestly came across to me as the most "Real" of all the interviews. Perhaps that's because he's such an amazing actor who can fake me out. Who knows. Maybe he's a giant dickhead and I'll never know. That's the problem with great actors. Who knows for sure?

Chris Pine: It was funny, I'll give it that. Seeing the two kirks arm wrestle is priceless, but it felt forced. It also felt as if neither party was that interesting in being there.

 

[Unimatrix Zero]

I wouldn't particularly say I enjoyed the documentary, it was more of an interesting experience. The soundtrack and the style of the doc was intriguing.

Overall it left you with the feeling that if you ever felt at one time you wanted to be in their shoes, this programme threw a bucket of ice cold water over it.

I have done a lot of research regarding the behind-the-scenes-stuff, but this documentary really brought home the personal sacrifices these actors made just to bring entertainment to our screens; the sheer pressure of the 18 hour working day. Kate's description of not being able to even telehpone her kids when they were 'suffering' and Patrick's regrets over the way he treated his previous spouses are especially hard hitting testimonies of the world of Hollywood - something you are never told and gives credence as to why a lot of hollywood romances don't last

One thing I have got to ask; why does 54 year old Nana Visitor look YOUNGER now than when she was in DS9?!!

Plastic surgery obviously could be it, but 57 year old Kate Mulgrew has had some help as well (fillers) and she looks 'more mature'.

I would liked to have seen more interviews with the actors giving their accounts of their captains.

 

[Mr_Homn]

but this documentary really brought home the personal sacrifices these actors made just to bring entertainment to our screens; the sheer pressure of the 18 hour working day. Kate's description of not being able to even telehpone her kids when they were 'suffering' and Patrick's regrets over the way he treated his previous spouses are especially hard hitting testimonies of the world of Hollywood - something you are never told and gives credence as to why a lot of hollywood romances don't last

As bad as they have it, they are the ones getting paid the big bucks, and I feel more sympathetic toward those behind the scenes, who had equally rough schedules, for a fraction of the pay.

 

[Unimatrix Zero]

Good point Mr. Homn.

 

[doubleohfive]

Brooks is a riot to watch in this and if that's the only reason you do watch it, you'll be glad you did.

Chris Pine, Scott Bakula, and Kate Mulgrew are boring in comparison. The scenes with Patrick Stewart don't really reveal anything new - he basically rehashes the same old stories we've heard for the past 20 years, but he does hint at some regret for the mistakes he made in his personal life but never elaborates. This, coupled with his living in that beautiful, picturesque castle in England all by himself is really kind of a downer.

Shatner is his usual frivolous self, and even though this is all basically just another vanity project for him, it at least sort of caters to the nerds in a pleasant way. I'm glad I saw it and would recommend it, but I don't know that I'd buy it.

 

[Doug Otte]

I watched about 35 minutes of it yesterday, so I'll have to report back after finishing it.

It strikes me how Shatner needs to always have the upper hand. He approaches each of the actors with some odd introduction (different for each one), that immediately puts them off kilter. You can see it in their faces: they don't know what to expect next.

He's especially odd w/ Mulgrew. She tries to tell the story of how she got into acting, but he constantly keeps interrupting, asking "why" and acting as if she's lying to him. She actually seems to get very angry for a moment, but manages to keep her temper in check.

Still, it's an interesting concept for Shatner to delve into the psyches of the actors who portrayed captains in this cultural powerhouse.

Doug