What you did or didn't like about TFF....

[sbk1234]

I think it had some of the best character stuff between the big three, emphasising their closeness.
I think Sybok was actually an enigmatic charcter. I liked watching him.

I think the movie fell appart when they tried to throw in too much humor that didn't come organically from the situations.

And, yes, the special effects were sub-par.

 

[buckeyenation]

Easily the worst Trek movie ever. I can think of nothing to redeem this disaster. which is a shame, really, because the plot had some promise. But, alas, all we got was a train wreck. With toxic waste onboard. And when the train wrecked....they were showing this movie.

 

[Trekwatcher]

TFF always struck me as "close but no cigar." There was a lot of potential there, and some very well done scenes made it into the final film. There are a lot of good moments between Kirk, Spock, and McCoy regarding their friendship and relationship over time, which I really enjoy more and more as I get older. The plot is actually fairly well constructed and Sybok is given an interesting motivation and some meaningful skills. Spock has an interesting and novel conflict that he grapples with. I personally happen to love the Assault Phasers created for this film (and re-used in ST VI).

The downsides include some glaringly poor special effects (to be fair-there area few nice shots as well), Klingons that just look and act downright silly, some terrible throwaway gags including Deck 78, Scotty banging his head (I felt embarrassed for Doohan in that scene), and the Jetboots segments (among others). The "ship is full of glitches" and "we have less than a skeleton crew" bits/gags also wore out quickly.

For me, the problem is that whenever they get something in the film right they immediately follow it up with a scene that makes me wince or cringe, so there is no sense of an even tone.

Just last week I re-watched ST VI-TUC for the first time in a while, and I was struck by how well directed it was. The tone and feel of the movie are very consistent, the few bits of humor are well placed, and for the most part everyone is in character. ST V TFF could have done the same, and it is a shame that it did not.

 

[trevanian]

Just last week I re-watched ST VI-TUC for the first time in a while, and I was struck by how well directed it was. The tone and feel of the movie are very consistent, the few bits of humor are well placed, and for the most part everyone is in character. ST V TFF could have done the same, and it is a shame that it did not.

That's funny, cuz TUC seems to be very slapdash in its direction when I watch it. Continuity goofs left right and center, plus the sudden detour from drama to light adventure once the Rure Penthe stuff starts (typical failing of most movies for me is second half of act 2 ... instead of kicking the tension up further, you just tread water or throw up light complications till you can get to the big action of the end.)

There are a million things to bitch about in TFF, but if you really like it like I do, most of them don't matter enough to keep me from rewatching it more than any of the others except TMP and TWOK (dif being that I watch TFF and TWOK all the way through, whereas I usually watch TMP in blocks ... like 'just the slow awesome visual' sections or 'just until they get out of dock' section.)

 

[Trekwatcher]

It may be a style issue for you. I really like Nick Meyer's work-his way of doing things resonates well for me.

 

[trevanian]

It may be a style issue for you. I really like Nick Meyer's work-his way of doing things resonates well for me.

I think most -- but by no means all -- of Meyer's calls on TWOK worked for that film's approach and mood and storytelling, so it ain't that. Certainly the use of insert shots in TWOK did a lot to counter the screaming lack of same in TMP, and even though Meyer himself, at the time of TUC, was not impressed with how he had TWOK photographed in terms of composition and camera movement, I don't have many issues with that either.

I just don't see the same level attention at work in TUC, in any aspect of storytelling. In fact, if they hadn't gotten a few extra bucks to add vfx shots to the final battle, I think there would have been some serious continuity issues, far beyond the ones already there.

 

[EEE]

Likes:
-The humor. I liked the camping scene and Scotty bumping his head. Sue me.

I liked the Scotty head bump too. It was very apropos in bringing home the fact that they weren't on the real Enterprise anymore.

 

[Diddle]

I find that movie dull and boring save some funny scenes and awkward moments.
The whole center of the galaxy - god-like angry head guy only turned out to be mildly interesting for me after I read the Q-Continuum Series novels.

I don't remember the movie in much detail to point out things that I like about it, but if it's in the same movie I remember I thought it was so wrong yet unrealistically hilarious that Uhura seducted those guys by dancing to them.

 

[Peach Wookiee]

It's an old movie bit. Pretty woman distracts guys who probably haven't had women for a while. And man, I hope I look half as good as Nichelle Nichols when I'm that age!

 

[JonnyQuest037]

Likes:

-Shatner & his cinematographer have some great shots in the movie. The Yosemite climbing scenes look wonderful.
-David Warner. He's always great.
-Jerry Goldsmith's score (although he does recycle his TMP themes a LOT.)
-The shuttle designs are terrific.
"I liked him better before he died." (Although, to be fair, Peter David used this line first in a ST comic.)
-"Excuse me... EXCUSE ME! What does God need with a Starship?"

Dislikes: Pretty much everything else.

 

[ScottDS]

LIKES:

-Jerry Goldsmith's music (my holy grail is a release of the complete score)... this film brought back the Klingon theme after a ten-year absence and introduced what's known as the "adversity motif" which was also used in FC, INS, and NEM
-the Kirk/Spock/Bones material, including the campfire scenes and the observation lounge scene culminating in Kirk's "I need my pain!" line... great stuff
-while 95% of the visual effects were awful, the aforementioned lounge scene used rear projection for the starfields instead of bluescreen which allowed the camera to move (and not be locked down)
-Laurence Luckinbill as Sybok
-the film has heart, which is more than I can say for most films made today... at least they tried!
-some of the dialogue: "I liked him better before he died," "You were never alone," and "I lost a brother once... I was lucky I got him back" among others
-they somehow manage to tie in the opening campfire scenes with the end of the film, re: dying alone and men like them not having families
-Spock's rocket boots... yeah, I like them!
-the nod to Sea Fever
-the scale is totally wrong but I like the "shuttle crashes into the bay" scene

DISLIKES:

-almost all of the visual effects shots are flawed in some way, most notably the lack of motion blur on the ship shots
-Uhura's fan dance
-the blatant reuse of the TNG interior sets
-the plot is conceptually flawed and nothing could fix the inherent problem of the crew "finding God"... Harve Bennett put it best when he said it read like a bad logline from TV Guide
-the ease with which Sybok hypnotizes the crew
-the ending just kinda... happens (see next line)
-Paramount's refusal to let Shatner finish the film
-David Warner's talents are wasted in this film (I thought the cigarette was a nice touch, though)
-the ill-conceived Scotty/Uhura flirtation
-the bad science re: the length of time it takes to get to the "center of the galaxy"