The old joke doesn’t really hold true anymore, but it’s still widely (playfully) agreed that the odd-numbered Star Trek films are the bad ones, while the even-numbered ones are the good ones. I would argue that Star Trek III: The Search for Spock is a perfectly decent movie, while Star Trek Into Darkness, the 12th film in the franchise (or the second in the “volume 2” franchise, depending on what you prefer), is actually one of the worst.
But most people often agree on one thing: Star Trek V: The Final Frontier – directed by William Shatner and released in 1989 to worldwide indifference – is easily the worst in the series. People saw it as cheap, hokey, and possessed of a dumb premise; to remind you, Star Trek V was the one where Capt. Kirk and Co. meet God face-to-face. “Star Trek” has never been one to shy away from the occasionally hokey plot that rubs elbows with notions of the infinite, but meeting up with Himself seemed to be one toke over the line for even the most dyed-in-the-wool Trekkies.
Well, seeing as this is CraveOnline‘s Trolling, a weekly series devoted to deliberately contradicting fanboys everywhere, we are going to openly and happily and confidently declare that Star Trek V is not the bad film it is reputed to be. Indeed, we’re going to argue that Star Trek V RULES. Here are a few reasons why you’re wrong and we’re right:
The film was, sadly, hampered by a low budget, and, yes, actually confronting the physical manifestation of an evil alien claiming to be God (not a god, mind you, but THE God) is a pretty cheesy story conceit. But Star Trek V is more thoughtful and skilled and gregarious than it often given credit for. In many ways, it’s one of the more thoughtful films in the series.
Witney Seibold is a featured contributor on the CraveOnline Film Channel, and co-host of The B-Movies Podcast. You can read his weekly articles Trolling, Free Film School and The Series Project, and follow him on “Twitter” at @WitneySeibold, where he is slowly losing his mind.
Star Trek V RULES
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It's Friendly and Gregarious
The bulk of the Star Trek films – while possessed of small moments of levity throughout – are, overall, kind of staid and mannered affairs. The dealings of Starfleet, and their ultra-structured military lifestyle, can feel a bit too dry for many audiences, and make the entire franchise seem a mite formal and perhaps even stuffy. Star Trek V is the first of the films to show our beloved characters joking around, singing songs, and actually having a good time on their days off. It's tone still has the seriousness, but it's tempered by good humor. This is, admittedly, a clash in tone to the other Trek films, but it may be considered a welcome change of pace.
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It's Villain is Ideological
Sybok, as played by Laurence Luckinbill, is an excellent, classic Star Trek villain in one very important facet: He presents an opposing viewpoint. Star Trek has always been, through all its technobabble, a series about ideas and philosophies more than action and might. So it's only fitting that the villains in their universe should be ciphers of a certain philosophy. In other films the antagonists were simplistic killing machines (what was that whale thing from Trek IV?) or vengeful idiots (Khan, Shinzon, Khan again). This time around, the antagonist is a clear-thinking, largely calm non-maniac who wants to help people. He only wants to do it forcibly, that's all. His central conflicts with Kirk & Co. are about baseline life philosophies, not violence. That makes him better than many of his Trek villain contemporaries.
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It Shows the Criminal Side of Star Trek
Several opening scenes of Star Trek V are set in a remote desert outpost where criminals often meet in secret. Star Trek movies and shows are usually set largely within polished and well-run ships, or are, at the very least, set in clean and peaceful cities. There are allusions to a criminal element, but it's rare that we'll see anything resembling filth in the Star Trek universe. Star Trek V marks the first time in the entire franchise that we've seen actual, real-world problems on display. Problems like poverty, destitution, malnutrition, and actual crime. And these plights are not central to the story. Getting a small non-plot-related taste of Star Trek's criminal world only enriches the Star Trek universe.
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It Shows That Stuff Doesn't Always Work
On a similar note, Star Trek V also presents us with some refreshing engineering flaws. Trek is, traditionally, staggeringly efficient. Sure, there are battles and space phenomenon that rip the shows' and movies' respective starships and space stations apart, but repairs are always quickly made. Star Trek V takes place on an Enterprise that is under extreme repairs, and is not fully staffed. Although Scotty is there to finesse the technical aspects of the ship, most of the widgets on the ship don't work so well. It's kind of refreshing to see Starfleet's best and brightest finally aboard a ship that's rattling its way through space, finally being challenged.
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That One “Pain” Scene is Great
Not just one of the best scenes in Star Trek V, but one of the more salient in the entire franchise, the “pain” scene is classic Trek through-and-through. Sybok has a special psychic ability to recreate people's worst memories, allowing them to experience the pain all over again. He does this as a form of extreme therapy; he will then purge you of your greatest pain. The way the scene is staged (intimate theatrical scenes appear out of the darkness) is simple and elegant, and seeing our heroes live through their pain allows them to do some actual reflection. The acting is great. The ultimate point of the scene is also poignant; when Kirk is offered alleviation, he argues that his pain is a vital part of his makeup. He needs his pain. Good point.
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It Deals with Theology
I admit that Star Trek V isn't exactly Kierkegaard, but it is the first time in Star Trek that we've actually talked about religion and theology so directly. Previously, Star Trek relegated its talks on spirituality to alien races and alien religions, usually (and perhaps tactfully) eschewing any familiar Earth religion. Star Trek V is about man's search for the Divine. It still doesn't openly discuss any Earth religion (Gene Roddenberry was a confessed Hippie Communist who largely shied away from religion), but that we're finally discussing the presence of God is a new step. The Final Frontier is then – perhaps – the spiritual frontier. If Spock is Mind, and Bones is Body, then Kirk must be Soul. And it's something that Trek hadn't discussed so plainly before.
