It’s a weird film in that you will recognize the cast and villain from an episode of the 1960’s television series, but that doesn’t add a whole lot to understanding/appreciating the film as a whole. That’s not a diss. In fact, I think this might be the best Star Trek film of them all. Nicholas Meyer directs Shatner particularly well, reigning in some of the hammy-ness of the TV Kirk while transforming the grim pragmatism of the Kirk in the first film into an introspective, regretful, middle-aged man.
My favorite scene of the film is when McCoy (DeForrest Kelley) confronts Kirk about his mid-life crisis. Kelley is the perfect crotchety, irascible advice columnist for Kirk. Plus, Kirk’s pad is so damn smooth. (Why have we never seen Picard’s study, by the way?) If I could live inside of a movie set, it would be this one. It’s elegant like my aunt and uncle that had a vacation condo in Lake Geneva (trust me, that was once a big [and controversial] deal).
Enjoy, friends: