"Saddle up.  Lock and load."      

STAR TREK: INSURRECTION (PG) 

Reviewed December 11, 1998 - Check out the Star Trek: Insurrection Website.

Now the ninth major motion picture in the series, Star Trek: Insurrection brings us the "Next Generation" crew once again.  The cast, including Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart), Data (Brent Spiner), Geordi LaForge (LeVar Burton), Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Worf (Michael Dorn), Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), and Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden), all appear to be in good form, which should please all of you "Next Generation" fans out there.  Yes, as in Star Trek: First Contact, there's humor, chemistry, and camaraderie among the Enterprise crewmates, which makes it easier to follow this gang of space travelers on any adventure. 

Oh, and speaking of adventures...in Insurrection, which is very much in line with other Star Trek-inspired plots, we see the crew of the Enterprise in direct violation of Federation orders (hence the title) when they seek to protect a peace-loving community of 600 Ba'kus from a forced relocation from their planet.  As it turns out, the Ba'ku's home planet is a "fountain of youth" which lends near immortality to its residents.  Unfortunately for the Ba'ku, however, the Federation, in conjunction with the Son'a people led by Ru'afo (F. Murray Abraham), want to harvest the planet's youth-bestowing properties (rendering the planet uninhabitable), and planned to relocate the Ba'ku in order to complete their work.  Well, at least that was the plan...until Picard got wind of it.  You can guess what happens next...

To a large degree, the continued popularity of Star Trek has to do more with the ship and its crews rather than the specific missions that they undertake.  For those of you who are fans of Star Trek in general, and those fond of the "Next Generation" crew in particular, what this means is that given some minimum standard of production quality, Star Trek: Insurrection is pretty much a "must see."  Well, I'm happy to report that Insurrection more than meets the minimum standard, and offers enough entertainment to make this a watchable picture for both Trekkies and non-Trekkies alike.  No, this is not the best Star Trek film in the series (it never really builds the level of tension it needs, and some of the space battle sequences could use some work), but it is also far from being the worst.  At the hands of Director Jonathan Frakes (who also directed First Contact), Insurrection is a likeable, self-assured production that will be accessible to most audiences, and one that current fans will no doubt enjoy.  Overall?  Nice work, folks...

Responses from cyberspace--thanks for writing!

yiliang40@hotmail.com gives this movie  stars: "A good plot, really good looking Sona ships, the Matrix-like slowing of time, but really...... can the new Enterprise, a Sovereign Class ship, supposedly the very latest and best that he United Federation of Planets has to offer get beaten up by what... two Sona Battleships??? This is RIDICULOUS!!! I have seen Star Trek- Insurrection at least ten times, and those Sona ships probably have only half, perhaps only two thirds of the firepower of a Romulan Warbird(D'Deridex Class) or are equivalent to a Klingon Vor'cha class, or a Cardassian Warship. Sure... the Sona have subspace weapons, and they DON'T follow the Khitomer Accord, which bans all such weapons, but the Enterprise E was damaged very severely by THREE photon torpedoes, even with their shields up. " (1/14/01)

ShadowRaider_98@yahoo.com gives this movie  stars: "The storyline is not that gripping, but the characters develop - some. and good effects too... not too bad, but still a good Star Trek movie" (6/24/99)

hmccorvey@tyler.net gives this movie  stars: "Insurrection was a good movie with a good plot. However, it was more a series episode than a feature film. The story was excellent, but this was more "drama" than scifi. The special effects were excellent, but I was terribly upset at how the writers made the new Enterprise-E look pathetic against the alien Sona ships. First Contact was by far the best Star Trek since The Undiscovered Country. Now that the writers have given in to pressure from "drama advocates" and made a love story in Insurrection, lets get back to Star Trek as a scifi show! First Contact went a long way toward reviving Star Trek and convincing the old episode fans to like The Next Generation; this film will more than likely kill that progress. But look on the bright side- It's 500% better than Star Trek V: The Final Frontier!" (2/3/99)

JB-Kim@wiu.edu gives this movie  stars: "I'll admit I'm not a trekkie, but I am a star trek fan. This is undoubtedly a good movie. What with the imagery from the beginning of sweeping landscapes and beautiful scenery surrounding only to be disturbed by a floating head and some pentium guys. Immediately, the story takes off with a rather fast paced adventure. However, the film falls short. It reminds a viewer more of a television episode rather than an actual movie. The subplots with Capt. Picard falling in love are a unique addition, as well as LaForge regaining his sight (with a simply beautiful scene of a sunrise) were well intended, but seem misplaced. While it was a fun movie to watch, this movie was not quite up to par with the previous First Contact. One almost expects to see "executive producer" and other various credits as seen on the television show to start appearing as the film closes with the Enterprise. You can post this if you would like." (1/30/99)

jenamarie@deskmedia.com gives this movie  stars: "I'd have given this movie twenty stars if I could have. I never thought they'd be able to make another movie that could compare to Voyage Home & First Contact, but they did it. I can't say I'm totally unbiased. I was raised on Star Trek, and I'll always love it. But even by my high standards, this movie was great. I thought Frakes did a terrific job of directing, and they managed to put in so much humor. I loved the Data scenes! I can't wait to see what they come up with next! p.s. If there's anyone out there that's as much of a fanatic about Star Trek, Babylon 5, or Starwars as I am, please,please, please E-mail me. And if you've got any rumours on upcoming films/episodes/books let me know." (1/9/99)