Starship Nomadic, Northern Ireland STARSHIP NOMADICA NORTHERN IRELAND STAR TREK FAN GROUP
FILM 5 OF 14 · 198905
STAR TREK V

The Final Frontier

NOMADIC PICK · FAN CURIOSITYFlawed, but the trio's friendship shines.
US RELEASE
9 June 1989
RUNTIME
106 minutes
UK CERTIFICATE
PG
DIRECTED BY
William Shatner
MUSIC
Jerry Goldsmith
BUDGET
$33 million
BOX OFFICE (WORLDWIDE)
$63 million
FIRST STARDATE
None given

WRITTEN BYScreenplay by David Loughery; story by William Shatner & Harve Bennett & David Loughery

PRODUCED BYHarve Bennett

IN BRIEF

SPOILER-FREE

Kirk, Spock and McCoy's shore leave is cut short by a hostage crisis on a desolate planet, where a charismatic Vulcan plans to take the Enterprise to the centre of the galaxy in search of God.

SYNOPSIS

SPOILERS
Red alert: the full plot, ending included. Haven't watched yet?REVEAL SYNOPSISHIDE SYNOPSIS

Kirk, Spock and McCoy are camping in Yosemite while the new Enterprise-A, still plagued by faults after its shakedown cruise, is being repaired. Their holiday ends abruptly when Starfleet sends the ship to Nimbus III, a neglected desert world shared by the Federation, the Klingons and the Romulans, where a representative of each power has been taken hostage. The man behind the raid is Sybok, a Vulcan who rejects logic in favour of emotion and who can lift people's deepest pain through a mind link. Spock reveals that Sybok is his half-brother.

The rescue goes badly wrong. The hostages have already joined Sybok, who seizes the Enterprise and wins over most of the crew one by one. He shows Spock the moment of his own birth and frees McCoy from guilt over his father's death, but Kirk refuses, insisting that his pain is part of who he is. Sybok's goal is Sha Ka Ree, a planet beyond the Great Barrier at the heart of the galaxy, where he believes God is waiting. Behind them, a glory-hungry Klingon captain named Klaa gives chase.

The Enterprise crosses the barrier unharmed, and Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Sybok beam down to a barren world. A vast, shifting presence greets them and asks for the starship. Kirk wants to know what God needs with a starship, and the being turns on them, revealing itself as a malevolent prisoner rather than a deity. Sybok accepts his mistake and gives his life holding it back. Spock and McCoy are beamed up, but Kirk is stranded when Klaa attacks. Spock persuades General Korrd to take charge of the Klingon ship, which destroys the creature and rescues Kirk. Klaa apologises, and the three friends return to their campfire in Yosemite.

BEHIND THE CAMERA

After Leonard Nimoy directed two films, William Shatner gained the chance to direct the next, helped by a contract clause matching his terms to Nimoy's. Inspired by watching televangelists, he built the story around a search for God, and David Loughery wrote the screenplay. Gene Roddenberry disliked the premise, while Nimoy and DeForest Kelley objected to Spock and McCoy turning against Kirk. A writers' strike slowed development, and with Industrial Light & Magic unavailable, effects went to Associates and Ferren on a tight schedule. A planned rock creature for the finale did not work and was dropped. The film opened strongly in June 1989 but faded quickly in a crowded summer, and most reviews were negative, though critics praised the chemistry of the three leads.

DID YOU KNOW?

  1. 01Sean Connery was first offered the role of Sybok but was busy making Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The planet name Sha Ka Ree is a nod to him.
  2. 02Jerry Goldsmith, who scored Star Trek: The Motion Picture, returned as composer. His main title opens with notes from Alexander Courage's original television theme.
  3. 03Laurence Luckinbill plays Sybok, Spock's previously unmentioned half-brother.

CONNECTIONS

  • The Enterprise-A, still suffering teething troubles here, was introduced at the end of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986).
  • Captain Klaa's Bird of Prey uses the Klingon ship design first seen in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984).

AWARDS

Three Golden Raspberry Awards (Worst Picture, Worst Director, Worst Actor)

SOURCES WE CHECKED