I just saw a commercial for the new “Star Trek: Nemesis” film on MTV last week — does that mean that Capt. Piccard (Patrick Stewart) and his crew are gonna be chillin’ in the Starship Enterprise showing off their hot crib this time around? Unfortunately not, but for any fan of the “Star Trek” films, at least to some measure, will be relieved to know that while the 10th and latest installment of the series isn’t this crew’s best space journey, it really isn’t all too bad.
The whole crew is still together on board the USS Enterprise where “Nemesis” begins, joined in one room to celebrate the marriage between crew members William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), whose later celebration on Deanna’s planet won’t be nearly as tranquil, nor fully clothed.
Riker is set to take over his own ship as well, the USS Titan, and on their way back to Deanna’s planet the crew stops to investigate a shady electromagnetic signal from an unknown planet. After finding another android a little too similar to Data (Brent Spiner) on a planet inhabited by a nasty race called the Reman, the Enterprise is called to meet with the Romulans for talk of a peace agreement.
It’s there that Piccard meets the likeness of himself, Praetor Shinzon (Tom Hardy), a perfect clone of Piccard who was constructed by the Romulans for a planned takedown of the Federation’s future. Shinzon, a claimed Reman, is now in charge of the Romulans and has a new weapon that he’s willing to risk everything for.
Trekkies will love this film, which is better than the past “TNG” installments, and others who go to check it out should have no problem enjoying themselves. The “Star Trek” crew does a great job of welcoming new fans, making it easy to jump right into any story line, even after numerous films and years on television. While not a Trekkie myself, the film continues the series’ impressive trend of great stories, witty dialogue and amazing space battles. Sound interesting enough to you? Then go check it out!
3 / 5 Stars
Starring: Patrick Stewart, Tom Hardy, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis, Gates McFadden, Ron Perlman
Director: Charles Stone III
