MovieChat Forums > Star Trek: Generations (1994) Discussion > No heart, no soul, no guts

No heart, no soul, no guts

posted 10 years ago by mrbobbyh
8 replies | jump to latest

I like TNG, TOS, and the TOS movies, but this just felt like the worst possible mishmash of the three.

The story would have worked better if the entire TOS crew was in it, and there were a real passing of the torch where the two ships and their crews meet. If not that, then the story should have involved just Kirk and Spock together in substantial roles, where the two of them are somehow aboard the Enterprise-D and help save the world one more time alongside Picard and company, and gracefully step aside when their work is done (without hogging the spotlight or making the TNG cast look inferior).

It just felt like a bad and rushed episode of TNG guest starring Shatner playing a Kirk-like character and not Kirk himself.

And one more thing... seriously... Checkov and Scotty? To me, they are my two least favorite characters. They're both walking stereotypes of their nationalities. Uhura and Sulu would have been better for the opening scene. At least I can take them seriously.

[–] KobiyashiMauru 10 years ago

I liked the film, but you NAILED the part about William Shatner playing a Kirk-like character!

[–] bjlevine 10 years ago

Originally, they tried to develop a story that involved both crews throughout the movie, but couldn't come up with a plausible story line.

And the Scotty-Chekov parts were actually written for Spock and McCoy, but neither Nimoy nor Kelley wanted to do what amounted to a cameo.

"Lovey-dovey. Bonk bonk on the head!"

[–] mrbobbyh 10 years ago

They couldn't come up with a plausible storyline because it was written by three guys who had been milking off the franchise for years on TV. Of course they couldn't be bothered to think of a better story. I'd almost bet that they took a rejected script from the series and fleshed it out into a feature film. I think the movie would have been so much better if somebody like Nicholas Meyer or Harve Bennett had been involved in it.

As for the Scotty/Chekov thing, I recall hearing about it many years ago. It just seems to me like they were scraping the bottom of the barrel by bringing those two in. Sulu and Uhura, to me, are two of the most competent professionals in all of Star Trek. Chekov was a bumbling ignoramus and Scotty was a walking stereotype.

[–] Tommy 42 10 years ago

Wow - I agree with you about all of this.

Terrible writing from the start.
It should, like you say, have been the meeting of the two crews.

Personally I would have mixed VII and VIII together and had Kirk joining Picard and co to fight the Borg. Kirk could have been captured or something (instead of Data) but he didn't need to die to pass the torch.

I was 13 when I saw this in the theatres and it annoyed me then how they did this and it still annoys me now!!

Lazy, lazy, LAZY!

TS

[–] bjlevine 10 years ago

Well, I disagree about Scotty. If TOS had a big three, Scotty was definitely 4th, also serving as third in command. But at the very least, they should have written new parts for Chekov and Scotty.

But certainly, they should have been able to come up with a script that effectively combined both crews. I don't think that Rick Berman was at all keen on including TOS cast, anyway. And I know that they had wanted to crash the Enterprise-D for some time and finally had the budget for it. But to think that the D was taken out by a Klingon Bird of Prey is even worse than the original Enterprise being taken out by a Bird of Prey.

👷👳
Bob the Builder and Hadji walk into a bar...

[–] greg-taitt1981 8 years ago

The film was technically rushed. They started filming this right after the last episode had wrapped. Deforest Kelley(bones McCoy) couldn't do the role because he was too ill and couldn't get stage insurance. I think the movie is brilliant and really don't think it deserve the hatred you are throwing at it.

[–] pavel_malkoff 8 years ago

Whenever I read a critique of the Generations I only find silly nitpicking and childish arguments for the most part. Suddenly those fans just don't understand the essence of Star Trek and what's often makes movie a good movie. Of course Star Trek is not a masterpiece of Godfather proportions. But the best films and episodes often finds a good balance between entertainment and thought provoking stuff. And I think the Generations are fundamentally great at that. What is our life to the existence in heaven (nexus is a great sci-fi concept), how pure intelligence would compete with emotions... I like that those ideas shows through the characters perspective. How they act in specific situations, what are their moral choices, how bad guys could outsmart good guys and vice versa. Visually this film is also very rich and imaginative. A crash landing scene is probably the best I have ever seen to this day. My score is solid 7 out of 10.

[–] residentevil6901 8 years ago

I thought it the best movie of the 4 the Next Gen cast made. I love it. It's the most Trekkie of the 4. It feels more like what Roddenberry would've done.