Star Trek: Generations
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Star Trek: Generations (Paramount Pictures, 1994) is the seventh feature film based on the popular Star Trek science fiction television series. It is often referred to as just Generations. It is the first film in the series to star the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and is a symbolic passing of the torch of the film series from the original series cast to the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast.
There was also a game based on the film.
Contents |
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Patrick Stewart | Captain Jean-Luc Picard |
| Jonathan Frakes | Commander William T. Riker |
| Brent Spiner | Lt. Commander Data |
| LeVar Burton | Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge |
| Michael Dorn | Lt. Commander Worf |
| Gates McFadden | Dr. Beverly Crusher |
| Marina Sirtis | Counselor Deanna Troi |
| Malcolm McDowell | Dr. Tolian Soran |
| James Doohan | Captain Montgomery Scott |
| Walter Koenig | Commander Pavel Chekov |
| William Shatner | Captain James T. Kirk |
| Alan Ruck | Captain John Harriman |
| Whoopi Goldberg | Guinan (uncredited) |
| Jacqueline Kim | Ensign Demora Sulu |
| Patti Yasutake | Nurse Alyssa Ogawa |
Plot summary
Not long after the USS Enterprise-A completed its final mission in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Captain James T. Kirk, Captain Montgomery Scott and Commander Pavel Chekov attend the christening of its successor, the USS Enterprise-B, commanded by Captain John Harriman. On its shakedown cruise, however, it goes to the rescue of a vessel being destroyed by an energy ribbon called The Nexus. During the efforts, the Enterprise-B hull is breached, Kirk disappears, and is presumed dead.
78 years later, the crew of the USS Enterprise-D find themselves fighting the insane scientist Dr. Tolian Soran, who with the help of the renegade Klingon sisters Lursa and B'Etor, is attempting to reach the same energy ribbon so he can enter it and live in its simulated bliss forever. Soran's plan involves launching special projectiles into stars which destroy the stars, creating immense gravitational surges that steer the Nexus off its normal course through space toward the planet Veridian III, where Soran intends to meet the Nexus in person. In an initial attempt to stop Soran, Geordi is captured by the Klingons, who place a transmitter in Geordi's visor which allows them to use the visor like a video camera. When he eventually goes to Engineering, they learn the Enterprise 's shield frequency. They then alter their weapons accordingly and attack, causing severe damage. The Enterprise finally destroys the Klingon ship, but the accumulated damage leads to a massive warp core failure. The saucer section separates and attempts to escape, but the explosion caused by the warp core failure destroys the stardrive section and damages the saucer, causing it to crash-land on Veridian III. Captain Jean-Luc Picard, who earlier had gone down to Veridian III to try to stop Soran, is engulfed by the Nexus along with Soran. The level 12 shockwave caused by the destruction of Veridian III's star annihilates the planet, along with the wreckage of the saucer and the survivors.
After realizing that he is in the Nexus, Picard is able to move from one dimension of the Nexus into another in order to find Captain Kirk (who, by Kirk's point of view, had just entered the Nexus from when the Enterprise-B was attacked). Picard enlists Kirk's help in stopping Soran on Veridian III. They use the Nexus to go back in time to the point before Soran launches the star-killing projectile at Veridian III's sun. Picard and Kirk successfully stop Soran, although Kirk is mortally wounded. Picard buries Kirk on a mountain, then is taken by shuttle to help rescue the surviving Enterprise-D crew.
Themes
As in several earlier films, Generations contrasts a man who will stop at nothing to get what he wants (Soran) with men who are willing to put aside everything they love and cherish to save others. Kirk makes the ultimate sacrifice, as does the Enterprise-D, in one of the most spectacular special effects sequences of the film series. A related theme is the contrast between Soran and Picard in handling personal tragedy. The Enterprise-B rescues Soran as his ship was being destroyed by the Nexus, and he became obsessed with going back into the Nexus. His wife had been killed in a Borg attack some time earlier and Soran seeks the Nexus as a means to return to his relationship with her while ignoring the fact that the "reality" that the Nexus presents is illusionary. Picard, on the other hand, learns early in the film that his brother and nephew were killed in a fire. He had placed all his hopes of continuing the Picard family line with them and laments to Troi that his life path will most likely not allow him to take on that task. However, when the Nexus presents him with a scenario in which he is married and has many children, he is able to overcome the temptation to stay in that "reality", realizing that it is a falsehood.
Lt. Commander Data also has to grapple with the effects of the emotion chip Dr. Soong had made for him, which he has La Forge install in his positronic net after a very embarrassing failure to understand humour. When it fuses with his positronic net, he is unequipped to handle the rush of unfamiliar emotional input, which threatens to overwhelm him. Recognizing and overcoming his own personal failings is his story arc, which also provides much of the comedic moments in Generations.
Notes
Image:Star trek generations 2.jpg Leonard Nimoy was originally slated to direct the film, but he pulled out before signing his contract. It is thought that he did not like the screenplay and wanted it altered, but producer Rick Berman refused any further changes. Berman said that he would have made the changes but there was not enough time to because the special effects and other production companies had already been booked.
The film's production team included a great number of people who had worked on The Next Generation television show, many starting work on the film while still working on the television show or transferring immediately to the film production team as soon as their work on the television show finished. The director David Carson had directed a handful of episodes of Star Trek including The Next Generation episode Yesterday's Enterprise and the Deep Space Nine two-part pilot episode Emissary. The script was written by The Next Generation staff writers Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore who had written a number of popular episodes and the finale, All Good Things....
William Shatner has said that the line "Who am I to argue with the captain of the Enterprise?" was the hardest line he ever had to deliver.
Because of the time-travel elements involved, some Trek fans believe that all events following Picard's return from the Nexus — including Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager and the later The Next Generation-based films, take place in an alternate universe from the one seen at the start of Generations. This can only be considered conjecture as no later film or television series ever confirmed this. In addition, the time-loop demonstrated here appears to have been self-contained, in a similar fashion to The Next Generation episode "Cause and Effect" which did not per se create an alternate universe.
Early drafts reportedly featured more of the original series cast, but limited screen time convinced many of them to back out of the project. In the original script, it was not going to be Scotty or Chekov at the christening, it was going to be Dr. Leonard McCoy and Spock. However, Leonard Nimoy read the script and considered Spock's presence to be that of a walk-on role. He declined and so did DeForest Kelley, who said "I had a great final appearance on Star Trek VI, why muck it up?"
Major plot elements were inspired by writings of Delmore Schwartz and Schwartz was given screen credit.
Kirk's original death scene (in which he is shot by Soran) went over poorly in test screenings, and was re-filmed to be more heroic for the theatrical release. Another deletion was an orbital skydive sequence, in which Kirk skydived from orbit while Chekov and Scotty waited below. These scenes can be seen on the DVD special edition. Captain Kirk's love of orbital skydiving is mentioned in many of the novels written by William Shatner most prominently in Captain's Peril when Picard and Kirk skydive from Bajor's orbit.
The Next Generation episode "Relics" (filmed just two years before Generations and coincidentally written by Generations co-writer Ronald D. Moore) did not anticipate Scotty's appearance at the christening of the Enterprise-B, so Kirk's disappearance here is a retcon. In that episode, Scotty, upon hearing the name Enterprise from Riker, naturally assumes that "...it was Jim Kirk himself who hauled the old girl out of mothballs to come looking for me". Scotty's voyage on the USS Jenolen and later disappearance would have had to occur after witnessing the loss of Kirk. It's assumed by fans that Scotty was probably in a state of extreme disorientation after having been suspended in a transporter buffer for 75 years. Or, he may simply have assumed that Kirk would somehow have survived, as Kirk was known to do.
The death of Kirk was naturally wildly controversial among Star Trek fans, with many refusing to accept the events of this film as canon. Among those who would not let Kirk die was William Shatner himself; over the next decade he would go on to co-write a number of original Star Trek novels that surmised that Kirk somehow survived the events of this film (referred to by fans as the "Shatnerverse" books). There has also been a fan movement in recent years to convince Paramount to revive Kirk, with a number of writers suggesting how the nature of Kirk's death in Generations allows for a possible revival.
In the summer of 2004 reports began circulating that the producers of Star Trek: Enterprise were in talks with Shatner for him to reprise the role of Kirk, but it was assumed that it would be some alternate universe version of the character. Despite the overwhelming fan response in favor of Mr. Shatner's return as James T. Kirk, Paramount and Mr. Shatner were unable to come to an agreement for reasons unknown. It has since been confirmed by Shatner that Kirk's return would have involved the alternate version of the character from the original series' "Mirror Universe". Although this idea did not go ahead, it did inspire the episode "In A Mirror Darkly".
The release of the Collector's Edition DVD of Star Trek: Generations was delayed 3 weeks in September 2004 because of a misprint on the packaging. The back cover stated that the movie trailers were among the bonus features included; however, Paramount was not able to obtain the clearance to include them. Although the discs were recalled to fix the error, many copies with the misprint found their way onto store shelves.
This film marks the final Star Trek appearances of William Shatner (James T. Kirk), James Doohan (Montgomery Scott) and Walter Koenig (Pavel Chekov).
Picard's scene with Guinan is the first time her quarters are shown and the first time she is seen without a hat.
This film marks the final appearance of the original sets, and Geordi's VISOR.
The film was the final appearance of The Enterprise-D and the TNG uniforms until the Enterprise series finale in 2005, which takes place during the TNG episode "Pegasus".
Paramount's Generations website was the first site on the internet to officially publicize a major motion picture. [1]
Errors and inconsistencies in the film
- Montgomery Scott has also appeared in Relics where he is seen rescued from a transporter by Enterprise-D. There, he seems like he is not aware of Kirk's death. See the article of that character for more discussion.
- The crew of the Enterprise alternate randomly between the TNG and DS9 Starfleet uniforms. This is because early filming was done with the newer uniforms, but the producers decided the uniforms looked bad on a large screen, so the rest of the film was shot with older uniforms. For the sake of continuity, many scenes were shot with actors in both stages of uniform, suggesting that crew compliance with the new uniform regulations was optional, at least for a time being. Because of this error, new uniforms designed to look better on a large screen were designed for Star Trek: First Contact, and shortly thereafter were adopted for use on DS9 and would serve as the Starfleet uniform in some episodes of VOY and in future motion pictures.
- It is entirely possible that Soran is not aware of the full properties of the Nexus, and furthermore, that many ships are destroyed before they even reach the entrance to the Nexus. Lastly, someone even as resourceful as Soran would have difficulty gaining a ship and crew necessary to perform such a feat, given that any claims he would make about it would be questionable. It appears as though the only people he can manipulate into following his plan are the Klingons, by bribing them with a weapon, and they seem very apathetic to the concept of the Nexus itself as an aim.
- After firing the weapon from Veridian III's surface at the star, Picard instantly sees the change in the star's reaction. Because of the speed of light, he should not see anything for a few minutes (assuming the star is a similar distance away from the planet as our Sun and Earth). Plus, the missile itself would take several minutes just to reach the star (even at the speed of light), which means that after it breaks orbit with its chemical propellant, it would have to engage a warp-propulsion unit.
- Review of the scene on DVD shows that after Picard watches the missile launch towards the sun, the following shot where the sun begins to collapse does not contain the rocket propellant contrail seen in the sky in the previous rocket launch shot, possibly indicating that some time has passed between the launching of the rocket, and impact with the Veridian star - an amount of time that may have been prohibitive to depict on screen.
- Early on in the film, Picard informs us that the overload of the emotion chip installed in Data fused the device into his neural net, preventing him from de-activating it or removing it. At the end of the film however, Deanna Troi questions Data on why he chose not to remove the chip. While this may indicate that she was unaware of his condition regarding the chip, Data's response seems to suggest that the chip is actually in fact still able to be removed, contradicting previously established information.
- However, in Stellar Cartography, Data asks to be deactivated until Dr. Crusher (presumably with the assistance of Geordi LaForge, who was in the custody of the Klingons and Soran at the time) can remove the emotion chip. Therefore, it seems possible that the emotion chip may simply be more difficult to remove, and require extraordinary means, unlike its previous installation.
- In the scene prior to Picard beaming down to Veridian III, he agrees to a prisoner exchange with Lursa and B'Etor in which he will take the place of the kidnapped Geordi LaForge. He requests that he be beamed aboard the Klingon vessel and then transported to the surface "so that (he) may speak with Soran." When he beams to the surface, he materializes in a Federation-type transporter beam - not Klingon. This is inconsistent with the Klingon transporter beam seen earlier in the movie. The argument could be made that Picard was directly transported from the Enterprise to the surface. If that was the case he would have still been wearing his comm badge. When he materializes on Veridian III, he is not. One possible explanation is that he was transported into the Klingon pattern buffer, the comm badge was dematerilized, than forwarded down to the planet, as transporters have been shown to have the ability to remove weapons in the past.
- The shot of the Klingon Bird of Prey exploding following its battle with the Enterprise-D is the same shot used in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country when the Enterprise-A destroys General Chang's Bird of Prey in the film's final battle.
Quotations
- Dr. Tolian Soran: Just who the hell are you?
Jean-Luc Picard: He's James T. Kirk. Don't you read history? - Lursa or B'Etor, about Geordi La Forge: He must be the only engineer in Starfleet who never goes to engineering!
- Data: I got it!
Geordi La Forge: Got what, Data?
Data: The clown can stay, but the Ferengi in the gorilla suit has to go! I just got it!
Geordi: What?
Data: During the Farpoint mission! We were on the bridge, you told a joke, that was the punchline!
Geordi: Data, that was seven years ago!
Data: I know! I just got it! - Data, after being told to scan for life-forms: (sings) Life-forms, you tiny little life-forms, you precious little life-forms! Where - are - you?
- Data bracing for a crash landing: Oh... shit!
- Capt. James T. Kirk: Who am I to argue with the captain of the Enterprise?
- Geordi La Forge when asked if he's ever considered a more normal looking appearance: What's normal?
Dr. Tolian Soran: Normal is what everyone else is and you are not. - Dr. Tolian Soran: They say time is the fire in which we burn.
- Jean-Luc Picard: Someone once told me that time is a predator that stalks us all our lives — but I'd rather think of time as a companion, that goes with us on the journey and reminds us to cherish every moment, because they'll never come again. What we leave behind is not as important as how we've lived — after all, Number One, we're only mortal.
William Riker: Speak for yourself, sir — I plan to live forever. - Capt. James T. Kirk (his last words): It was ... fun. Oh my ...
- Pavel Chekov: How big is your medical crew?
Captain John Harriman: The medical crew....doesn't arrive till Tuesday.
Chekov: (points to two members of the onboard news crew) You and you, you've just become nurses.
External links
- Official Star Trek: Generations web site
- {{{2|{{{title|Star Trek: Generations}}}}}} at The Internet Movie Database
- Template:Memoryalpha article
- Bring Back Kirk
| Star Trek television series and feature films | ||
| Television Series The Original Series · The Animated Series · Phase II · The Next Generation · Deep Space Nine · Voyager · Enterprise | ||
| Feature Films The Motion Picture · The Wrath of Khan · The Search for Spock · The Voyage Home · The Final Frontier The Undiscovered Country · Generations · First Contact · Insurrection · Nemesis · XI | ||
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