For good or for bad, “Insurrection” also doesn’t feel like an entry into the “Next Generation,” rather it is a return to the more lighthearted faire of the original “Star Trek.”
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There is a very telling line early in the ninth film in the "Star Trek" franchise where Captain Jean Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) turns to his crew and asks, "Do you remember when we used to be explorers?" That brief beat is an indicative remark on the very nature of the direction the "Star Trek" franchise has gone in the past ten years. Rather than being a show about exploration and occasional conflict the programs, "The Next Generation," "Deep Space Nine," "Voyager" and "Enterprise" have all entered into multi-episode spanning wars that dominate the program. Part of what drew me, and many other fans, to the original program was the sense of adventure and fun, the fact that we could meet a new, colorful, and weird alien species each week. But gone are the carefree days of Roddenberry… and now we´re found in the heavy-handed world of Brannon and Braga.
I would like to talk briefly about the plot of the movie before moving into more distinct criticisms. The plot begins when the crew of the Enterprise is called to a remote planet encapsulated by a mix of dangerous gasses called "The Briar Patch" to the report of friendly, if naïve android Data (Brent Spiner) malfunctioning. The pasty-faced alien construct accidentally stumbled upon a plan to export the perpetually-young inhabitants of the planet in order to harvest the life-giving particles found only in the planets rings, thus necessitating Data´s demise. Unfortunately for the antagonists of the story, Data doesn´t do his due duty and die; rather he exposes the Starfleet observers to the world.
The antagonists of the film are a group of stretch-skinned aliens who are slowly dying, for whatever reason. Their skin is rotting on their bodies and the only chance of survival is harvesting the particles from the planet, a process which would render it uninhabitable, and resurrecting themselves. Kill a few… so that the majority may live.
The noble crew of the starship Enterprise, however, take issue with the plan and do what they do best… interfering. Picard and his motley band of interstellar travelers take a page from Captain Kirk and go against the direct orders of the Starfleet Council. A bit of insurrection, if you will. This installment reunites the cast in its entirety, even bringing back Worf (Michael Dorn) who had gone on to other permutations of the popular program.
During the main-run of the story a few subplots develop. The healing powers of the planet give Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton) the use of his eyes for the first time in his life. It gives Picard a sense of vigor he´s not experienced since youth, and turns his eyes toward a not-so-young woman named Anij (Donna Murphy, most recognizable from "Spider-Man 2") That amorous feeling spreads to former lovers William T. Riker (director Jonathan Frakes) and the ship´s councilor Deanna Troy (Marina Sirtis), causing them to rekindle something long thought dead (especially considering she and Worf were hooking up at the end of the series, but I digress). Perhaps the most touching subplot involves the aforementioned Data and his relationship with a young boy who teaches him one of the essential lessons of youth… the ability to play.
The main plot of the story is very dark and sinister, with a good mix of intrigue added in for good measure. The adversarial aliens in this story are, honestly, without good intention. They will get the elements they need from the planet by whatever means necessary. If that includes killing the surface dwellers, Ru´afo (F. Murray Abraham) will do it.
This entry into the Star Trek series is often considered the worst. A few reasons I can surmise include the somewhat silly moment in the story with Worf hitting puberty (brought on by exposure to the planet) and his battle with a pimple. Many of the subplots retain that lack of tension and distracts from the main story. The problem is that I don´t feel as though the main story in itself is strong, or long, enough to carry the complete film. "Insurrection" feels like an episode of "The Next Generation" spread out through a movie´s run-time with a good amount of filler.
For good or for bad, "Insurrection" also doesn´t feel like an entry into the "Next Generation," rather it is a return to the more lighthearted faire of the original "Star Trek." The captain gallivanting around with a phaser, taking the fight to his enemies is something that Kirk would do, but was never the modus operandi of the cultured Picard. One could blame his brash behavior on the effect of the planet, but by and large it feels like a gigantic character departure. Were this an entry into the previous series I doubt very much that anyone would have had a problem with the captain´s actions. And were that true, I would really appreciate this movie as an entry into the "Star Trek" franchise; but as it stands it doesn´t feel like "The Next Generation."
No review of this movie would be complete, however, without mentioning the use of a joystick to control the Enterprise. I´m sorry, but who thought it would be a good idea to eschew the control scheme used for decades in favor of a little plastic joystick? What could have been a tense and dramatic scene with Commander Riker barking orders and trying to pull off a delicate maneuver turned into a machismo-laden scene out of "The Last Starfighter."
The acting is capable through the film, though a few actors feel like they are skating through their parts, notably Gates McFadden (Dr. Crusher) who had little of substance to do in the film. Stylistically the film is solid. The direction is capable, the designs acceptable and the effects work impeccable. The best thing I can say about "Insurrection" is that it is fairly unremarkable. It´s not a bad film, per se, just not a particularly good one either.
Video:
Presented in 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, I cannot comment on the improvement of this transfer to previous versions on DVD because I have not seen them. On its own merits, however, this transfer looks fairly lackluster. The colors are muted and there seems to be a thin film or haze over everything, dulling the colors. Even edges seem to lack a solid definition. Black levels are good and there weren´t any scratches or blemishes on the film stock, nor any edge enhancement on the transfer. The transfer looks overly bright, almost washed out as a result. I tried turning down the bright and contrast levels on my monitor to little effect.
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