Director: Leonard Nimoy
Starring: William Shatner, Merritt Butrick, Christopher Lloyd
Year: 1984
Well, now, if Star Trek I: The Motion Picture was a big dull dub, and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan was the savior of the franchise, then Star Trek III: The Search for Spock was a complete disaster. My memory was of awesome scenes of Spock on the Genesis planet, but in reality the film was only an example of the very worst an episode of the show could be, with every bad actor, bad alien, and bad choice at their disposal. I really, really hope it doesn’t go downhill from here, because I don’t know how much further it can go or how much more I can take.
With Spock sacrificing himself to save the Enterprise, the crew returns to Earth in despair over the loss of their comrade. But he’s …not really gone? Bones seems to be embodied by the spirit of Spock, whose body is on an evolving world, and who might be saved by a special ceremony, if his corporal self can be recovered. Meanwhile, a Klingon chieftain is approaching the planet as well, hoping to grasp the power of the Genesis weapon, setting up an epic struggle for control of the galaxy.
The first film was boring but a spectacle. The second was awesome in the way only Star Trek can be. The third, unfortunately, was an attempt to bring to life the essence of old episodes, but to a disastrous end. This is just a terrible movie, full of cheesy villains, awful acting, a dumb plot, and nothing worth grasping onto. The idea of saving Spock was the only saving grace, but even that was blanketed in abysmal theatre, until even that cool idea failed the filmmakers. Nimoy as director, two terrible actors playing David & Saavik, a plot that must have taken 5 minutes to map out; Search for Spock is messy at best, impossible to watch at worst.
My rating: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆