A Generations Final Journey nearly killed the franchise.
But did it deserve to bomb?
In this senseNemesisshould be faintly praised.
The direction is good.
The plotting is good.
The editing is good.
But each is aiming to achieve different things.
The resulting film is a compromise, aiming to like everybody just enough.
At these mediocre aims it succeeds.
Perhaps we should be grateful that we got something coherent at all.
Watch Star Trek Nemesis on Amazon
But first, weve got to talk about Data.
His emotion chip was a mistake inGenerations, and its absence a similar one inInsurrection.
ByStar Trek: Nemesis, Data had become a full grown plot tumor.
Star Trek: Nemesisshouldnt be about Data, but it is.Star Trek: Nemesisshould be about Shinzon.
But definitely not Data.
This is not to say Datas storyline inStar Trek: Nemesisis bad.
In fact, its actually quite good.
Datas evil twin was a much more interesting character than B4 because he was basically Data with emotions.
Well, guess what, Data has emotions now.
Shinzon and Lore vs Picard and Data?
Now thats a conflict that makes sense.
Undoubtedly this was done deliberately to avoid confusing casual fans.
Of course, its the wrong approach.
But what compounds it is how Datas sacrifice is ultimately for nothing.
What happened to the shuttlecraft?
What happened to the transporters on the shuttlecraft?
What happened to the transporters on the Scimitar?
Why not use the emergency transporter to beam a photon torpedo into the Scimitars thalaron matrix?
Why couldnt Wesley Crusher just bend time with his brain, or something?
AttentionStar Trek Into Darkness: stop stealing plot ideas from the weakerTrekmovies.
Shinzon really should be the focus of the character here.
Who knows, perhaps it could have been the deconstruction of the self-righteous Federation thatInsurrectiondefinitely wasnt.
This was the intention at one point, but, like so much, it was cut.
After all, he made a film about concrete pouring utterly compelling.
Shinzon and Viruks rape of Troi required some character development for maximum impact.
Alternatively, this entire plot could have been dropped, allowing development in other areas.
It succeeds but only at mediocre aims.
Every scene has a purpose, and the pacing really is quite good.
Strangely, though, it doesnt work.
Lets take the Argo scene as an example.
The capabilities of the Argo are demonstrated.
Individual cuts go on slightly too long to build suspense.
Worf is grabbed by surprise to increase the tension.
And then the payoff, as the angry natives cause a car chase.
Textbook execution and the action is very well directed.
But its utterly pointless, because the car chase adds nothing save a car chase.
It is possible, albeit difficult, to have both.
In a greater sense, then,Star Trek: Nemesissuffers from a lack of world building.
It exists in a halfway house between trying to cater to fresh viewers but appeal to long time fans.
For me, it succeeds at both, but only because it aims are so small.
Neither approach is wrong but they dont go together at all.
Frakes style would have worked well with Logans, and Meyers writing would have complimented Bairds tight direction.
I find it difficult to fault either Logan or Baird without it being an arbitrary decision.
Interestingly, a lot of fans blamed Brannon Braga, who had nothing to do withNemesis.
Fan perceptions certainly harmed the film, fuelled by a number of continuity oddities throughout the film.
Janeway is now an admiral despite being nothing but a liability for seven seasons.
Picard thinks nothing of violating the prime directive in antagonising a primitive society.
There are some highlights, though.
The special effects shots are really quite good.
The music too is wonderful, with Jerry Goldsmith returning to the franchise for a final time.
One must only admire the man for once again turning in a score deserving of a better film.
In fact the entire sound mix deserves credit.
If you have a working Blu-ray disc then it really is demo material.
Nemesisexists in a strange world all on its own.
This article first appeared onDen of Geek UK.
