2021/08/16

Last couple of weeks I have been rewatching the Star Trek movies. Of course first the TOS movies and currently I am watching the Next Gen movies. Yesterday I was watching “Insurrection” again and I have to say, like with every rewatch, I really enjoyed the movie. And I remember that “Insurrection”, for most Star Trek fans, is one of their least favorite Star Trek movies! To be honest, I think it belongs to my top 5 Star Trek movies. For me it is a bit of an equivalent of the TOS movie “The Voyage Home”. Mainly I feel this way because of the humor, which has high doses in both movies. Most of you will say the TOS movie is (much) better and I think that’s true (not much better, but better) but still “Insurrection” brings in me that same kind of feeling.

A few of the complaints I heard and read: it was not as exciting as “First Contact”, it feels more like a two-parter of the TV series The Next Generation. Or the stakes weren’t high enough, etc. Perhaps up to a point I agree with all 3 complaints but that doesn’t mean that the story was enjoyable, on a smaller scale and what I said earlier, I find the humor in this movie such an added value to the movie. ‘The ‘Worf’ pimple’, ‘Riker feeling his shaved chin: as smooth as an android bottom eh Data?’ Or ‘Riker saying to Worf about his pimple: You Klingons do nothing small do you?’ Or ‘Picard asking Worf: do you know Gilbert and Sullivan on which Word says: No sir have not yet had a chance to meet all the new crew members since I’ve been back’. This goes on forever, so many quotes and sayings are being spit out and I could not do anything else but watch the movie with a big smile.

For me this is a typical Star Trek movie, ethical dilemmas, righteousness, family, a good villain and also a good story (but on a smaller scale). It probably isn’t my favorite Next Gen movie but I really find it enjoyable and even after 20-30 watching, I still am not bored with it, in fact I think I enjoyed even more with my last rewatch. All the cast members have enough to do I believe, no one really is being left out. Only one thing I was less fond of, when Riker uses a Joystick in combat against two Son’a battle cruisers.

As a whole it is my view that the characters are more interesting in the movies than in the series. I definitely have a feeling they evolve more in the 4 movies. No all characters of course but characters like Data, counselor Troi and Captain Picard do. Troi in the movies is without a doubt a 100x different than the Troi from the TV show and this is definitely is a good thing. Really like her much more in the movies than I do on the show. In Star Trek: Voyager she also has a few quest spots in seasons 6 and 7. There we see the same Troi as in the movies, she definitely is a much more interesting character in the movies and in Voyager.

What are my favorite moments:

• Opening moment where Data seems to have gone roque
• Picard having to dance with a beaded ornament over the captain's head
• The Humor which is spread all over the movie
• The Riker & Troi moments
• Worf and Picard trying to apprehend Data with singing
• Finding the cloaked ship
• Geordi La Forge realizes a longtime dream of his and experiences a real sunrise with his own eyes
• Actual Insurrection when Picard thinks he goes alone but the whole team joins him without question
• Despite the joystick, I like the “Riker manouvre”
• Perfect moment in time
• Ru’afo being constantly frustrated with the Federation

Final Word:

I watched all Star Trek movies since “Generations” in the cinema, “Insurrection” is the only one I watched twice in the cinema. I loved it the first time in the cinema, really wanted to see it a 2^nd time! However what a pity was it that the movie, because it wasn’t a box-office success, played in a much smaller cinema hall with a smaller screen. Sure, it’s not a perfect movie, but for me it is a perfect Star Trek movie and although it is an odd number movie, it is one of my favorites. Just enjoy it for what it is, it is a family movie, Star Trek is all about family so I cannot imagine you really dislike everything about this movie.