Nerds That Geek Movie Review - 'Star Trek: Generations'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

‘They say time is the fire in which we burn.’
- Doctor Soran

At some point, we must all deal with loss. Be it death, the loss of a job or even the loss of a relationship we have to face the fallout of the end. Everyone out there of course has an opinion or recommendation about how we should deal with it when it comes, but the fact of the matter is, we are never prepared nor is there a perfect way to deal with it.  

It is how we deal with that particular loss that determines how severe we consider it to be, and how long we carry that loss with us. Sometimes the loss strengthens us and we look upon it fondly as we move forward, sometimes it can haunt us every step of the way. It is loss, and how we respond to it that defines the first journey on the big screen of the crew of The Next Generation in Star Trek: Generations.

There is a place in the universe where anything can be achieved. Where everything you ever wanted and needed is waiting for you. It is known as The Nexus and one man, Doctor Tolian Soran was taken from its cradle so long ago. Robbed from its beauty Soran has been fed only harsh reality since his exit and it has taken him centuries to discover a way to return. But in order to slip gently back into bliss, solar systems and planets full of civilizations must be sacrificed and it falls to Captain Jean-Luc Picard to stop him, but Picard may a need a little help from the most unlikely of allies, the supposedly deceased Captain James T. Kirk.  

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​So, let's start off by getting right down to the most controversial part of this film, the death of James T. Kirk.  Some have seen his death as a hollow gesture, others found it cheap because the ‘passing of the torch’ approach was in their mind a bad idea to begin with. In fact, there is even an alternate ending available on Blu-ray now that features Kirk getting shot in the back, something that did not go over well with test audiences. Fact is, we all have an opinion of Kirk's death and rightfully so, he is an icon. Yet as I watched Generations once again for this article it dawned on me that there is no death that will ever be fitting for Kirk. This is another case of expectation versus reality and how does one truly find a fitting end for any character on paper?  

Yet in a way, Kirk's demise draws us into the film's central theme because we as fans lose Kirk. But the film doesn't stop there. The NCC-1701-D is lost as well and we are taken on a journey with Picard and the utter pain he must carry with the knowledge that he may well be the last Picard in history making Generations the darkest film in the franchise since Wrath of Khan. Soran's journey only adds to the heavy air by way of his unhealthy obsession with The Nexus and his desire to do anything he must to enjoy a sliver of happiness one last time.  

In reality, this harsh look at life and the things that leave us is a bit of a shocking turn for Star Trek but would signal how the franchise would handle the mix of social commentary with science fiction for years to come in the post Roddenberry era. I don't think it makes this film bad or that the concept is terrible, just that none of us were prepared to see such heavy themes in the utopia of the Federation. If anything, Generations is more than just a passing of a torch, is it the moment when we as fans were forced to grow up. 

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