Review of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) by Jonathan B — 15 Jun 2014

This is the jewel in the crown of the 'original' Star Trek movies. The cast really step up to the mark and produce a terrific ensemble piece, able lead by Shatner and Nimoy. The two have a great onscreen chemistry that shines through the screen.

Ricardo Montalban joins the regulars as the villain of the piece, Khan and batters down the doors of the sci-fi baddie hall of fame to stake his claim. With the exception of a particularly awful dummy ear, the special effects are generally good with some great scenes involving the iconic Enterprise and other spaceships.

The screenplay of this movie went for a less cerebral and hard hitting story than the first film and this seems to fit the cast more comfortably but it manages to have one of the most moving denouement of all the Star Trek franchise.

It also of course kicked off a closely linked trio of movies which kept the audience coming back for more during the early 1980s and secured the franchise for the next couple of decades after the initially poorly received opening film.

This is a highly entertaining movie featuring characters who were well loved by the audience and are handled with the respect they deserve by a director who was clearly having a blast.