Review of Star Trek: Insurrection (1998) by Byron B — 17 Sep 2013

Jonathan Frakes has his second outing at the movie directing helm with this solid entry. Producer/Writer Michael Piller is responsible for this story with Rick Berman. There was an episode of The Next Generation called Homeward with Worf's foster brother forcing the crew to go along with his plan to move a population of human-like aliens to another planet, thus violating the Prime Directive. This plot is never mentioned, but deals with similar themes, though somewhat in reverse.

The adventure opens with some fun invisible man effects as Data goes on a moral rampage to expose a Federation and Son'a alliance spying on a Ba'ku settlement. There's nothing unusual about the spying itself, but there are secrets involved, which complicate matters. Eventually it is discovered that this planet possesses "fountain of youth" properties. Admiral Dougherty (Zerbe) of the Federation is misled by the Son'a leader Ru'afo (F. Murray Abraham) and tempted by the prospect of reversing the aging process. The Son'a are extreme cosmetic surgery addicts and have the equipment to gather the energy that causes the regenerative properties of the planet. This would make it unsafe for habitation though. The Ba'ku have advanced technological abilities, but choose to live in a peaceful agrarian society. The Enterprise crew gets to know Anji (Donna Murphy), Sojef (Kelly), and his son Artim (Welch) of the Ba'ku. When Captain Picard finds out the alliance's plan to covertly or forcefully relocate the Ba'ku, he recognizes it is wrong. Riker and LaForge stay on Enterprise to relay this ethically murky situation to the Federation council. The rest of the crew sans uniforms goes down to the planet to help protect the Ba'ku. In this movie as well, there are several instances of levity to break up tense action scenes as the crew is affected by the youthful energy of the planet. The filmmakers ignore the romance that began to form between Counselor Troi and Worf in the final season, and have Riker and Troi renew their relationship in this film. Picard and Anji, who is older than she looks, have a bit of a romance too. Plus Data has some great droll jokes. Captain Picard comes face to stretched face with Ru'afo on the Son'a ship. Picard, as our rebel hero, discovers that Ru'afo's lieutenant, Gallatin (Henry), has a troubled conscience about the extreme lengths Ru'afo is willing to go to to get what he wants. There is another secret between the Ba'ku and some members of the Son'a that is revealed toward the end. The climax is complex with cast members fighting on multiple fronts, but a little confusing especially where Ru'afo and Picard are concerned. The new Enterprise and shuttlecrafts were mainly repurposed from various Star Trek series and films, yet the design doesn't feel as integrated.