[.ca] Star Trek: Nemesis [UMD Mini for PSP]

From Amazon.com:
The sacrifice of a beloved character is just one of many highlights in Nemesis, the 10th feature in the lucrative Star Trek franchise. Enigmatically billed as the beginning of "A Generation's Final Journey," this richly plotted Next Generation adventure maintains the "even number rule" regarding Trek's feature quality, and it's one of the best in the series. It hits its brisk stride when Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his Enterprise-E crew encounter Shinzon (Tom Hardy), a younger clone of Picard, rejected by the Romulans as the human weapon of an abandoned conspiracy. Raised on the nocturnal Romulan sister planet Remus, Shinzon now plots revenge against Romulus and Earth but needs Picard's blood to carry out his scheme. A wedding, a childlike "duplicate" Data named B-4 (Brent Spiner), spectacular space battles, and uncommon acts of valor make this a tautly-paced action thriller, poised to pass the franchise (but not quite yet) to a new generation of Starfleet personnel. Die-hard Trekkers will not be disappointed. --Jeff Shannon

Additional Features:
The Nemesis DVD is distinguished by excellent picture and thrilling sound, especially in the starship battle sequences. The bonus features are much more generous than the offerings on previous Star Trek theatrical films other than the two-disc special editions. There are four featurettes (46 minutes total) discussing the casting of Shinzon, development of the story line, shooting the action scenes, and the themes of family and change that run through the film. Director Stuart Baird contributes a commentary track that is a bit dry and sometimes silent. He mentions how he's not a Trek insider and that because he was working in an established setting he didn't have the freedom of creation that directors usually do. He also discusses the mechanics of shooting and points out where certain scenes were shortened or eliminated. Seven of the cut scenes appear on the DVD, some introduced by Baird or Patrick Stewart. They're interesting to see, but none was a great loss from the finished film. --David Horiuchi

Equal to First Contact as the best of all the Star Trek films (4.5/5):
This third(and presumably final,but who knows?)voyage for the crew of The Next Generation,is,in my mind,arguably the best of the Star Trek Series.the only movie that may rival it is First Contact.as for Nemesis,it has everything it requires to be a great film.first there's a decent dose of humour.there are definitely some spectacular space action sequences.the villain is once again,a strong character.there's a bit of romance(but not too much)and the movie is quite touching at times.but it never becomes sappy or maudlin.the suspense level is pretty high in this one.the tension reaches nail biting proportions at times.but there is one difference in this Trek movie,as compared to the other ones.that is its dark(or darker) tone.there's a much more sinister feel to this one.the film manages to blend all these elements seamlessly.the ending is surprising,and appropriate,i feel.for me,this movie is a 4.5/5

So much action accompanied by so many questions!:
One the one hand, it was rather refreshing to have a Romulan-themed story in quite a long time. The action sequences are super and the effects shots are great. On the other hand, this latest (last?) Trek installment did leave this reviewer with several questions. Why did Wesley Crusher show up at First Officer William Riker and Counselor Diana Troi's pre-wedding banquet (see TheNextGeneration episode "Journey's End") ? What is Worf doing on board the Enterprise-E (see DeepSpaceNine series ender "What You Leave Behind II") ? And with Data ceasing to exist as a sentient being (he is said to have been killed off though he never in fact lived) and hence unable to assume the role of Second in Command, who then would assume Riker's role - Geordi, Worf, or someone else? Part of the blame for this movie's dismal box office performance must rest with the studio, both for releasing it up against "Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" and deleting at least 41 minutes of filmed material. Having said all this, the movie itself comes up somewhat short indeed. The main flaw seems to be that it never sufficiently delves into the cause(s) for Shinzon's anger and enmity towards Picard and the whole human race. After all, was it not the Romulans who treated him so shabbily all these years? It is far from certain if a feature-length story featuring DSN characters will be made, either with a few crossover characters from TNG or none. However, given the unexpectedly weak showing at the box office for this film and the less-than spectacular track record of its preceding films (only one is said to have reached the US$100M threshold) it is highly unlikely that there will be any more Star Trek theatrical movies; The Wrath of Khan, a film from which this one is unjustly accused of ripping off, nearly became a non-theatrical movie.

Good but not great.:
This final outing of the 'next generation' crew is one of the better films in the franchise but not the best. On the plus side it offers some excellent action scenes and SFX and we finally get to see the enigmatic Remans who are being led by a clone of Picard. A lot of the story threads that have continued throughout the T.V. series and prior films are also tied up, such as Deanna and Will Riker finally marrying, Riker getting a command etc. However, the film is not perfect. Data discovers a 'brother' on another planet but there is no indication of why/how he get there and this thread is never fully explored. Picard's clone seems obsessed with Deanna at one point...why?? This film works on a pure entertainment level but don't expect any complexity in it. It is like a marshmallow...a lot of bulk but not a lot of substance.

Best Trek to date:
This has to be one of the best Star Trek films to date. Its right up there with 2 and 6 which is what I believe to best of the whole series. There are questions raised and never answeared but who cares really when this film was made to showcase some really good sci-fi action. After seeing this film in theaters I was blown away at the fast paced action packed plot line. The film does have a silly sub plot with the other version of Data but who can not love the battle of wits between the two men in the dead of space. Finally Picard has a real equal like Kirk had in Khan from ST 2. Picard also let lose and showed that he isn't really the thinking old man that the TV series showed him to be. Also the scimitar is the coolest ship ever to come out of the ST universe which felt like an homage to ST 6. This movie with great sci-fi fun in mind and it hits home hard. Pick this film up and lose yourself in the phaser blasting light show or starship battles to save all of mankind aswell as themselves. I just hope we haven't really seen the end of this crew just yet. I feel they have a couple of more films in them.

A Very Sad Farewell:
Star Trek: TNG happens to be the best among all Star Trek Series EVER for me and growing up with this series on the sideline, it has been a part of my life. And they have come to their very last production of that series with this very sad farewell movie. I came out watching this movie with this familiar tugging in my chest, like you have when you are attending a funeral of a very close relative or friend. This movie started with the most anticipated wedding of Riker and Troi, yes it is about time! While on their way to Troi's home planet, for the traditional naked wedding, they encounter a strange signal from an unknown source, which turns out of be a broken up android who looked like Data and it is not Data's evil brother. Trying to fix him, they continue course back to their original destination until Janeway (yes, yuck lol) contacted Picard about some political associated meeting and Picard agreed to help. Arriving to some strange planet, Picard meet an unusual encounter with the leader, who looks exactly like him when he was way way way younger, who ironicly, is an exactly clone of Picard, and he extremely wants Picard bad. This is where the adventure really starts. Gosh! I can't believe this is the end of TNG.