Star Trek X: Nemesis

Nemesis has aged well, but there's no depth in this Next Generation finale that goes for a dark tone incompatible with all that had gone before. Many memorable scenes damped down by the abbreviated plot and its flaws (Data's twin obviously was a potential way for the character to return if the movie had been a blockbuster...but that kills the effect of Data's sacrifice; Data's loss deserves more than the toast to absent friends, but no one cares; Riker's farewell to Picard is lifeless after all they've been through together... etc.). The Remans now seem like a great idea, with Klingons in rubber masks on the bizarre Discovery series. Tom Hardy is great as Shinzon, but the name is terrible and the character and his Reman cronies are just tools to make the film feel bleaker. Stewart and Hardy never bond, and that works as long as the whole story isn't taken into account. You might not be able to reach the battered soul of your embittered and vengeful clone. The writers were onto something there. Picard the diplomat is laughed away by his militant clone. Data's sacrifice scene is moving, but all of it is stiff. When the Captain rams the unsuspecting Scimitar with the Enterprise, it's nothing less than a Freudian triumph of superego over id, with Picard showing Shinzon he too can give in to his dark side. Troi has good scenes, Worf and Dr. Crusher are wasted. Geordi is more mature, but that ramps up the gloom. A movie that flopped on its release now feels fresh, if out of sync with the history it brings to a close. This is the Alien3 of Star Trek movies and Data is Bishop, Newt, Hicks and Ripley and her clone all rolled into one. Trek fans at least get one final voyage with the TNG crew, and they don't just stand around as was the case in the boring Insurrection. The gang did well in Generations and were spectacular in First Contact. And that's all we're ever going to have. From here on out, it seems Trek will just be action comedy films and a shaky-camera adult-oriented TV successor to the war-propaganda Battlestar Galactica reboot. In short, Nemesis really was The End. Watch the truly brilliant scene where Data deactivates B4 and tells him the meaning of "indefinitely." The euphemism holds power, though TNG ends with a whimper. I now accept that.

I don't get all the hate, some sure (B4, come on now), but overall it does what Next Generation era did best, it brought a spec of introspection while having the highest stakes in the balance (the fate of the Alpha quadrant). I found it the most riveting and personally satisfying of the trek movies since The Undiscovered County and before Beyond. This one ranks high on my list of good Star Trek.

Battle scenes predictable, b4 not explained well. Wrath of khan style death for data. The troi riker wedding felt forced The most interesting part of the movie was getting to know xinzon in the begining, and then an hour of a dragged out battle scene... too bad