THE MOVIE

Let me start by saying for the uninitiated that Star Trek: Nemesis is the tenth film in the franchise and the 4th & possibly the last with the Next Generation Crew.

The movie starts on Romulus (the capital of the Romulan Empire) with the assassination of the whole Romulan Senate, we then travel to the wedding of Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) and Commander Will Riker (Jonathon Frakes), All the favorites are there Capt. Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner), Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), Lt. Commander Worf (Michael Dorn) & Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden).

After an olive branch is extended from the Romulans for peace, Picard jumps at the chance to be the Federation’s emissary and heads towards the Romulan Empire.

When they arrive, they are met by the new Praetor the mysterious Shinzon (Tom Hardy) a Reman, who has a secret plan for Picard himself and that’s when this adventure begins.

John Logan (Gladiator) has written a great script, which captures the feel that was in the series. He captures the sense of family that is the Next Generation crew & adds to it with the character of Shinzon who is trying to find where he fits in and who has a shocking link to Picard.

Stuart Baird (U.S. Marshals) directs this film in a change from the last two films where Jonathon Frakes has, his experience in the action genre as an editor has enhanced this movie to the next level with some very classy and spectacular action sequences.

Ron Perlman stars as Shinzon’s Viceroy, other noted cameos come from Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan, Will Wheaton as Wesley Crusher, Kate Mulgrew as Adm. Kathryn Janeway and if you look closely you will see X-Men director Bryan Singer as a Starfleet bridge Officer.

THE TRANSFER

Video:

The Picture quality is very good and is presented in the aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and is 16:9 enhanced and at a bitrate of 8.60 mbps

Although this is a recent film there is a little film grain, but doesn’t get to annoying except for the scenes which the film has been washed out in chapter 4

Colours are use very well for both the federation and the Romulans in this movie.
With Whites and Blues standing out on the Enterprise and Greens being very vibrant on Shinzon’s Ship.
As this movie is acted out mostly in space, the blacks are solid, and detail is good with special attention put on the Starships this time.

The disc is a RSDL and the layer change is at 44.41 and the picture does freeze for a second.

Audio:

Sound is presented as a great Dolby Digital 5.1 track at 448kbps

Dialogue is clear and the Jerry Goldsmith score is wonderful to listen to.

The surrounds get a good work out with background talk, Starships going overhead and gunfire well represented

The subwoofer is used very well for the explosions, for when the Enterprise jumps to warp,laser blasts and ricochets.

THE EXTRAS

There are some good extras on this disc.

First we have an audio commentary by director Stuart Baird presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 at 192kbps, which is quite interesting as he tells why he chose to do this movie and why he chose to do certain scenes the way he did due to budgetary restraints.

There are Four Features all presented in 4:3 and Dolby Digital 2.0 at 192kbps

New Frontiers: Stuart Baird on Directing “Nemesis”: this 9 minute feature is basically interviews with Stuart Baird, Rick Berman, Patrick Stewart, Tom Hardy and Jonathon Frakes about what Stuart Baird has brought to the Star Trek universe.

A Bold Vision of the Final Frontier: This 10 minute feature has interview footage from Stuart Baird talking about the production side and why decisions where made for the styles of the different sets.

A Start Trek Family’s Final Journey: this 16 minute feature has interviews from writer John Logan and principal cast members about their experiences on making this film

Red Alert! Shooting the Action of “Nemesis”: this 10 minute feature has interviews with the Stunt co-ordinator and cast members on shooting the action scenes for the film.

Deleted Scenes

There are 7 deleted scenes for a total running time of 20 minutes with interviews from Rick Berman, Stuart Baird and Patrick Stewart; you can either watch them altogether or individually and are presented in 4:3 and Dolby Digital 5.1 at 448kbps.

Picture Gallery

This has 40 pictures that you can view that range from the pre-production drawings right through to the finished sets.

SUMMARY

If this is the last Next Generation Film, Star Trek: Nemesis is a fitting end to their voyage. With action scenes that will have you glue to your seat and a story that has surprises all the way to the end, and a touch of sadness thrown in as well.

You will need to add this to your Star Trek collection if you're a Trekky at heart