Is Star Trek III: The Search For Spock actually a better movie than The Wrath of Khan?
The passing of Leonard Nimoy demonstrated exactly whyStar Treks relentless optimism pulled in so many fans.
InTrek, Spock was never really dead.
I know which reality I prefer.
The original script, however, differed wildly from the finished version.
For a start, Genesis would be stable, and become Spocks home.
He would be discovered by a Romulan mining party, who would die at his hand.
But the key idea of the struggle between life and death remained.
The ultimate death would therefore be of the franchises icon, the Enterprise.
What ultimately followed wasverydark, perhaps darker than people give it credit for.
Its clear that after building up such a friendship with Spock, Kirk wouldnt deal with it too well.
The grim reality of his (and the Enterprises) age has finally caught up with him.
It might as well not be the Enterprise being decommissioned but Kirk himself.
As McCoy puts it you do what you always do turn death into a fighting chance to live.
The final ingredient is the fallout from Genesis, both literal and political.
Wait, sorry, that was the other Christopher Lloyd movie from the mid 80s.
As much as I know I shouldnt, I come down on the side of the faithful companion piece.
But it also missed that crucialTrekphilosophy so prevalent inStar Trek: The Motion Picture.
Every even numbered film sought to undo the previous entrys eccentricities by returning to simpler, more cinematic themes.
The poor reaction of these misguided films led to the follow up to be more simplified and streamlined.
Okay, the three of you still reading shall learn why.
In fact, if there is one perfect moment ofStar Trek, it is this.
A true ensemble moment, with each character providing pivotal moments.
Consider some of these snippets of dialogue:
Kirk:The word is no.
I am therefore going anyway.
Uhura:You wanted adventure, hows this?
The old adrenaline going, huh?
Now get in the closet.
Sulu:Dont call me tiny.
But its not just the characters, everything comes together in this scene.
And after the budget special effects ofThe Wrath OfKhan, ILM here does outstanding work.
A better villain
For me, Kruge is a better villain than Khan too.
But Kruges character is made all the more fascinating as Kruge isnt really the villain at all.
Look at it from his point of view.
And he has been largely ignored by his own government in his attempts to stop it.
It claims the life of his girlfriend when she steals his intelligence.
It claims the life of his gunner when he displays fatal incompetence at carrying out orders.
It claims the life of innocent scientists (and potential prisoners) in the same incident.
Although he did kill David, so I guess hes not all good.
The Grissom and all hands die in orbit.
David is brutally stabbed to death on it.
The Enterprise makes its final journey, crashing into the planet itself.
Kirks career, and by extension everyone elses, ends with the journey to it.
Kruge and most of his men die on it.
And Robin Curtis brutally murders Saavik with her wooden performance.
One could question the logic, but as Sarek himself put it, At what cost?
Kirks answer: If I hadnt tried, the cost would have been my soul.
And that is the thing withThe Search For Spock, it is very human.
No logical the needs of the many stuff, this is out and out the needs of the one.
A tale of human woe, sacrifice, and triumph.
Even Kruge is very human, his desire seeing him lurch from one disaster to another.
