William Shatner
Captain James T. Kirk
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Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is a 1989 American science fiction film directed by William Shatner and based on the television series Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry. It is the fifth installment in the Star Trek film series, and takes place shortly after the events of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986).
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier: Directed by William Shatner. With William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan. Captain Kirk and his crew must deal with Mr. Spock's long-lost half-brother who hijacks the Enterprise for an obsessive search for God at the center of the galaxy.
- (65K)
- Action, Adventure, Fantasy
- William Shatner
- 1989-06-09
- Overview
- Summary
- Log entries
- Memorable quotes
- Background information
- Awards and honors
- Apocrypha
- Links and references
When a renegade Vulcan captures the Federation, Klingon, and Romulan ambassadors on Nimbus III, the so-called "planet of galactic peace," it can only mean one thing: the vacation is over. Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the new Starship Enterprise-A are pressed back into service to come to the rescue. But, when the Vulcan has a prior associat...
Prologue
On the desert planet Nimbus III, a scavenger named J'onn is digging holes in a field. He stops digging and sees, emerging from the dust in the distance, a man riding towards him on a horse. Dismounting from the horse, this man has a strange power to cleanse people of their emotional "pain," which he uses to join the scavenger to his cause. "What is it you seek?" he asks. The man tells him he seeks what he seeks, what all men have sought since time itself began – the ultimate knowledge. To find it, he notes, they will need a starship. J'onn mentions that Nimbus III has no such vessels, but the mysterious man reveals he may have a way to bring one to them. When J'onn asks how he plans to accomplish this, the man throws back his hood, showing the scavenger his distinct pointed Vulcan ears. He then begins laughing.
Act One
The recently-demoted Captain James T. Kirk is back on Earth, spending his shore leave free climbing El Capitan in Yosemite National Park in North America. Halfway up he is greeted by Spock, who has followed him wearing levitation boots. Dr. McCoy is watching with binoculars from a safe distance while cursing Kirk's "irresponsibility" for climbing the mountain. In a moment of distraction, Kirk falls off of El Capitan. Spock dives after him. After a terrifying moment for the captain, he's snatched from certain death by Spock who catches him by grabbing his ankle only mere centimeters from the ground. Out in the galaxy, three ambassadors from the United Federation of Planets, Romulan Star Empire, and Klingon Empire meet alone in Paradise City on Nimbus III for a private conference. The young Romulan ambassador, Caithlin Dar, rides into Paradise City on a horse, and expresses optimism in Nimbus III, which had been billed as "The Planet of Galactic Peace" at its founding twenty years before. However, the Human and Klingon ambassadors, St. John Talbot and General Korrd, are much more jaded and cynical, and point out that it has rapidly devolved to a barren wasteland rife with corruption and debauchery. Talbot points out that they had forbade weapons, but the settlers began to fashion their own projectile weapons. Korrd, in particular, is a decorated and respected Klingon general who fell out of favor with the Klingon High Command, and has become a bitter, apathetic drunk. Their meeting is interrupted when the city compound is overrun by fanatical followers of the Vulcan who informs the ambassadors that they are his hostages. Caithlin Dar defiantly tells the Vulcan that she doesn't know who he is or what he wants but assures him that their three respective governments will stop at nothing to ensure their safety. The Vulcan retorts "That's exactly what I'm counting on." Sitting in the Spacedock One, undergoing repairs and refits, the new USS Enterprise-A sits lifelessly under the care of Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott, who notes in the shakedown cruise report that the new Enterprise must have been the product of a team of monkeys – while the warp drive is up to Scott's exacting standards, he laments that half the doors on the ship won't open and that it's his responsibility to repair them, among other disabled systems aboard the ship, primary of which is the ship's transporter. As Scott repairs the helm/navigation console on the main bridge, Nyota Uhura arrives from a turbolift with his dinner – understanding that the extensive repair schedule will cancel their shared plans for shore leave. At that moment, the Enterprise's mangled red alert system goes off and a voice from Starfleet announces to Scott and Uhura that they have a priority 7 situation at the Neutral Zone. Scott is incredulous that Starfleet would assign the mission to the Enterprise considering that the ship is currently "in pieces" and has less than a skeleton crew aboard. Uhura asks Starfleet if they are aware of the Enterprise's current status. Starfleet acknowledges and tells Uhura to stand by to copy operational orders and to recall all key personnel. Uhura contacts Hikaru Sulu and Pavel Chekov, who are lost hiking in the woods. Chekov is grateful that they'll soon be rescued but warns Sulu not to tell Uhura that they got lost after she instructs them to return to a set of prearranged coordinates. Sulu and Chekov try to explain they're caught in a blizzard and can't see which way they're going. Uhura, monitoring the weather on the sensors, reads nothing but sunny skies and 70 degree Fahrenheit weather and assures them she won't tell anyone about their embarrassing situation as she sends a shuttlecraft to pick them up. "Uhura, I owe you one. Sulu out," the Enterprise's helmsman says as he flips shut his communicator. Meanwhile, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are sitting around the campfire at Yosemite, where the three discuss their time together and philosophize about life and death around a pot of whiskey-spiked baked beans, roasting "marsh melons," and singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat", although Spock cannot grasp the meaning of the words and thus declines to sing along. McCoy admonishes Kirk for risking his life on crazy stunts, such as falling off El Capitan earlier and McCoy wonders if it crossed Kirk's mind that he should have died when he fell off. Kirk admits it did – but, even as he fell, he knew he would not die. Spock does not understand. Kirk says that he knew he'd survive because the two of them were with him – "I've always known… I'll die alone." After Kirk's revelation, McCoy offers that the three of them spend so much time together in space, getting on each other's nerves, yet spend their shore leave together. Kirk believes that while other people have families, they don't. Out in space, the long-lost Earth probe Pioneer 10 is intercepted by a Klingon Bird-of-Prey commanded by the young Klingon warrior Klaa, who easily vaporizes the probe with his disruptors. Klaa tires of shooting space garbage, as he believes it is no test of a warrior's mettle, and wishes for a target that will fight back. The Klingons are soon notified about the hostage situation on Nimbus III as well, which piques Klaa's interest as it is obvious that the Federation will send a ship of their own to deal with the situation and sets his course for Nimbus III. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy's leave is interrupted when Uhura takes the Galileo down to their campsite in Yosemite since the Enterprise's transporters are inoperative, waking up all three men with the Galileo's bright landing lights. She informs Kirk of important orders from Starfleet Command. Kirk wonders why she didn't contact him via his communicator but she notes he conveniently forgot it. The Galileo eventually arrives in the Enterprise's shuttlebay and the problems with the starship are immediately obvious to Kirk as the turbolift malfunctions en route to the bridge, a console shorts out and the viewscreen barely works. Chief of Starfleet Operations Fleet Admiral Bob eventually comes through and orders Kirk to Nimbus III and assess the hostage situation. Kirk tries to decline the mission due to the problems plaguing the ship and suggests another vessel nearby handle the situation. The admiral refuses on the grounds that while there may be other ships out there, none of their captains are as experienced as Jim Kirk. With an "oh, please" dismissal on his lips, Kirk signs off and orders the Enterprise to Nimbus III. Klaa and his crew discover that the Enterprise has been dispatched to Nimbus III as well. Klaa is well familiar with the Enterprise being Kirk's vessel and wonders what defeating Kirk in battle would do for his reputation. His first officer Vixis marvels that destroying the Enterprise and and defeating Kirk would make Klaa the greatest warrior in the galaxy. Klaa, originally hoping for an engagement with just any Federation starship, is now elated at his chance to fight Kirk and the Enterprise and orders maximum speed. The Enterprise, so plagued with technical problems that Kirk can't even record an entry in the captain's log recorder, finally receives a copy of the hostage tape sent from Nimbus III. In the tape, Dar, Talbot, and Korrd plead with the Federation to send a starship to parlay for their release at once, per the instructions of the leader of the Galactic Army of Light, the Vulcan who enters the frame and begins addressing the Federation. He claims to regret his desperate act and has no desire to harm the hostages but will do so if the Federation does not respond immediately. Spock, taken with the Vulcan, calls up a freeze frame of him on his science station's monitor and regards it intently. Kirk wonders if Spock is familiar with him. Later, Spock is in solitude in the Enterprise's observation lounge when Kirk and McCoy join him. Spock recounts for Kirk and McCoy a brief history of Sybok, a gifted Vulcan who at a young age broke with tradition and decided that emotion, not logic, was the key to self-knowledge. According to Spock, Sybok was banished from Vulcan when he attempted to lure other Vulcans to his worldview.
Act Two
The Enterprise arrives first at Nimbus III. Paradise City demands to know their intentions but Kirk tells Uhura to respond with static and make them think they are having some difficulties – which is not far from the truth. Kirk tries to simply beam the hostages aboard but Scott tells him that the transporter is still inoperative. The captain realizes they'll have to go down and take them out by force. However, Spock detects the Bird-of-Prey entering the area leaving them 1.9 hours before their weapons come to bear. An assault team consisting of Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Sulu, Uhura, and a detail of security personnel head down in the Galileo leaving Chekov in command of the Enterprise. Despite the primitive scanning equipment of the natives of Nimbus III, their sensors are nevertheless effective and it forces the Galileo to land significantly far away from the settlement. Meanwhile, Chekov hails Paradise City from the Enterprise and poses as the ship's commanding officer with the intention of distracting the enemy from Kirk's actions. The Vulcan responds and is amused by Chekov's posturing, who orders him to release the hostages or suffer the consequences. Chekov, not backing down, informs the Vulcan that a Klingon vessel is on the way. The Vulcan, unmoved, replies that it's likely that they'll be fairly angry. Chekov tries to impress upon him that the Klingons are likely to destroy the whole planet but the Vulcan knows that a Federation starship would not stand idly by and let the Klingons do that. He then instructs Chekov and his first officer to beam down to his coordinates. Chekov tries to stall the Vulcan as Kirk and Spock realize that they don't have enough time to get to Paradise City on foot. The captain notices a stable of horses through his binoculars and has Uhura perform a seductive dance (with a team of armed security guards out of sight) to distract the wranglers while the assault team steals the horses. The ploy works and the assault team rides into Paradise City. Under the cover of nightfall and covered in cloaks, the assault team looks no different than the wranglers. J'onn believes them to be their lookout party and allows them access to Paradise City. However, J'onn soon becomes suspicious as Spock locates the hostages on his tricorder. The Galactic Army of Light begins to open fire on the assault team with their primitive weapons, but they respond with their Starfleet-issue phasers. The Vulcan becomes aware of the commotion outside and Chekov orders him to surrender at once as he is under attack by superior Federation forces. The Vulcan is incensed as bloodshed is the last thing he wanted. Chekov tries to reason with him but he flees. Kirk fights hand to hand with the Galactic Army of Light's warriors and the fight continues. With a clear entrance into the bar where the hostages are being held, Kirk orders Uhura to bring the Galileo down so they can make a quick escape and goes for the captives. After a brief struggle with an exotic alien dancer, Kirk and Spock free the hostages. However, Korrd and Dar turn their weapons on them and hold Kirk and Spock hostage instead. Outside the bar, the Galactic Army of Light has also captured the Galileo, Uhura, Sulu, McCoy, and the rest of the security detail. As they loudly cheer their victory, the Vulcan suddenly recognizes Spock among the group and joyfully reveals that he is, in fact, Sybok. However, Spock is not cheered by the apparent reunion and informs Sybok that he is under arrest for seventeen violations of the Neutral Zone Treaty. Sybok and the others laugh at the notion – they clearly have the Enterprise team outnumbered. Spock offers Sybok leniency if he surrenders, but Sybok jovially announces he can't surrender as he isn't through violating the treaty and intends for his next crime to be the theft of something "very big" – the Enterprise herself. Kirk finally speaks up and indignantly inquires if Sybok has staged this entire affair just to get his hands on his ship. Sybok, equally indignantly, wonders who Kirk even is. He clarifies that he is the captain of the Enterprise. Sybok realizes that Chekov had been deceiving him and applauds Kirk's clever tactics but moves on and asks Spock if he would like to join him. Kirk is also curious as to what Spock will say but Spock simply states that he is a Starfleet officer. Sybok understands and states he will just take the Enterprise without Spock's help. Unaware of the serious situation on the planet's surface, Chekov and Scott are faced with another serious situation – the Klingon vessel is closing on their position. Klaa orders their cloaking device engaged in preparation for their attack on the Enterprise. Scott notes the loss of the Bird-of-Prey on sensors and deduces they must have cloaked. Chekov, knowing his first responsibility is to the ship, orders Scott to raise shields. Scott protests that the shuttlecraft is coming up from the surface but Chekov firmly repeats his order and follows it up with an order to go to red alert. Scott obliges and the Enterprise prepares for battle. The Galileo approaches the Enterprise and while Kirk retains his command of his officers, Sybok and his followers have them all under their command. Talbot informs them that once they have seized control of the Enterprise, they will bring up the rest of the Galactic Army of Light. Kirk, in an untenable position, laments that with the Klingons on their way, they will be lucky to even get back to the ship at all. Chekov hails the Galileo, informs them of the situation and recommends they find a safe harbor until the situation is secured. However, Sybok refuses and orders Kirk to bring them aboard. Kirk desperately tries to explain to Sybok that in order to dock the Galileo, the Enterprise will be vulnerable to a Klingon attack as her shields must be down for at least fifteen seconds to enter the shuttlebay. Korrd tells Sybok that Kirk is speaking the truth but Sybok refuses to return to Nimbus III. He allows Kirk to take whatever action is necessary in order to get the Galileo aboard. Kirk tells Chekov that they cannot return to the planet and cryptically tells him to stand by in executing "Emergency Landing Plan B." Chekov and Scott have no idea what Kirk is talking about but get the general idea when Kirk says that "B" stands for "barricade." Kirk intends to forgo the tractor beam and fly the shuttlecraft in manually in order to minimize the time the Enterprise's shields will be down. Klaa, meanwhile, has been monitoring the communications channel and realizes that Kirk is on the shuttle and alters his attack course to bear down on the Galileo. The Enterprise lowers her shields just as the Bird-of-Prey decloaks. Sulu engages the shuttle's thrusters and makes a hasty course for the shuttlebay. With no tractor beam, the shuttlecraft blasts into the bay, throwing its occupants to the deck and knocking out its systems. The barricade in the shuttlebay flies up to contain the craft before it crashes through the wall and decompresses additional compartments of the ship. The Bird-of-Prey fires at the Enterprise, but Chekov orders immediate warp speed and she streaks away just as the torpedo misses. Klaa is enraged but impressed at Kirk's cunning and orders his officers to track the Enterprise's course. In the Galileo, the Starfleet officers and the outlaws are in various states of unconsciousness from the crash. Sybok recovers as Kirk does and both note a projectile weapon on the deck. They struggle for it but Sybok gets the upper hand and orders Kirk to change course at once. The captain agrees to take Sybok to the bridge but tries to get the weapon away from Sybok as they disembark from the shuttle. The Vulcan easily outmatches Kirk in physical strength and grabs him in a choke hold. Kirk is able to get the weapon away from him and it slides across the deck to the feet of Spock, who picks it up and orders Sybok to surrender. Sybok refuses and bluntly tells Spock he must kill him. Kirk bellows for Spock to "SHOOT HIM!" but Spock cannot and the weapon is confiscated by Sybok, who is relieved as he thought Spock might have actually done it. J'onn takes an injured Dr. McCoy and Kirk to the brig as Sybok asks Spock to accompany him to the bridge but again Spock refuses. Sybok tells him he has no choice but to join his friends in confinement. Korrd, Dar, and Talbot escort Sulu and Uhura out of the Galileo as Sybok requests a moment alone with them in order to release their pain as he had done to the others. From the observation deck, a disturbed Scott watches as the Galactic Army of Light pour out of the Galileo and out to the rest of the ship and goes into hiding. In the brig, Kirk is cursing Spock for betraying the entire crew. Spock says it's worse than that – he's betrayed Kirk and does not expect the captain to forgive him. Kirk simply cannot believe it – why wouldn't Spock defend his ship and follow orders and just pull the trigger on the weapon he had on Sybok? Spock claims he could not because Kirk ordered him to kill his brother. Kirk is incredulous and claims he knows for a fact that Spock does not have a brother. Spock agrees that Kirk is technically correct – he has a half-brother. Dr. McCoy tries to make sense of it all – that Spock and Sybok have the same father but different mothers. Spock says that Sybok's mother was a Vulcan princess and upon her death, Sybok and he were raised as brothers. Kirk can't believe Spock never mentioned any of this to them before and Spock apologizes for it. Kirk is fuming but McCoy tells him to stop berating Spock as he could no more kill Sybok than he could kill Kirk. More to the point, they have bigger problems to deal with like escaping from the brig. "I'll say one thing, Spock. You never cease to amaze me," McCoy says. "Nor I myself," Spock responds. Kirk, sitting on the brig's toilet, shakes his head. On the bridge, Sulu and Uhura enter with several of Sybok's followers. Chekov wonders where Kirk is but Uhura tells him not to worry about it – Sybok will explain everything. As Sybok's followers begin to take up positions on the bridge, Sulu begins entering commands into the navigation console. Chekov demands to know what he's doing and Sulu answers that he is plotting their new course. Chekov is incredulous as Sulu has no authority to take that action. Sybok arrives on the bridge as Chekov demands an explanation. All Sulu will say is that Chekov simply has to listen to Sybok. The Vulcan tells Chekov that he won't force him into anything but encourages him to share his pain with Sybok as all the others have and gain strength from it. As a result, Chekov can't help but be taken into Sybok's cause like the rest. In the brig, several efforts to escape prove fruitless as Spock has personally tested the new design of the brig and found it to be "escape-proof." Back on the bridge, Sybok has fully assumed command of the Enterprise as they proceed on their new course at warp 7. As they are now underway, Sybok announces his intentions to the rest of the ship. Via the ship's intercom and computer terminals, Sybok asks the crew of the Enterprise to consider the questions of existence – the same questions that man himself has considered ever since he looked up at the stars and dreamed. They dreamed about a place where questions of existence would be answered. Although modern dogma says that place is a myth, Sybok believes it exists and has taken the Enterprise with the intent of making the greatest discovery of all time – the discovery of Sha Ka Ree, which lies beyond the Great Barrier at the center of the galaxy. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy watch from the brig. Kirk is alarmed as the center of the galaxy cannot be reached – no ship has ever entered the Great Barrier and no probe has ever returned. Suddenly, a mysterious tapping sound is heard coming from the wall of the brig. Kirk and Spock immediately recognize it as Morse code – the taps spelling out the letters: "S," "T," "A," N," "D," "B," "A," C," "K." As they realize what the message wants them to do, the wall explodes outwards and Scott, from the other side, chides them for not recognizing a jail break when they see one. Sybok, Sulu, J'onn, and some followers enter the brig – Sybok still intent on converting Kirk, Spock, and McCoy to join his cause but realizes they have escaped. He orders Sulu and J'onn to find them. Decks below, Scott tells Kirk that the crew is sympathetic to Sybok and they cannot be trusted now. Spock reminds Kirk of the emergency communications transmitter in the observation lounge but they cannot easily access it as it is in the forward section of the ship, far and away from their current position near the bottom of the secondary hull. Scott tells them they may be able to avoid the search parties if they get there by accessing turboshaft 3 as it is closed for repairs, but warns it's a long and dangerous climb. Kirk tells Scott to finish repairing the transporter because they'll need it if they can contact a rescue ship and head for the turboshaft. As they depart, Scott inadvertently smacks his head off a low-clearance bulkhead and falls unconscious just as the red alert goes off – the search parties consisting of Sybok's followers mobilize to find Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. Sulu and J'onn quickly find Scott's unconscious body and rush him to sickbay. As the trio begin their climb, Spock immediately makes a quick and quiet exit – he realizes that using the levitation boots will be much faster than climbing up all those decks. Kirk and McCoy join him, but their added weight is too much for the boots and they begin to descend back to the bottom of the turboshaft where Sulu and a contingent of Sybok's followers have found them. Kirk orders Spock to use the booster rockets on the boots but Spock warns against it. Kirk is insistent and Spock obliges, but the boosters propel them upward at an incredible rate, nearly right into the top of the shaft. Nevertheless, they exit the shaft and head for the observation lounge. From the lounge, Kirk sends out a distress call on the emergency channel. Starfleet Command responds, and Kirk informs them that they've been hijacked by a hostile force that has put them on a direct course for the Great Barrier and they require immediate assistance. However, the responding voice is not in fact Starfleet Command, it is Vixis aboard the Bird-of-Prey, impersonating a Starfleet officer. After Kirk signs off, Klaa orders them into the Great Barrier as well with the intent of following Kirk wherever he goes. As the three exit the lounge, they are intercepted by Sybok and his armed followers, who trusts that their message has been received. Kirk claims that he can't expect them to sit by and let Sybok take the Enterprise into the Great Barrier. Sybok claims that what Kirk really fears about the Great Barrier is that it is an unknown and cites numerous examples from Earth's history about similar fears – Christopher Columbus proving the Earth was round, Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier, and Zefram Cochrane achieving warp speed. Sybok desperately wants Kirk's respect and understanding and challenges the captain to hear him out. Meanwhile, in sickbay, Scott has recovered and returns to work on repairing the transporter. continues to speak of Sha Ka Ree to Kirk, Spock, and McCoy – that it is Heaven, an Eden. The Klingons, Romulans, and Andorians all have different names for it but they all have a shared concept of it. For the Enterprise, that concept will soon be a reality. Kirk is less than convinced, however – the only reality he knows is that he is a prisoner aboard his own ship and challenges Sybok about the power he has over the minds of his crew. Sybok retorts that he doesn't control minds – he frees them. McCoy, a bit more inquisitive, wonders how this is accomplished. Sybok explains that he forces people to face their pain and draw strength from it. Once that's the done, he continues, fear cannot stop you. McCoy is less than convinced and compares it to brainwashing. Sybok begins to peer into McCoy's pain, claiming it runs the deepest of the three of them – he can feel it, surely McCoy can. An apparition begins to appear in the corner of the room – an elderly man in a bed, sick and dying, calling out to him. McCoy approaches it and discovers that it is his father, David. McCoy begs Sybok not to put him through this memory but Sybok continues. David weakly begs his son to help him – the pain of the disease that is afflicting him is too much to bear and he wishes to be released. McCoy turns to Sybok and laments that with all his medical knowledge, he can't save his father. Sybok whispers to McCoy that's he's a doctor – he should know the reality of that life. McCoy responds that he's also his father's son and deactivates the life support system sustaining him. He watches as his father dies before his eyes. Sybok questions why McCoy did it, who responds that he did it to preserve his father's dignity. But Sybok knows that the act itself wasn't the pain the McCoy carried with him all these years. McCoy admits that it wasn't – the real sorrow was that not long after he euthanized his father, a cure to the disease was found – had he not killed him, he might have lived. McCoy doesn't know if he did the right thing or not and hasn't been able to answer that question all this time. His pain has been released. Sybok next turns his attention to Spock, claiming each person's pain is unique. Spock claims to hide no pain but Sybok doesn't believe him. Spock allows Sybok to proceed and another apparition appears. The image of Amanda Grayson giving birth to Spock on Vulcan appears. As Spock is born, the midwife presents the child to Sarek, who coldly regards the infant and dismisses him as being "so Human." Kirk regards Spock who is disquieted by the experience. Sybok claims he has done nothing to either Spock or McCoy and wonders if Kirk knew this about either of them. Kirk claims he did not. Sybok offers to help Kirk learn something about himself but the captain refuses. McCoy tries to tell Kirk to be a bit more open-minded about what Sybok is proposing but Kirk can't believe any of it. He knows what his mistakes are and doesn't need Sybok to point them out to him. McCoy tries to tell Kirk that Sybok took away his pain, but Kirk tries to tell him that being a doctor he should know better than anyone that pain can't be taken away with the wave of a magic wand – the good and bad experiences in one's life are what make us who we are. If one loses that, they lose themselves. Kirk is adamant that he doesn't want his pain taken away, he needs it. At that moment, Uhura's voice comes over the intercom, informing them that the Enterprise is in approach of the Great Barrier. Sybok regrets he couldn't help Kirk but believes he has swayed Spock and McCoy to his cause and asks them to join him on the bridge. McCoy agrees to go but Spock still refuses to join – he belongs right where he is, which is by Kirk's side. Sybok doesn't understand but Spock explains that while Sybok is his brother, he does not know Spock. Since the time he was an outcast boy on Vulcan until now, Spock has found himself and his place and knows who he is and he cannot go with Sybok. This rings true to McCoy, who chooses to stay with Kirk and Spock. Sybok, with a smile, allows them to remain. Kirk is still unconvinced that the Enterprise will survive the trip through the Great Barrier. Sybok challenges Kirk to be convinced that his vision was true if they do survive. Sybok claims his vision came from God, who waits for the Enterprise on the other side of the Great Barrier. Kirk cannot believe his ears and claims that Sybok is mad. Sybok, allowing the possibility to exist, says that they will see.
"USS Enterprise, shakedown cruise report. I think this new ship was put together by monkeys! Oh, she's got a fine engine, but half the doors won't open! And guess whose job it is to make it right?!"
"Captain's log, stardate: 845… (malfunction, tapping sounds) Captain's log, stardate: 84… (malfunction, computer voice saying "Good morning, captain.") That's… forget it."
"Each man hides a secret pain. It must be exposed and reckoned with. It must be dragged from the darkness and forced into the light."
- Sybok, talking to J'onn
"'You'll have a great time, Bones. You'll enjoy your shore leave. You'll be able to relax.' You call this relaxing? I'm a nervous wreck. If I'm not careful I might end up talking to myself."
- McCoy, talking to himself
"Captain, I do not think you realize the gravity of your situation."
"On the contrary, gravity is the foremost on my mind!"
•Co-Writer and Director William Shatner once remarked that he initially intended this movie to be written by thriller and fantasy author Eric Van Lustbader. "My biggest failure [in the making of the film] was I had read some books by Eric Van Lustbader, who had written some wonderful novels about an American in Japan and how out of place he felt. I thought, 'God, that'd be perfect for a Spock movie.' I went to see him and we walked the streets of New York pondering the plot of Star Trek," Shatner recalled. "He was a fan. I thought, 'God, I've got a bestselling author ready to do a Star Trek.' And then they couldn't agree on the novel rights. So I lost him and my movie was going downhill before it even started." (50 Years of Star Trek, p. 15)
•William Shatner stated in his memoir Star Trek Movie Memories (1995, pp. 278-279) that he came up with the story idea of the search for what turned out to be a false god, while he was watching the at-the-time controversial televangelist couple Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, on television. He became amazed and disgusted by the idea how such vulgar people had the audacity to purport they alone were the harbingers of God and had become rich from donations by their followers.
•Though Paramount Pictures President Frank Mancuso, Sr. was a religious man, he was sympathetic to Shatner's story outline and green-lit the production of the movie when Shatner pitched his story outline to him in person. (Star Trek Movie Memories, 1995, p. 282)
•Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry had, since Star Trek: The Motion Picture, no formal creative say in the Star Trek films by that time, only the title of "Executive Consultant". All subsequent movies were vehemently resisted by Roddenberry, particularly The Final Frontier. Roddenerry went as far as to have his attorney Leonard Maizlish prepare legal procedures against Shatner. The legal action did not proceed. Roddenberry's position did not allow for this but Roddenberry declared the film "apocryphal". (Star Trek FAQ 2.0, chapter 13; Star Trek Movie Memories, 1995, pp. 283-284)
•The Final Frontier approximated Roddenberry's atheist worldview, and was reminiscent of his own 1975 unrealized movie script The God Thing, a reworked version of which became In Thy Image and then, reworked further, the script for The Motion Picture. Richard Arnold, who was working at Roddenberry's office at the time, was present when the first story outline of The Final Frontier was delivered to Roddenberry as an FYI, later explaining to Shatner why Roddenberry reacted as he did, "So when you came along, though it was years later, with very similar themes, Gene was really hurt. I think it hurt Gene's ego that you finally going to tell the story that he wanted to tell ten years earlier. You were about to succeed where he had failed. At the time, Gene's secretary, Susan was making matters worse by walking around the office stating things like 'I can't believe it! He stole your idea. Bill's an asshole. Bill's a bastard.' So that did not help, and additionally, I know there was a fairly legitimate concern on Gene's part that your sense of humor [in regard to the way the secondary cast was eventually portrayed in the movie] was a little different than had ever been visualized before." While Susan Sackett's reaction might be construed as personally motivated, she actually had, in all fairness, a point; Shatner himself has related how he had stumbled upon Roddenberry ten years earlier when the latter was busy writing The God Thing, and was on that occasion given a beat-for-beat summary of the story. Some of this may have nestled in Shatner's subconscious. (Star Trek Movie Memories, 1995, pp. 46-49, 289-291) Though Shatner had implied as much in his memoir, Arnold's remarks confirmed that Shatner had neither consulted nor communicated with Roddenberry even once, during the entire production of the movie.
•Co-Writer/Producer Harve Bennett, partly responsible for the three previous successful Star Trek movies, initially did not want to make the film as both his relationship with several key production staffers, in particular with Leonard Nimoy, had started to deteriorate with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. He was also fed up with Roddenberry's interloping. Shatner trusted Bennett, but had a hard time convincing him to come aboard. (Star Trek Movie Memories, 1995, pp. 283-285)
received the following awards and honors.
The novel The Fire and the Rose shows that as Spock began to regret undertaking the Kolinahr, that he remembered what Kirk had told Sybok about how the regrets and the pain one carries with them is part of what makes them who they are and it does help in Spock's decision to reverse the Kolinahr.
The Sha Ka Ree entity is identified in The Q Continuum trilogy as The One, a being that was drawn into this universe through the Guardian of Forever by the entity known as 0, subsequently being defeated in a confrontation with the Q Continuum and locked away in the galactic center – having been reduced to only a head – until His repentance or the heat death of the universe, "whichever comes first."
Vonda McIntyre's novelizations of Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home had Hikaru Sulu's rank at captain (based on cut material from Star Trek II) for sake of continuity within the novels. When J.M. Dillard wrote novelization of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, she included a reference that Sulu had taken a temporary reduction in rank back down to commander in order to serve on the Enterprise, a decision which, when Kirk found out, made him furious at Sulu for not thinking of his own career first, and after giving Sulu hell about that decision, Kirk thanked him afterward.
According to the novel The Sorrows of Empire, McCoy's mirror universe counterpart was also responsible for his father's death, though under dramatically different circumstances: he tortured him to death on the orders of the Terran Empire.
Credits References
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Related topics
•Emotion •Suicide •Vulcan mythology
Media
••Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (soundtrack)
Jun 7, 2024 · Situated between Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country in the pantheon of films centered around James T. Kirk's U.S.S. Enterprise, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is often overlooked when debates erupt regarding Star Trek's most profound cinematic scenes.
The Final Frontier offers a frightening look into the ego of an actor who writes and directs himself as the man who proves God does not exist. Rated: 1.5/4 • Sep 5, 2023. Easily the weakest...
- (53)
- William Shatner
- PG
- William Shatner
Check out the official Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) Trailer starring William Shatner!
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When the newly-christened starship Enterprise's shakedown cruise goes poorly, Captain Kirk and crew put her into Spacedock for repairs. But an urgent mission interrupts their Earth-bound shore leave. A renegade Vulcan named Sybok has taken three ambassadors hostage on Nimbus III, the Planet of Galactic Peace.
