Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Leonard Nimoy

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (television series Star Trek)
Harve Bennett (written by)

Release Date:

1 June 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Join the search

Plot:

Admiral Kirk and his bridge crew risk their careers stealing the decommissioned Enterprise to return to the restricted Genesis planet to recover Spock's body.

Plot Keywords:

Admiral | Commander | Ceremony | Star Trek | Space

Awards:

7 nominations

Cast

William Shatner	...	Admiral James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy	...	Capt. Spock / Elevator Voice (also as Frank Force)
DeForest Kelley	...	Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy
James Doohan	...	Montgomery "Scotty" Scott
George Takei	...	Hikaru Sulu
Walter Koenig	...	Pavel Chekov
Nichelle Nichols	...	Cmdr. Uhura
Merritt Butrick	...	Dr. David Marcus
Phil Morris	...	Trainee Foster
Scott McGinnis	...	Mr. Adventure
Robin Curtis	...	Lt. Saavik
Robert Hooks	...	Adm. Morrow
Carl Steven	...	Spock...Age 9
Vadia Potenza	...	Spock...Age 13
Stephen Manley	...	Spock...Age 17

Also Known As:

Star Trek III: Return to Genesis (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Klingon | Russian

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby (35 mm prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Italy:T | Iceland:10 | South Korea:12 | Brazil:Livre | New Zealand:G | Canada:G (Régie du Cinéma Québec) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Canada:PG | Finland:K-11 (DVD rating) | France:U | Netherlands:AL | Norway:11 (re-rerating) | Norway:12 | Singapore:PG | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Cinema Group Ventures

Trivia:

It was Director/Star Leonard Nimoy who conceived the distinctive design of the Klingons' Bird Of Prey. At a preproduction meeting with Industrial Light And Magic, Nimoy posed his arms and hands to demonstrate the vessel's wings as they ultimately would appear in the final film. The DVD documentary, "Space Docks and Birds Of Prey", revealed that the physique of a bodybuilder in the "crab" pose, emphasizing the trapezius muscles, was also the basis for the ship's aggressive stance. Finally, the script, at the time when it was received by ILM, established that the Bird Of Prey was definitely a Romulan vessel, commandeered by Kruge. With that back story in mind, the feather-like pattern on the ship's underside was a direct tribute the original Bird Of Prey as it first appeared in the 1966 original series episode "Balance of Terror". Though the final version of Star Trek 3 (and subsequent star trek films and TV episodes) refer to the ship as purely of the Klingon fleet, the Romulan plumage-detail was never lost.

Goofs:

Continuity: Phase of the Earth's Moon when the Enterprise arrives at space dock after the battle with Khan, and when Kirk steals the Enterprise.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[Spock's dying words, repeated from the previous film]
Captain Spock: Don't grieve, Admiral. It is logical. The needs of the many outweigh...
Kirk: ...the needs of the few.
Captain Spock: Or the one. I have been and always shall be your friend. Live long and prosper.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Seinfeld: The Foundation (#8.1)" (1996)

Competent, but not great...

Perhaps it is the inevitable comparison to the previous episode, but Star Trek III very much has a feel of being low-rent or second-rate. An excellent example of this can be seen whenever Saavik is on the screen. Kirstie Alley may not be the greatest actor in the world, but Robin Curtis succeeds in making her look like Anna Paquin or Sigourney Weaver by comparison. The strange thing is that Merritt Butrick seems to suffer a decline in performance whenever he is in the same frame with her.

Let's face it, any dialogue heavy film was going to be a letdown after the epic battles in Star Trek II. A very personal battle between two enemies that have been festering in one another's minds for years is always going to make a brief fight with a crew of Klingons seem pretty restrained by comparison. A lot of the film's plot elements also come second-hand from the previous film, so it isn't as if much is done to separate it.

The spaceship sequences also look far less realistic in this film than is the case in the past two films. It seems that Paramount hired another effects house to simulate these moments, and the result is that the ships look as if they are under a constant invisible spotlight, rather than the realistic tones that were evident in the previous two films. The combat doesn't seem nearly as realistic, either. After the massive tradings of torpedoes and phaser energy in the previous film, expecting us to believe the Enterprise can be disabled by a single torpedo is a bit much.

The dynamic between Kirk, Spock, and McCoy was always a big part of what made the original series work, so it's not surprising that an entire film be dedicated to restoring this dynamic. To the credit of the screenwriters, it works. The fights on the surface of Genesis, and some of the dialogues, give the whole film a connection with the audience that later films in the franchise particularly lack. Everyone certainly has a friend that they'd do things like this for if they had to, so it's hard not to get behind the Enterprise crew as they battle for one of their most prominent members.

I would have appreciated more footage to show how Uhura arrives on Vulcan, and what the Federation does when they learn that the crew is on Vulcan. Still, the film is much more tightly paced than some give it credit for, so we can let that one slide. It is, however, interesting to note how little internal security the Starfleet orbital station has. I would have thought that the Starfleet version of the drunk tank would have more than just two security guards, given the wide variation in alien races that make up the organisation.

In all, I gave Star Trek III a six out of ten. Most sequels try to be bigger and bolder than the previous episode. Star Trek III is an exception, but it certainly is a worthwhile viewing if you like a bit of science fiction.