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Kevin
The cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation may be legends of the franchise, but their big-screen run was something of a mixed bag. Across four films, they faced the Borg, shared the screen with Captain Kirk, and got one last send-off that wasn’t exactly satisfying. We’ve already ranked the original Star Trek movies from worst to best, so it’s time for The Next Generation films to get the same treatment.
Star Trek: Nemesis
Up until The Next Generation cast reunited for the third season of Picard, Nemesis stood as the final outing for the crew, and that would have been a disappointing note to end on. For the most part, this is the Picard and Data show, with the rest of the cast finding themselves on the bench for the most part, which isn’t what you want from a send-off movie. Dr. Crusher, in particular, doesn’t get much of anything to do. The film is noteworthy for featuring a young Tom Hardy in a very early role as the villain Shinzon.
The film is clearly trying to be The Wrath of Khan for the TNG crew: a villain with a personal connection to the captain, a climactic battle in a nebula that knocks out communications, and the noble sacrifice of a beloved character. But it never really lands, and the whole thing comes off as a lesser echo of a much better film.
Director Stuart Baird famously knew nothing about Star Trek and didn’t seem to want to learn, even turning down assistance from Jonathan Frakes, who had directed the last two movies. The cast does their best, but the characters can’t help but feel a little different from the crew we loved for years.
Star Trek Generations
There was clearly a rush to get Generations into production, with filming beginning almost immediately after the TNG series finale. With the original crew having already received a proper farewell in The Undiscovered Country, this movie was designed as a passing of the torch. William Shatner returned as Kirk, and was joined by James Doohan as Scotty and Walter Koenig as Chekov in the opening Enterprise B sequence. Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley were originally meant to appear instead, but both actors felt they had already said goodbye in the previous film. As nice as it might have been to have seen the trio back together, I think they made the right call.
One of the film’s biggest moments is the destruction of the Enterprise-D. After seven seasons of adventures, seeing the ship destroyed was genuinely shocking and felt like losing a beloved character. The saucer crash sequence remains one of the film’s highlights, a terrific mix of visual effects and miniatures. It also helps that the production really did destroy the sets, which certainly went a long way to selling the destruction.
Then there’s Kirk’s death, which continues to be controversial to this day. While his actions do help Picard save millions, it’s still oddly anticlimactic for the original captain to go out because of a collapsing bridge. For such an iconic character, many fans felt that the moment isn’t quite as grand as it should be.
Star Trek: Insurrection
One of the most common criticisms of Insurrection is that it comes across like an extended episode of TNG. Honestly, I don’t think that’s a bad thing. The tone is lighter and more relaxed than First Contact, and there’s real pleasure in simply watching this crew enjoy each other’s company again.
The moral conflict at the heart of the film is pure Star Trek: the crew defies Starfleet orders to prevent the forced relocation of a peaceful population, even when the planet’s resources could greatly benefit the Federation. That’s exactly the kind of dilemma this franchise does well.
There are definitely some silly moments: Picard, Worf, and Data singing Gilbert and Sullivan’s “A British Tar” from H.M.S. Pinafore; Worf going through puberty; and baby-faced Riker, clean-shaven for the first time since the earliest days of the series, which is a look that never needed to come back. Although I recall being disappointed by the film when I saw it in theaters, I’ve come to appreciate it much more over time. That said, Insurrection could switch places with Generations on this list, and I’d still be happy.
First Contact is the most confident and crowd-pleasing of the TNG films. The Borg are a perfect movie-level threat, the action is sharp, and Patrick Stewart delivers some of his best work in the franchise. Picard’s trauma from his assimilation in the series clearly never left him, and Stewart gives the character a darker, more obsessive edge than we’re used to seeing. “The line must be drawn here!”
Alice Krige’s Borg Queen is easily the best villain in the TNG movies. Creepy yet seductive, she gives the Borg a face and a voice without stripping them of their menace.
This is definitely Star Trek in blockbuster mode, but the darker action is balanced by the wonder at the center of the story: the launch of the first warp flight and the arrival of the Vulcans, which marks our first contact with an alien race, setting the stage for a more enlightened future for humanity.
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However you rank them, the TNG films never quite matched the consistency of the series itself, but at their best, they captured what made this crew so easy to love. Now, take to the comments and let us know how you would rank the Star Trek: The Next Generation movies.
