Movie Night at the Virtual Cinema: Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve been using SKYBOX VR on Oculus Quest to watch movies in a virtual cinema that I didn’t get to see when they were theatrically released. The illusion of sitting in a movie theater is a convincing one, minus any reaction from the (non-existent) audience. It doesn’t change my perception of the films I’ve been watching — I’m just doing this for fun: to whet my appetite for going to the movies, and for a little VR escapism.

Warning: Spoilers ahead. 

In my last Movie Night at the Virtual Cinema, I watched 2001: A Space Odyssey, widely considered a Sci-Fi classic. This time around, I'm at the opposite end of that spectrum with Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, widely considered the worst of the Star Trek films, at least among those starring the original cast. I've watched this one many times, but never had the chance to catch it in the theater, and if you've seen this movie you're probably wondering why I chose this one.


I'll be honest: Star Trek V has a lot of problems, the first of which is that the premise is one we know can't be met: we know the crew isn't really going to meet God. Next up is the humor, most of which falls flat. Starlog Magazine had a one-panel comic in an issue subsequent to the release of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home that showed a poster for the then not-yet-in-production Star Trek V that showed Spock in a fake nose with glasses with a pie hurling towards him, with the words "A laugh riot because you demanded it!", and one person saying to the other "I'm starting to wish Star Trek IV hadn't been such a success." Humor was a big part of the success of Star Trek IV, but the humor in Trek V just doesn't work, in my opinion and in the opinions of many. Lastly, the special effects are sub-standard, with the best effects teams already having been booked for the other big movies that would be released in the summer of 1989.

I recently created a personal fan-edit of Star Trek: The Motion Picture where I edited out a lot of the long effects sequences as well as some scenes which portrayed Kirk as kind of a jerk, in the hopes it would make a better picture. I'm not sure if it did or not. For Trek V, I'd also like to create a fan edit, to remove the bad humor and some of the more questionable story choices. But I don't know if it would be possible. At the very least, I'd probably end up with a 60 minute movie.

I realize I still haven't answered the "Why did I choose to watch this one in the VR theater?" question. Basically, because I'm a fan of the original Star Trek and I hadn't had the chance to see this in the theater when it was released. And, for all its faults (and there are many) the movie does have its good qualities. For starters, every member of the principal cast gets their moment. Second, the pacing is good. And third, the soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith is excellent. Oh, and I love the opening scene. That may not be a popular opinion, but I love that scene. And Laurence Luckinbill as Sybok, I think he turns in a great performance as a not-so-great character. And also, even though the film isn't very good, it's still, at least to me, somewhat (and somehow) enjoyable. The original crew are like old friends, and when hanging out with friends, not every time is a good time, but it's always good to spend time with them.

So what was it like watching this on the big (virtual) screen? I suspect much like it would be to have been there when it was released: the virtual theater is empty! Okay, okay, that was unfair. Anyway, my opinion of the film didn't change any, but I enjoyed watching it on a big screen in a theater setting. As I sat there, I tried to make a note of all the things I'd cut from it in a fan edit. But it's not without it charms. I liked watching it in the "theater", even with all of its flaws.

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