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Ranking Star Trek Films

Star Trek is an iconic franchise due to a couple of classic series that it had in its roster. As for the movies themselves, they were overall a mixed bag. While some are definitely quite strong, most of the others range from mediocre to serviceable to barely solid. The Original Series and The Next Generation got their own movies while J. J. Abrams brought the franchise back recently. This is the ranking of all thirteen of these films.

13. The Final Frontier

The Final Frontier was the fifth entry in The Original Series set of movies and by far the worst of the bunch and the weakest of all Star Trek movies, firmly landing on the last spot on this list. Is it bad? Not really. None of these movies are bad for true fans of the franchise. But William Shatner never had talent as an actor nor as a director. The character dynamics are fun here and quite charming, but the plot was weak and the direction and overall execution were mediocre.

12. Generations

Star Trek Generations was a misguided attempt to appease both hardcore Trekkies and casual fans of the franchise alike. Its intentions were questionable and the choice to honor Kirk also did not really work out. Stewart is reliably nuanced as Picard; Shatner is fun as Kirk; McDowell is cool as the villain. All three worked, but their scenes together felt rushed and reduced to too many fisting brawls. It was definitely a weak start for TNG set of movies.

11. Beyond

I am not a fan of the new Star Trek movies as they were definitely not made for the fans of the franchise, but for newcomers and modern action blockbuster fans. Beyond was the weakest of the bunch. It had some fine characters and VFX, but the overall story was simplistic and inferior while the overwhelming action was quite bothersome. It did garner good reviews, but the fact that we still haven’t gotten a new Star Trek movie after this one speaks for itself.

10. The Motion Picture

The first Star Trek movie is among the oddest in the series. Coming out in 1979, the movie tried so hard to replicate the formula of ‘2001’, but failed miserably as it was dull and thematically inferior. While the technicalities were incredible and the movie was artistic in that regard, the total lack of memorable dialogue and/or great action-adventure set pieces made for a tedious watch. It was a very misguided first attempt to bring the series to the big screen.

9. Into Darkness

Into Darkness is basically famous for bringing back Khan. Benedict Cumberbatch was excellent in the role, but it was not necessary to bring this iconic character back. It was very lazy. The action is great and fun, but once again overwhelming, hurting storytelling in the process. It has some good scenes, but a total lack of heart and purpose as well, having in mind that it just recycles the previous Khan movie.

8. Star Trek

The first Abrams ST movie came out in 2009 and was acclaimed by critics. I am in the minority in this instance as I did not care for it in the slightest. Well, Pine and Quinto are superb and the acting as well as the characterization are overall very strong as are the VFX. But the plot and the origin story were uninteresting to me and the overwhelming action quickly derailed any promise that this movie could have otherwise had. It was simply overly modernized.

7. Nemesis

Nemesis was the last TNG movie and the final nail in the coffin for the franchise that suffered weak box office returns and was later renewed with Abrams at the helm. While I liked Tom Hardy in the villain role and his dynamic with Patrick Stewart was excellent, the movie failed to do anything of interest other than these two characters, resulting in a very narrowly focused, problematic entry.

6. Insurrection

Star Trek: Insurrection has much improved special effects, some interesting and/or emotionally affecting sequences and a solid storyline, but that plot is also familiar as The Next Generation had already done similar stories in more than a few episodes during its run. The whole movie felt just like an extended episode of that show with too many villains and too few action scenes, flaws that most ST movies shared unfortunately.

5. The Voyage Home

What The Voyage Home lacks in pacing (very slow) and SF elements (almost non-existent), it more than compensates with the strangest and most original story in this entire series. The crew have to save these whales from extinction and simply the idea of an ecological message Star Trek movie was sound and it mostly really worked. Some moments here are genuinely moving and melancholic.

4. The Undiscovered Country

Star Trek IV: The Undiscovered Country is somewhat lacking in the action-adventure elements, but by having added a lot of suspense and courtroom drama elements, this entry differentiated itself from others in the ST franchise, plus it was a very satisfactory final chapter for the TOS roster of movies. The characterization and dialogue are particularly worthy of praise. In terms of dialogue, it remains the best movie entry for sure.

3. The Wrath of Khan

Ricardo Montalban’s Khan may be over-the-top, but he still proved to be a formidable, iconic Star Trek villain. In fact, this film is usually regarded as the best Trek movie of them all. I wouldn’t go so far due to the utter silliness and irreverence of its plot, but still this is a great example of the franchise being at its most lightweight and fun. This movie basically represents what Abrams tried to achieve decades later, but ended up landing flat on his face.

2. The Search for Spock

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock has a weaker second act and comically bad acting from Shatner, but the Spock-Kirk friendship is moving here, the entire storyline is terrific and the movie’s adventurous elements and world building are top-notch. The exploration of the Genesis planet produced many unforgettable moments of discovery fueled by intriguing imagery. It’s by far the most underrated entry in the series and in my opinion it wholeheartedly deserves the second spot on this list.

1. First Contact

First Contact was the second TNG movie and the one that has least value for casual and non-fans of the franchise. But for the fans, it truly is terrific. Setting aside the weaker supporting characters, the main ones are excellent as both Data and the Borg Queen are superbly developed. The Borg overall are phenomenally utilized in this very well scripted, sophisticated movie that makes use of its characters and themes deftly. It’s, thus, undoubtedly my pick for the best Star Trek movie of all time.