Today marks the 25th anniversary of a dark day for Star Trek fandom: the release of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, or to give it its proper name, "The Worst Star Trek Movie That Isn't Star Trek Into Darkness."
Arguably, The Final Frontier is worse than Into Darkness. It not only matches that movie's nonsensical plot but adds layers of awkwardly unfunny comedy and bored actors, with the outcome an uneven, overly complicated mess. The plot of the movie may have been focused on the attempt of Spock's half-brother to meet God in the center of the universe, but what The Final Frontier is really about is what happens when a studio demands a blockbuster movie before everyone involved is ready to deliver one (Marvel, you should take note *cough*Ant-Man*cough*).
Famously plagued by problems before, during, and after production—including, but not limited to, a shift in concept (originally, the god in the movie would be revealed to be the actual Satan, and Kirk and crew would have to fight to escape from Hell; no, really), a writer's strike, last-minute budget cuts that necessitated a re-written finale, a reduced timeframe to finish visual effects, and a conflict between William Shatner, who directed the movie, and producers over final cut. It's tempting to point to The Final Frontier as a cursed project from the start, and one that should have been left to fail quietly for the good of everyone involved.
Unfortunately, following the success of 1986's Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, that wasn't an option. While The Final Frontier initially looked like it might have been able to shake off being a crappy movie—it was number one at the box office in its first week, making more money than The Voyage Home in its opening weekend—bad word of mouth and poor reviews quickly caught up with it, and it ended up leaving theaters after only 10 weeks, the shortest run of any Trek movie to date.
It didn't kill the franchise, of course; by summer 1989, Star Trek: The Next Generation was about to head into its third season (aka, The One Where The Show Got Good), and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country was just two years away, with director Nicholas Meyer preparing to bring the original cast's reign as Those Who Boldly Went to a far more dignified, less embarrassing for all involved, end.
That said, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier seemed like particularly dark days at the time and, if anything, holds up even worse a quarter century later. For those looking to celebrate its release today, do the dignified thing: Watch Star Trek IV again instead.
