Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)

On the eve of retirement, Kirk and McCoy are charged with assassinating the Klingon High Chancellor and imprisoned. The Enterprise crew must help them escape to thwart a conspiracy aimed at sabotaging the last best hope for peace.

Director:

Nicholas Meyer

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (television series "Star Trek"), Leonard Nimoy (story)

Stars:

William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Shatner	...	Kirk
Leonard Nimoy	...	Spock
DeForest Kelley	...	McCoy
James Doohan	...	Scotty
Walter Koenig	...	Chekov
Nichelle Nichols	...	Uhura
George Takei	...	Sulu
Kim Cattrall	...	Lt. Valeris
Mark Lenard	...	Sarek
Grace Lee Whitney	...	Excelsior Communications Officer
Brock Peters	...	Admiral Cartwright
Leon Russom	...	Chief in Command
Kurtwood Smith	...	Federation President
Christopher Plummer	...	Chang
Rosanna DeSoto	...	Azetbur (as Rosana DeSoto)

Storyline

After an explosion on their moon, the Klingons have an estimated 50 years before their ozone layer is completely depleted, and they all die. They have only one choice - to make peace with the Federation, which will mean an end to 70 years of conflict. Captain James T. Kirk and crew are called upon to help in the negotiations because of their experience with the Klingons. Peace talks don't quite proceed, and Kirk and McCoy are convicted of assassinating the Klingon High Chancellor, and imprisoned on Rura Penthe, a snowy hard-labor prison camp. Will they manage to escape? And will there ever be peace with the Klingons?

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Plot Keywords:

male alien | type 2 phaser | ship's surgeon | pavel chekov character | spock character | 

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Taglines:

On the verge of peace. On the brink of war.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Startrek.com startrek.com

Country:

USA

Language:

English Klingon

Release Date:

6 December 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Star Trek 6: The Undiscovered Country

Filming Locations:

Alaska, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$74,888,996

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$96,888,996

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby Digital (some test prints) Dolby Stereo (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Captain Sulu (George Takei) is the only Star Trek (1966) regular character to be given command of a starship other than the Enterprise.

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Goofs

When Sulu is telling Kirk the location of the peace conference, the monitors behind Kirk do not match with the image of Sulu in the main viewscreen.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Captain Hikaru Sulu: Stardate 9521.6. Captain's Log, USS Excelsior. Hikaru Sulu commanding. After three years, I have concluded my first assignment as master of this vessel, cataloguing gaseous planetary anomalies in Beta Quadrant. We're heading home under full impulse power. I'm pleased to report that ship and crew have functioned well.

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Crazy Credits

At the beginning of the end credits, the signature of each of the principle cast members is written one by one as a final send off for their characters.

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Alternate Versions

The original theatrical release (U.S.) did not include the portion of the scene in the Federation President's office where Col. West outlined his plan to rescue Kirk & McCoy. Also at the climax of the film, the bit where the Klingon assassin is revealed to be none other than Col. West was not included.

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Connections

Referenced in Atop the Fourth Wall: Star Trek: Generations (2014)

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Soundtracks

Theme From Star Trek TV Series
by Alexander Courage

User Reviews

A fitting end for the crew of the NCC-1701-A.

The journey that began on the small screen in 1967 comes to its end on the big screen in 1991, after three TV seasons, six films, and the creation of a cultural phenomenon unrivaled in the history of television. The crew of the original series had met with mixed results on the big screen, producing the excellent The Wrath of Khan, but also the inexcusably bad The Final Frontier; the other four ranged from passable to good. After the financial failure of Star Trek V, Paramount brought back Star Trek II director Nicholas Meyer, and commissioned from him the final voyage of the original cast. As Star Trek so often does, the events depicted mirror the glasnost of the late 1980s, as the collapse of the Soviet Union eased global tensions and heralded the beginning of a new era. In the Trek universe, the possibility of rapproachment between the Federation and the Klingon Empire raises the hackles of hardliners on both sides, and Kirk and co. must prevent the weak peace from being destroyed. The original cast is in fine form, all of them giving their all to make the (potentially) final appearances of their characters memorable. Despite William Shatner's reputation as a ham actor, he delivers a great performance here; his final log entry is one of Trek's finest moments. As the villain of the piece, we get General Chang (Christopher Plummer), a Klingon out to insure "no peace in our time". Plummer is superb, chewing scenery and spewing Shakespeare with a wonderfully loathsome presence. I would rank Chang below Khan and the Borg Queen, but far above all the other Trek villains. There are some tacky anachronisms typical of Meyer's style, and the usual amount of discontinuities and canon issues; but that's inevitable, and I can accept it if it leads to a good story. Trek VI is a good story. 9/10.