star trek final frontier trailer

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)

PG | Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller

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Star Trek V: The Final Frontier: Official Clip - Approach to Sha Ka Ree

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Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Cast & crew.

William Shatner

James T. Kirk

Leonard Nimoy

DeForest Kelley

Leonard "Bones" McCoy

James Doohan

Walter Koenig

Worst in series; some tricky religious content.

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© 1989 Paramount Pictures

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Published Jun 7, 2024

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier Delivers Profound Cinematic Moments

In honor of the film's 35th anniversary, let's reflect on this underrated gem and relive these highlights!

StarTrek.com

Situated between Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country in the pantheon of films centered around James T. Kirk's U.S.S. Enterprise , Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is often overlooked when debates erupt regarding Star Trek 's most profound cinematic scenes.

Existing in the shadow of other popular Star Trek releases is not easy, yet The Final Frontier delivers an abundance of meaningful moments and profound dialogue, particularly related to the triumvirate of Kirk, Spock, and Leonard McCoy.

In honor of The Final Frontier 's 35th anniversary, let's reflect on this underrated gem and relive these highlights in the order in which they appeared in the film.

1. "I knew I wouldn’t die because the two of you were with me." — Captain Kirk

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Following Kirk's plunge from the El Capitan summit, he was chastised by Dr. McCoy for his reckless behavior.

The captain's assertion that he always knew he would die alone was key on two fronts, as it exemplified his unwavering trust in Spock and McCoy while also offering insight into his views on death as he entered the later stages of his life. Kirk's maturity, both in terms of his friendships and his outlook on mortality, was met in perfect fashion by his friends. As Spock gazed, McCoy sought to break the seriousness by stating, "Well, I’ll call Valhalla and have them reserve a room for you."

2. "What do we do when shore leave comes along? We spend it together." — Dr. McCoy

The doctor chased Kirk's commentary on death with his own observation that, despite their squabbles aboard ship, they were still drawn to one another in their downtime. McCoy references their lack of family ties, building upon the idea of aging officers reevaluating the courses they had chosen for themselves.

As is often the case in The Final Frontier , the weighty dialogue is flavored with light humor. Marsh melons, campfire songs, and Spock's "Were we having a good time?" inquiry — exquisitely punctuated by McCoy's "God, I liked him better before he died" response — underscore their friendly banter and illustrate the many frontiers their bond has endured.

3. "You mean he's your 'brother' brother? You made that up." — Captain Kirk

Furious at Spock for disobeying his order to shoot Sybok, Kirk vented his anger by confronting the Vulcan about the perceived betrayal. Though he declined McCoy's enthusiastic offer to hold Spock so Kirk could enact corporal punishment, the captain was confused by his friend's decision willingness to place the ship at risk. Spock's admission that Sybok was, in fact, his brother perplexed the captain even further, as it riffed on their previous conversation about lacking family and offered a quintessential Spock declaration, "Technically you are correct. I do not have a brother. I have a half-brother."

McCoy's disposition instantly shifted into Spock's favor, once again providing a look into the trio's complex and ever-evolving relationship.

4. "All my knowledge, and I can't save him." — Dr. McCoy

In a bid to rally McCoy to his cause, Sybok presented the doctor a harrowing vision that harkened back to his father's last days. For all of the incredible cures he devised throughout his time in Starfleet, McCoy helplessly stood by as his father's condition deteriorated. At his father's request, McCoy released him from his agony by administering a swift and painless death. The tragedy became amplified when a cure for the elder McCoy's condition was discovered not long after the doctor's merciful act.

Dealing with loved ones who have terminal illnesses is a universal struggle that all humans can relate to, and McCoy's gut-wrenching memory furnished us with what was perhaps the doctor's most powerful character moment in all of Star Trek .  

5. "I don't want my pain taken away. I need my pain!" — Captain Kirk

Having already witnessed Sybok put McCoy and Spock through their own trials, Kirk refused to indulge in what he perceived as a con man's mind games. The captain asserted that pain and guilt could not be taken away with the wave of a magic wand, doubling down by proclaiming they're things we carry with us and make us who we are.

While some may argue with the validity of that reasoning, one can't help but find Kirk's analysis to at the very least be thought-provoking and another indication of where he was at on his personal journey. With McCoy convinced of Sybok's authenticity, Kirk's plea of "If we lose them, we lose ourselves" can be seen as a way to sway the doctor's point of view or an effort to persuade the captain of his own argument.

6. "I am not the outcast boy you left behind those many years ago." — Spock

Further underlining the critical nature of this moving scene, Spock denied Sybok's entreaty to join him on his journey through the Great Barrier with an air of reserved self-assurance that only he could deliver. While McCoy found sadness in Sybok's vision and Kirk was provoked to anger by the conversation, Spock reacted with the conviction of a person who was completely secure with who they were as an individual.

Long gone were his days of feeling out of place, as his time on the Enterprise helped guide him on his path and set him apart from the boy Sybok knew. Spock had found himself, and he had also found his place. The Vulcan's certainty in choosing his friends over his own half-brother granted McCoy with his own sense of clarity, as the doctor resisted his drive to follow Sybok and opted to remain by Kirk and Spock.  

7. "Is it possible?" — Captain Kirk

Once through the Great Barrier and in range of what Sybok referred to as Sha Ka Ree, Kirk joined Spock and McCoy in marveling at what they saw before their eyes. The captain turned to the plaque emblazoned with the motto, "To boldly go where no man has gone before," reevaluating his views on Sybok's quest and electing to command the endeavor himself.

The notion of apparent foes coming to a peaceful compromise is about as " Star Trek " as something can be, as is the aspiration to seek out and understand the unknown. In the wake of their recent emotional ordeals related to pain and family, Kirk and his two colleagues nevertheless managed to shift gears and demonstrate that they each had the heart of an explorer.

8. "What does god need with a starship?" — Captain Kirk

As Sybok conversed with what he believed to be the God of Sha Ka Ree, Captain Kirk began to sense that all was not as it seemed. Recognizing the alleged deity's interest in the Enterprise , Kirk boldly asked what an all-powerful god would need with such a means of transportation. The question drew the entity's ire, resulting in an energy beam being directed at the captain. Spock immediately took up Kirk's inquiry and received the same punishment, leading McCoy to conclude, "I doubt any god who inflicts pain for his own pleasure."

The exchange expertly returned to the ongoing theme of pain while also underlining Starfleet's need for scientific analysis and evidence to back up any remarkable revelations.

9. "You were never alone." — Spock

Captain Kirk ensured that his friends were safe and faced the false "God of Sha Ka Ree" on his own, but Spock swiftly returned aboard a Klingon Bird-of-Prey to rescue him. Once reunited with Spock, Kirk admitted that he thought was going to die. Spock shook off the claim, reminding that such a fate had not been possible at the time, as the captain was never alone.

The touching declaration underlined the unrelenting bond the two officers had forged, and Kirk was moved to the point of embracing Spock. Whether spoken to infuse the moment with his signature brand of deadpan levity or as a way to steer clear of a very un-Vulcan hug, Spock stated, "Please, Captain. Not in front of the Klingons." Given Spock's predilection for choosing his words wisely, the most likely explanation for his reluctance toward an emotional display was that it had simply been rooted in a wish to keep their friendship private.

10. "I lost a brother once. I was lucky, I got him back." — Captain Kirk

As McCoy and Spock speculated about whether or not god was really "out there," Kirk proposed that perhaps such a deity existed within their hearts. Spock contemplated his brother's death, leading Kirk to reference Spock's own demise and the joy he felt over getting him back. McCoy recalled the captain's earlier comment that people like them don't have families, to which Kirk replied, "I was wrong."

Enlightened, moving, and heartfelt, this moment tied together the film's themes about family, friendship, loss, growth, and wisdom. Kirk willingly showcases his fallibility, and the scene segues full-circle into The Final Frontier 's closing scene that depicted Kirk, Spock, and McCoy revisiting their campfire and embracing their familial relationship with song.

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Jay Stobie (he/him) is a freelance writer, author, and consultant who has contributed articles to StarTrek.com, Star Trek Explorer, and Star Trek Magazine, as well as to Star Wars Insider and StarWars.com. Learn more about Jay by visiting JayStobie.com or finding him on Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms at @StobiesGalaxy.

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There was a moment in "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" - only one, and a brief one, but a genuine one - when I felt the promise of awe. The Starship Enterprise was indeed going where no man had gone before, through the fabled Great Barrier, which represents the end of the finite universe. What would lie beyond? Would it be an endless void, or a black hole, or some kind of singularity of space and time that would turn the voyagers inside out and deposit them in another universe? Or would the Barrier even reveal, as one of the characters believes, the place where life began? The place called by the name of Eden and countless other words? As the Enterprise approached the Barrier, I found my attention gathering. The movie had been slow and boring until then, with an interminable, utterly inconsequential first act and a plot that seemed to exist in a space-time singularity all its own. But now, at last, the fifth " Star Trek " movie seemed to be remembering what was best about the fictional world of "Star Trek": those moments when man and his ideas are challenged by the limitless possibilities of creation.

As I've said, my awe was real. It was also brief. Once the Enterprise crew members (and the Vulcan who was holding them hostage) landed on the world beyond the Barrier, the possibilities of god or Eden or whatever quickly disintegrated into an anticlimactic special effects show with a touch of " The Wizard of Oz " thrown in for good measure. I do not want to give away important elements in the plot, but after you've seen the movie, ask yourself these questions: 1) How was it known that the voyagers would go beyond the Barrier; 2) what was the motivation behind what they found there; 3) how was it known that they would come to stand at exactly the point where the stone pillars came up from the Earth; 4) In a version of a question asked by Capt. Kirk, why would any entity capable of staging such a show need its own starship; and 5) is the Great Barrier indeed real, or simply a deceptive stage setting for what was found behind it? (What I'm really complaining about, I think, is that "Star Trek V" allows itself enormous latitude in the logic beneath its plot. If the Barrier is real, what exactly are we to make of the use to which it is put?) Before we get to ask those questions, "Star Trek V" spends much of its time meandering through some of the goofiest scenes in the entire series. The movie opens with the taking of three hostages on a desert planet, who have been captured for the sole purpose of luring Capt. Kirk and his starship to the planet so that the ship can be commandeered for the voyage through the Barrier. I have explained these plot details in one sentence. The movie takes endless scenes, during which the key crew members of the Enterprise need to be summoned back to their ship in the middle of a shore leave. And that process, in turn, requires interminable scenes of Kirk, Spock and Bones on a camping trip in Yosemite, during which they attempt to sing "Row, row, row your boat" and nearly succeed in sinking the entire movie. If there is a sillier and more awkwardly written scene in the entire "Star Trek" saga than this one, I've missed it.

After the pointless opening scenes, the movie begins to develop a plot of sorts, but it is so confused and inadequately explained that there are times when we simply give up and wait for what's next. That was particularly the case during the inexplicable closing scenes, where the humans and the Klingons seem to join sides after an off-camera speech by a former Klingon leader who had been put out to pasture. Since this leader is identified as having been badly treated by the Klingons in his retirement, how did he suddenly regain the authority to negotiate a truce? And do we really want to see the mighty Klingons reduced to the status of guests at a cocktail party? One of the trademarks of the "Star Trek" saga has been the way the supporting characters are kept alive in little subplots. In "Star Trek V," the Enterprise starts its voyage while the shop is suffering a series of mechanical failures, and that involves countless brief scenes in which Scotty, the chief engineer, emerges from beneath a piece of equipment, brandishes his wrench and says he'll have things fixed in a moment. Two or three of these scenes might have been enough.

Another irritation is the way in which we meet apparently major characters, including those played by David Warner , Laurence Luckinbill and Cynthia Gouw, who are introduced with fanfares of dialogue and then never developed or given anything to do. The entire movie seems crowded with loose ends, overlooked developments and forgotten characters, and there are little snatches of dialogue where some of these minor characters seem to be soldiering on in their original subplots as if unaware that they've been cut from the movie.

"Star Trek V" is pretty much of a mess - a movie that betrays all the signs of having gone into production at a point where the script doctoring should have begun in earnest. There is no clear line from the beginning of the movie to the end, not much danger, no characters to really care about, little suspense, uninteresting or incomprehensible villains, and a great deal of small talk and pointless dead ends. Of all of the "Star Trek" movies, this is the worst.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

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Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)

108 minutes

William Shatner as Capt. Kirk

Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock

Deforest Kelley as Dr. McCoy

James Doohan as Montgomery Scott

Walter Koenig as Pavel Chekov

Nichelle Nichols as Cmdr. Uhura

George Takei as Sulu

Directed by

• William Shatner

Produced by

• Harve Bennett
• David Loughery From
• Peter Berger

Photography by

• Andrew Laszlo
• Jerry Goldsmith

From A Story by

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This is the fifth film in the Star Trek series. Here, Kirk meets Spock's half brother who takes his ship.

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Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

• 43   Metascore
• 1 hr 46 mins
• Suspense, Action & Adventure, Science Fiction

The Enterprise crew is kidnapped by a renegade Vulcan who's on an obsessive search for God.

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