 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
- Review Date: May 26, 2008
- PG
- Genre: Science Fiction
- 1991
Common Sense Media says
Cold War-influenced exit of classic space crew.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that the narrative centers on an assassination, which, even though it involves ray-guns, spills a lot of (Klingon) blood and shows gore. There are assorted fistfights, a man quick-freezing to death, and spaceships battling. References to heavy drinking, smoking (apparently a marijuana-like drug) and, less obviously, how Captain Kirk manages to have sex with most every attractive alien girl who crosses his path. Unimpeachable military authority (Starfleet) is cast in doubtful light.
What's the story?
Made after the death of Gene Roddenberry (to whom it's dedicated), STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY is calculatingly engineered as a farewell adventure to the beloved Star Trek TV cast. The plot is a clear parallel to the off-screen thaw in U.S.-Soviet relations. When the dangerous, militaristic Klingon Empire suffers a potential doomsday disaster after their power-station moon explodes (think Chernobyl), the liberal Klingon Chancellor Gorkon (think Mikhail Gorbachev) accepts a historic Federation peace accord to allow an organized humanitarian cleanup. Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) volunteers the USS Enterprise and a shocked Capt. Kirk (William Shatner) for the diplomatic rendezvous, arguing, logically, that the negotiations will be more legitimate if the Klingon's greatest enemy is on board for it. But Gorkon is assassinated in a sneak attack seemingly originating from the Enterprise. Kirk does the unthinkable -- surrenders -- and faces a Klingon court, while Spock and the crew investigate and try to unravel the high-level conspiracy.
Is it any good?
The veteran cast appears to be having a fine time going through their paces -- they literally all sign their autographs over the end credits -- and Sulu (George Takei) is now a captain with his own starship. Thrilled yet? Then enjoy. It's fast-paced, the space-battle scenes are spectacular, and overall good feeling is such you usually don't mind the mystery plot is a klunky affair, filled with question marks (Shouldn't there be better security at the most important peace conference in Federation history? If Klingons had a shape-shifting alien spy, wouldn't she have been put to better use?).
The U.S.-U.S.S.R. parallel spoke at the time to fears that warriors in America and Russia had lived too long in ceaseless conflict to put down their weapons and face a changed world, and Kirk's ability to surmount his own anti-Klingonism is nicely rendered. Interesting to note that in Roddenberry's original TV show, Starfleet was (like the U.S. armed forces in golden-age Hollywood depictions) an upstanding military that could do no wrong. That sure changed by the time this was made.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the Cold War historical parallels (Gorkon -- Gorbachev, hmmmm...), and phrases such as "the end of history" surfacing in the dialog, that were prominent with the fall of the U.S.S.R. Gen. Chang's fondness for quoting Shakespeare -- it's practically half of everything he says -- could inspire some reading of the Bard. Also, can you spot Mr. Spock's reference to Sherlock Holmes?
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AGE
Good movie, don't be so wimpy
This movie reflects the attitudes that were very strong during the close of the cold war. The gore that everyone speaks of is purple and ridiculous to be shocked by. The reference to smoking;so what, he didn't do it regularly and its a scene that takes 5 seconds at most. The space battles, again, so what. I watched Star Wars at 5 yrs old, and it did NOT scar me for life. People need to quit shielding children to the point where the REAL world will eat them alive; you are not doing them any favors. Otherwise there were some amusing parts, some suspenseful, alot of action, and most notably the requirement to think. The end is a little corny,we are talking Star Trek, but all in all , its a good movie.
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AGE
A Good Finale...
Though not the best in the series, THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY does not disappoint, and it serves as a rousing finale to one of the greatest sci-fi film sagas.
Language is milder than the other films, containing one "b**ch", one "d*mmit", and one comical "go to hell". Sex is very minor as well; Kirk kicks an alien in the knee, and the alien seems very hurt. Only later does he discover that "not all aliens keep their genitals in the same place." Violence is iffy, though only one scene is any worse than the others. Unknown assassins go to a Klingon ship and shoot people with vapor rays, causing them to bleed in zero-gravity. One man has his arm shot off.
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AGE
A little strong for a Star Trek movie
This one should have been PG-13. This was a really good movie, I'd even say this is one of Star Trek's finest films, but the scene where people are bleeding in zero gravity was way too excessive for a PG movie. Mission To Mars had a similar scene where some blood was floating through the ship, but the scene in Star Trek VI wasn't nearly that mild. Another scene shows an alien giving Kirk something that looks like a cigar, then he starts to smoke it. The language is pretty excessive, too. In the first half of the movie, a main character uses a strong religious exclamation. There is a lot of average cussing, also (mostly from McCoy).
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| Topics: | adventures, space and aliens |
| Studio: | Paramount Pictures |
| Director: | Nicholas Meyer |
| Cast: | David Warner, DeForest Kelley, Kim Cattrall, Leonard Nimoy, Walter Koenig, William Shatner |
| Genre: | Science Fiction |
| Run time: | 116 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | December 6, 1991 |
| DVD release date: | January 26, 1999 |
| MPAA rating: | PG |
| MPAA explanation: | violence and language |
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