Star Trek Generations (1994)

Film and Plot Synopsis

With Star Trek Generations, Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the Enterprise-D begin their cinematic adventures. Picard and his crew encounter a mad scientist who is determined to enter a massive, unknown energy ribbon where time and space have no meaning and anyone’s most personal desires can be fulfilled. When the scientist threatens the lives of millions of innocent people to accomplish his goals, Picard must seek help in order to stop him. However, the help comes in the unexpected form of Captain James T. Kirk, the legendary Starfleet captain who died 78 years in the past.

‘Star Trek Generations’ Movie Summary

Star Trek Generations begins in the year 2293. Retired Starfleet officers Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Captain Montgomery “Scotty” Scott (James Doohan), and Admiral Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig) attend the maiden voyage of the U.S.S. Enterprise-B. The voyage is a public relations event and the ship is not actually ready for active service. Nevertheless, the Enterprise and its captain, John Harriman (Alan Ruck), are pressed into a rescue mission to save two El-Aurian refugee ships that have been trapped by a massive, unknown energy ribbon. Harriman’s indecision results in the destruction of one of the ships. Harriman requests assistance from Kirk who takes command of the situation. Kirk orders the Enterprise into the edge of the ribbon in order to acquire transporter lock on the souls on the freighter. The Enterprise is able to beam most of the ship’s compliment on board the Enterprise before the ship is destroyed by the ribbon, including Dr. Tolian Soran (Malcolm McDowell) and Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg).

When the Enterprise attempts to pull away from the ribbon, the ship finds itself trapped as well. Scotty comes up with a plan to free the ship and Kirk goes to deflector dish control room in the front edge of the ship to implement it. The plan is successful but the ship is struck by a portion of the ribbon in its deflector dish, opening up the side of the ship to the vacuum of space. Kirk is presumed dead and is mourned by Scotty and Chekov.

Seventy-eight years later, the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise-D is celebrating the promotion of Worf (Michael Dorn) to the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) receives a communication that his brother and nephew have been killed in a fire on Earth. At the same time, the Enterprise receives a distress signal from a nearby star base that it is under attack. The Enterprise responds and finds that the Romulans have attacked the station for some unknown reason. They find Dr. Soran amongst the survivors of the attack. The survivors are beamed aboard the Enterprise while Starfleet personnel investigate the attack.

Back on board the Enterprise, Lieutenant Commander Data (Brent Spiner) has his good friend Lieutenant Commander Geordi Le Forge (LeVar Burton) install the android’s emotion chip into his neural network. Data is adjusting to the chip as he experiences the entire range of emotions for the first time. Dr. Soran approaches Picard and asks to be allowed to return to the station as he was running certain experiments that need to be monitored. Picard initially denies the request, but than tells the doctor that he will see what they can do.

Geordi and Data go to the station to investigate the attack. Geordi finds a hidden room behind a panel where there is a control panel for a missile aimed at the star in the system. Dr. Soran arrives in the room and knocks Geordi unconscious. He aims his phaser at Data who cowers in fear after experiencing that emotion for the first time. Soran launches that missile which destroys the sun and sends a devastating concussive wave towards both the Enterprise and the station. Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Worf beam aboard the station to retrieve Data and La Forge and get into a firefight with Dr. Soran. The doctor and La Forge are beamed away from the station by a Klingon Bird of Prey who then cloak and disappear from sensors. Data, Riker, and Worf beam back aboard the Enterprise which warps away just as the station is destroyed by the concussive wave.

Onboard the Klingon ship, Dr. Soran argues with the Duras sisters, Lursa and B’Etor (Barbara March and Gwynyth Walsh) about them leading the Romulans to the station. The Duras sisters want the weapon that the doctor promised them. Soran interrogates La Forge and plants a monitoring device in his visor to allow the Klingons to see what he sees.

Back on the Enterprise, Guinan tells Picard that she and Soran were among the El-Aurians rescued after their planet was destroyed by the Borg. She tells Picard that when the Enterprise-B rescued her, she was both on the ship and in the Nexus, a dimensional realm that exists outside normal space-time where a person can experience whatever they desire.

Guinan tells Picard that Soran is very likely trying to get back to the Nexus. Picard and Data determine that Soran is destroying stars to change the trajectory of the space ribbon where the Nexus exists. Data determines that if he destroys the star in the Veridian system, the ribbon will pass through Veridian III. However, the destruction of the Veridian star would result in the deaths of millions of people on the other planets in the system.

The Enterprise heads to the Veridian system. Picard makes contact with the Duras sisters and offers to exchange himself for La Forge, but insists he be transported to Soran directly. La Forge is returned to the Enterprise, but his visor unwittingly transmits the Enterprise’s defensive details to the Klingons who use the information to penetrate the Enterprise’s shields with their weapons. The Enterprise destroys the Bird of Prey, but sustains critical damage. Riker evacuates all crew members to the saucer section of the Enterprise and separates the ship. The Enterprise’s warp core breaches causing the saucer section to crash onto Veridian III.

Meanwhile, Picard fails to stop Soran from destroying the Veridian star. Both men are pulled into the Nexus just before the concussive wave from the collapse of the Veridian star destroys Veridian III and the entire crew of the Enterprise. Picard finds himself at home at Christmas with the wife and children that he never had, one of his secret desires. Picard realizes that it is an illusion, but it still gives him great joy. He encounters an “echo” of Guinan that tells him that he can go anywhere at any time.

He requests to return to the mountain top on Veridian III to stop Soran, but he needs help. Guinan suggests that he seek out Captain Kirk, who was pulled into the Nexus when the Enterprise-B was escaping. Kirk is reluctant to help, but eventually becomes dismayed when he realizes that his existence in the Nexus is all an illusion and nothing is truly real. Kirk and Picard leave the Nexus and return to Veridian III right before Soran launches his missile.

Picard and Kirk work together to stop Soran’s launch. Picard is able to lock the missile in place so that when it launches the missile explodes killing Soran. However, Kirk is mortally wounded when a gang plank he is on falls down a hillside. Picard buries Kirk under a pile of rocks on the mountain. Picard and the Enterprise crew, now alive, are rescued by three Federation starships. The Enterprise is not salvageable, but Picard states that it will likely not be the last ship with the name of Enterprise.

Additional Film Information

• Star Trek Generations official website
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