Star Trek: Insurrection

Following the success of First Contact, Paramount Pictures wanted a change in pace to give the follow-up film a lighter tone.[27] Because Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is light in tone, yet was the most successful of all the Star Trek films at the box office as of then, Paramount reasoned that this success could be repeated with the new film.[28] Michael Piller was asked to write the script, and accepted the position.[27] Piller wished to escape the development hell of another project he was in.[29] He wanted to give the crew a feeling of family, with a story featuring overtones of the Joseph Conrad novel Heart of Darkness.[27] Rick Berman wanted to see Picard undertake a rescue mission in a similar manner to the 1937 film, The Prisoner of Zenda.[27] Berman also originated an idea to have Picard kidnapped, and replaced with a surgically modified imposter. Piller was doubtful about Berman's idea, reasoning that the audience would not want to see an entire film in which Picard is not the lead star — the character would look like Patrick Stewart, but would be different.[30] A further idea from Berman would have seen the return of Lore, last seen in the episode "Descent", in a film which was described as similar in tone to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.[31]

Piller initially thought to write a Fountain of Youth-type story, later saying: "Everybody's consumed with images of youth. There's commercials, plastic surgery — our culture seems obsessed with youth."[27] He called the initial treatment "Heart of Lightness".[32] Piller's first draft treatment for the film was titled Star Trek: Stardust, taken from the 1927 song "Stardust" by Hoagy Carmichael[27] after hearing Nat King Cole's version on the radio.[32] The treatment featured Picard resigning from Starfleet after he is sent to retrieve a population and their youth-giving power, and bring them to an alien government, and included a betrayal by Picard's rogue colleague. The draft went through several versions with only the crew's mission and the Briar Patch — named after the area from the Br'er Rabbit stories — remaining. Berman suggested that Data become the renegade crew-member that Picard must deal with.[27] The plot was similar to The Next Generation episode "Homeward" in that a people were being relocated through use of a holodeck. The use of a duck blind to observe cultures was previously used in the episode "Who Watches the Watchers".[20]

In one draft, Picard kills Data early in the film, and the android is later resurrected to help the Captain in the finale. The first two drafts featured the Romulans as the protagonists,[27] since they had never prominently appeared in a Star Trek film.[32] The second draft was seen by Jonathan Dolgen at the studio; Dolgen was not pleased and Patrick Stewart thought that it would have been only suitable for a television episode.[33][34] In the third draft, the Son'a were introduced as the children of the Ba'ku and the alien race that wanted to plunder the planet. That version also included the crew sub-plots, such as the Troi-Riker romance and the regeneration of La Forge's eyes.[27] Stewart, who was concerned that the film was a step back in scope from First Contact, was consulted on the treatments.[35]

Ira Steven Behr (pictured) reviewed the first script at the request of Michael Piller.[35]

Piller drafted the first version of the script and asked Ira Steven Behr, executive producer of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, to review it. Behr was critical of the script, describing the Son'a as "paper tigers".[35] Piller said that "I knew he was right. There's no question that first draft was trying to tell two stories, and that's one too many for a movie."[35] Piller re-drafted the script, adding a romantic subplot for Picard in the shape of Anij, a Ba'ku woman. He added gravitas to the Son'a to make them more menacing, and the ending was changed to include a massive Son'a collector ship and a confrontation between Picard and Ru'afo aboard the ship.[35] A version of the script was subsequently leaked onto the internet.[17] At the same time, Piller and Berman were exploring titles for the film, including Prime Directive, The Directive, The Resignation, The Enemy Within, Breach of Promise, Dereliction of Duty and Apostasy, because, they reasoned, that they could not submit it to the studio under the title of Stardust. They could not settle on a title, so they submitted it as Star Trek IX.[36]

The studio was pleased with the post-Behr version of the script, which was the first version of the script they saw, having previously only seen pre-script treatments.[37] In a memo to Piller, it was described as "easily the funniest and sexiest Star Trek story to date".[37] They gave Piller a series of directions, including a request for a resolution to the Troi and Riker romance and for the character of Reginald Barclay to be replaced with expanded roles either for Beverley Crusher, Worf, or a new character.[38][39]

Patrick Stewart sought a change to the script to have the crew defend the Ba'ku village in the manner of the Battle of the Alamo instead of fleeing into the mountains. Piller could not find a feasible way to include this in the script, and the budget ruled out the creation of Alamo-like structures in the mountains.[40] Several titles were considered for the film as shooting approached. Star Trek: Where Time Stands Still, Star Trek: Forever and Star Trek: Beyond Paradise were all considered but were rejected. Piller's favorite was Star Trek: Sacred Honor, but the studio rejected this, because they were concerned that it sounded too religious. When shooting began, the film was still called Star Trek IX.[41]

The final version of the script was distributed to the cast, but Patrick Stewart did not receive a copy. Berman was concerned that if anyone had a problem with it, they would call Stewart to complain and it would appear as though Stewart was being left out because he had criticized the story. LeVar Burton called Stewart to praise the script. Stewart was sent a copy and requested a meeting to discuss changes. Piller feared the worst, but after a twenty-minute meeting with Stewart, who requested several dialogue changes, the script was finalized.[42] During pre-production, the marketing department wanted to decide a title, preferring Star Trek: Revolution. Alan Spencer, a friend of Piller, suggested Insurrection, which was selected from a choice of Insurrection, Rebellion, High Treason and Act of Treason.[39]

After filming was complete, test screenings were held,[17] and the production team became aware of a problem with the ending.[43] In the original ending, Ru'afo is ejected into space from the Son'a collector ship and de-ages rapidly as he floats amongst the rings of the planet Ba'ku.[43] The revised ending saw the Enterprise swoop in at the last minute to save Picard and destroy the collector ship with Ru'afo aboard.[44] The studio liked the new ending but wanted a bigger space battle. The production team agreed providing they could postpone the release to allow enough time for this. Because the studio wanted Insurrection to be released in time for Christmas, no further revisions were made to the ending.[45]

Piller would agree to write a book about the making of Insurrection and the writing process for Pocket Books. They hired Eric A. Stillwell as Piller's typist and research assistant (he was also Piller's executive assistant and script coordinator).[46] The book, however, went unpublished, and it was alleged that Paramount Pictures suppressed it due to its portrayal of the development process. Following Piller's death in 2005, the book, titled Fade In, was published on the internet for free.[47]

Insurrection was the first Star Trek film with space-based effects produced entirely using computer-generated imagery (CGI).[35] While CGI had been used for specific effects since Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; Insurrection was the first Star Trek film to be made without using physical models of spacecraft.[48] Santa Barbara Studios produced the effects, which included CGI starship models.[25] The texture on the model of the Enterprise-E was created from a series of close-up photographs of the model Enterprise which had been used in First Contact.[49] The planet-based effects, such as phaser fire, transporter effects and the Son'a drones were created by Blue Sky Studios.[25][35] Peter Lauritson was the co-producer for post-production.[35]

Herman Zimmerman was the production designer, and had three months to design and construct 55 full sets for the film, eighteen more than used in the previous film in the series.[35][50] Zimmerman said that it was "probably the most scenery we've built for a Star Trek motion picture since the first one, when everything was brand new".[15] The Ba'ku village was built in full scale on location at Lake Sherwood, California, with architectural designs combining Thai, Balinese and Polynesian styles.[35] The village included a bakery, a farm with a full irrigation system, a city hall, and a city square which was referred to as the "rotunda".[50] The location shoot lasted for six weeks.[51] The buildings included sections built with styrofoam, which were cut out using computer aided design and computer-aided manufacturing techniques.[52] These were covered in hardcoat to make them look as though they were made from stone,[52] but they were not made waterproof. The set suffered water damage following record-levels of rainfall during the spring of 1998. The foam warped as it dried out in the sun, causing delays in shooting while repairs were made.[53]

The Sierra Nevada portrayed the mountains of Ba'ku.[15]

Sets built for use in Star Trek: Voyager were redressed to appear as the Enterprise-E in Insurrection; Captain Janeway's quarters became Picard's, the Voyager briefing room became Riker's quarters, and part of the Voyager engineering set became the Enterprise library. The interior of the scoutship flown by Data was originally the cockpit of the Voyager's shuttlecraft,[53] while the interior of the Enterprise shuttlecraft used the interior set from a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Runabout.[25] Filming began on March 31, 1998, and concluded on July 2.[15] According to Frakes, half of the time shooting was spent on location. The scenes in which the Enterprise crew and the Ba'ku take refuge in the mountains were shot on location above Lake Sabrina in the Sierra Nevada in locations which could only be reached by helicopter. The location was around 10,000 feet (3,000 m) above sea level, and a medic was on standby with oxygen if the cast or crew required it.[15]

After filming, parts of the interior sets of the So'na ships were added using CGI.[54] Stage 15 on the Paramount lot was used for the climactic scene between Picard and Ru'afo. Because of the dangers of the four-story scaffolding-like set, the actors were attached by safety cables at all times.[15][48] Paramount's B tank, which was used to represent San Francisco Bay in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, was used to shoot footage of Picard, Data and Anij at the Ba'ku lake. For a scene in which Data walks along a lake bed, the actor's tricorder prop was covered with plastic to make it watertight.[25]

Make-up supervisor Michael Westmore aimed to create a look for the Son'a that was not exaggerated. He consulted several sculptors; Dean Jones, who was on the production staff for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, created the look. The prosthetics for Ru'afo consisted of overlapping layers that were stretched over Abraham's head. Westmore said Abraham's prosthetics was "like a rubber band, F. Murray Abraham could turn his head and the skin would look translucent. It was so thin, and the layers were pulling on each other."[19] The two other aliens on the Son'a vessels also had specific prosthetic make-up designs created. The Tarlac's look was based on reptilian skin, while the Ellora required only nose and forehead prosthetics.[19]

The film also gave costume designer Robert Blackman an opportunity to address issues with the Starfleet dress uniforms, which Blackman had changed on several occasions during The Next Generation.[19] The uniforms appeared for the first time in the episode "Lonely Among Us", and were based on the 18th century designs for the Royal Navy.[55] For Insurrection, Blackman initially thought of creating a uniform with short jackets in blue, red and gold, which he later said was "not a good idea".[19] His eventual design removed the color palettes for specific divisions. Blackman said, "No matter what, white over black has a formal look to it."[19] Sanja Milkovic Hayes created the remaining new costumes for the film. She avoided making the Ba'ku look too cute, and used material made from cellulose fiber specifically created for Insurrection. She said it was organic, and was simply cooked and then glued together.[19] The Son'a costumes were made from layers of crushed velvet and metal strips. The female bodysuits were made of latex; Hayes wanted them to appear "sexy, but not vulgar" and described the outfits as "very conservative".[19]

The score for Insurrection was composed by Jerry Goldsmith; his fourth score for the franchise.[56] Goldsmith continued using the march and Klingon themes written for Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979, adding new themes and variations. Insurrection opens with Alexander Courage's Star Trek: The Original Series fanfare, introducing a six-note motif used in many of the film's action sequences. The Ba'ku are scored with a pastoral theme with repeating harps, string sections and a woodwind solo. The Ba'ku's ability to slow time was accompanied with a variation of this music.[57]

Goldsmith used quick bursts of brass music to accompany the starship sequences. For scenes in which observers are watching the Ba'ku unseen, Goldsmith used a "spying theme" that resembles his conspiracy theme from Capricorn One. Composed of a piano, timpani percussion, and brass, the theme builds until it is interrupted by the action theme as Data opens fire. Goldsmith did not write a motif for the Son'a, but scored the action sequence without designating the Son'a as an antagonist, suggesting the film's revelation that the Son'a and Ba'ku are related. The film's climax is scored with the action theme, which is balanced with "sense of wonder" music similar to cues from The Motion Picture.[57][58]

One scene in the film shows Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner conducting a duet of A British Tar from the Gilbert and Sullivan comic-opera H.M.S. Pinafore.[7] This replaced the original idea of Picard and Data reciting scenes from Shakespeare's play King Lear.[59] Stewart had suggested that they sing Three Little Maids from School are we from The Mikado instead, but the producers described this as "too vulgar".[7] Stewart and Spiner had previously sung together on Spiner's 1991 album Ol' Yellow Eyes Is Back.[7]

In 2013, GNP Crescendo Records re-released the soundtrack for the film as an expanded collector's edition [GNPD 8082], featuring previously unreleased tracks by Goldsmith plus four bonus tracks.[60]

The world premiere of Insurrection launched the 1998 CineVegas film festival.[61] It went on general release in the U.S. and Canada on December 11, 1998. The film grossed $22.4 million over the opening weekend; the most of any film during that period.[62] It averaged a total of $8,417 per location across 2,620 theaters,[63] but fell short of the opening weekend takings of both First Contact and Generations, which were $30.7 million and $23.1 million respectively.[62]

Insurrection was the highest-grossing film during the first week of its release in the United States, beating A Bug's Life,[64] and stayed in the top ten for a further three weeks.[63] During its first week of release in the UK, it was the highest-grossing film, exceeding the takings of the Will Smith film Enemy of the State.[65] Insurrection enjoyed a two-week spell at the top of the UK box office and eventually earned £7,429,398, roughly the same as Generations.[66] It went on to gross $70,187,658 in the US and $47,612,342 in other countries for a total of $117,800,000 worldwide against a $70 million budget.[2] It was the first Star Trek film to be promoted through the official website, which was called the "Star Trek Continuum" at the time.[67] Following the success of the film, Rick Berman said that he wanted to release the next film in the series three years after Insurrection. Referencing Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, he said: "The notion of releasing a science fiction film in the year 2001 is very seductive."[7]

The critical response to Insurrection was mixed. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a score of 55% based on 67 reviews, with critic consensus being that, "Although not terrible, the sluggishly paced Insurrection plays like an extended episode of the TV series."[68] On Metacritic the film has a score of 64 out of 100, based on reviews from 19 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[69] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade B+.[70]

The Los Angeles Daily News said that the film had the "bare bones of one of those pseudo-philosophical political allegories Trek has always done so entertainingly. But the movie blows it." It praised the directing of Jonathan Frakes and the computer generated special effects and gave the film two and a half stars overall.[71] The Daily Herald also gave the film two and a half stars, describing it as a "slickly made" movie with a plot "scaled down to its TV roots", and criticized the "frivolous" romance between Riker and Troi.[72] The Washington Times gave the film one and a half stars, saying that it was "consistently flat-footed and slow on the uptake", and that there was "ramshackle confusion during the climactic scenes".[73]

The Scottish Daily Record praised F. Murray Abraham and described Anthony Zerbe as "ever-dependable". It said the plot was good, but that it was simply an extended episode of The Next Generation, and gave it a score of six out of ten.[74] The British newspaper The People also said it was an extended television episode.[75]

The Independent said that Insurrection "never stops being familiarly jolly and antiquated", and called the entire Star Trek film franchise "old-fashioned".[76] The Washington Post also called the film old-fashioned, but "in the best sense of the word", and said that the film did what the "doctor – make that Dr. 'Bones' McCoy – ordered".[77] British journalist Simon Rose, writing for The Daily Mirror was more critical of the film, saying that it failed to break the odd-numbered Star Trek film curse, and that it was "feeble", "moribund" and "tedious".[78] However, Josh Spiegel writing for The Buffalo News said that Insurrection broke the odd-numbered film rule.[79] Further criticism came from the Birmingham Evening Mail, which said that it was "an adult form of entertainment equivalent to Teletubbies for babies", and that there were "lots of repetition, rubbery faces, gibberish dialogue, characters leaping up and down in funny suits and some very basic effects". The reviewer gave the film two stars for fans, and none for non-fans.[80] In Folklore/Cinema: Popular Film as Vernacular Culture, the actions of Data and the Ba'ku child Artim in Insurrection are seen as "a metamorphosis motif where a child becomes computerlike and a computer/android becomes more childlike".[81] Data specifically "is a metaphor for a child who seeks to understand what being human means and then, like the velveteen rabbit, wishes to become. From confronting his father and evil brother to finding his mother, Data also represents the potential within all of us to quest for a fuller humanity".[82]

The film was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film at the 25th Saturn Awards; the prize was shared by Armageddon and Dark City.[83][84] In 1999, it was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, which went to The Truman Show.[85] It was nominated for Best Family Feature Film: Drama at the 20th Youth in Film Awards and won the individual award for Best Performance in a Feature Film: Supporting Young Actor for Michael Welch.[86]

• Piller, Michael (1998). Fade In: From Idea to Final Draft, The Writing of Star Trek: Insurrection (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 28, 2019. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
• Reeves-Stevens, Judith; Reeves-Stevens, Garfield (1998). Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Continuing Mission (2nd ed.). New York: Pocket Books. ISBN 978-0671025595.
• Bond, Jeff (1999). The Music of Star Trek. Los Angeles: Lone Eagle Publishing Company. ISBN 1-58065-012-0.
• Nemecek, Larry (2003). Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion (3rd ed.). Pocket Books. ISBN 0-7434-5798-6.
• Sherman, Sharon R.; Koven, Mikel J. (2007). Folklore / Cinema: Popular Film as Vernacular Culture. Logan: Utah State University Press. ISBN 9780874216752. Archived from the original on November 7, 2019. Retrieved September 15, 2017.(subscription required)