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Every 'Star Trek' Film Ranked from Best to Worst

These are every 'Star Trek' film ranked from best to worst, boldly going where no man has gone before.

By Salvador LorenzPublished 6 years ago 9 min read
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The Star Trek universe is immersive, massive, and filled with popularity. It oftentimes teaches us more about the wide universe beyond than any of the must watch space documentaries could ever do. Even for younger generations, these movies have launched people through the cosmos with stories of unprecedented adventure, wild imagination, and tyrannical villains, all of which have drawn out the superimposing perfection so acquainted with every StarTrek title. Even though they may all have some amazing quality of storytelling and filmography, showcasing the brilliance of being lost in the wilderness, they all can't be the best.

It doesn't matter if you like the older versions more, or if you think the new ones are better than the show, the following titles are every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst. William Shatner's iconic role as the captain of the Starship Enterprise is spellbinding and will never be emulated, despite Chris Pine's relatively exceptional job at recreating the character in a modern, younger form. From best to worst, travel down these dimensions and unlock the secrets of the Star Trek universe.

The undoubtable topmost title on this list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst, The Wrath of Khan is an epic adventure that cannot be missed, nor disputed as anything but the best in the series. It's not only emotionally gripping, but extremely thrilling, with its own twists and turns.

While Captain James T. Kirk must bring the Enterprise to Regula One for a routine inspection, which worries him enough, an old friend reappears from the shadows. Khan, plus his company of genetically modified super humans, get their hands on a powerful weapon from Regular One, then escape on a stolen starship. Pitted with the threat of Cosmic destruction, Kirk and his own crew must stop at nothing to end Khan's violent ways before they end the universe for good.

The 2009 modern reboot of Star Trek was not only a visually impactful ride, it served as a new starting point for reshaping the entire series and expanding upon it through modern filmography. While it may not hold a candle up to the original TV episodes, it's still one of the top contenders on this list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst.

J. J. Abrams chose not to pick up the story from the last one, but thought it better to give Kirk and friends a modified and modern origin story. Chris Pine expertly draws out the relationship between the captain and his right hand mate, Spock. Plus, the inclusion of older Spock and the Vulcan fleet bring every trekkie fan a warm smile.

Enter the time warp with Captain Picard and his crew as they delve closer to a Borg ship, attempting to eradicate the future destruction of Earth while ending the Borg's involvement from within the past. It's an exceptional addition to the Star Trek universe, despite most of the Stewart installments being uneventful and having lower spots on this list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst.

First Contact brings everything to the table, inviting warp drive, time travel, and all of the great fighting sequences that previous Trek films expounded upon continuously.

When Star Trek Beyond opened in theaters, there wasn't as much of the same hype or acclaim that supported the first reboot. However, despite this, the movie is now heralded as one of the best Star Trek adaptions in many years, and even has a quality plot line that, as the modern movies tend to do, brings us between time, showcasing the boundaries between then and now.

Join Captain James T. Kirk and his crew on the Starship Enterprise as they unravel another dark secret associated with the unknown planet they have crashed landed upon after a surprise attack. Though there has yet to be word of a fourth addition to the series, the cast of Beyond has stated they would love to make one.

Picking up from the events in the previous Star Trek film, The Voyage Home begins with the exiled crew of the Enterprise on the planet Vulcan as they hear a distress call from Earth. Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner reprise their roles as Spock and Kirk once again to deliver another exceptional performance that brings joy and excitement to every Trek fan.

What makes The Voyage Home a terrific addition on this list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst is that it captures the essence of each character. While all the other movies showed the descent of the starship itself, this one prefers to show an ascent, made by both the characters and their overall existence in the cosmos.

In this adaption of the Star Trek universe, Captain Kirk and his best friend Leonard McCoy, otherwise known as 'Bones,' are arrested for the death of Klingon Chancellor Gorkon, who perished while traveling on the Enterprise. It's up to Spock to find out the true face behind the killing, and to save his two crew members at all cost.

The Undiscovered Country is routinely regarded as one of the most underrated Trek movie, yet it is still heralded as an awesome ride. While it may be mid-level on this list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst, it's still one of the best of the entire series, and the suspense will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Following the previous film, The Wrath of Khan, must have been an exceptionally difficult task to preform, but director Nimoy pulls it off with exceptional ease in The Search for Spock. With relatively high reviews, it's not the best Trek movie, but it surely makes the list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst, because it's got everything Trekkies need.

After the previous movie, with Spock apparently dead, Kirk is an emotional train wreck. This strain leads the captain back to the Genesis Planet, where he hopes to bring Spock back, but at what cost? A Klingon war might do just the trick.

While it may be the very first installment in the entire film saga, it's also not as amazing as many of the other adaptions, because it wastes a lot of time characterizing and drawing out eventually uneventful plot lines. It starts off the less popular titles on the list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst, but that doesn't mean it's a terrible movie.

On the contrary, The Motion Picture is an incredible journey that brings the original TV series the acclaim it so rightfully deserves, yet it uses too much of the Trek universe to make any real sense as a good film. While it may be because it was released in 1979, when animated graphics were at their lowest potential, it was still poorly made and many Trekkies vie it completely, for many reasons.

While it may be one of my personal favorites, it's also a pretty poor Star Trek film and has made many fans of the series pretty pissed for misusing the character of Khan, who was so well-received in the original sequel. Despite that, it's still an interesting and thought provoking movie that portrays Kirk and friends at their utmost lowest, and begs to question if Kirk is even ready to captain the Enterprise at all.

Into Darkness tells the story of Khan once more, this time in a different version of events, pitting him and archenemy Kirk face to face, as the genetically modified intergalactic terrorist attempts to completely destroy the Federation, including Earth itself. Only Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise can stop him before it's too late.

In William Shatner's last role as the captain of the Enterprise, many of the previous tropes so well-received in the other installments were greatly lacking in Generations. It begins with Kirk presumed dead after saving two space crafts from complete destruction in a mysterious, yet dangerous field of energy found in space. Then, the movie jumps ahead with Captain Picard and his crew as they try to stop one of the disaster's survivors from suspiciously returning to that field of energy.

While Generations may have its pros, and many Trekkies still stand by it as a pretty good installment, it's eighth on this list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst. Why? Because it's not as terrible as many want to believe, but it isn't as amazing as the previously listed. Still, Generations will live on as a classic iteration to the ongoing voyage through space and time.

Nemesis is one of the very first Star Trek films I ever watched, yet it made me sort of disliked the entire series altogether, which is shared amongst most Trekkies out there. It fared well at the box office, ranking it around $67.3 million, but it never reached heightened acclaim, mainly for its rehashing of old tropes, mind-numbing plot line, and an overall unsatisfactory use of the series entirely.

Jean-Luc Picard, played by Patrick Stewart, takes up the helm of the Starship Enterprise as they voyage into a Romulan peace treaty gone horribly awry. Many consider this installment as the literal nemesis of the Star Trek filmography, since it is one of the last on this list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst. Still, it's a pleasurable watch, though, especially for all Trek fans.

Another of the lower-rated titles on the list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst, Insurrection doesn't add much to the series but for a few broken hearts and many pissed off fans. Like most of these worsening titles, there's a host of plot holes and undeveloped characterization in this one, which makes it particularly difficult to watch.

Picard, Patrick Stewart, is the captain of the Enterprise undergoing an investigation on Ba'ku, where a malfunctioning android named Data has taken the inhabitants hostage. Deeper investigation reveals that the issues with Data are actually all under the Federation's doing, which Leads Picard down a path of unnerving exposure as he and his crew must stop them while dealing with their own issues caused by the unknown surface of Ba'ku.

Space: The Final Frontier. Is that not what every single Star Trek episode and film begins with? This is one for the Trekkies, a spectacular, yet unmoving rendition in the series. Rated with a 22 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, The Final Frontier may as well have been the final frontier for Star Trek film adaptations, but its heavy cult following keeps it alive still to this day.

In the movie, Kirk and the Enterprise are deliberately thrown off course by a Vulcan warship, sent into the bowels of the very cosmos and heading straight for a planet at the center of the galaxy. What makes it such a poor film is how the storyline is filled with plot holes and the filming itself has a long list of bad action scenes. While I would love to say it's last but not least, The Final Frontier is certainly last for most fans' list of every Star Trek film ranked from best to worst, making it least of all impactful.

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About the Creator

Salvador Lorenz

Thinking in nodes of progress, futurism, science, culture, and existence. I experience life in a number of ways, pertaining to mathematical concepts mixed with rich flavors of art.

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