Star Trek: Generations parents guide

Star Trek: Generations Parent Guide

The story isn't quite as strong as the special effects. Fortunately, they are phenomenal.

Overall B

On her maiden voyage, the newly-christened USS Enterprise-B is struck by a bizarre ribbon of energy, and Captain Kirk is missing, presumed killed. Seventy-eight years after the tragedy, Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Enterprise-D encounters the same ribbon, along with a madman determined to fly into it at any cost. Picard will need to examine the mystery of what happened to Kirk all those years ago.

Violence B-
Sexual Content A
Profanity B-
Substance Use B+

Why is Star Trek: Generations rated PG? The MPAA rated Star Trek: Generations PG for sci-fi action and some mild language

Run Time: 118 minutes

Parent Movie Review

A retired Captain James Kirk (William Shatner) and his remaining crew are invited to the maiden voyage of the newly christened (and not completely equipped) USS Enterprise-B, but before they can get far, they encounter two refugee ships being torn apart by a bizarre energy wave. Although they can only rescue a few refugees, the ship does manage to break free of the wave. But it does so at great cost: Admiral Kirk is killed in an explosion while reconfiguring the deflector dish to save the ship. Seventy-eight years later, Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) encounters a survivor from those long-destroyed ships who is determined to re-enter the energy wave, and Picard will have to summon all the help he can find to save a system with hundreds of millions of inhabitants.

Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley both declined to reprise their roles (as Spock and McCoy respectively), as they felt that they had satisfactorily wrapped up their characters in The Undiscovered Country), and I’m inclined to agree with them. None of the original cast, save Shatner, has significant screen-time or makes any contribution to the plot that couldn’t have been provided by any other cast member. Thankfully, they don’t take up much runtime, but the question remains, why bother?

It is, however, fortunate that Kirk is a starring character in this film. Without his arc, the movie isn’t much different than your average TV episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. While this means that it’s a bit better written than most of the earlier films, it also would have made it a little unsatisfying, especially releasing just months after the final episode of Star Trek: TNG.

Parts of the film are particularly impressive, especially its phenomenal practical effects. While the production team is still getting some good mileage out of old models (see the Klingon Bird-of-Prey that’s been in every movie since Wrath of Khan), the stand-out effect is the Enterprise crash. Heartbreaking as it is for a long-time fan to see the Enterprise destroyed (again!), the effects are spectacular. The crash was shot on a 40x80 foot set, with a 12 foot saucer, which is huge. Interior shots had the advantage that The Next Generation was done shooting, and the sets had to be removed for Voyager, so the team could weather them a lot more aggressively than they might have if they needed them next week.

This isn’t the strongest film (as far as I’m concerned, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country is unbeatable), but it is a worthwhile watch. It does a respectable job of marrying classic Trek with the modern interpretations as it signals an end for both the original cast and the TNG TV series, while also heralding the upcoming films with the Next Generation cast. More importantly, Generations conveys a meaningful message about the importance of family and the hazards of prioritizing work over your personal goals.

Directed by David Carson. Starring Patrick Stewart, William Shatner, and Malcolm McDowell.. Running time: 118 minutes. Updated

Watch the trailer for Star Trek: Generations

Star Trek: Generations
Rating & Content Info

Why is Star Trek: Generations rated PG? Star Trek: Generations is rated PG by the MPAA for sci-fi action and some mild language

Violence: Several fistfights occur, in which individuals are punched, kicked, shoved, and occasionally headbutted. Explosions destroy three ships, killing all aboard. Several corpses are shown briefly, some with a small amount of blood. A number of shootouts occur, in which no one is shot. An individual sustains some burns from an exploding control panel. Another is thrown over some furniture during an explosion. An individual is blown up. A person hatches a plot that would destroy an entire star system, killing billions of people.
Sexual Content:   None.
Profanity: Sporadic use of mild profanity and terms of deity. One use of moderate profanity during a crisis.
Alcohol / Drug Use: Several individuals are shown drinking in a bar setting (although, technically they aren’t consuming alcohol - it’s synthehol, which does not have the same intoxicating effect or addictive nature).

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Star Trek: Generations Parents' Guide

Dr. Soran is obsessed with returning to the Nexus. Would you classify this as an addiction? Which of his other behaviors would indicate or contradict that idea? Do you think you have any addictions? How can you determine which of your hobbies and habits are potentially addictive?

Home Video

Related home video titles:

For another look at the TNG cast in space, check out Star Trek: First Contact. Mix in time travel, the Borg, Earth’s first contact with the Vulcans with the crew of the USS Enterprise, and you have a story with lots of twists and turns. Star Trek: Nemesis provides Captain Picard with an enemy he could never have imagined.

To enjoy the best of the original Star Trek movies, settle down for a marathon. The central trilogy is Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek: The Search for Spock, and Star Trek: The Journey Home. One of the best Star Trek films is Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country.