Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)—Originally planned as a new series, the producers reworked the story as a feature film.  In it, the refurbished Starhip Enterprise is called to investigate a strange entity which is heading towards Earth.  Director Robert Wise set out to make a grand adventure, he just forgot the adventure.  This space epic had a huge budget with sweeping images, it’s just not that interesting. 

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)—Khan (Ricardo Montalban) a would-be conqueror featured in the 1967 episode “Space Seed” returns seeking vengeance on Admiral Kirk (William Shatner).  Kirstie Alley plays Spock’s(Leonard Nimoy) by-the-book protege, Lt. Saavik. This film corrected all the mistakes of the previous one. There is an exciting space battle, well drawn characters and plenty of humor.  All on a tighter budget.  It was a major success.

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)—Kirk (William Shatner) and crew return to the planet Genesis (seen in the previous movie) to retrieve Spock’s “katra”. Meanwhile, a Klingon warrior (Christopher Lloyd) wants the planet’s secrets for an ultimate weapon.  The strong characters take precedence in this over-plotted film.  Not bad, though.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)—A strange probe wreaks havoc on the planet Earth.  Which leads Kirk and crew must travel back in time to find two humpback whales.  Everyone remembers this funny, entertaining film.  The best part is watching these actors in roles they know so very well.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)—A renegade Vulcan (Laurence Luckinbill) comendeers the Enterprise to reach the edge of the galaxy.  Not a very good movie.  Uninteresting villain, bad special effects and clumsy attempts at humor undermine the story.  Plus, the cast is getting a bit long in the tooth.

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)—Peace talks with the Klingons are sabotaged with Kirk and crew caught in the middle.  Murder mystery and political allegory make for a very strong entry.  Each of the characters gets a chance to shine.  Christopher Plummer standout as a Klingon general.  A great send-off for the original crew.

Star Trek: Generations (1994)—The crew of Star Trek: The Next Generation takes over the film franchise.  Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) joins a time-displaced Kirk (William Shatner) to battle a scientist trying to control a powerful energy ribbon.  Watching the two leads try to overact each other is the most fun.  The plot doesn’t make much sense, but not bad overall.

Star Trek: First Contact (1996)—The all-powerful Borg are the bad guys this time.  Picard and crew must travel back in time to stop the Borg takeover of Earth.  They meet warp-drive pioneer Zefrem Cochrane (James Cromwell) along the way.  Perhaps the best of the Next Generation movies.

Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)—The Enterprise crew must protect the peace-loving inhabitants of a planet with Fountain of Youth properties.  Not a bad movie, but the plot seems like that of a standard television episode. 

Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)—The crew battles the Romulans.  That’s pretty much it.  Not a very good movie.  Star Trek was always about strong characters.  This film focuses on action scenes.  The poor box office put an end to the movie franchise, until…

Star Trek (2009)—New actors play characters from the classic series in the early days of the Starship Enterprise.  Director J.J. Abrams has brought a new vision to the long-running format.  This will hopefully jumpstart the franchise.