Classic Film Friday: Star Trek II, The Wrath of Khan

I know that is is a movie that many seen coming, with the DVD release of the new movie, you knew this one was coming. In this movie, which is taken from a TV episode (Space Seed), which stars one of Captain Kirk's (William Shatter) nemesis, Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban). Khan is a enhanced human, angry with Kirk about putting him into exile, and the death of his wife, and pretty much anything and everything. He is going to make Kirk pay.

Meanwhile Kirk is an admiral now, and Spock is captain of the Enterprise and they are set to go on a training mission... which basically means the whole ship, with the exception of the stars from the TV show, is a bunch of rookies. Rookies just taking a leisurely stroll around the universe.

So they get to go... or that is must go to back up Space Station Regula I, that is doing some testing on the Genesis Project (basically making life where there was none before). Khan has led the the crew of Regula I to believe that Kirk is taking their research when in actuality he wants it for himself. And to get Kirk to come out there so he can kill him.

It sounds a lot more complicated than it really is... seriously. Khan has a beef with Kirk, and the Genesis project is thrown in the middle. There are boat loads of "hey, they used that bit or this bit in the new movie" so of course I would recommend watching this movie after watch the TV episode, and then the new movie.

Kristie Alley plays Lieutenant JG Saavik, a Vulcan who for all intents and purposes tries to do things by the book, and Kirk does not, which make for some comical moments. This is probably the best Star Trek movie out there. It has everything, A feud, love interest, science, and the biggest part, an unanswerable question. I won't spoil the end in case you haven't seen it, but it is a dozy.