Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

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Directed by Nicholas Meyer.

Starring James Doohan, DeForest Kelley, Walter Koenig, Ricardo Montalban, George Takei, Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner.

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Because it is the simplest of the Star Trek theatrical films, Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan is fondly regarded as being the closest in spirit to the 1966-69 TV series that spawned it. William Shatner plays Admiral Kirk (remember his promotion?) who escapes the tedium of a desk job to join Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley) on a space mission. While boldly going where no man etc. etc., Kirk crosses the path of his old enemy Khan (Ricardo Montalban), who as any diehard Trekker can tell you was the chief antagonist in the 1966 Trek TV episode "Space Seed." Leading a crew of near-savage space prisoners, Khan insinuates himself into the Genesis Project, which is designed to introduce living organisms on long-dead planets. Intending to harness this program for his own despotic purposes, Khan engages in battle with the Enterprise crew. Only through the self-sacrifice of Mr. Spock is Khan disposed of. The shock of Spock's death is softened by the hindsight realization that he will be reborn in the subsequent Star Trek 3: The Search for Spock. Originally released at 113 minutes, this was expanded somewhat for network TV showings. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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Reviews and discussions

Harold and Kumar 2: Better Than ...
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com

hasn't rated it.

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"The sequel to Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle opens in theaters today, and you can read my SXSW review of the movie, titled Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay, over here. Though I enjoyed it, H&K2 disappointed me for taking on too much plot. But apparently some other reviews are favoring the second installment, and according to Craig Phillips at Green Cine, the matter has critics divided. Phillips, who marginally prefers the sequel, uses the opportunity to revisit those sequels that improved upon the original. Obviously, the list includes The Empire Strikes Back, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and The Road Warrior. However, surprisingly, The Godfather Part II is not in the top ten, because he considers the first and second films tied, and he claims both Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Gremlins 2: The New Batch are only honorable mentions, because their definite superiority is up for debate (true, I’ve never been able to decide if I like them better than their respectiv ... " [More]

Re:Re:Re: best star trek movie?
by csprague in sci-fi

hasn't rated it.

"[quote user="lopezdash"] i have to agree with you - The Undiscovered Country is the best. I just don't get the whole Khan thing. Maybe it's because I didn't grow up watching TOS and don't fully understand Kirk. As for the TV show.. TNG was okay (I caught the tail end of it). In my opinion, the absolute best was Voyager. Hands down. I just wish they would hurry up and make the Voyager film. [/quote] hmmm. Maybe this has a lot to do with whatever you grew up watching. My Dad was a religious TNG watcher, so I was too by default. So I guess I feel sentimental about that specific series. I tried Voyager and I watched quite a bit of Deep Space Nine too, but I never got into them in the same way. I just enjoyed the characters and story lines the best in TNG. But, like I said, that might just be the time of life that I started watching the show. It's all terribly subjective, eh? " [More]

Film To Book: The Kobayashi Maru
by TheWorkingDead in TheWorkingDead Blog

liked it.

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"You know, I'm a geek. That's no secret. At best, I'm a dork. I don't think I quite make nerd because I'm not smart enough. Or at least not smart enough in any specialized area. In any field that I feel myself to be fairly well versed, I can think of several personal friends of mine who are more so. That suits me, actually. 'Jack of all trades, master of none' may unfortunately describe my life sometimes, but I've always preferred to be a bit eclectic in my interests. There are too many wonderful things in the world to limit yourself to just one field. And still, there are many more things out there that I have no real experience in. With this blog you've seen me attempting to stretch the boundaries of my cultural knowledge, and today I make another little nudge at that amorphous wall. Today I take another step into the depths of geekiness, boldly going, you might say, into a new, if not final, frontier. Yes, today I review a Star Trek novel.Now, ... " [More]

Star Trek III: The Search for S ...
by Risselada in Risselada Blog

is neutral about it.

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"Star Trek III: The Search for SpockI've seen the first three Star Trek movies now, and not counting a few of the more recent ones which I have seen some portions of, I would say that this is my favorite one so far. In fact I think from the first three movies they get progressively better. I know this is an unpopular opinion as the odd numbered sequels are usually regarded not as good as the even ones by what seems like a strange coincidence. And I know The Wrath of Khan is often considered the best.I know a lot of people felt all kind of screwed around with seeing Spock die and then coming back to life again, but I didn't really live through all of that when the movies were coming out, so I knew Spock never really died. So to me it was just about enjoying it like a TV episode when you know things are basically going to be the same again at the end.I suspect the reason it feels more like an episode of the original show is because it was directed by Nemoy. From what I ... " [More]

Re:Re: best star trek movie?
by TheWorkingDead in sci-fi

liked it.

"The first Star Trek film is incredibly dull. I tried watching the re-edited edition out on DVD, because many people have told me it's a much better movie, but I didn't see it. It still bored me to tears.Khan is, in a word, awesome. Sorry to disagree with you Risselada, and really I can't argue if you didnt like it, but its just excellent. Tieing into the continuity from the show(something that rarely happened, honestly), the whole idea of the eugenics war was pretty cool. And the conflict between Kirk and Khan was very literary, Shakesperean, almost, which fits with Roddenberry's original vision. Not only did Kirk have a nemesis, but Shatner had someone who's scenery chewing rivaled his own. My favorite, however, is VI, which as someone else pointed out is another Nicolas Meyer film. Everything about that movie seems perfect to me, the cold war associations, the tragedy of the doomed and progressive Klingons, the murder mystery on the Enterprise as Kirk and McCo ... " [More]

#24
by eagle795 in eagle795 Blog

hasn't rated it.

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"Yep…I’m a Trekkie. While all the films have had some level of enjoyment to hardcore loyalists, this one is unanimously considered the best. Khan is one of the greatest movie villains ever. " [More]

Re: best star trek movie?
by Risselada in sci-fi

is neutral about it.

"I started watching the Star Trek films in order. So far I like them each better as they have gone on.The first one was pretty mediocreThe second one was a bit betterand the third one was a bit better than that.Everyone seems to like Wrath of Khan the best but so far this wasn't true. I hope they get a lot better than that one! " [More]

Wrath of Khan
by MrTinkles in MrTinkles Blog

loved it.

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"Only one word need be spoke to encapsulate the awesome that is Star Trek 2:"KHAAAAAN!!!!" " [More]

Re: Top 5 Science Fiction
by pippin06 in Top 5

liked it.

"Oh hooray! I love scifi. 1. The Empire Strikes Back - Well, I had decided that this was my favorite movie of all time, not just my favorite Star Wars. So, it should be my favorite scifi. But you can go ahead and add the other two. Yes, even the teddy bears. But not the prequels. noooo.2. The Matrix - Only the first one. 3. Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - Yes, I watch Star Trek. No, I'm not really a trekker, but I have seen all of the series except Enterprise and all of the movies. These are the two best movies of the entire series, plus I'm playing neutral between original cast and next generation.4. 2001: A Space Odyssey and 2010 - Kubrick was visionary, let's be certain, but I also really liked the follow up. 2010 is under lauded. No, it's not a masterpiece. It's not what Kubrick would have directed. But it's still a very good movie and spooky too.5. Alien and Aliens: But unlike someone else's thoughts, I do ... " [More]

Re: My Top 5
by Indie in Top 5

lost interest.

"I was just reminded of one last night. The Wrath of Khan - lizard bugs in the ear made me wish I could sit under the couch. " [More]

[More reviews]

Review by All Movie Guide

All Movie Guide

liked it.

Though Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1980) was considered an expensive disappointment, the movie's sequel, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn gave the franchise the credibility it needed to achieve more widespread recognition and longevity. Director Nicholas Meyer gives the film a light, literate tone similar to his work 1979's time-travel fantasy Time After Time; it's arguably the most enjoyable Star Trek film. Updating an episode from the original series, screenwriter Jack B. Sowards borrows scenarios from King Lear and Moby Dick, achieving an admirable blend of pathos, humor and action. Leonard Nimoy initially didn't want to reprise his role as Spock, and agreed to take part in Khan under the condition that his character would die at the end of the film. Of course, Spock and Nimoy returned for the next sequel. ~ Brendon Hanley, All Movie Guide

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