Star Trek: Nemesis UHD Review

Here’s an unpopular opinion. Star Trek: Nemesis is a good film. An imperfect film, with faulty wiring and missed opportunities, but a good film, nonetheless. Tom Hardy’s Shinzon is a worthy adversary for Picard and company, and he delivers a memorable performance. Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner, given the most to do, offer fine performances as well. The visual effects, produced by Digital Domain, are a major step up from Insurrection. Like Insurrection, the VFX were all digital except for a 17-foot model of the Enterprise-E’s saucer built for the riveting collision sequence near the film’s climax (that moment remains one of my favorite action sequences from the feature films). Unpopular with Trek fans, the film deserves another look. Faults aside, it’s a better film than history remembers.

The Production: 3.5/5

“It can be the future. Buried deep within you, beneath all the years of pain and anger, there is something that has never been nurtured: the potential to make yourself a better man. And that is what it is to be human. To make yourself more than you are. Oh, yes – I know you. There was a time you looked at the stars and dreamed of what might be.”

The crew of the USS Enterprise is lured to Romulus, home world of the long-standing Federation adversaries, the Romulans, under the promise of peace. But Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his crew discover an unusual shift in Romulan political power, and a new leader who could well be far more than he appears, and far more dangerous. The chance for peace with a persistent enemy has landed the Federation’s flagship on the doorstep of Romulus, but peace may be the last thing on the mind of the new Romulan ruler.

Nemesis has the distinction of being the first Trek feature to use the Romulans, one of the more fascinating enemies of the Federation. The species, related to Vulcans, were explored in The Original Series and The Next Generation in some solid episodes (“Balance of Terror,” “The Enterprise Incident,” “The Defector,” “Unification Parts I and II.”) Marked by a strategic cunning and calculative, conniving quality, Romulans made for a more insidious and threatening foe. Written by John Logan (Gladiator co-writer) from a story conceived by Brent Spiner (Data) and head honcho of the Star Trek franchise at the time, Rick Berman, Nemesis offers a darker tale with higher stakes and more intrigue than the previous Insurrection. From the opening scene, which takes us down into the Romulan senate, the film offers something new. But rather than political intrigue, the story shifts rather quickly to something more modest. Yet, there’s intrigue as we learn about Remans, the slave labor caste of the Romulan Empire, with an apparent human leading them as they violently take over the Romulan empire with a mix of political espionage, hostile takeover, and warrior bravura. The premise is rich with potential yet, despite magnificent action and effective performances, a few ingredients hamper Nemesis from reaching greatness.

Star Trek, at its core, is a way to explore what it means to be human. The science fiction stories, planets, anomalies, species, and politics in the grander universe, are means to that end. Inward exploration expressed through outward adventure has been a riveting reality since Star Trek premiered in the mid-1960s. In Nemesis, the big question posed and explored is “what makes us, us?” It’s contemplated through Picard meeting his younger clone, Shinzon (Tom Hardy), a clone with vastly different life experiences, behavior, and ethical stances. It’s also explored in the “B” story as Data (Brent Spiner) meets his less advanced ‘brother,’ B-4 (also played by Spiner). The idea of looking in a mirror and seeing someone made up of all the same material as you, DNA for Picard, hardware for Data, but not reflecting who you’ve come to be, or how you see yourself, is great stuff to explore. That it isn’t as adeptly handled as the cast and production deserved is one of the disappointing elements of the film.

Another disappointing factor in Nemesis is the missteps in characterizations from the beloved crew, seemingly the result of director Stuart Baird not only lacking a familiarity with Star Trek: The Next Generation legacy, but reportedly not being all that interested in remaining true to the characters. Calling actors by the wrong name, thinking Geordi La Forge was an alien, are ridiculous and unnecessary faults born of either laziness or ego. But, when you set aside some of those matters and the ultimate smaller reach of the film, there is intriguing stuff going on, exciting action sequences, and a broody, consistent tone that sets this film apart. It’s a sincerely focused dramatic thriller of a space adventure, complete with a space battle abounding with good ideas. So, I posit there’s more here to love than the film has been credited for.

Following Star Trek: Insurrection’s disappointing critical and audience reception, Jonathan Frakes took a step back from directing and a man with no experience in the Trek world was brought in. That could have yielded exciting alchemy, but director Stuart Baird wasn’t the right choice. A highly regarded editor (behind Superman, The Omen, Lethal Weapon, and many more), he’d directed just two films with mixed results, the taut successful thriller Executive Decision, and the disappointing sequel to The Fugitive, U.S. Marshals. Though he brought with him solid action experience, he reportedly showed an ignorance of the The Next Generation, was criticized by cast members following the films failure at the Box Office, and was described as “impossible to work with,” by Production Designer Herman Zimmerman. Some of that apparently production difficulty bleeds into what we see on screen. Picard makes an uncharacteristically unfair request of Deanna Troi following her traumatic telepathic assault, and some fans have called out the dune buggy sequences as being a bridge too far for Picard (though I don’t have issue with that sequence as seen). The biggest impact does seem to be evident in performances in some scenes. The cast aren’t as comfortable, especially when contrasted with Insurrection. Even Frakes’ Riker isn’t as at ease and natural in his role. The cast are still very good, but it does seem that something isn’t quite the same.

Patrick Stewart is superb as Picard facing questions of who he is, or under different circumstances could have been, as he faces of against Tom Hardy as his clone, Shinzon. Their scenes together, the earlier moments when they first see each other and in their first conversation alone, are some of the best moments in the film. In fact, the scene where Picard and the away team first beam aboard the massive Reman warship, The Scimitar, is a highlight of the film. It’s a moment filled with apprehension, an interesting set, moodily lit, with Jerry Goldsmith’s score evoking horror as Shinzon makes his entrance. Hardy is brilliant in this introductory scene, delivering his lines with an emotional absence, not betraying the character’s intention, layered with mystery, and holding his own against the seasoned actors in the scene with him. Hardy reportedly took the film’s failure, and some of Trek Fandom’s hostile reaction to him, deeply personally. It led to struggles with alcohol and confidence, something that would haunt him until his standout performance in 2008’s Bronson. We are fortunate that he found his footing as he’s continued to show himself to be a deeply gifted actor.

Brent Spiner is once again wonderful in the dual roles of Data and B-4. He’d requested the fate of Data be sealed in this picture, feeling his natural aging would make playing the android untenable. Data’s fate has since gone through a few evolutions on the Paramount+ series Picard, but it gave Nemesis a tremendous emotional wallop (one that still hits me each time I see it, even knowing what comes later on Picard). Spiner handles the dual roles as we’ve come to expect from him, flawlessly. The Next Generation series found many occasions to showcase Spiner’s talent for multiple roles, from Lore to Dr. Soong, and watching Spiner play off against Spiner is never dull.

Sadly, besides a key scene or two for Marina Sirtis and Jonathan Frakes as Troi and Riker, the rest of the cast have no real journey in the film. Michael Dorn’s Worf and Gates McFadden’s Dr. Crusher are criminally underused, and LeVar Burton’s La Forge gets a moment here or there working on B-4, but like his fellow supporting cast, gets nothing of consequence to do. If Frakes had directed, we’d have seen a better use of these fine actors. There is a scene in the film where the actors genuinely deliver, and Frakes is wonderful. As the crew, following Data’s fate, assemble to remember him, Frakes speaks of first meeting Data, seen in the pilot episode, “Encounter at Farpoint,” where the android tries and fails to whistle. Frakes’ Riker struggles to remember the name of the tune Data was attempting. It’s a powerful moment, very real, and takes the scene from sad to powerfully moving.

The last of the supporting actors to call out here is the ever-amazing Ron Perlman as Shinzon’s Viceroy. Perlman has such a commanding presence and voice that even through the heavy Reman makeup, he gives the enemy of the Federation here a sinister authority.

Nemesis, with additional character moments and more for the main cast to do, could have been a classic. There’s enough here to be entertaining, enough action to be thrilling, enough fresh ideas to have you sit up and engage (pardon the pun), and enough meat in the concept explored to be faithful to the Trek ideals. But it falls short. Insurrection and Nemesis were a one-two punch at the box office to put an end to The Next Generation crew’s big screen adventures. It would be seven years before Trek would be back to cinemas with a reboot of Kirk and crew. It would be 21 years before this fill cast would assemble again as a crew in the 3^rd season of the Paramount+ series, Picard, that, as of this writing, has only the season (series) finale to go. The third season of Picard has given us the some of the very best Trek produced, with some of the most wonderful, rich, dramatically meaningful writing and the cast giving some of the absolute best performances we’ve seen. Perhaps Trek makes the biggest impact and hits the right notes in the space and time afforded by a television series. Imagine the idea behind Nemesis explored as a 10-episode season of premium television. Fortunately, despite the film’s critical and box office failing (though it did exceedingly well on DVD when it was released), the full cast would be seen again together on the bridge of a Federation starship.

For fans, that matters.

Video: 4.5/5

3D Rating: NA

Framed at 2.35:1, Star Trek: Nemesis looks splendid. A much darker film than its immediate predecessor, the new 4K scan of the original camera negative performed by Paramount gives us the best look at this film we’ve seen. It even seems better than the theatrical experience watching it back in 2002. The color palette is quite restricted, with green being a pervasive color influenced by the Romulan/Reman presence. The Dolby Vision grading helps with increased shadow detail and contrasts. The first meeting between Picard and Shinzon on the Scimitar was particularly good. Jeffrey Kimball (Jacob’s Ladder) served as Directory of Photographer and he creates a formidable mood with his work, using darkness and sharp light contrasts without obscuring detail. The model work, as the Enterprise E crashes, looks spectacular in this presentation.

Finally, Nemesis, like the other big screen adventures of Picard and company, looks cinematic, with film grain present, and the fruits of the 35MM filming process protected. One or two moments are softer but appear native and not the result of errant transfer work. They don’t detract at all. Textures, skin tones, set detail, Data’s make-up, are as you’d hope.

Audio: 5/5

Paramount continues its policy of repurposing its original audio, though we get an upgrade here from Dolby TrueHD 5.1 to Dolby TrueHD 7.1. Once again, a Dolby Atmos mix would have been nice, but this track is vibrantly active.

An action-heavy film, comparatively speaking, Nemesis makes fine use of the sound field. Surround effects are potent and roaring at times, LFE booms thunderously during the Argo chase and fight sequence, as Picard and Data escape the Scimitar, and boisterously when Picard rams the Scimitar. Dialogue is issue-free from the center channel, sound effects from ships and the sequence on the planet sweep effectively from side to side, from front to rear, and there’s a very actively scale to the audio. It’s full bodied and nicely handled.

Special Features: 4/5

All the previously produced special features for Star Trek: Nemesis are here, but nothing new. With Picard doing exceptionally well for Paramount+, it seems a missed opportunity to have created something with the cast and crew reflecting on this film now nearly 30 years on.

The extras are a mix of standard and high-definition material showing just now old some of them are.

UHD

• Commentary by director Stuart Baird
• Commentary by producer Rick Berman
• Commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda
• Text Commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda

Blu-ray

• Commentary by director Stuart Baird
• Commentary by producer Rick Berman
• Commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda
• Text Commentary by Michael and Denise Okuda
• Library Computer
• Production
  • Nemesis Revisited
  • New Frontiers – Stuart Baird on Directing Nemesis
  • Storyboarding the Action
  • Red Alert! Shotting the Action of Nemesis
  • Build and Rebuild
  • Four-Wheeling in the Final Frontier
  • Screen Test: Shinzon
• The Star Trek Universe
  • A Star Trek Family’s Final Journey
  • A Bold Vision of The Final Frontier
  • The Enterprise E
  • Reunion with The Rikers
  • Today’s Tech Tomorrow’s Data
  • Robot Hall of Fame
  • Brent Spiner – Data and Beyond Part 4
  • Trek Roundtable: Nemesis
  • Starfleet Academy SCISEC Brief 010: Thalaron Radiation
• The Romulan Empire
  • Romulan Lore
  • Shinzon & the Viceroy
  • Romulan Design
  • The Romulan Senate
  • The Scimitar
• Deleted Scenes
• Archives
• Trailers
• Blu-ray and Digital copy of the film

Overall: 4/5

Here’s an unpopular opinion. Star Trek: Nemesis is a good film. An imperfect film, with faulty wiring and missed opportunities, but a good film, nonetheless. Tom Hardy’s Shinzon is a worthy adversary for Picard and company, and he delivers a memorable performance. Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner, given the most to do, offer fine performances as well. The visual effects, produced by Digital Domain, are a major step up from Insurrection. Like Insurrection, the VFX were all digital except for a 17-foot model of the Enterprise-E’s saucer built for the riveting collision sequence near the film’s climax (that moment remains one of my favorite action sequences from the feature films). Unpopular with Trek fans, the film deserves another look. Faults aside, it’s a better film than history remembers.

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Neil Middlemiss

Neil has been a member of the Home Theater Forum reviewing staff since 2007, approaching a thousand reviews and interviews with actors, directors, writers, stunt performers, producers and more in that time. A senior communications manager and podcast host with a Fortune 500 company by day, Neil lives in the Charlotte, NC area with his wife and son, serves on the Down Syndrome Association of Greater Charlotte Board of Directors, and has a passion for film scores, with a collection in the thousands.