35th Anniversary of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan– A Timeless Classic (Review)

If I had to stack up ‘Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan‘ next to any other classics of the same era, ‘Jaws’ would be apart of the same vernacular. For my money, there’s many parallels to both films that I’ll touch on later, but the bottom line is not only is this the greatest Star Trek film ever made, it’s arguably one of better films of the last 35 years.

Even if you’re not a fully disclosed Trekkie, all one needs to know about the original Trek is the three main characters, Kirk/Spock/McCoy, share quite a bond together. It’s their wildly different personalities that create the chemistry that’s as indelible as you’ll get from the TV series and six feature films. In the case of ‘The Wrath of Khan,’ the big three go up against their greatest foe: Khan Noonian Singh– played to perfection by the late Ricardo Montalban. Khan, who in an earlier TV episode of Star Trek was exiled by Kirk and co., is seeking ultimate revenge on James T. Kirk. That about sums up all one needs to know about the plot of this film for those who’ve never took it for a spin.

The bigger question is, how does Nicholas Meyer’s film hold up on the big screen after 35 years? It’s as satisfying as it’s ever been. From the subtle one liners of Dr. McCoy zinging his Captain (and friend) over some Romulan Ale about getting back his command before it’s too late (because old age sucks), the Starship battles between Kirk’s Enterprise and Khan’s stolen Reliant inside a Nebula, Kirk and Spock’s close knit friendship, Khan’s blunt intensity, James Horner’s rousing soundtrack, and the overall emphasis on story and character moments, this film will never lose its luster!

I compare this film to that of ‘Jaws’ simply because of the inclusion of three strong male characters that are very central to the story. In the case of both films, both trios of actors brought their own ultra-specific and strong auras to their respective roles. Each film had a very central villain. Both had strong themes of revenge. And main characters from each end up not making it out alive by the story’s conclusion. Two kick-ass films that will never be forgotten.

Not withstanding, let me give you the bullet points as to why this film belongs in cinema lore forever:

  • McCoy bringing gifts and booze over to Kirk’s Bachelor pad– this is how people used to decompress before meds and apparently still do in the 23rd Century.
  • Scotty admitting he had a “wee bout” during his shore leave, i.e. PTO time, and needed Dr. McCoy to pull him through– Right, Scotty got utterly shitfaced on his vacation, ha!
  • Captain Terrell’s beard– underrated but the late Paul Winfield pulled off that role really well and it all started with an imposing beard.
  • Any scene with Khan– he sort of treats his low level employees like crap but can ya blame him??
  • All the ship to ship space battles– Industrial Light and Magic really outdid themselves back then creating the perfect special effects for a sequel that needed to be a home-run with audiences in the summer of 82.
  • Carol Marcus, the late Bebi Besch, was kind of a babe back then and a great love interest for Kirk, i.e. The Shat!
  • Kristie Alley not only playing a Vulcan, but showing up as a Captain in the first scene of the movie!
  • Chekov’s ear problems.
  • A certain death scene done right that still make grown men cry to this day.
  • Yes, that’s really Ricardo Montalban’s chest.
  • James Horner’s music– One of his best scores of all-time.
  • The snappy interplay between McCoy and Spock– Deforest Kelley WAS Dr. McCoy, nobody does it better and it’s hard to believe we’ve lost him and Leonard Nimoy since this movie was released.

I could have kept going but I felt it more prudent to end this by asking you all, what’s your favorite moment from ‘The Wrath of Khan’ and if you had to pick another favorite movie from that overall era of 1975-1989, what would it be?

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