kirk | the m0vie blog

435. Star Trek Into Darkness (#—)

Posted on September 6, 2025 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users.

This week, JJ Abrams’ Star Trek Into Darkness.

Captain James T. Kirk has been in command of the USS Enterprise for a year. In that time, he has not lost a single service man. Kirk is angling for the hottest new assignment – a five year mission of exploration into uncharted territory – when a terrorist attack masterminded by a rogue Starfleet Security Officer throws everything that Kirk thinks he knows into doubt.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: 2013, 9/11, allegory, American militarism, Andrew Quinn, existential commentary, existential threats, film, film reception, imdb, IMDb top 250, justice, khan, kirk, militarism, morality, narrative choices, Osama bin Laden, podcast, post-9/11, sequel, socio-political issues, star trek, Star Trek Into Darkness, storytelling techniques, utopian vision | Leave a comment »

427. Star Trek (#—)

Posted on July 12, 2025 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney, The 250 is a (mostly) weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released every second Saturday at 6pm GMT, with the occasional bonus episode between them.

This week, JJ Abrams’ Star Trek.

Orphaned following an encounter with a strange and hyper-advanced alien ship, James Tiberius Kirk drifts through life in search of purpose. Prompted to enroll in Starfleet Academy, Kirk finds himself drawn into an epic web of fate that crosses time and space, seemingly drawing him towards the most unlikely of companions, a half-Vulcan named Spock.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: 2009 film, 2009 reimagining, character development, character portrayals, cinematography, contemporary storytelling, cultural significance, editing, emotional complexity, emotional connection, franchise impact, identity, J. J. Abrams, james t. kirk, kirk, legacy, narrative structure, new audiences, original series, paternal relationships, spock, star trek, supporting characters, Uhura, Vulcan culture | Leave a comment »

367. Star Trek: Generations (#—)

Posted on February 24, 2024 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.

This week, David Carson’s Star Trek: Generations.

Disaster strikes during the maiden cruise of the USS Enterprise-B: James T. Kirk is killed in a freak accident, an encounter with a cosmic force beyond all reckoning. Nearly a century later, Jean-Luc Picard commands another Enterprise. Grappling with horrific news from home, Picard finds himself drawn into the sinister machinations of the mysterious Tolias Soran. A survivor of that fateful tragedy that killed Kirk, Soran is pursuing something beyond even Picard’s deepest imaginings.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: addiction, ending, film, finality, franchise, guinan, imdb, kirk, Malcolm McDowell, mortality, nexus, nostalgia, picard, podcast, production, soran, star trek, star trek: the next generation, Television, The 250, time, Whoopi Goldberg | Leave a comment »

364. Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (#—)

Posted on January 27, 2024 by Darren

This week, William Shatner’s Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.

The planet Nimbus III was supposed to be “the Planet of Galactic Peace”, but it has descended into a wretched hive of scum and villainy. From the desert comes a stranger, a mysterious Vulcan named Sybok with an incredible gift for recruiting followers. Sybok has a divine mission. He plans to journey to the centre of the galaxy and speak to God. He just needs a starship to do so. And, to get that, Sybok will be reunited with his estranged half-brother: Spock.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250, The Original Series | Tagged: belief, characters, continuity, eighties, faith, god, imdb, kirk, nostalgia, podcast, religion, spock, star trek, sybok, the final frontier, William Shatner | Leave a comment »

324. Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (#—)

Posted on March 4, 2023 by Darren

This time, Leonard Nimoy’s Star Trek III: The Search for Spock.

The Enterprise returns from its disastrous confrontation with Khan Noonien Singh, a battle that ended with the death of Spock and the creation of Genesis. However, Kirk is haunted. McCoy appears to be having a psychological breakdown, while Spock’s father chastises him for leaving Spock’s body on the Genesis Planet. Determined to return his friend’s body and soul to Vulcan, Kirk embarks on a dangerous mission to Genesis. However, he’s operating in contravention of Federation orders and quickly discovers that other parties have an interest in the secrets of Genesis.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: chekov, Christopher Lee, kirk, klingons, kruge, original series, podcast, romulans, spock, star trek, star trek 3, star trek iii, Star Trek III: The Search For Spock, star trek movies, The 250 | Leave a comment »

New Podcast! Enterprising Individuals – “Star Trek Into Darkness, Part 2”

Posted on December 4, 2022 by Darren

I am always thrilled to get a chance to talk about Star Trek with other fans, so I was thrilled at the invitation to join the wonderful Aaron Coker on Enterprising Individuals to talk about Star Trek Into Darkness. We split the discussion into two parts, and this is the second.

It seems safe to describe Star Trek Into Darkness as perhaps the most polarising and divisive of the Star Trek movies. However, it’s also the most interesting. It represents the culmination of efforts to turn Star Trek into a populist and accessible blockbuster franchise, but it also remains true to the spirit of the franchise. Star Trek Into Darkness is undeniably a blockbuster of the late Obama era, one preoccupied with the legacy of the War on Terror and fascinated by the loss of utopian innocence that seemed promised with the election of Obama. It’s also just a thrilling action spectacle with a broad appeal.

You can listen to the episode here, the first part of the discussion here, back episodes of the podcast here, click the link below or even listen directly.

Filed under: Movies, Podcasts!, Star Trek | Tagged: aarn coker, fandom, into darkness, jj abrams, khan, kirk, spock, star trek, Star Trek Into Darkness | Leave a comment »

303. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (#—)

Posted on September 3, 2022 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn and Darren Mooney, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.

So this week, to mark its re-release in Irish and British cinemas, Nicholas Meyer’s Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

Now supervising cadets at Starfleet Academy, Admiral James Tiberius Kirk finds himself reflecting on his mortality. A routine training mission provides an unlikely reckoning when genetically engineered superman Khan Noonien Singh escapes from his exile and vows revenge on Kirk as the man who marooned him. Kirk has lived his life on the assumption that there is no such thing as a no-win scenario, but that philosophy is about to be sorely tested.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250, The Original Series | Tagged: aliens, Harve Bennett, Khan Noonien Singh, kirk, Leonard Nimoy, militarism, Nicholas Meyer, revenge, spock, star trek, star trek ii, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Starfleet, violence, William Shatner | 2 Comments »

291. Star Trek: The Motion Picture – The Director’s Edition (#—)

Posted on July 16, 2022 by Darren

So this week, Robert Wise’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

When a mysterious entity appears at the edge of Federation space, Admiral James Tiberius Kirk finds himself recommissioned as commander of the Starship Enterprise. When his former Science Officer, Spock, is summoned from across the cosmos by the creature’s psychic cries, the crew find themselves on a desperate mission to save Earth from a creature that exists beyond human comprehension.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: counterculture, gene roddenberry, god, horniness, horny, kirk, manson family, parenting, podcast, psychedelia, sixties, spock, star trek, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The 250, v'ger | Leave a comment »

New Podcast! Enterprising Individuals – “Gimme Some Mooney”

Posted on October 3, 2021 by Darren

I am always thrilled to get a chance to talk about Star Trek with other fans, so I was thrilled at the invitation to join the wonderful Aaron Coker on Enterprising Individuals to talk about That Which Survives. The main feed episode went live last week.

However, our conversation tended to be a bit broader and a bit more wide-reaching than that, so we talked about everything from the recent release of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings to the completion of the Rebuild of Evangelion series. It was a discussion that managed to cover everything from Quibi to workers’ rights to the future of Doctor Who. It was a fun chat, and I hope that you enjoy.

You can listen to the episode here, back episodes of the podcast here, click the link below or even listen directly.

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Filed under: Podcasts!, The Original Series | Tagged: aaron coker, doctor who, enterprising individuals, evangelion, kirk, McCoy, neon genesis evangelion, quibi, rebuild of evangelion, shang-chi, star trek, Sulu, that which survives | Leave a comment »

New Podcast! Enterprising Individuals – “That Which Survives”

Posted on September 23, 2021 by Darren

The third season of Star Trek is an interesting season of television. It is largely dismissed and overlooked by many fans, who write it off as a season in clear decline. Certainly, the season contains no shortage of terrible episodes: And the Children Shall Lead, The Way to Eden, The Paradise Syndrome, Turnabout Intruder and many more. However, there’s an interesting atmosphere that pervades the season, the sense that the third season of Star Trek is drifting through a haunted and dead universe. That Which Survives is a pure example of this, like The Tholian Web or Spectre of the Gun or All Our Yesterdays.