Over the last couple of years, Paramount has been re-releasing all of the “Star Trek” films in special edition, 2-disc sets. For Trek fans each release has been a veritable treasure chest of special features, documentaries and trivia. And though the series has suffered from the ‘odd numbered films bad’ and ‘even numbered ones good’ theory, having all of them in a set offers viewers hours of entertainment as well as simply looking good on the shelf. (However, it was be a sad day when I replace the set of VHS tapes that, when put side by side, show the image of the Enterprise. If only they had done the same thing with the DVD packaging.) This month, we see the release of the 3rd of the “Next Generation” Trek films, “Star Trek: Insurrection.” And while coming in as the unofficial number ‘9’ didn’t necessarily cause it to succumb to the ‘odd’ number theory, it still doesn’t rank amongst the best of the series.

However, its shortcoming is really only in the fact that the story did not seem big enough for a feature film. The plot would have probably been better served in one of the “Next Generation’s” one hour episodes.

The story revolves around a planet that has some amazing healing powers. As a matter of act, it is home to a civilization of people who are seemingly ageless while their true ages number in the hundreds. Seems simple enough, but there is also another race circling the planet who are harvesting particles from the planet to be used for their own regenerative needs. This in itself might not be so bad, except that it is destroying the planet, end eventually it inhabitants. Once Picard learns of this, he of course strongly upholds the Prime Directive and dives right in to save the day… oh wait… that’s against the Prime Directive… right?

All nitpicking aside, “Star Trek: Insurrection” is still a fun romp and a good Trek film, so it’s well worth a watch. There are a number of great moments in it, so you can forgive the simplicity of the plot.

As for the DVD release, welllllll now. Here’s where we get to the meat of the matter. Like all the Special Editions that have come before, there are way too many extra features to watch in one night. The first main feature, which has become a staple of the series, is a text commentary by Michael & Denise Okuda. The two are the undisputed masters of Trek trivia and the information they deliver is as fun and informative as always. This is all you’ll find on the first disc.

What?? There’s a second disc??? Yup. And that’s where you’ll find yourself, remote in hand, whiling away the weekend (unless you are unemployed and a couple of weekdays will do fine…). You’ll find several featurettes that deal directly with the production itself. “It Takes a Village” takes us on a tour of the village location set, while “Location, Location, Location” allows Actor/Director Jonathon Frakes the opportunity to talk about how difficult it is to shoot on location as opposed to a closed set. Then we get a peek at the film’s CGI graphics in ‘the Art of Insurrection” and a look at how a particular stunt was prepared, shot, but ultimately not used. There is a “Making of Featurette” that goes beyond the typical ‘fluff piece’ and offers some of the actors the chance to delve into their own personal take on their characters. There is even a bit of a conversation with writer Michael Pillar that I found far more fascinating than I had expected. Finally, in this section there is a little bit of behind the scenes footage showing Frakes’ directing approach.

Once we move on the next section, we find a very humorous look at the women of “Star Trek” over the years. They cover almost every version of the series and films, and several of the actors throw in their own comical two cents. We get to see more of make-up designer Michael Westmore’s alien work, and the creative process behind some of the film’s better special effects. You’ll also find a few deleted scenes with introductions, as well as storyboards and photo galleries.

All in all, the Special Edition DVD release for “Star Trek: Insurrection” certainly lives up to all those that have boldly come before…..

Directed by: Jonathan Frakes
Starring: Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, Gates McFadden, Michael Dorn, Brent Spiner, Marina Sirtis, F. Murray Abraham
Extras:
Insurrection Production: It Takes A Village, Location, Location, Location, The Art of Insurrection, Anatomy of a Stunt, The Story, Making Star Trek: Insurrection, Director's Notebook
The Star Trek Universe: Westmore's Aliens, Star Trek's Beautiful Alien Women
Creating The Illusion: Shuttle Chase, Drones, Duck Blind
Deleted/Alternate Scenes
Photo Gallery
Storyboard - Secondary Protocols
Teaser Trailer
Theatrical Trailer
Borg Invasion Trailer
Original Promotional Featurette
Specifications: Widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, DTS 5.1 Digital Surround Sound, Dolby Digital 2.0
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: 6/7/2005
Region 1
MPAA Rating: PG (For Sci-Fi Action Violence, Mild Language and Sensuality)
Website

We'll give Star Trek: Insurrection a B.