Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

A renegade Vulcan hijacks the “Enterprise” and leads it on a journey to discover the innermost secrets of the Universe. So begins a quest to find “God” who is thought to reside on some planet beyond the “great barrier” at the center of the galaxy.

BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVES: An interesting film with some spiritual perspectives raised including the search for meaning and purpose in life which we can all relate to. The renegade Vulcan Sybok symbolizes our own personal quest for meaning and purpose in life. The “great barrier” symbolizes the great barrier of sin that separates man from God and the “God figure” they eventually find (actually not God at all—which Kirk correctly points out—but some evil alien being) symbolizes the futility of our search for God without Christ. This film would have been even better if Kirk had not stopped at the end merely by saying (correctly) “God is found in the heart” but had told us how to find true meaning and purpose in a relationship with the true God of the universe (by repenting and accepting the Lord Jesus Christ)!

OFFENSIVE MATERIAL: The Lord’s name is taken in vain at least 4 times—more than any other “Star Trek” movie I have seen. There are some scenes of scantily clothed women (Uhura even attempts to seduce some nomad shepherds in one scene). There are some scenes of drinking and mild scenes of fighting and people being shot with phaser weapons and occasional swearing throughout the film. These aspects taint a film that has overall a very positive spiritual message.

RECOMMENDATIONS: I would not recommend this film to children due to scenes of violence and use of bad language. However, for Christian teens/adults this film could provide a useful discussion starter for a gospel presentation and get non-Christians thinking about the real purpose and meaning of their own life.