The Star Trek universe clearly revolves around William Shatner, the first (not counting Jeffrey Hunter's one-episode pilot stint) and most iconic of the franchise's helmsmen. In this feature-length documentary, Shatner boldly takes his ego where it's never gone before: visiting the quintet of actors—Patrick Stewart, Avery Brooks, Kate Mulgrew, Scott Bakula, and Chris Pine—who followed him in the captain's chair on the Starship Enterprise in the various Star Trek incarnations. It's fascinating to see Shatner, who wrote and directed The Captains, jet around the globe, meeting each performer on his or her home turf, with detours to Star Trek conventions where he's really in his element (clowning with stunned attendees and, in one moving encounter, greeting a fan with ALS). The interviews are, by turns, revelatory, confessional (playing an icon can be hell on home life), and flat-out surreal. By the time Shatner asks Brooks, “What happens when we die?” and Brooks, at his piano, responds musically, we find ourselves reflecting on what a long, strange trip it's been. The sky's the limit with Shatner's self-aggrandizement—as evidenced in a drawn-out question to Stewart (who tries to stay engaged as Shatner rambles)—at one point even betraying some resentment at Leonard Nimoy's receiving an Emmy nomination (an honor Shatner was denied). Although the target audience is clearly the galaxy of Trekkies, Shatner fans (and psychologists) will also appreciate. DVD extras include a “making-of” featurette. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (D. Liebenson)
The Captains
(2011) 96 min. DVD: $19.98. eOne Entertainment (avail. from most distributors). ISBN: 1-4172-3600-0. Volume 27, Issue 1
The Captains
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