What Is It?
The second Star Trek feature film follows Admiral James T. Kirk as he faces off against his old enemy Khan Noonien Singh, a genetically enhanced superhuman seeking revenge for the events of the TOS episode “Space Seed.” When Khan gains control of a powerful terraforming device called Genesis, Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise must stop him before he unleashes catastrophic destruction.
Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Kirstie Alley, Ricardo Montalbán
Directed By: Nicholas Meyer
Original Release: June 4, 1982
Why Watch It?
This second entry in the Star Trek feature film series arrived in Summer 1982 and breathed new life into the franchise. 1979’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture proved to be somewhat of a disappointment to theatergoers, even though it did quite well at the box office. But when Wrath of Khan arrived, fans jumped back onboard and gave it a big thumbs up. Instead of remaking an episode from TOS like TMP did, this one brought back a popular antagonist from the series, checking in on what happened to him after Kirk exiled him and his followers on a distant planet. Ricardo Montalbán delivered a welcome performance, chewing up the scenery, while the Enterprise crew were each given much more to do. In addition, the movie delved into Kirk’s past while also reinforcing his bonds of friendship with the people he had served with for so many years.
This is generally considered the best of the Star Trek films, and for good reason. It delivers a good story, brings back a lot of familiar faces, has plenty of action without going into Blockbuster Overload territory, and it has a rather gut-wrenching ending. You do not have to have seen The Motion Picture to go into this one, nor do you necessarily need to have seen the TOS episode that introduced Kahn, and fans of any of the incarnations of the franchise should enjoy it. Be warned that it does bring some of the melodrama that the original series was known for, and it has a few flaws and leaps of logic. But overall the movie works quite well, counting not just as a good Star Trek film, but one of the all-time greats of sci fi and fantasy.
Where Can You Watch It?
Comet TV has been playing the Star Trek movies in honor of the 60-year anniversary of the original series, and they have this one scheduled for Saturday night at 9 PM EST. The night before that, the third film in the Kelvin timeline series, Star Trek Into Darkness, will air at 9 PM EST. Comet TV is a free digital channel that is very much like Syfy when it first started, and it very much deserves our support. It runs several genre TV shows throughout the week (you can see the current schedule at this link), and generally has movies during the weekend. You should be able to pick it up if you have a digital antenna, and many cable and satellite services carry it as well. You can also live stream it on their website, and you can download the app on Roku and other platforms.
Wrath of Kahn is also available for streaming on Parmount+–along with most of the other Trek films–and you can buy or rent it VOD. It has also been released on 4K UHD and Blu-ray.
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