Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan

Because it is the simplest of the Star Trek theatrical films, Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan is fondly regarded as being the closest in spirit to the 1966-69 TV series that spawned it. William Shatner plays Admiral Kirk (remember his promotion?) who escapes the tedium of a desk job to join Mr. Spock ( Leonard Nimoy ) and Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy ( DeForest Kelley ) on a space mission. While boldly going where no man etc. etc., Kirk crosses the path of his old enemy Khan ( Ricardo Montalban ), who as any diehard Trekker can tell you was the chief antagonist in the 1966 Trek TV episode "Space Seed." Leading a crew of near-savage space prisoners, Khan insinuates himself into the Genesis Project, which is designed to introduce living organisms on long-dead planets. Intending to harness this program for his own despotic purposes, Khan engages in battle with the Enterprise crew. Only through the self-sacrifice of Mr. Spock is Khan disposed of. The shock of Spock's death is softened by the hindsight realization that he will be reborn in the subsequent Star Trek 3: The Search for Spock. Originally released at 113 minutes, this was expanded somewhat for network TV showings. — Hal Erickson