The Captains (William Shatner; 2011)

The basic premise of The Captains, William Shatner’s new documentary, sounds like pure fan service. Shatner interviews every actor who’s ever played a captain on Star Trek. As a Trek fan, this definitely appealed to me, but I really wasn’t expecting what an emotional experience it turned out to be.

Shatner has used this format to explore not only Star Trek, but his own life and legacy. It’s self indulgent, but there’s a genuine melancholy in seeing this 80 year old man (!) looking back on the role which has come to define him in life (as it will in his death).

Although its musical score is manipulative and maudlin, The Captains rises above that by way of the depth and genuine emotions in its interviews.

I love Star Trek and Next Generation, but I have no particular attachment to Deep Space Nine and I have outright disdain for Voyager and Enterprise, but I found all of these conversations illuminating. Shatner is an excellent interviewer, as he engages with his subjects, but always allows them to speak. The only interview that left me a bit cold was Chris Pine’s. Shatner avoids discussing Star Trek with him most of the time, and he still seems a bit hurt over the 2009 film. Although that hurts the interview, it adds to the film as a whole, which becomes a thoughtful self-portrait of Shatner. He’s never been entirely comfortable with where his career went after Star Trek, and this film is really about that.

The moment which best illustrates this is when, in conversation with Patrick Stewart, Shatner admits to always being slightly embarrassed by his own performance in Star Trek, and how Stewart’s performance in The Next Generation helped him get over that embarrassment. Then, when Stewart speaks on his acceptance and embracing of the fact that he will be primarily remembered as Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Shatner thanks him for helping himself come to that same point. It’s kind of a beautiful moment.