Overall Quality 3.5 / 5.0
No gay content

In some ways, Trekkies 2 covers the same territory as the first movie. It explores Star Trek as a cultural phenomenon and addresses fans’ appreciation for its positive message. “When people see Star Trek, that is how society should be,” one interviewee notes. “People [coming] together no matter what creed … color … sexual orientation … no matter what race.”

However, Trekkies 2 diverges in a couple of ways. First, it explores the Star Trek phenomenon internationally. (They probably could have subtitled the film: Trekkies 2: Trekkies with a Budget!) Host Denise Crosby visits Australia, Brazil, Italy, England, France, Germany, and even Serbia to discover just how much impact Star Trek has on the global community. And it’s quite fun to see, despite disparate cultures, just how similar the Star Trek fans all look and sound. In fact, I’d say it reflects the ideal presented by Star Trek: diversity existing in harmony.

Second, Trekkies 2 delves a little further into people who take Star Trek to an extreme. In fact, the documentary includes a segment specifically entitled, “Extreme Fans.” And it portrays some people who are undoubtedly quite devoted. On the whole, the film still portrays Star Trek fans in a positive light. As actress Tracey Scoggins describes in the film, women in Neiman Marcus who’ve undergone significant plastic surgery are maybe going too far, but “sci-fi fans? No, they’re fine.”

Actor Phillips Morris defines “too far” as: “If you lose yourself, your sense of identity, as a result of this, that’s a problem. If it enhances your sense of identity, your sense of self, it’s beneficial.” The documentary clearly involves both types but is heavily weighted toward the latter.

I think a member of a Klingon metal band called Stovokor said it best: “When reality stops being so lame, we’ll stop doing this.” (Author’s note: Amen!)

Material of specific interest to gay fans is curiously lacking, especially considering the gay-friendliness of the original. I am particularly disappointed in a segment included in the bonus features on the DVD called “Fan Pon Farr.” (The bonus features actually include enough additional material to nearly warrant the title Trekkies 3.) “Fan Pon Farr” discusses romantic relationships that develop between fans who bond over Star Trek or at Star Trek conventions. But it does not include a single gay couple … with the possible exception of two girls who might be lesbian, but are never identified as such. In fact, the bit includes a montage of kisses, entirely heterosexual.

I am also startled by another exclusion. Trekkies 2 dips briefly into the world of Star Trek fan-films (and in one fun case, fan-theater). In fact, it shows clips from half a dozen different fan-films. But Hidden Frontier, one of the most successful and prolific Star Trek fan-made productions, is curiously absent, even though it was already into Season 5 by 2004. Go figure.

Overall, I noted something else. There’s a sweetness that was present in Trekkies that’s not as noticeable here. Kate Mulgrew criticized the first one as a “kind of an indictment of [fans’] love for the show” (1); I disagree. But if she had said that about the sequel, I probably wouldn’t argue the point so much.

At the same time, fandom is what it is. The documentary’s goal isn’t to portray the most impressive fans, but rather those most interesting and most devoted. And it succeeds in that goal.

Trekkies 2 also revisits some of the individuals introduced in Trekkies, such as Gabriel Koerner and Barbara Adams in some entertaining and engaging segments.

I recommended the first Trekkies even for casual fans, but like its more extreme subjects, Trekkies 2 will likely hold greater appeal for more devoted fans of the franchise.

Click to visit the Trekkies 2 website.

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(1) Andy Scahill, “A Brand New Voyage,” Out in America, 8 August 2002, http://www.webpan.com/dsinclair/Out%20in%20America-mulgrew%20interview.htm (retrieved on 12 May 2008).

This is a fascinating documentary film based on the book of the same title (full disclosure: I have not read the book).

I actually expected a dry presentation of accounting irregularities: “And then they implemented the mark-to-market form of accounting.” Accountants gasp in horror; I merely yawn.

And yet, as Bethany McLean (one of the authors of the book) points out early in the documentary, what makes this story so compelling is the human drama. Ultimately, the Enron scandal exposes the vicious cycle of hubris, greed, and tainted success.

In very, very brief terms: Jeffrey Skilling introduced an innovation in how Enron managed its books, allowing the company to post profits before they received them.

From there, it became a slow and steady slide toward creative accounting and ultimately fraud, including leading Enron to create an artificial energy shortage in California in the early 2000s in order to drive prices up. But inevitably, the house of cards collapsed.

The documentary does an excellent job of explaining the complex history of the scandal to a non-technical viewer; by focusing on the human element, the film draws the viewer into the drama. I started watching the movie shortly before going to bed, thinking it would make me sleepy. Instead, I stayed up late watching the compelling story. The film makes clever use of interview clips, stock footage, random camera shots, and music to keep the momentum moving.