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STAR TREK: SECTION 31 Tanks with Critics, Lands Franchise’s Lowest Rotten Tomatoes Score
Tomorrow marks the debut of Star Trek: Section 31 on Paramount+, which is the first non-theatrical film in the franchise's history.While fans have been eager to see Michelle Yeoh reprise her role as Emperor Philippa Georgiou, critics seem to have hit the brakes on the hype. The review embargo just lifted, and the response has not been good.With a 22% Rotten Tomatoes score, Section 31 is now the lowest-rated Star Trek film ever, even slipping below the much-maligned Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, which sits at 23%. It’s a rough start for a project that aimed to carve out a new niche in the Star Trek universe. The story follows Georgiou as she joins the clandestine organization tasked with safeguarding the United Federation of Planets.Judging from the trailer, this looks more like Guardians of the Galaxy than Star Trek, and while the franchise has seen its ups and downs over the decades, Section 31 represents a rare low point. Keep reading as we dive into excerpts from the reviews that have been released:IGN: “This isn’t Star Trek.”Polygon: “It’s the weirdest Star Trek movie in tone, character lineup, and setting, and it doesn’t exactly work as a standalone Star Trek story.”Empire: “Less a Star Trek movie than a middling pilot episode setting up a series that will never come, Section 31 makes for a disheartening send-off for a once great character.”Radio Times: “What’s been forgotten is that Star Trek is often at its most effective in quieter moments where philosophy rather than the firing of photon torpedoes is to the fore.”Collider: “With the potential in its concepts and its cast, Section 31 might have made a perfectly fine two-part episode of a television series that doesn't exist. However, as a film, it's both forgettable and disappointing...”New York Times: “Set in 2333... this everything-and-the-kitchen-sink movie is stuffed with so many neurotic mutants and hidden motives that even the unflappable Jean-Luc would struggle to keep them straight.”The Hollywood Reporter: “Scientists say that our universe is constantly expanding. But some universes should know when to quit, as evidenced by the first television film (well, technically streaming film) and the fourteenth overall in the venerable Star Trek franchise.”io9: “A movie that comes in just under two hours probably shouldn’t feel like a slog, but Section 31 does, with neither the spectacle to dazzle audiences away from its anaemic character work, nor the thematic meat on its bones for them to sit and chew on.”Eric Goldman: “None of it has any emotional impact and there are too many quips and overly stylized shots that feel like they're trying to achieve a "cool" feeling that never lands.”RogerEbert.com: “At best, it’s an olive branch to its contractually obligated megastar; at worst, it’s a “Rebel Moon“-level fiasco that doesn’t get why people watch “Trek” in the first place.”Total Film: “Section 31 doesn't know what it wants to be. Is it a serious exploration of the criminal underbelly, a camp throwback to the noughties, or a tonally off combination of the two? Michelle Yeoh deserves far better than this hollow sci-fi spin-off.”The movie centers around the Mirror Universe’s version of Michelle Yeoh’s character Emperor Philippa Georgiou who joins a secret division of Starfleet. Tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets, she also must face the sins of her past.In the movie, "Emperor Philippa Georgiou, joins a secret division of Starfleet tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets and faces the sins of her past."
Tomorrow marks the debut of Star Trek: Section 31 on Paramount+, which is the first non-theatrical film in the franchise's history.
While fans have been eager to see Michelle Yeoh reprise her role as Emperor Philippa Georgiou, critics seem to have hit the brakes on the hype. The review embargo just lifted, and the response has not been good.
With a 22% Rotten Tomatoes score, Section 31 is now the lowest-rated Star Trek film ever, even slipping below the much-maligned Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, which sits at 23%.
It’s a rough start for a project that aimed to carve out a new niche in the Star Trek universe. The story follows Georgiou as she joins the clandestine organization tasked with safeguarding the United Federation of Planets.
Judging from the trailer, this looks more like Guardians of the Galaxy than Star Trek, and while the franchise has seen its ups and downs over the decades, Section 31 represents a rare low point.
Keep reading as we dive into excerpts from the reviews that have been released:
IGN: “This isn’t Star Trek.”
Polygon: “It’s the weirdest Star Trek movie in tone, character lineup, and setting, and it doesn’t exactly work as a standalone Star Trek story.”
Empire: “Less a Star Trek movie than a middling pilot episode setting up a series that will never come, Section 31 makes for a disheartening send-off for a once great character.”
Radio Times: “What’s been forgotten is that Star Trek is often at its most effective in quieter moments where philosophy rather than the firing of photon torpedoes is to the fore.”
Collider: “With the potential in its concepts and its cast, Section 31 might have made a perfectly fine two-part episode of a television series that doesn't exist. However, as a film, it's both forgettable and disappointing...”
New York Times: “Set in 2333... this everything-and-the-kitchen-sink movie is stuffed with so many neurotic mutants and hidden motives that even the unflappable Jean-Luc would struggle to keep them straight.”
The Hollywood Reporter: “Scientists say that our universe is constantly expanding. But some universes should know when to quit, as evidenced by the first television film (well, technically streaming film) and the fourteenth overall in the venerable Star Trek franchise.”
io9: “A movie that comes in just under two hours probably shouldn’t feel like a slog, but Section 31 does, with neither the spectacle to dazzle audiences away from its anaemic character work, nor the thematic meat on its bones for them to sit and chew on.”
Eric Goldman: “None of it has any emotional impact and there are too many quips and overly stylized shots that feel like they're trying to achieve a "cool" feeling that never lands.”
RogerEbert.com: “At best, it’s an olive branch to its contractually obligated megastar; at worst, it’s a “Rebel Moon“-level fiasco that doesn’t get why people watch “Trek” in the first place.”
Total Film: “Section 31 doesn't know what it wants to be. Is it a serious exploration of the criminal underbelly, a camp throwback to the noughties, or a tonally off combination of the two? Michelle Yeoh deserves far better than this hollow sci-fi spin-off.”
The movie centers around the Mirror Universe’s version of Michelle Yeoh’s character Emperor Philippa Georgiou who joins a secret division of Starfleet. Tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets, she also must face the sins of her past.
In the movie, "Emperor Philippa Georgiou, joins a secret division of Starfleet tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets and faces the sins of her past."
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