Trekkies

Director: Roger Nygard
(1997)

It was Mark Twain who mused, “Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities. Truth isn't.” Documentaries are often captivating because they highlight some of the more unbelievable corners of our society. Trekkies is a glorious character-driven documentary about the whimsical world of Star Trek fanatics.

Trekkies (or Trekkers, depending on who you ask) come from all walks of life, and a motley sample of them are featured in the film; the juror who showed up to court in her Starfleet uniform and insists on being called commander; the dentist who dubbed his office “Starfleet Dental” and forced his assistants to dress in Star Trek garb; the Klingon community; the Brent Spiner fanatic (“Spiner Femme”) who has scores of strikingly similar pictures of the actor speaking on stage that she keeps in a fire-proof safe.



One of the main characters of the film was Gabriel Köerner (featured in the video clip above), a teenaged Trekkie who seemed to exhibit a healthy obsession with the films, perhaps because adolescents can get away with more fanatical interests. His appreciation for Star Trek fueled his curiosity and inspired him to design a three-dimensional spacecraft on his home computer and start a club at his school that sought to produce a Star Trek film of their own. Not surprisingly, after the film’s release, Köerner was able to parlay his hobby into a career. He went on to become a successful visual effects artist, and even accomplished the ultimate dream by working on the series finale of Star Trek: Enterprise.

Director Roger Nygard avoids editorializing about the mental state of his subjects. In fact, the majority of Trekkies are portrayed as intelligent professionals who happen to have a love for the Gene Roddenberry franchise. However, by virtue of them simply appearing on camera, some of the hard-core fanatics in the film come across as unhealthily obsessed, or deranged nearly to the point of psychosis. While this is a very small group, it is this minority that many people associate with all Star Trek fans.

Inside the Starfleet Dental office

Denise Crosby was enlisted to “host” the film. Because Crosby starred as Security Chief Tasha Yar on the first season of Star Trek: Then Next Genereation (TNG), she is well known to Star Trek fans. This probably helped the Trekkies feel more comfortable in interviews, and helped them to open up on camera.

Character-driven documentaries are some of the most entertaining films out there. Trekkies does not disappoint, featuring individuals that could have been created for a Christopher Guest mockumentary (a la Best In Show & A Mighty Wind). It’s a hilarious look at some of the most dedicated fans in the world. It is sure to entertain, even if you have no idea who Captain James T. Kirk is.

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Trivial Tidbits:

• "Filking" is a term to describe playing or writing music about Star Trek
  
• Evidently Al Gore is a Trekkie: "He watched the show more than he studied, according to his Harvard University roommate Tommy Lee Jones."