Memory patterns

Abstract

This article asserts that the original Star Trek films (1979–91) have importance for the study of memory and media in the digital era. I advance several interrelated arguments, with a special emphasis on Star Trek: The Motion Picture . First, I address how Star Trek: The Motion Picture ’s treatment of memory corresponds to scientific models of human recollection and theories of archives and databases. Notably, the first Star Trek film expresses anxiety about the mutability of memory and potential ramifications of digitalization. Such elements anticipate major strands of scholarship on memory, digitalization, and franchises from subsequent decades. Second, I introduce the concept of “franchise recall,” which highlights the memory-driven nature of media franchises. Franchise recall manifests through self-reflexive commentary on cross-medium adaptation and/or through the use of recycled footage within installments. By mapping franchise recall across the initial six Star Trek films, I expose an underlying interconnectedness comparable to the associative operations of memory. Throughout the article, I also show how Star Trek: The Motion Picture ’s narrative and aesthetics resemble slow cinema. Overall, I demonstrate the surprising prescience and continued relevance of the original Star Trek films for grappling with the parameters and intersections of human and technological recall.