There's an oft-quoted rule that the only decent Star Trek films are the even-numbered ones ("Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" or "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" etc.).

However, that theory takes a bit of a knock with the belated arrival of this slack and workmanlike instalment, the tenth movie in the franchise and the fourth to feature the Next Generation crew.

On the surface, everything looks fine. Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) is once again at the helm of the Enterprise, supported as usual by Commander Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), and Spock-like android Data (Brent Spiner).

But underneath, things are not so rosy. The Next Gen team are looking increasingly creaky and over the hill, while the script (by "Gladiator" writer John Logan) is a virtual rehash of "Wrath of Khan".

En route to see Riker and Troi get married, Picard and his crew are despatched to Romulus, where the election of a new leader signals a possible end to the planet's long hostility toward the Federation.

Once on Romulus, though, Picard is shocked to discover that the new "Praetor", Shinzon (Tom Hardy), is in fact a clone of his younger self.

Not only that, but Shinzon has acquired a secret weapon of mass destruction that could bring about the end of the Federation and - dan dan dahhh! - Earth itself.

It's taken four years for "Nemesis" to emerge, and though it will no doubt be welcomed by Trekkies, it evokes a distinct feeling of déjà vu.

Director Stuart Baird ("Executive Decision", "US Marshals") handles the sci-fi action well enough, but he seems unable to replicate the charm and sly wit of the original TV series.

Nowhere is this more apparent than in the scene where a cornered Picard deliberately rams the Enterprise into his opponent's vessel.

You can't imagine Captain Kirk doing something quite so clumsy and unsubtle. Sadly, it's symptomatic of a movie that blandly goes where too many Star Trek pictures have gone before.