Star Trek
Star Trek, a beloved franchise by many, has been in a sharp decline of quality for far too long. Both the last film (Star Trek: Nemesis in 2002) and the last series (Enterprise) were a shattering dissapointment to many a fan (myself included). The franchise was dying and desperately needed new life breathed into it. Well, the wait is over. Star Trek, the brand-spanking new film by J.J. Abrams (creator of Lost, Alias, and Cloverfield), gives the Star Trek franchise the righteous kick in the pants it deserves.
In a simple word, this movie is fun. The visuals are stunning, the action is gripping, and the characters are vibrant. Chris Pine plays a young, energetic James T. Kirk that exudes the care-free machismo one would expect from the intrepid Captain-to-be. Zachary Quinto’s Spock is fascinating, evidencing his devotion to the off-set direction given to him by Leonard Nimoy. And, Simon Pegg as Montgomerry Scott is a real treat, stealing each scene in which he appears. John Cho, as Hikaru Sulu, and Karl Urban, as Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy, equally provide quality performances, as does the rest of the cast.
Of course, as much enjoyment as there is to be had, there are a couple issues I should mention. The plot, while interesting, isn’t heavily explained. There is one moment of explanation in the middle of the film that felt forced. Abrams has a reputation for obtuse, unrevealed plots, and I assume that the film’s exposition exists simply because someone told him that it was necessary. Eric Bana’s villainous, psychotic character of Nero, while decently played, felt two dimensional. Again, his reasons for being a bad guy were forcibly explained. There is also a bit of that “shaky-cam” bull that I can’t stand. Not too much, thankfully, but enough to make me grumble a bit. Seriously, Hollywood, stop it!
For you Trekkies out there, especially the ones that are apprehensive, go and see the movie. Understand that this is an alternate reality from what you already know. Don’t worry, the timeline you know and love remains seperate and intact, this is merely a new one. The characters, while slightly different, remain mostly true to the originals. Oh, and if you’re one of those that heard that Spock gets mad and said, “But, Spock doesn’t get mad!” I want you to know he has a very good reason to be mad, even for a Vulcan.
All in all, an exciting film that wonderfully reboots the Star Trek franchise.
Grade: A- (91%)
P.S. If you want a greater understanding of the plot, I highly recommend the comic book Star Trek: Countdown published by IDW. I read it before I saw the movie, and I’m very glad I did. It’ll probably answer many questions you might have. If you want the abridged version of the comic’s plot, go read Path to 2409: 2387 over at Star Trek Online.
“J.J., you have to let the viewers know what’s going on.”
“No I don’t.”
“J.J….”
“OK. Fine! *plunk* *mindmeld* (everyone loves mindmeld’s right?). Happy now?”
“…”
I did go see it last night with the rest of of the Den Geeks plus Teresa (Because I felt better going to see it with someone else along who’s prospective was closer to mine. That it, having actually watch, read and loved Original Star Trek and wanted to be Spock when she grew up).
My evaluation was “Is not so terrible, actually.”
It had a few good points, a few that made me cringe and lot in between that just made me go “hrm.”
Aidan’s summation of Teresa and my response: “It was good enough that it became fun to pick it apart, rather than just making people angry.”
I am still a little disgruntled by the whole thing, but if they had to do a universe reboot of original Star Trek, this was largely not a bad try.
@Sarkat
I’m glad you saw it, and I’m glad you didn’t totally hate it. And, your hypothetical Abrams conversation is just about what occurred to me, too.
I like the jab at Enterprise with Scotty loosing Archer’s(Enterprise Captain’s, now Admiral’s) prize beagle in a transporter experiment.