"J.J. Abrams has created the perfect summer blockbuster, one that is fun, humorous, action packed, and clever. I'm not a Trekkie, but I loved every minute of this."
I'm writing this as a non-Trekkie. I have not seen an episode of any of the Star Trek TV series', nor have I seen any of the movies. The little information I had on the Trek universe was based on what I read online, most of which came from other reviews. With all that said, J.J. Abrams's take on Star Trek is one that people like me can really enjoy. With it's fast paced action and witty dialogue, it's a Trek movie for the next generation and even, from what I've heard, the old.
The latest Star Trek adventure serves as an "origin" story for the characters involved, mainly James Kirk(Chris Pine) and Spock(Zachary Quinto). Kirk enlists in Star Fleet, where he is soon made first officer when Captain Pike(Bruce Greenwood) is taken hostage by Nero(Eric Bana), who has come from the future to seek revenge for the obliteration of his home world. The opening of the film is one that you'd expect from a film's climax. It's an extravaganza of in-your-face explosions and the brave sacrifice of a man you wish you would have gotten more of, but witness what he may have become in his son. It's Superman-esque: a father giving his life to save his only son, who grows to be an iconic figure to the universe he lives in, and the legions of fans he has gathered over the years. From here, it's a sci-fi roller coaster ride, a ride that travels at warp speed.
Normally, time travel is a tough act to follow. Face it, it's a confusing story arc for pretty much anything. There are so many factors to process and the average joe will not want to process them: if you travel back in time and change things, does it create two, separate, alternate realities? Or does it just change the course of destiny? Luckily, Abrams doesn't focus too heavily on the questions of time travel, but still makes it an important part of the story, one that allows Leonard Nimoy to return to the role that made him famous in a way that actually makes sense. The concept of an alternate reality is quickly examined through the dialogue. It doesn't delve heavily into that realm. The movie never made me say "this just needs to stop." It flows at a relatively fast yet enjoyable and easy-to-follow rate, with the time travel jibber-jabber replaced with actually doing something about it and getting the job done by the U.S.S Enterprise's crew.
While J.J. Abrams is responsible for much of what makes this Trek so great, he's not the only one that deserves praise. The actors do fantastic jobs of diving into their respective characters. Chris Pine is perfect as the reckless James Kirk, a role that William Shatner once embodied. Those are big shoes to fill, but I think Pine slipped them on comfortably. He delivers his lines with ease. Being a non-fan, I haven't witnessed the original take on the character to compare Pine's portrayal to, but I loved every second Pine was screen. I can't compare Quinto's Spock either, but I know the character comes from an emotionless race, which Quinto seems to nail. He's robotic in his presentation, yet so alive. Kirk and Spock's friendship is iconic, and while they dislike each other for the majority of this film, they're interactions with eachother offer some of the film's highlights(there's so many to choose from). However, the interactions between Spock and Uhrura caught me off guard. I don't know if it's common knowledge that they have a raltionship, but I wasn't expecting it and every time they're on screen together it's like "what the hell, when and how did that happen?"
With that said, the rest of the cast is equally superb. Despite the lack of backstory to her and Spock's relationship, Zoe Saldana's Uhura provides the film's sex appeal and the tough chick on the ship. Eric Bana's Nero is pretty badass. He can be annoying at times, too, though-the big bad who wants everything his way and won't think logically because he's blinded by revenge, ultimately resulting in his defeat. However, Bana does a good job portraying him, because you won't even know it's him. Eric Bana, who? Even supporting characters with less build up, like Leonard McCoy, Scotty, Sulu, and Pavel Chekov are given their times to shine and are equally liked thanks to Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, John Cho, and Anton Yelchin, respectively.
The aforementioned praise can also go to writers Robert Orci and Alex Kurtzman, who provide some of the funniest lines of dialogue I've heard in a while, even without this being a comedy. They also provide a solid story that relies heavily on special effects, but is presented the right way. That brings me to the special effects, which are gloriously rendered on screen. The Star Trek universe is alive and well. The bottom line is that this is a Star Trek movie that all can enjoy, from average movie-goers, to critics, to, I take it, Trakkies. It has by no means converted me to Trekinism(I'm assuming this is the Trekkie religion). I'm not going to be racing to the nearest video store and buying past movies or watching TV episodes with the original cast of Shatner and Nimoy. However, I will be anticipating future installments from the Lost co-creator.
Abrams clearly has a knack for sci-fi and his Star Wars enthusiasm is shown in the movie, from bar fights to snowy planets with big monsters. Whether or not this is proper for the Trekiverse is up to the hardcore fans, but I was entertained. I was never bored. Abrams has created the perfect summer blockbuster, one that is fun, humorous, action packed, and clever. I don't even count Wolverine as the beginning of the summer movie experience...this is. It's a new era in the series I hope to see "live long and prosper"(cue weird Vulcan hand gesture).
Agent Vis's Verdict:
5 stars-Masterful 4.5-Outstanding *4-Impressive* 3.5-Passable 3-Disappointing 2.5-Mediocre 2-Below Average 1.5-Bad 1-Awful .5-Garbage 0-Unwatchable
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