Star Trek

Review by Loc

How do you properly reboot a franchise steeped in decades worth of continuity, a rabid fanbase, and more recent overexposure than outright failure? That is the status of Star Trek, a sci-fi property that long ago went boldly past good taste and intriguing entertainment. Yup, for years, Trekkies or Trekkers have been reduced to anxiously awaiting fans. When would the right creative team bring the shine and luster back to the Enterprise? Quick hit: be careful what you wish for, Trekkies.

JJ Abrams brings this reboot to life. The mastermind behind the Alias TV show and one of the creators of Lost, Abrams has amassed a good amount of Hollywood credibility. However, his first turn as blockbuster director yielded Mission: Impossible III, a serviceable if not mundane film. More importantly, to the geeky legions, he was the writer of the failed Superman script which saw Lex Luthor as an FBI agent who eventually revealed he was Kryptonian as he battled the Man of Steel…yes, you read that last part correctly.

So to say there was apprehension with this project would be an understatement. As the trailers came out and the new cast revealed, more nervous anticipation: everything looked slick and stylized, maybe too slick and too modern. Which just goes to show, people like to complain about anything, even things that are “too good”.

Back to Star Trek, the reboot, relaunch, revisioning, whatever re-you-want it to be. Focused around the core formation of the original Star Trek characters, this film takes a look at how Kirk, Spock, Bones, Sulu, Uhura, and Scotty can to man the Enterprise. Only, with a twist. Seems that there’s some temporal stuff going on, some threats from the past or future, that kick start everything. It’s an elegant and quick way to kickstart this series, nodding to the old, but opening the door to the new. And it easily takes care of any questions about past movies and tv episodes, and how they should be treated in this new reboot. Quick answer: everything counts, but the new stuff does, too. If you want more details, you gotta see the flick.

As for the cast, everyone does a very good job. Chris Pine as Kirk is very solid. Beyond the rugged, I’m-good-looking casting, Pine throws in a nice dose of arrogant confidence. He’s likeable and believable as the charming macho guy, a modern embodiment of the 60s Shatner version, which is surprisingly fun to watch. Zachery Quinto from Heroes fame sports the pointy ears of Spock, and much like Pine, rises to the occasion. This Spock is confident, not overly cold, a bit brooding, but not boring. Both actors infuse the characters with their own touches, make the characters their own, and run with it.

The rest of the ensemble is very good as well. Both a reflection of good writing and good acting, the characters take on greater importance and display greater depth than any of the previous movies have allowed. Case in point, Uhura is sexy and smart, with an actual skill set to justify her existence. Same with Sulu, well, not the sexy part. Bones McCoy is good, but almost a parody of himself, which is the only misstep in the cast. Scotty is comic relief, but not overdone, and enjoyable in the doses we get.

Ah, what about the plot? What about the story? Yes, the cast is good. The direction is good. But really, it’s the story and execution that bring this out to play. It’s paced extremely well, and the two hours moves along without notice. The action is very good, showcased with the space dive and 20,000 foot high battle. And very high on the list, the special effects are finally good. Not just serviceable. Not static and boring. Abrams wisely threw out any Trek-focused styling and introduced a whole new era of explosions, starships, and starship explosions.

The actual story is very solid as well. Sure, if you sit back and think for a couple minutes, there’s some weird and stupid things that happen. But for the most part, Star Trek is a fun, well conceived story that showcases the good parts of Trek lore. Is it deep? No, not particularly, and maybe that’s where the traditionalists have issues. However, it is entertaining and sheds the skin of geeky space-UN peachiness.

Overall, this is a very entertaining film. Easily the most well rounded summer flick so far. Given that there’s only been Wolverine and Star Trek, that’s not a hard accomplishment. However, I’d venture a guess that this will remain as one of the most solidly entertaining movies of the summer. Imagine Iron Man levels of geeky happiness. Out of 1701 designation for the Enterprise, Star Trek warps ahead with 1446, or 8.5 out of 10 for the mathematically averse. This is how summer blockbusters should be, and looking forward to the next installment.