Genre: Sci-Fi Action
Director: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldaña, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, Eric Bana
Running Time: 127 minutes (plus trailers)
Set in an entirely alternate reality to any previous entry in the Star Trek franchise (as is laid out very clearly in the film, presumably in an attempt to quell the angry murmurs of the canon obsessed Trekkies (not that I, a diehard Browncoat (fan of Firefly), can criticize)), this film is a reimagining in the vein of Batman Begins and Casino Royale. Similar to those films, it focuses on the origin stories of its characters, in this case the rebellious Captain Kirk and the half human half alien Spock. However unlike either of those films, this reboot faced the challenge of battling against the Star Trek franchises unmarketable reputation. I mean, let’s face it; Trek has been the definition of uncool for over forty years. So the one thing that this film had to ensure was that it was nothing like Star Trek. It even advertised itself with the tagline “this is not your father’s Star Trek.” And after seeing the film, I can assure you that it absolutely is not. This film is action packed, exhilarating and requires no previous viewing. It's also damn, damn cool.
The films success lies with director J.J. Abrams, who is one of the masters of the modern Hollywood blockbuster. He rose to prominence in television, and is credited with creating the hit series’ Felicity, Alias, Lost and Fringe. I’ve never seen Felicity, but Alias (while it fluctuated dramatically in quality over the course of its five seasons) was at its best a witty and exciting spy series. And say what you will about Lost, the pilot episode (which Abrams directed) constitutes two of the most visually impressive hours of television ever produced. Abrams first feature film was Mission: Impossible III, which I think features some of the best choreographed action of any post-Matrix film. And now, Abrams has once again demonstrated his keen ability to craft a fast-paced, electrifying and wholly satisfying piece of popcorn entertainment, while simultaneously rebooting a franchise that so many thought was utterly un-rebootable (I think I just invented a new word).
The films story is a very simple tale of good vs. evil. James Kirk (Chris Pine) joins the Starfleet Academy at the behest of a former comrade of his war-hero father. While in training, he befriends Dr Leonard McCoy (Karl Urban) and antagonises the always logical Spock (Zachary Quinto). When Spock’s home planet Vulcan is attack by a time travelling villain named Nero (Eric Bana), the newly christened Starship Enterprise and it’s young crew (including pilot Sulu (John Cho), communications officer Uhura (Zoe Saldaña), navigator Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and later chief engineer Scotty (Simon Pegg)) warp to the rescue, only to discover that Nero’s diabolical plan for revenge will soon threaten Earth and the entire federation of planets. I would have liked it if the screenwriters (the same guys behind Transformers) had tried to explore some more cerebral territory; instead, the dialogue and plot are more of a way to string the action scenes together. Still, at the end of the day it's a fairly minor complaint
From the very opening scene, the action in this film is everything you want from a Hollywood 'event' picture. From several mind-blowing space battles to a hand-to-hand fight scene atop a high atmosphere drilling rig, everything is superbly constructed, and features almost impeccable special effects. Admittedly, there was never much of a sense of peril (they were hardly going to kill Kirk off), but it was still thrilling stuff. The characters are all excellent, get plenty of screen time, and the acting is uniformly great. Chris Pine is charismatic and heroic, Simon Pegg and Karl Urban are both really funny, and Zachary "Sylar" Quinto is surprisingly good as well. And even I, with almost no familiarity with the series, recognised several of the inside jokes and famous lines, from McCoy’s “Damnit Jim! I'm a doctor, not a physicist!” to Scotty’s “I'm giving her all she's got, Captain!” to Chekov’s inability to pronounce V’s (although that Russian accent did get irritating pretty quickly.)
There are on reflection a ton of logical flaws with this movie. The villains plan is incredibly stupid, and the entire Ice Planet arc is contrived and filled with ridiculous coincidences. Additionally, in order to keep the adrenalin pumping, there are several action sequences that – while entertaining – are completely unnecessary (again, see the Ice Planet). But does this really matter? It’s certainly no more implausible than your average summer (Australians read: winter) blockbuster, and when compared to the other two big releases this year – the brainless Wolverine and the long-winded Angels & Demons – Star Trek is shown to be infinitely superior. Unlike those films, this movie is filled is interesting characters, awesome action and a great sense of humour. In other words, it’s fun. As I said before, it is the ultimate Hollywood motion picture experience. And while it certainly never transcends that label, we never really need it to. Hopefully, the sequel (US$80 million weekend? You better believe there’ll be a sequel) can introduce some deeper ideas. But never at the expense of keeping us entertained.
Star Trek is now playing in cinemas everywhere
Director: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldaña, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, Eric Bana
Running Time: 127 minutes (plus trailers)
Set in an entirely alternate reality to any previous entry in the Star Trek franchise (as is laid out very clearly in the film, presumably in an attempt to quell the angry murmurs of the canon obsessed Trekkies (not that I, a diehard Browncoat (fan of Firefly), can criticize)), this film is a reimagining in the vein of Batman Begins and Casino Royale. Similar to those films, it focuses on the origin stories of its characters, in this case the rebellious Captain Kirk and the half human half alien Spock. However unlike either of those films, this reboot faced the challenge of battling against the Star Trek franchises unmarketable reputation. I mean, let’s face it; Trek has been the definition of uncool for over forty years. So the one thing that this film had to ensure was that it was nothing like Star Trek. It even advertised itself with the tagline “this is not your father’s Star Trek.” And after seeing the film, I can assure you that it absolutely is not. This film is action packed, exhilarating and requires no previous viewing. It's also damn, damn cool.
The films success lies with director J.J. Abrams, who is one of the masters of the modern Hollywood blockbuster. He rose to prominence in television, and is credited with creating the hit series’ Felicity, Alias, Lost and Fringe. I’ve never seen Felicity, but Alias (while it fluctuated dramatically in quality over the course of its five seasons) was at its best a witty and exciting spy series. And say what you will about Lost, the pilot episode (which Abrams directed) constitutes two of the most visually impressive hours of television ever produced. Abrams first feature film was Mission: Impossible III, which I think features some of the best choreographed action of any post-Matrix film. And now, Abrams has once again demonstrated his keen ability to craft a fast-paced, electrifying and wholly satisfying piece of popcorn entertainment, while simultaneously rebooting a franchise that so many thought was utterly un-rebootable (I think I just invented a new word).
The films story is a very simple tale of good vs. evil. James Kirk (Chris Pine) joins the Starfleet Academy at the behest of a former comrade of his war-hero father. While in training, he befriends Dr Leonard McCoy (Karl Urban) and antagonises the always logical Spock (Zachary Quinto). When Spock’s home planet Vulcan is attack by a time travelling villain named Nero (Eric Bana), the newly christened Starship Enterprise and it’s young crew (including pilot Sulu (John Cho), communications officer Uhura (Zoe Saldaña), navigator Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and later chief engineer Scotty (Simon Pegg)) warp to the rescue, only to discover that Nero’s diabolical plan for revenge will soon threaten Earth and the entire federation of planets. I would have liked it if the screenwriters (the same guys behind Transformers) had tried to explore some more cerebral territory; instead, the dialogue and plot are more of a way to string the action scenes together. Still, at the end of the day it's a fairly minor complaint
From the very opening scene, the action in this film is everything you want from a Hollywood 'event' picture. From several mind-blowing space battles to a hand-to-hand fight scene atop a high atmosphere drilling rig, everything is superbly constructed, and features almost impeccable special effects. Admittedly, there was never much of a sense of peril (they were hardly going to kill Kirk off), but it was still thrilling stuff. The characters are all excellent, get plenty of screen time, and the acting is uniformly great. Chris Pine is charismatic and heroic, Simon Pegg and Karl Urban are both really funny, and Zachary "Sylar" Quinto is surprisingly good as well. And even I, with almost no familiarity with the series, recognised several of the inside jokes and famous lines, from McCoy’s “Damnit Jim! I'm a doctor, not a physicist!” to Scotty’s “I'm giving her all she's got, Captain!” to Chekov’s inability to pronounce V’s (although that Russian accent did get irritating pretty quickly.)
There are on reflection a ton of logical flaws with this movie. The villains plan is incredibly stupid, and the entire Ice Planet arc is contrived and filled with ridiculous coincidences. Additionally, in order to keep the adrenalin pumping, there are several action sequences that – while entertaining – are completely unnecessary (again, see the Ice Planet). But does this really matter? It’s certainly no more implausible than your average summer (Australians read: winter) blockbuster, and when compared to the other two big releases this year – the brainless Wolverine and the long-winded Angels & Demons – Star Trek is shown to be infinitely superior. Unlike those films, this movie is filled is interesting characters, awesome action and a great sense of humour. In other words, it’s fun. As I said before, it is the ultimate Hollywood motion picture experience. And while it certainly never transcends that label, we never really need it to. Hopefully, the sequel (US$80 million weekend? You better believe there’ll be a sequel) can introduce some deeper ideas. But never at the expense of keeping us entertained.Star Trek is now playing in cinemas everywhere
