“Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its 5-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.”
These were the words that greeted audiences across the nation in 1966 with the premiere of Gene Roddenberry’s legendary “Star Trek.” Week after week, households tuned in to follow the exploits of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and the gallant crew of the U.S.S. Starship Enterprise; Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy), Dr. Leonard ‘Bones’ McCoy (DeForest Kelley), Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), Scotty (James Doohan), Sulu (George Takei) and Chekov (Walter Koenig). And after 3 illustrious seasons, encompassing 79 episodes, the world was hooked.
“Star Trek” permeated popular culture as a wondrous depiction of the future. It told a tale of discovery, with mankind embarking into the far reaches beyond our planet while taking topical highlights from the political climate of the 1960s with the Vietnam war and, more specifically, the Civil Rights movement. Themes of tolerance, social unity, gender neutrality and brotherhood weaved within the story…grounding the fantastic premise with a resonance anyone and everyone could identify with.
The show’s impact helped to spark a global sensation for the past four decades, including four subsequent television series, an animated series and ten theatrically released motion pictures. Roddenberry’s creation has spawned a continuously growing legion of fans, dubbed ‘Trekkies.’ And for the past 43 years the franchise has run the gamut of critique…from “relevant,” “action-packed” and “epic” to “laughable”…sometimes downright “terrible” (“Star Trek V” anyone?).
But I had never felt a need or desire to label anything bearing the “Star Trek” name as, simply…‘Bad Ass.’
Until now.
“Ah, Kirk, my old friend, do you know the Klingon proverb that tells us revenge is a dish that is best served cold?...It is very cold in space!”
While “Star Trek” may have come first, it nearly goes without saying that contemporary audiences have been more focused on another space tale; namely George Lucas’ galactic saga “Star Wars.” That’s not meant to take away from “Trek,” which did see the release of its tenth film, “Nemesis,” as recently as 2002 (But obviously, attention at the time was placed more on “Attack of the Clones”…easily). Personally I do prefer “Star Wars” if only for the fact that I was exposed to it first. Thankfully I was raised in a family that had grown up with “Star Trek” so I quickly learned the best of both worlds.
For easily foreseen reasons, fans have placed the two at perpetual odds, both of them taking place on numerous strange worlds with characters gallivanting around the cosmos. But in truth, “Star Trek” and “Star Wars” vary in many fundamental ways. Where one is science fiction, the other is science fantasy. While one is more cerebral the other is more mythical.
To be perfectly honest Lucas’ opus has become so saturated, what with 3 prequel films and a combination of animated and computer generated television series…and an apparent live action series set for release (not to mention the myriad of toys, books, video games, etc.)…that I find it incredibly refreshing that Roddenberry’s creation has finally been given its due attention.
But for a brand new endeavor, nothing could be compromised. In the duel of the space operas, “Star Trek” was posed to have a revenge of sorts…
All that was needed was the right eye…the right direction.
“A dream that became a reality and spread throughout the stars.”
I, like many a fan I’m sure, gushed two sighs of relief…firstly for the announcement of a brand new “Star Trek” film…and then for news of the involvement of director J.J. Abrams and his ‘Bad Robot’ Label.
With the creation of hit shows such as “Alias” and “Fringe,” the cult phenomenon “Lost,” the directed “Mission: Impossible III” and produced “Cloverfield,” Abrams has quickly established himself as the potential, even inevitable future of filmmaking and film storytelling.
His talent lies in the ability to take even the most extraordinary of stories and scenarios and rest them on a foundation of plausible characters and resonant emotion. Whether our breath is held in following the 48 ill-fated passengers of Oceanic Flight 815 or our heart is racing as we embark with Rob, Beth and Hud in a desperate escape as a horrific monstrosity from the depths of the ocean demolishes New York City, we’re able to connect with Abrams’ characters on a very tangible level, while simultaneously being left in awe by the spectacle that surrounds them. This approach reminds me very much of James Cameron or Terry Gilliam.
For his journey into the 23rd Century, Abrams assembled the writing duo of Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman…who would be bringing their bombastic flair for jaw dropping action to the project, not only having written “Mission: Impossible III” for J.J., but also the Michael Bay science fiction actioner “The Island” as well as both of Bay’s “Transformers” pictures.
Now, with all these elements in mind, lets finally take a look at the film itself…
J.J. Abrams “Star Trek.”
“Bones?...Buckle up!”
Perhaps it was the current trend of re-imagining old favorites…a practice that has not only dominated Hollywood for the last decade, but has put all candidate properties under a new modern-day microscope.
Perhaps it was J.J. Abrams…a strong willed and determined visionary who, much like the fabled captain of the NCC-1701, refuses to believe in the ‘No Win’ scenario.
Perhaps it was the armada sized fanbase, with seven years of passionate speculation and pent up anticipation that placed an unprecedented amount of pressure. Pressure that had to be fully realized while attempting the unthinkable…and satisfy non-fans.
Any way you care to look at it, the stakes for a new “Star Trek” film were the highest the franchise had ever seen…maybe the highest they will ever see.
But through passionate storytellers, a sharply textured cast, an incredible visual landscape and an excellent sense of timing, J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek” exceeded all expectation, pushing the boundaries of Gene Roddenberry’s creation in ways not yet taken in the story’s 43 year history…by forging an approach to the material that not only paid grateful and layered homage, but injected a slick sense of style, pathos and bare knuckle grit. This symbiotic nature works in spaces and satisfies both the true born fan and the new fan born.
While the film still retains the property’s undercurrent content of social tolerance and strokes of political influx, Abrams gives the Enterprise and her crew some much needed bite. It’s still thoughtful…but the film, on a dime, can kick your ass up and down the theater with gigantic space battles and emotionally driven characters.
The film explodes in the year 2233 with a fiery ‘to the death’ conflict between the U.S.S. Kelvin and a giant Romulan craft, the Narada, as it passes through a black hole under the cover of an electrical storm. It’s a kinetic opening that quickly changes the entire “Star Trek” paradigm with its visceral ness. We’re introduced to Nero (Eric Bana), a bloodthirsty Romulan who wishes damnation on the entire United Federation of Planets. His act of gutting the Kelvin’s Captain Robau (Faran Tahir, the terrorist baddie from “Iron Man”
lets us now he means hate-filled business in his search for an Ambassador…named Spock.
To answer the desperate pleas of the Kelvin’s passengers, young first officer George Kirk (Chris Hemsworth) begins to evacuate the downed ship while plotting the Kelvin on a collision course in a last-ditch gamble. But with the auto-pilot destroyed, Kirk makes the ultimate sacrifice and chooses to stay behind to pilot the ship manually, buying time for the escape of the passengers and crew…including his wife, Winona (Jennifer Morrison) who is going into labor.
In a beautiful moment over the comm-link, George hears the birth of his son…and as his final act, he and his wife Christian their son James.
Following the main title we hit the ground running (or rather driving) through the farmland of Iowa as young James Kirk goes for a joyride in his stepfather’s sports coupe. Pursued by a high-tech cop, Kirk predates his own renegade style in a feverish chase and high octane stunt, showing both his ferocious tenacity and penchant for the dramatic. Eventually, Kirk grows up into a womanizing bruiser (Chris Pine) with the instincts and making of an amazing starship captain.
Meanwhile school’s in session on the distant planet Vulcan (I loved the take on the schooling of Vulcan children in those computerized wombs) and we’re introduced to young Spock, the unique hybrid son of esteemed Vulcan ambassador Sarek (Ben Cross) and a human woman named Amanda (Winona Ryder). This makes Spock an easy target for full-bred Vulcans both in adolescence and early adulthood (Zachary Quinto), who deem his interlaced human nature and emotion to be a sign of weakness.
By detailing Kirk and Spock’s upbringings, the film establishes these legendary characters and their differing reasons for enlisting in Starfleet. While Kirk is shown a legacy to live up to by Captain Pike (Bruce Greenwood), Spock wishes to create his own path…much to the dismay of the Vulcan High-Council. But while these reasons, at first glance, seem to be entirely independent, they ultimately turn out to not be so different as both men work to prove themselves and their place in this universe.
Three years later, Kirk is enrolled in the famous Starfleet academy based in San Francisco. It’s a real college-atmosphere, even having Kirk hook up with a green-toned knockout Orion girl (great, GREAT throwback to Kirk’s notorious romantic conquests) as well as developing the relationships with his future comrades…the beautiful Nyota Uhura (Zoe Saldana) and the paranoid, slightly zany Dr. Leonard McCoy (Karl Urban).
It’s here that we’re treated to the infamous and legendary tale first told in “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan;” Kirk’s taking (and overcoming) of the notorious Kobayashi Maru simulation. Such an awesome moment that, much in sync with Jim’s childhood exploits, displays how nonchalantly bad ass Kirk can be. How Pine plays the scene, yawning orders while eating an apple (!) makes it hilariously better.
The tampering with the program leads to an injunction against Kirk by Spock (creator of the simulation as it turns out) and their relationship is off to a rocky start to say the least. Having the two men butt heads makes for a fascinating dimension to both their characters and how they interact. However more pressing matters are at hand as Starfleet receives a distress signal from Vulcan of an attack by a Romulan vessel…the very craft that Jim’s father died fighting years earlier.
Despite being indefinitely grounded for his inquiry, Kirk manages to board the Federation’s newest flagship craft…the U.S.S. Enterprise…with a little help from a hilarious plan by McCoy. Here we meet the remainder of our loved crew; earnest pilot Sulu (John Cho) with a fierce reserve and a hand well trained in fencing…and Pavel Chekov (Anton Yelchin), a navigator with an accent courtesy of his mother Russia. As the story escalates, we’re eventually introduced to Engineering wizard Montgomery Scott (Simon Pegg), rounding out the main players.
Through circumstance, the rest of the film journeys into the nostalgic, the shocking…and ultimately the fulfilling as the trials and tribulations befalling the Enterprise bond and evolve her crew from a rag tag squad of eager kids into the team of heroic myth they were destined to become.
“The wait is over…”
“Star Trek” is a milestone for the property in quite a few ways. But the most prevalent is the fact that this is the very first time the original cast of characters has been portrayed by anyone other than Bill Shatner and company. But the cast, much like the film itself, does a wonderful job of establishing the characters we know while undeniably making them their own.
Chris Pine (“Smokin’ Aces,” “Bottle Shock”
cements himself as a star with the role of James Kirk. His looks could lead him to be mistaken for a younger Brad Pitt, and his undercover charisma could be linked to someone like James Dean. Pine delivers every line of dialogue with gusto, bravery, sleaze and bravura on his way to creating a captain who acts with his heart as opposed to his brain (which is fully capable of distributing useful knowledge). Kirk is an Iowa bar-dweller-fast-car-driver-motorcycle-riding-bad ass who is still capable of commanding a most advanced starship. Never once do we question his ability.
On the opposite side of the protagonist scale we have genre-favorite Zachary Quinto (TV’s “Heroes”
as Spock. Quinto more than just replicates the point ears and eyebrow arches made famous by Leonard Nimoy (even getting a ‘fascinating’ out!). Here we actually feel for Spock because he allows us to get into his mind, which is constantly at a struggle with his overwhelmingly dominant intuitive behavior that resists him feeling any emotional gratitude, conforming to logic. Thankfully, the story treads new ground by divulging into Spock’s humanity and to see him emote is a tremendous angle that Zachary takes (dishing body blows to Kirk was amazing!). There’s also the added dimension of a relationship between Spock and Uhura and it’s quite comforting that there’s more to this Spock that just pure logic, dry wit and the Vulcan grip (although Quinto delights in all of those aspects as well).
The remainder of the main crew shines primarily with Karl Urban, probably my favorite performance in the film aside from the two leads. His McCoy is as wily and grizzled. I didn’t think there was any way to tap into the unique character played by the late DeForest Kelley, but Urban brings the attitude and tired confidence of the doc to life adding another memorable face to the landscape. John Cho is also a nice surprise as Sulu, especially since I didn’t think he would break the ‘Harold’ mold I thought he was stuck in (sort of like seeing Kal Penn…essentially Kumar…in a “Superman” movie) but he does very well with the little he’s given. Same thing goes for Anton Yelchin and Simon Pegg as Chekov and Scott respectively. Yelchin is very endearing as Chekov and he’s a bit more earnest than Walter Koenig was in the role—but it works, because this is a younger Chekov. Simon Pegg’s Scotty is playful, manic, and mischievous than James Doohan’s. He’s played mostly for comic relief here. My one criticism with regard to Scotty is that he fits into his familiar surroundings too quickly and easily, given the specialized circumstances surrounding his arrival aboard the Enterprise. The establishment of his relationship with Kirk-right down to Kirk calling him “Scotty”-came off, at least to me, rushed. Out of all the main crew, Zoe Saldana’s Uhura makes the smallest (yet sexiest) impact, but she still manages.
Following a pattern of the previous theatrical films, “Star Trek” fills the supports around the crew with a collection of strong character actors and surprising celebrity cameos. Bruce Greenwood’s gruff yet fatherly Pike is a great foil for the exuberant Kirk while Ben Cross works through both stilted dialect and make up as Spock’s father Sarek (channeling Mark Lenard quite well actually). Winona Ryder is a surprise as Amanda, but she can pull off the weight of being a mother sufficiently enough (though her death doesn’t hold that much resonance). And Tyler Perry…wait, where’d YOU come from? Not given much to do, Tyler still carries some authoritative presence and it works fine.
The biggest player left is Eric Bana as Nero. Bana’s a fine actor (I just re-watched him in “Troy” and he was fantastic) so it’s not his fault that Nero’s a bit too one-dimensional. That aside, Bana brings a hard edge no-nonsense power to Nero, sort of as a lesser version of Ricardo Montalban as Khan.
But the biggest and most pleasant surprise is the return of the ever faithful and resilient Leonard Nimoy as Spock (or rather ‘Spock Prime’ here) in an extended cameo. What can I say? Just phenomenal…and in such a short amount of time to!
t:
) all over his face after the death of Vulcan.
) didn't bother me. Incidentally, this qualifies me, because I am fond of the odd barroom brawl, and am equally as effective as Kirk 
My gosh was it amazing. And forgive me fellow trekkies, but this movie was the best I have ever scene Trek look. Everything from the look of the uniforms, and phasers to the amazing new starship Enterprise; this film kicked major ass! The opening of the film blew me away, and I was very moved emotionally by George Kirk's sacrifice. 
Love it!!
