Rated PG-13
Caution Rating: 7
When I was six or seven years old, my mother would pick me up from school every Friday afternoon, and drive us to an Alfalfa Video store in Jackson. The store was right beside a Pizza Hut, so we would order our pizza and then look for movies while we waited.
On the weekends, while other kids were riding their bikes down country trails and blowing up bullfrogs with firecrackers, I was sitting comfortably at home with a stack of videos. Far from feeling deprived, I cherish these memories, and these simple trips to the video store surely laid the foundation for my life-long love of cinema.
While I didn’t fully appreciate it at the time, what was truly special was that my mom and I usually picked out movies together. Instead of banishing me to the cartoon or kids’ section, she felt I was mature and intelligent enough to choose from more mainstream films. It’s true that we sometimes left the store with a VHS collection of Spider-man cartoons or a well-worn copy of Godzilla 1985, but we more often went home with a handful of videos we could both enjoy.
When I was growing up, before the very mention of George Lucas’ name could send me into fits of berserk rage, I was a huge Star Wars fanatic. While I can just barely remember having a tantrum during a theatrical showing of Star Trek IV, I wasn’t formally introduced to Gene Rodenberry’s more grounded and humanistic world until one of those trips to the video store, when we picked up a copy of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.
The laws of nature state that every odd-numbered Trek film is destined to be a disappointment, and, true enough; the fifth film is widely considered to be one of the weakest. It doesn’t say much about my taste in movies, but I remember really enjoying Star Trek V (forgive me, I was seven years old); just not enough to give up my lightsaber for a phaser.
Now, Star Trek means a lot to many people, but I didn’t really give it a second thought until one of my college professors had our class analyze the deeper philosophic underpinnings of a couple of episodes from the classic TV series. Something about them caught my interest, and though I didn’t run out to buy a pair of Spock ears, I did rent a few of the movies and watch some reruns on cable.
So, while I have not anticipated the release of the new Star Trek film (the first since the even-numbered, and yet, poorly received Nemesis premiered in 2002) with the sense of mingled trepidation and excitement of a true fanatic, I have looked forward to this re-boot, especially once I learned that J.J. Abrams would be at the helm.
Abrams’ re-imagining of the original series and its iconic characters is just the sort of modern treatment this flagging franchise needs. Star Trek is an entertaining and exciting film that somehow manages to pay respectful homage to the series’ hallowed history while injecting breathlessly kinetic action and a hip sense of cool into the mix. It may not be as cerebral as some of the Enterprise’s former outings, but Star Trek succeeds on almost every level, and is sure to garner a wider popular following. This is blockbuster filmmaking at its best.
Star Trek introduces us to James Kirk, Spock, Dr. Leonard McCoy, Lt. Uhura, and the rest of the classic crew, as they enter Starfleet Academy. When a galactic crisis catches the Federation off guard, the young cadets are assigned to the newly constructed Starship Enterprise and deployed to investigate a mysterious cosmic anomaly.
In orbit above the planet Vulcan, they find an advanced spacecraft commanded by a dangerously deranged Romulan named Nero, whose relentless quest for vengeance has already changed the course of the beloved crew’s lives in ways they don’t yet appreciate. I’m tempted to go into more detail, but it’s difficult to describe the plot any further without giving away the film’s brilliant central hook.
The script attains moments of genuine emotion, thrilling action, and clever humor. Though it unfolds in a rather convoluted way, on its face, the plot is relatively simple. It lacks a certain depth, and the narrative is burdened with a couple improbable coincidences that seem to belie lazy scripting. These flaws, and the lack of a truly compelling villain, do the film some harm, but the central, intriguing notion at its heart is genuinely ingenious, and more than enough to cover over a multitude of cinematic sins.
The film’s true strength lies in its fresh and appealing cast. Every actor seems perfectly chosen for their roles, each successfully capturing the spirit of their predecessor while still bringing a novel and refreshingly original angle to the character.
When I first heard that Chris Pine was taking up the mantle of James Tiberius Kirk, I was very skeptical of his chances for success. The only role I had seen him in previously was as a romantic foil for Lindsey Lohan in the viciously vapid Just My Luck (don’t look at me like that – it was free and I was bored). I was convinced that such an iconic role called for an established star, but I now stand corrected. Although Pine certainly doesn’t imitate William Shatner’s performance, he plays Captain Kirk with just the right mix of brash bravado, bold intelligence, charming wit, and magnetic charisma.
Zachary Quinto seamlessly embodies the essence of Kirk’s friend and first officer, Spock. Though the character is written with perhaps a bit too much emotion, Quinto does an excellent job of showcasing Spock’s defining internal struggle between the stoic rigidity of his Vulcan philosophy and the passion of his human nature.
Karl Urban turns in an endearing performance as the gruff Dr. McCoy, but his accent does sound a bit stretched. John Cho and Anton Yelchin don’t have much time on screen, but they both make the most of it. The lovely Zoe Saldana plays Uhura with a tender dignity and an appropriate lack of patience for Kirk’s unrestrained ego. Simon Pegg is as entertaining as ever, and his turn as Montgomery Scott is appealingly quirky.
The ensemble all work well together and exude a realistic sense of camaraderie. They’re all extremely likeable, and I can’t wait to see what adventures lay ahead of them in their never-ending quest to explore the galaxy.
The only weak link in the golden chain is Eric Bana. He’s barely recognizable under his prosthetic make-up, and his performance as Nero is entirely forgettable. This lack of resonance is not completely his fault, however, as the character is fatally underwritten. His motivations are conventional, his characterization is diluted, his dialogue is trite, and his nefarious deeds, though epic in scope, never achieve the appropriate emotional weight. It’s not enough to sink the movie, but it is a sore spot on an otherwise stellar production.
J. J. Abrams directs the film with an infectious sense of kinetic timing. The camera techniques are engaging and dynamic, although Abrams’ penchant for extreme close-ups can sometimes make it difficult to understand the landscape of a scene. The action scenes are exciting and well done, and the special effects (bar one sequence that seemed to be from another, lesser film) are believably integrated into the whole. A shaky camera and lightening fast quick-cuts are par for the course in modern action movies, but these ubiquitous techniques are not as distracting here as in some other recent films.
The costumes, sound effects, and production design are all spectacular. Everything in this shiny vision of man’s interstellar travels pays proper respect to the series’ 1960s roots while still delivering a more realistic view of our future. The cinematography is, by turns, sharp and cool, or dirty and grimy; and the deck of the Enterprise literally glows, as if with the power of fan’s love and nostalgia.
I was particularly eager to study Star Trek’s musical score. I’m a big fan of film scores, and Abram’s frequent collaborator, Michael Giacchino, is one of my favorite composers. This talented young artist’s portfolio is full of touching sentimentality, rousing action, classic styling, and thematic heft. I was hoping this would be his masterpiece, but, while it’s still a fine score, it is not his best work.
Giacchino does a good job of incorporating elements of previous Star Trek scores, but he also successfully blazes his own trail. His music is not as epic or as reverent as Jerry Goldsmith’s classic work on Star Trek: The Motion Picture, but the action oriented score perfectly distills the essence of this new film, and it is anchored by a memorable theme that glories in the spirit of the crew’s strength and solidarity.
Gene Rodenberry’s vision of the 23rd century is a brighter and more hopeful version of the future than we are used to seeing in most science fiction epics. Rodenberry believed that if mankind could put aside its futile and destructive vices, the human race could achieve great and wondrous things. The world of Star Trek is one that believes in the exceptionalism of the individual, and yet values the virtues of teamwork, cooperation, sacrifice, duty, honesty, intelligence, bravery, and heroism.
These are worthy goals, and certainly worth of emulation, but parents will still want to exercise some caution before taking their families to the multiplex. The film’s language is largely restrained, but Star Trek does indulge in frequent flirtations complete with blatant sex talk and some heavy sexual innuendo. The camera captures Uhura as she undresses, and a brief scene spies Kirk and a green-skinned cadet hastily preparing to improve intergalactic relations (if you know what I mean).
Though mankind has largely put aside its differences, the universe is still a dangerous place. The film highlights a few bloody fist fights, a couple of characters are instantly incinerated in flash fires, and a number of Romulans meet the business-end of phasers set higher than “stun”. There’s also a disturbing (but not particularly graphic) scene of torture that will be familiar to anyone who has seen Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
After seeing Star Trek, I left the theater satisfied, but wanting more. I suppose that’s as good of an endorsement as I can give any film. This movie deserves every dollar it makes, and should inspire a whole new generation of Trekkies. Hopefully we won’t have to wait too long to join Captain Kirk and the brave crew of the Enterprise as they set off on a new mission “to boldly go where no man has gone before”.
Caution Rating: 7
