Review: ‘Star Trek’

Trekkin'

4.5 stars out of 5

One of the longest-running franchises in entertainment was in desperate need of a make-over. Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek series from the 1960s was groundbreaking, not from a special effects standpoint, jaw-dropping as it was for the time, but because of its outlook on the future: rejecting dystopian views for one of humanity, exploration in science and knowledge and universal peace. Harmony, both racial and political, was the word of the day.

As of late, the beloved franchise had fallen on hard times. Disappointing showings at the box office and the first ever cancellation of a Star Trek show with Enterprise, and the series looked to be in serious jeopardy. Was Star Trek destined for mere nostalgia trips and comic conventions? Fan fiction and fake ears?

Looking back to a time before James T. Kirk was James T. Kirk and Spock was Spock, Star Trek centers on the early days of the Trek universe, focusing on fresh-faced cadets straight out of the Academy. Kirk (Chris Pine), Spock (Zachary Quinto), McCoy (Karl Urban) and the original crew are all included in some fashion, in addition to some new ones…like Tyler Perry (yes that Tyler Perry).

When a huge Romulan vessel emerges from a lightning storm and destroys a Federation ship, its repercussions are felt hard across the entire universe. From the future (specifically, the Next Generation setting), the vessel’s appearance shatters the timeline of events, thus creating new circumstances, divergence and freedom for director J.J. Abrams to create something new without having to be beholden to canonized history. (For non/casual fans, head towards the sci-fi section in your bookstore and check out the Star Trek encyclopedia. It’s ginormous.) Led by Nero (Eric Bana), the rogue Romulan ship is determined to destroy every Federation planet including Earth and Spock’s home planet of Vulcan.

The plot of the movie is one giant spoiler and I would be pretty messed up inside if I ruined something for future viewers, especially fans of the series. Star Trek walks on an extremely tight rope. Its mission? To bring in new fans and keep the old ones happy. To boldly go where the series has not gone before: to coolness. It’s no secret that Star Wars has been the “cooler” of the two franchises and, really, I use “cool” as more of an insular term, not for actual cool people to use. Featuring tons of space fights, golden-bikini Leia and a wookie, Star Wars is pretty excellent. So it’s no surprise that Abrams has chosen to soften the cerebral tone of the movie in order to show a bit more action and intensity. It works. In fact, surprisingly, Abrams doesn’t even dumb it down. He keeps the somewhat heady story intact while showcasing its astonishing, yet realistic, effects throughout the film. As a longtime (very longtime) fan of the franchise, it’s exciting to see a first-class fight in space.

Star Trek is one of the most brilliant and visually stunning films seen this year. Abrams has not only turned this franchise on its head, he has completely rejuvenated it by effectively killing the series, then rebuilding it. Complete with many nods to history (like a fencing Sulu, earwig creatures, Kobayashi Maru , sayings throughout the history of the original crew), the reboot is also heartbreaking through key plot developments that will leave longtime fans a little irked. It’s no secret that Leonard Nimoy is the lone original cast member to visit the new ship and his appearance, though cool for fans to see and is clearly symbolic, is forced and distracting. Worst of all, it sets up the single worst part of the movie: Zachary Quinto’s Vulcan greeting. Terrible.

Seeing as how a geeky greeting is the only bad aspect of the film, Star Trek is a welcome treat, especially considering Hollywood’s track record when it comes to reboots. This film can easily be placed alongside Batman though Trek may trump it due to its audacious attitude towards its own history.

To sum it up, Star Trek is out of this world.