Shall we begin?
The
actors from the first movie reprise their roles: Chris Pine as Kirk, Zachary
Quinto as Spock, Zoe Saldana as Uhura, Karl Urban as Bones, and so on. The story revolves around the crew of the
Enterprise as they travel and explore the last known frontier—space. His position threatened by his antics and
lack of respect for rules and command, Captain Kirk must learn to put personal
feelings aside when an enemy emerges from the midst of their own organization,
Starfleet. He is placed at the head of
an important mission to hunt down this new terror, a one-man weapon of mass
destruction named John Harrison.
When
the first trailers released for this sequel, my interests were extremely piqued
by the reveal of Benedict Cumberbatch as the antagonist. Seeing him in the BBC television series of Sherlock, I knew he was going to
dominate in this role. The trailer was a
little misleading on how prominent his character was going to play in the plot,
but it served in making events a tad unpredictable during the movie’s course.
The
acting was surprisingly good for what this movie is—a sci-fi action flick with
some layers to its characters and story.
CGI is not overbearing in this and is blended very nicely. Dialogue is convincing, and dramatic scenes
are effective in pulling on the viewer’s different emotions. A couple lines came off as incredibly forced—particularly
an iconic scream from one of the previous Star Trek movies. It was too tacked on for the main purpose of
fan service. A few actors felt throwaway
as well, as in any average person in Hollywood could have replaced them and the
movie wouldn’t have been any worse for it.
Nonetheless, there were a couple scenes that actually made me kind of
sad. In certain instances, it hit me
where it hurt, and I was sucked into the moment. I got attached to characters and their inner
and outer struggles to do what’s right.
The
darker, more serious tone that is set about 10 minutes into the film was
something I loved. I was genuinely
surprised by the twists and turns of the story.
The modified versions and references to the old Star Trek characters and
universe that I could recognize were interesting. The overall pacing felt consistent—not too drawn
out or too slow—which is a great thing to accomplish for a film longer than two
hours. It was easy for me to settle into
the story’s flow and be carried along for the ride. The ending and the wrap-up to all the events
may be quick, but I don’t consider it a negative aspect. The wrap-up was short and sweet; time has
passed and things are moving on. It’s
how I imagine a Star Trek episode or movie is supposed to end.
Also,
this might be my inner fangirl coming out again, but Benedict Cumberbatch
managed to steal every scene he was in. If
he had more screen time, even just to stand around and talk cool, I wouldn’t
have complained. It was fascinating how
the writers kept me second guessing myself about his character’s
alliances. The viewer obviously gets
this intimidating air from him, setting off alarm bells that warn you not to
trust the guy. However, the intricacies
of his mind and how it works are on full display as the movie progresses. The saying “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”
has a huge presence in this, and the story takes this faulty motto to its
logical conclusion many times.
One
element that had me moaning in disdain and cradling my head in shame was a “fix-all”
item being introduced at one point. I
understand that this is the Star Trek universe where space magic and seemingly
miraculous happenings can occur and are allowed. In addition, I hadn’t known that another
installment was already planned. It makes
sense that they needed to do what they did to have any chance of continuance. But then again, I find such things cheap in
terms of writing. It collapses the
entire emotional impact for me, causing the majority of the ending to lose all
seriousness. I’m not exceedingly enraged
by the move; I didn’t prefer it, but it’s something I can let roll off my
back. In other words, it doesn’t stop me
from still acknowledging that this was a great, entertaining movie. It had layers, it had believable character
development, and it had awesome science fiction setup. It’s definitely something a fan of the first
movie or old TV series should give a try.
I think people who enjoy sci-fi films in general would also get a kick
out of this.
So,
get the popcorn ready and make an evening of it.
Rating: Watch it
*images from IMDb and Google Images
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