Let me first start out by saying the following – I have never ever been remotely interested in anything concerning Star Trek – I thought the original 60s series was dorky and humdrum, and that there was no possible way for me to even stay awake through one episode without immersing myself in a bucket of ice every 5 minutes. I’ve never been intrigued by any of the Star Trek spin-off series either; in fact, I usually detect a yawn building up at the sight of moderately fit actors in drab one-piece outfits exchanging tech lingo with one another while occasionally flinging out their VCR remote-looking phasers to stun a cheaply-costumed alien. As much of an entertainment geek I already am, Star Trek has been the epitome of all that is “geek” and I’ve continued to avoid this epidemic at all costs…that was before I was enlightened by J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek”.
J.J. Abrams is a man who has been gifted with producing quality entertainment that rarely, if ever, ceases to live up to its promise. With successful television shows like Alias, Lost, and Fringe under his belt, it is without question that Abrams knows exactly what he’s doing in his projects. Screenwriting duo, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, are a force to be reckoned with as well, having written and produced along with Abrams on a number of projects. Together, this is a powerhouse team that serves as a benchmark for what good filmmaking should be today.
What Abrams, Orci, and Kurtzman do right with this picture is that they plunge deep into the Star Trek universe and pull you in with them for the ride. From what little I knew of “Star Trek”, I felt like this was a mythology that I truly wanted to immerse myself in and explore afterwards. What really caught my attention that I never realized from the original series, was how layered and original each and every member of the U.S.S. Enterprise crew was. I was particularly impressed by how strongly developed the characters were, considering the handful that Orci and Kurtzman had to juggle through.
In the beginning of the film, we witness the birth of James Tiberius Kirk in the midst of a space battle between the U.S.S. Kelvin and the Romulan armada led by the lead villain called Nero. Kirk grows up from being a rebellious young boy speeding down a lone Iowa highway, to an arrogant mid 20s drifter philandering with future crew member, Uhura, and picking bar fights with members of the Starfleet Academy. He finally receives a wake-up call to join Starfleet from U.S.S. Enterprise Captain Christopher Pike, who is aware of Kirk’s potential. At the same time, we are introduced to a young Spock on the planet Vulcan, as he is bullied by the school kids for his half-human, half-Vulcan heritage. Growing up, he continues to be discriminated by members of an academic council from whom he seeks to become a scientist. Spock consults his human mother on his identity crisis and eventually chooses to enlist in Starfleet. The budding friendship between Kirk and Spock becomes a continued theme and a powerful focus of the story, as the two don’t exactly start out on good terms. This friendship is eventually fortified by the momentous appearance of a pointy-eared “Star Trek” veteran, which we’ll return to later.
Throughout the first half of the film, we come to meet the rest of the crew members such as Dr. Leonary McCoy, Nyota Uhura, Hikaru Sulu, Pavel Chekov, and Montgomery Scott. What I found incredibly impressive here was that each of these characters is so well-developed and all have their shining moments in the film. Orci and Kurtzman really dug deep into their distinct personalities and conveyed them in a way that even a former anti-Trekkie like myself began to embrace all of them. Teamwork was a crucial aspect with this movie. Whether we’re talking about the production crew behind it or with the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise, you knew that every individual played a key, essential role into driving the story forward and producing a winning end result. The only character that I felt needed a little more development was Nyota Uhura. While she did have plenty of screentime, you really don’t see her as a relevant contribution to the crew besides a love interest for Spock. Other than that, these characters will grow on you and you will not be disappointed.
The interesting concept behind this story is that it actually exists in an alternate reality, as opposed to what we have come to believe from the 60s series. Correct me if I’m wrong about the mythology, but in this story, Kirk grows up fatherless, him and Spock are more like rivals than friends, and Spock is appointed by Christopher Pike as Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise. The gist of the story is basically this (SPOILERS AHEAD): Several years into the future, an elderly Spock (Leonard Nimoy) discovers that Vulcan, his home planet, is on the verge of being swallowed up by a star. He develops a substance called Red Matter that when released, creates a black hole swallowing anything within its reaches. Spock tosses a canister of red matter into the star, which not only swallows up the star, but also the planet Vulcan. An enraged Nero discovers the destruction of his home planet, captures Spock, and time travels 130 years back in time. He sends Spock onto an abandoned ice-cold planet and seeks to destroy all of Starfleet, by dropping the Red Matter into planet Earth. Meanwhile, Spock and Kirk’s disagreements causes Kirk to be exiled to the ice planet where elderly Spock now resides. The rest of the story continues with elderly Spock motivating Kirk to make things right between him and young Spock, as Kirk takes command of the U.S.S. Enterprise as Captain, and brings an end to Nero’s plot.
I thought the story was a great way to reimagine the world of “Star Trek” from a different angle while remaining an honorable homage to the original series. Leonard Nimoy actually appeared more than I initially expected in the film and it was a joy to see how brilliantly crucial his role was to the story, rather than simply being a 30-second cameo. The on-screen chemistry he has with “certain” crew members is amazing and you simply get that warm, nostalgic feeling once you see him return as Spock. Once again, I’m speaking from the perspective of someone who was never a fan of “Star Trek” in the first place, so I can imagine how much more of a marvel it was to see all these characters so respectably portrayed back on the big screen. What is so well-done with this film overall is that it manages to attract all types of audiences without having to compromise the source material. Poignant lines that most audiences will even remotely recognize like “Live long and prosper”, “Beam me up, Scotty”, and “Space, the final frontier…” are referenced throughout, reminding us of how significant and widespread this pop culture franchise really has been for many of us over the past half century.
What I realized while watching “Star Trek” was that while there was a good amount of thrilling action sequences, this was a film that was truly invested in the characters. It’s now no wonder that I never liked the series as a kid in the first place as I was always expecting an explosive intergalactic battle like a scene from “Star Wars”. Therefore, “Star Trek” does have a few less epic moments for exposition purposes and there are times where the action feels a little more intense than it should. For example, Scotty is accidentally beamed into a water duct in the U.S.S. Enterprise as Kirk tries to get him out before he’s channeled towards a spinning blade mechanism. There’s also an exhilarating fight scene that takes place between Kirk and Sulu, and two or three of Nero’s men on top of a giant drilling rig. Make no mistake, this is a great scene that serves as one of the peak developing moments for Sulu, but the two of them fighting against two or three men? I think Sulu could have handled way more than that with his swordfighting skills (one of few attributes I know about the characters). As for comic relief, the humor bits are executed nicely and you knew that writers Orci and Kurtzman were taking the film seriously, but not too seriously, especially with the stoical Vulcan nature and Spock’s steadfast, logic-driven dispostion.
For all those wondering why I haven’t addressed this supposed “sex scene” that geeks seem to be looking forward to drool over (you know who you are), let me clear this up for you. There is no sex scene, but rather simply a scene where Kirk, dressed down to his boxers, lays in bed on top of some green-skinned girl with gold lips (an Orion – thanks to Google for that) as they intimately feel each other. 15 seconds later, Kirk hides under the bed as her roommate, Uhura walks in. End of story. Let’s move on.
“Star Trek” is a beautifully crafted, well-executed film, driven by richly-developed characters and bolstered by a fresh, engaging storyline. While certain characters seem to stand less prominently than they should, Orci and Kurtzman have made an impressive and valiant effort into bringing the legendary crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise onto the big screen. Action sequences are well-balanced with exposition and drama, as Abrams kicks the suspense factor up a notch while preserving the tones and themes that have made “Star Trek” as uniquely memorable as it has become.
AW Movies Rating: A-
*The chances are, after you watch this film, you will want to explore these characters even further by digging up the classic episodes from the 60s series. I for one certainly do. CBS.com currently has the entire series available for free viewing on their website at the following url: http://www.cbs.com/classics/star_trek/. Live long and prosper.
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