STAR TREK: SHOOTING BACK INTO ORBIT
May 14th 2009 09:39
Zachary Quinto as Spock and Chris Pine as Kirk in Star Trek.
In the pantheon of sci-fi fan bases, Star Trek lovers are a curious sort. Neither as militant as the petulant Star Wars zealots or as open-minded as peacenik Babylon 5 devotees, Trekkies are applied to their cause, but also understanding of their chosen franchise’s failings. For every great piece of Star Trek history (The Wrath of Khan), there’s also a stinker that balances it out (The Final Frontier), leading to a group of dedicated fans that are always hopeful, but prepared to be acquiescent in the face of a failed jump to warp speed.
So, when it was announced that the silver screen side of the franchise was to be dusted off and rebooted by producers, J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof, excitement was tempered by trepidation and a half expectation that such a film that would jazzily fail to catch what made the original television series and many of the feature spin-offs so special.
It’s a pleasant surprise then that Abrams, Lindelof and their collaborators have nailed Star Trek so convincingly, providing a film that is as dynamic in its approach as it is careful in its respect for the universe in which its story takes place. Not only does the film suck in the casual sci-fi fan, perhaps introducing them for the first time to Kirk, Spock, McCoy and their giant starship, but it also reboots the fans themselves, offering a vivid reminder of what made Star Trek so special in the first place.
Perhaps one of the most audacious aspects of the production is that, much like the recent Casino Royle did with James Bond, it goes back to the beginning, showing the origins of James Kirk, Spock, McCoy and the launch of the U.S.S. Enterprise. James Tiberius Kirk (Chris Pine) is a wild Iowa farm boy whose father sacrificed himself at the helm of a starship to save his escaping crew. Living a life of casual rebellion, Kirk flits about on his motorcycle, either getting into scrapes with the authorities or scraping his knuckles in bar room brawls.
Nevertheless, Kirk backs up his physical abilities with off-the-scale scores in aptitude tests, something that is recognised by Starfleet Captain Pike (Bruce Greenwood), who manages to convince the young man to join Starfleet Academy and, eventually, the crew of the Enterprise. While at Starfleet, Kirk meets and comes into conflict with a brilliant young Vulcan named Spock (Zachary Quinto) and also becomes best friends with a disconsolate doctor, “Bones” McCoy (Karl Urban). The three gifted Starfleeters will soon find themselves serving together on the Enterprise, facing a baptism of fire as Nero (Eric Bana), a myserious Romulan fuelled by a pure vengeance, seems intent on destroying both Vulcan and Earth.
It was perhaps a risk to take the series back to the beginning, but one that pays off spectacularly with the very tight script supplied by Alex Kurtzman and Robert Orci. The duo pulled off a masterstroke by weaving an element of time travelling into the screenplay, which allowed them to fiddle with certain elements of the character back-stories. Like many episodes in Star Trek history, Spock takes the emotional centre stage of the film, his struggle to balance his human traits against his Vulcan logic driving much of the character drama. It’s a clever move, and just one demonstration of the screenwriters’ precise understanding of what makes Star Trek and its characters tick. Kurtzman and Orci also didn’t get sucked into providing the film with too many characters, so while Uhuru, Sulu, Chekov and Scotty are all present, they are relegated very much to the supporting rolls of the original television show.
Rendered on the screen the film looks absolutely stunning, a lean and superbly designed vehicle, much like the freshly commissioned Enterprise itself. The majestic starships have always worked brilliantly on the big screen and it’s no different here, with Kirk’s vessel given the full treatment by its artists and visual effects supervisor, Roger Guyett.
In this respect, Dan Mindel’s cinematography deserves to be praised also, particularly when his choice of shots are often given some surprisingly thoughtful framing. Abrams, as director, shakes things up brilliantly and lends the set pieces a pizzazz that is unmistakably his own, even if he’s sometimes guilty of not providing the geography of a scene before kicking off the action.
The new Enterprise is a stately creation.
Backing up the technical department, the players do a great job, with just about everybody nailing their different parts. Chris Pine looks like Kirk, swaggers like Kirk and manages to the display the character’s sometimes-elusive humility. Quinto is even better as Spock, a role that can perhaps finally be imagined without the spectre of Leonard Nimoy haunting it at every turn. In the smaller parts, all of the actors get their time to shine, with John Cho and Anton Yelchin impressing as helmsmen Checkov and Sulu respectively, and Zoe Saldana’s Uhuru enjoyably more strident and dynamic than the show’s original.
Eclipsing everybody, however, is Karl Urban as Leonard “Bones” McCoy. Even though the ship’s doctor isn’t given quite the prominence he used to share with Kirk and Spock, Urban plays McCoy like it’s what he’s been dreaming of his whole life. It’s great fun watching the franchise’s moral centre berate Kirk and sneer at Spock’s ridiculous adherence to logic.
Elsewhere, Scotty is perhaps a shade too gag-driven as played by Simon Pegg, while Eric Bana inherits one of the screenwriters’ few missteps with the underwritten Nero. The Australian does admirably, looking exceptionally intimidating, but Nero as a character doesn’t have the grit of Ricardo Montalban’s Khan, the franchise’s greatest bad guy.
Regardless of these missteps, Star Trek adds up to be an exceptionally enjoyable experience. While modern filmmaking is guilty of churning out some awful cinema, Abrams and company have illustrated the power of a big studio picture where everybody is seemingly on the same page. The script sometimes walks a tightrope with its time travelling component, but the writers brought home the bacon simply by making characters their focus. Indeed, Star Trek is a great illustration that even in big budget sci-fi films, the plot is simply what happens to the character.
The inventive story is met onscreen by the bewildering technical prowess and some sure-handed direction from J.J. Abrams, who is quickly becoming the go-to guy for big budget action. A fine feature film in just about every respect, Star Trek is sure to draw in a whole new generation of fans, reviving a franchise that just a few years ago looked like it was gone for good.
Check out a trailer for Star Trek below:
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Mountain Fog
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
I've liked everything Abrams has done so far, and looking forward to hearing Michael Giacchino's take on this world sonically speaking too - some great composers in Goldsmith and Horner have produced masterworks for the series in the past.
Comment by Jason King
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The reason why Karl Urban is so good is pretty close to what you say - he was the only Trekkie amongst them prior to shooting.
I hope it's ok - but links to my reviews and interviews with all the lead actors are on www.saltypopcorn.com
The Karl Urban one is a video interview and he talks of his passion with the character.
And as a piece of great news - they are all onboard for the next installment.
Comment by Cibbuano
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Comment by Booby Jobby Jnr
I was confident from the get go with the opening sequence of Kirks dad at the helm, Kirk being born in all the turmoil, and his final words to his wife all seamlessly pieced together with glorious visual effects... edge of your seat stuff and actually caring for those characters, all after only 5minutes of film! Awesome!
I did get a bit worried when the time travel element entered the script because that subject can often go downhill unless carefully prepared. But with J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof (plus Bad Robot) at the helm, i again was confident as i am a bit of a closet "Lost" fan all because they do a great job with the script in that series while using excellent character development to get you right in there, caring for all those involved. I had to turn to my partner (a massive Lost fan) halfway through and comment on Bad Robot being renamed "Bad time travelling Robot". But nothing Bad there, an excellent time had, and I can't wait for the sequel.
Comment by MVD
I've never been a trekkie, but perhaps that very fact is driving my curiosity for this installment. I'll take you on your word that Abrams is the right man for this task. After all, Olivier Megaton was probably available at a deeper discount.
Comment by Lilla
From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
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Beautifully noted and penned.
Agreed. My only complaint (and I know it is an alternate reality and all that) but Kirk eyes were green. Pine should have had contacts.
Again, beautifully noted.
.. and I think I enjoyed your review almost as much as the film itself.
It will be interesting to see what you both do, with the sequel prequel to come.
Lilla ..
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Jason - glad you enjoyed it. Three times?! Holy crap. Enjoyed your review and your ints - I see what you mean about Karl Urban; I don't think I've seen anyone take to a part with such relish in some time.
Cib - yeah, it's that Bad Robot team; they do seem to have a great understanding of what makes the series special. Very clever peeps indeed.
Hey Jnr - thanks for the comment! I too groaned when I started to realise there was some time travelling going on, but they used it well to rewrite some of the Star Trek history, even if it perhaps blunted the bad guy's purpose just a tiny bit.
Mike - yes, Montalban and his Dexys Midnight Runners were a site to behold in Star Trek II. And in my opinion, Megaton would have been much better, simply because he would have chosen to flesh out Nero by providing him with a freestyle BMX - his spaceship is pretty much a skate park.
Lilla - cheers for reading and thanks for your kind comments. Yes, there were a few things they didn't do with Kirk: firstly, they didn't get him into his bright green dress uniform so he could chat up a lady or two; secondly, he didn't get his top ripped. One thing I did notice though: they killed off the (almost) nameless red security guy, just like in the show (nostalgic sigh).
Comment by The wonderful Peter Yang
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Although, Kirk is still really young in this movie. I am especting him only to be only a lieutenant throughout most of the movie and only made Captain in the very end
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Comment by Lilla
From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop
Hahahahaha Matt,
I had mentioned this to Cibb in the leadup to the release in that, I would be most dissapointed if he didn*t have at least one obligatory shirt ripping session with some monster with tea strainer eyes!
I think it was Jason who said I could chill on this score, as Kirk actually got his whole kit off instead . . and, well now that I have seen it ALL; I must say, I prefer the original shirt ripping escapades as they left more to my imagination ~ at least back then when i still had one ~ *chuckle* however, I am with you in that the sequal prequal will need to have a mandatory good shirt ripping scene if it is to succeed. Agreed.
Lilla
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
i am a trek lover who was very skeptical on this one, but came out surprisingly entertained.
if your interested you can read my review HERE
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight