Live Long and Prosper? – it’s off to a good start.
You’ve heard of Star Trek. Whether you’re a die-hard Trekkie/er, a casual fan or even if you hate sci-fi, you know what Star Trek is.
And J.J Abrams knows that you know. And its from this starting point that he has successfully managed to breathe new life yet again into the seemingly deathproof franchise that started out as a low-budget, big ideas TV show over 40 years ago.
Let’s start again – at the beginning.
Much like the spin-off series Enterprise, (2001 – 2005) Star Trek is set during the early days of the Federation. To be more precise, at the very beginning (actually, even earlier still) of Captain Jim Tiberius Kirk’s life. After a very effective big bang introduction to the Trek universe things take on a slower approach, lovingly (re)introducing characters through their respective starts as cadets of the Federation. Abrams has openly admitted to not being a hugh fan of the series but he has clearly fallen for it at some point during the production process because it quickly becomes obvious that he cares a great deal for these characters.
From the sumptuous effects and set design down to the casting itself – Star Trek manages to bring things very much up to date whilst being entirely respectful to what has gone before.
Everything you want and a little bit more.
From the uniforms to the phasers, from the ‘beam me ups’ to the captain’s chair – it’s all here. Just a little bit different. Almost without exception everything has been given an overhaul to some degree but nothing has been radicalised to the point that fans will have any genuine reason to grumble. Of course, you’ll never please all the people all the time. But fans should take heart, given the glut of truly awful remakes, re-imaginings and reduxes of late, it could have all gone so wrong.
But it hasn’t. The story itself is decent enough, revolving around the vengeful Romulan Nero (Eric Banna) seeking revenge for the losses he has endured at the hands of the Federation (in his mind at least). And inevitably, it falls to the young Enterprise crew (with a few helping hands) to save the day. To be honest, not too much more can be elaborated on plot-wise without spoiling things too much. However, I will say this: It is a bit of shame that once again the plot includes (the now seemingly obligatory) time travel twists. Surely, with a universe as rich as Trek’s, it would be possible to write a decent storyline where time travel of any fashion is not required?
Suffice it to say, this minor niggle aside it’s still an enjoyable tale with the right blend of old and new. And for the fans, there are enough references to names, places and events to keep you happily smug. For complete newcomers it’s an entertaining romp with great action scenes and a decent enough story. although you may feel slightly lost during the 3rd (and weakest) act.
The only real mis-step is, I’m sorry to say, Simon Pegg as Scotty. Here (as was the case in MI3) his sole purpose is to provide the comic relief. He fails. His character feels forced and unnecessary and actually jars with the rest of the film. Thankfully, his scenes are limited in number and so cause no real lasting damage to the overall film but it is a surprising error in judgement on the part of both the writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman as well as Adrams himself. As for the remainder of the cast Chris Pine is well suited to the role of young Kirk. He brings the right blend of machismo and street smarts without appearing obnoxious. As for Spock – Zachary Quinto is pretty much perfect. He certainly looks the part and finds the perfect tone – you’ll have no problem believing he’s the young Leonard Nimoy (you’ll see). Given that the original series relied so heavily on the chemistry between Kirk and Spock and their ying yang-like kinship, it’s very pleasing to see this relationship blossom and both actors, to their credit, pull it off completely. Rounding out the cast are Karl Urban as the always gruff Dr. ‘Bones (good), Zoe Saldana as Uhura (both pretty and suitably fiesty), John Cho bringing ‘cool’ to Sulu and Anton Yelchin as the very young Chekov. Bana makes a workmanlike baddie but in his defence, there’s not actually a great deal of depth to bring to his role as Nero other than to snarl and look broody.
All in all, this is a very solid starting point for a whole new series of Star Trek. It proves that ‘re-boots’ can, given the right amount of care and attention work.
Grittier, darker but still very much true Trek, this really is the Next Generation. Long may it live. And prosper.