Captain James T. Kirk does not believe in no-win scenarios. As a cadet at Starfleet Academy, when faced with the Kobayashi Maru simulation, Kirk reprogrammed the test to change its conditions and thus became the first cadet to defeat the Kobayashi Maru. He “cheated” but he received a commendation for original thinking. Star Trek director J.J. Abrams and screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman found themselves in a similar situation. After six films and numerous television spin offs, what more could be done with a franchise whose original characters and cast are beloved, but the lead actors are approaching eighty? Like Captain Kirk, they cheated, but the result is original and thrilling. And, it is well worth the $12.50 ticket price to see Star Trek in an IMAX theater.

Due to a black hole that allows time travel, the course of Star Trek history is forever altered. The scientific details are a bit fuzzy, but we can all empathize with Leonard “Bones” McCoy (Karl Urban) when he exclaims, ‘I’m a doctor, not a physicist.” This device allows us to see how the young crew of the Enterprise first met, in an alternate reality. Any inconsistencies with the original series are explained and a whole new series of films is now possible. Yay!

The film begins with the birth of James T. Kirk, and continues with parallel scenes of Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) growing up, until they both meet at Starfleet Academy, where McCoy is an instructor and Uhura (Zoe Saldana) is also a student. Kirk and Spock take an immediate dislike to each other, and we soon see how the relationship changes and grows. Earth and Vulcan are both in danger from revenge-seeking Romulans, and the Enterprise must be manned with a crew made up of young and inexperienced Starfleet cadets. Let the wild rumpus begin. 

Aside from the compelling relationships between the characters, Star Trek features top-notch action sequences. The hand-to-hand combat by Kirk and Sulu (Jon Cho) is exciting and fun for those familiar with the characters. Simon Pegg is irreverent and reminiscent of James Doohan as Scotty battles with technology in a race against time. The Romulans, led by Nero (Eric Bana), look like they just escaped from a punk rock concert, but are appropriately menacing. While Star Trek fans will love this film, those with only a passing familiarity with the show, or none at all, should find the film’s fast-paced action sequences exciting and the characters compelling. They will not feel left out.

Credit goes to the writers and the actors for retaining the spirit of the original Star Trek characters. The filmmakers infuse the film with humor, while showing great respect for the franchise. Captain Kirk was always a bit of a womanizer (as a child, I watched the reruns every night and the image of William Shatner putting on his black boots while sitting on the bed of the female conquest du jour is permanently tattooed on my brain) and it is seems so right to see young Kirk try to flirt with a young Lt. Uhura. After he correctly identifies her specialty she states, “I’m impressed. For a moment there, I thought you were just a dumb hick, who only has sex with farm animals.” “Well,” Kirk replies, “Not only.”

As a diehard Star Trek fan, I was poised to be critical of these new actors. Instead, I found them quite convincing as the younger selves of the Enterprise crew. Chris Pine looks the way one imagines a young James T. Kirk would look. He has captured the cadence of William Shatner’s (as Kirk) speech and has many of the same mannerisms. Despite his youth, Pine has the commanding demeanor required for the role. Karl Urban gives Dr. McCoy the slight southern accent that DeForest Kelly had and captures much of the spirit of Bones, as he incessantly complains and uses a syringe to emphasize his points. Once I got past the image of Zachary Quinto terrorizing innocent people on Heroes, I saw the he had the same restrained and enigmatic charm that Leonard Nimoy gave to Spock.  

Of course, when Leonard Nimoy appeared on the screen, the patrons at my theater responded with wild applause. The scenes where Nimoy encounters Kirk and a younger Spock are the film’s most emotional scenes for many fans. I would have liked more of them and some cameos by Shatner and others in the old cast. But that is my only complaint about this film.  Thanks to the black hole, future Captain Kirk may not be dead and there are limitless possibilities for future films about the original crew of my cherished Enterprise (NCC -1701).

 When J.J. Abrams and the rest of his team first signed on to do Star Trek, the franchise’s future was uncertain. But after a $76.5 million opening this past weekend, it appears a whole new series of sequels are being planned. In this or any reality, you can find me counting the minutes until the next Star Trek. The adventure continues.

Star Trek.  Directed by J. J. Abrams. With Chris Pine (Kirk), Zachary Quinto (Spock), Leonard Nimoy (Spock Prime), Karl Urban (McCoy), Zoe Saldana (Uhura), Simon Pegg (Scotty), Jon Cho (Sulu) and Eric Bana (Nero).   Paramount Pictures, 2009.

 

Gail sees a movie appears every Wednesday.

Tweet  Print This Post

Tags: Gail sees a movie, movies // 1 Comment »