One of the few sequels that trumps the original, even without Alice Eve stripping down…but it didn’t hurt either
TL;DR
JJ Abrams is one of the great sci-fi minds of our generation. Revamping a fading franchise to a new audience in the best way possible, complete with a perfect cast, amazing special effects and everyone wanting to see what he can do with Star Wars.
Synopsis
After returning home from a mission where Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and the crew of the USS Enterprise once again break the rules, Kirk is left without a ship. Demoted to First Lieutenant, he quickly finds himself in the heat of battle as Starfleet headquarters is attacked. Kirk pleas his case to capture and return the terrorist and fulfill a personal vendetta. He is rewarded reign of the USS Enterprise and must travel deep into Klingon Empire, who are the brink of war with Earth, to retrieve who they believe to be Starfleet agent, John Harrison.
Review
As someone who grew up never knowing there was a Star Trek before The Next Generation, never watching one of the original movies and only sporadically watching the TV show, JJ Abrams has definitely revived the dying series to a new audience. The follow up to the 2009 reboot, Star Trek: Into Darkness has the same phenomenal cast with Chris Pine as Captain Kirk, Zachary Quinto as Spock and Simon Pegg as the lovably Scotty.
I cannot comment on the originality of the new script, but the story was incredibly enjoyable. And even with my small knowledge of the Star Trek franchise I recognized many of the jokes that have become pop culture references.
The new Star Trek is very visually pleasing as well. The 3D element isn’t overwhelming, but the action and special effects are top notch. The scene with Alice Eve is easy on the eyes too (Sidenote: for everyone who has complained about the scene I’m talking about, get off your high horse. It was only for a split second and nerds have been waiting for something like this since Princess Leah was Jaba’s slave).
The last two movies have convinced me that Star Trek is cool. Will I go back and watch the 18 other films? No, although I will be first in line to see the next one and cant wait to see what JJ Abrams has in store for the Star Wars franchise.
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Whoa whoa whoa. Sprinkled throughout your review were some interesting phrases, namely: “fading franchise” and “dying series.” I’m not sure you should be using those terms when discussing Star Trek. That series spawned a lot of movies and TV shows, has a cult following of millions, and is the sci-fi defining series. Ever series that even mentions space travel has to compete with Star Trek. One can almost not even think of the term sci-fi, without thinking about tractor beams, teleporters, shields, phasers, and all the other stuff that is awesome about Trek. Roddenbury’s Utopic vision of the future is one where humanity has put aside it’s petty differences like race and economic power, to explore the unknown and in Kirk’s case, rail the unknown (if you know what i mean).
Personally, I liked the new reboots. I think the actors that JJ, or someone who works for him, picked are darn near perfect for their respective roles. I couldn’t agree more that the movie has all the sleek and stylish looks that we come to expect from any film JJ Abrams touches. The story was good, albeit sort of a mix of two previous Star Trek movies, but good none the less.
I guess the point i am ultimately trying to come to is this: The characters and situations you see in the movie and enjoy so much are from a show that kicks a lot of ass. Abrams made it flashier and brighter, chose the best looking people for the job, and wrote a good story. However neither of the movies would have done anything if the franchise wasn’t alive and well, growing in the hearts of all those who watch the show and movies. All of Trek is literally at your finger tips if you have Netflix, i’d check it out. You might be surprised how much you enjoy it