Star Trek:
James T. Kirk is a young and trouble-making guy from Iowa. He is talked into joining Starfleet by Captain Christopher Pike, who learns he is the son of a Starfleet hero: George Kirk, and he has a genius-level IQ. There he meets Dr. Leonard McCoy (who claims his ex-wife only left him "his bones" in their divorce, which earns him the nickname "Bones"), Nyota Uhura, and a Vulcan named Spock. He eventually is called into action when a time-travelling Romulan named Nero attacks Starfleet ships and Federation-protected planets with a humongous vessel which dwarf many Starfleet ships. He, Uhura, McCoy, and Spock are placed under the command of Pike on the USS Enterprise, along with Pavel Chekov and Hikaru Sulu. Along the way, he also meets Montgomery Scott, a Scottish engineer who has developed a theory of "beaming" (teleporting) someone or something aboard a ship travelling at warp speed. (Kirk, appropriately, nicknames him "Scotty".) When Pike is taken hostage and their back-up fleet is destroyed, the crew must figure out what Nero wants with the Federation planets, where he's from, and how to take down him and his crew of rogue Romulans. Many people were worried when J.J. Abrams (creator of hit TV shows like Lost, Undercovers, and Fringe, director of Mission Impossible III, and producer of Cloverfield) was announced as director of this 2009 reboot. This film, while very entertaining and fun, did alienate Trek fans quite a bit because of the new style it was taking. It takes place in an alternate timeline to relieve itself of continuity conflicts (but still staying true to the original shows and films), it is more of an all-out space adventure (more similar to Star Wars than any of the previous Trek films), and changed a lot of things due to the alternate timeline plot. This does however benefit the film, as it tries something new, and definitely succeeds. It also doesn't alienate the general audience, as if people haven't seen a lot of Star Trek stuff, they wouldn't get the movie if it was full of references, and had to keep with the continuity of the entire Trek franchise and universe. It just wouldn't work out very well. The cast are surprisingly excellent. Chris Pine is James Kirk, and stays true to Shatner from the original series, but also brings something new to the table. He actually isn't Captain for much of the movie, in fact, he's a stowaway who Bones (McCoy) helped on the ship. He brings a lot of energy to the role, and balances being funny and being a bad-ass hero very well. Zachary Quinto (Heroes, American Horror Story) plays Spock. He is presented a challenge: be emotionless (just how Leonard Nimoy was in the original TV show, pulled off perfectly), but also somehow show emotion under the emotionless mask. (Spock is half-human, so he can feel emotion and express it, unlike many Vulcans, who only feel it in the deep subconscious.) Quinto is able to pull it off, and give us a very empathetic Spock, and also is able to make you forget (at least for the moment) there was another Spock. (Nimoy is still the best, though.) Karl Urban (Dredd, Red, Chronicles of Riddick, The Bourne Ultimatum, Lord of the Rings) plays Bones. Urban stated he was happy to get the role, having been in many action films in the years before this, and he wanted to be in a fun action movie, but have a less action-oriented role. Bones is a comic relief character, but also provides sound medical advice, as well as making sure you know that he's a doctor, not a physicist. In all seriousness, Urban pulled off the role really well, and would make DeForest Kelley proud. Eric Bana (an Australian actor known for his roles in Chopper, Hulk, Black Hawk Down, Troy, and Munich) plays the Romulan bad guy, Captain Nero. Funny, the Romulan Empire sounds very similar to the Roman Empire, and Nero was an infamous Roman emperor. But back to Bana, he really pulls off the threatening villain role. Nero is the tormented villain from the future, where he and his crew's home planet Romulus has been destroyed by a supernova. He sort of functions as an anti-hero, as he believes his revenge against Starfleet is the right thing, but that does not make him very sympathetic, as he ruthlessly kills innocent people to get what he wants: revenge on future ambassador Spock. Another funny fact: Bana was praised by Australian critics for his role in the film Romulus, My Father, hmm, Romulus sounds a little familiar. Zoe Saldana has a supporting role as Uhura. She does a really good job, even topping Nichelle Nichols. Look, I know that's gonna upset fan-boys, and they'll say "But Uhura didn't even have that big of a role in the movie!" Yeah, and Nichols didn't do much during her take on the role either. She is a great actress, and gave her all into a small part, but ultimately, Saldana is not the better actress (she is good), but she has the better take on the role because more development was offered in this script than was ever offered to Nichols. Simon Pegg (who appeared with Saldana in 2011's Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol, a J.J. Abrams-produced film, as well as in hits such as Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The Adventures of Tintin) plays Scotty. He has a smaller role here than in the show, but he does get some good moments for the little time he is onscreen (he appears for the last 45-50 minutes of the film). Anton Yelchin (Along Came a Spider, Huff, Fright Night) is good in a supporting role as Chekov, and John Cho of Harold and Kumar fame is good as Sulu, and makes him more of a bad-ass, as in one scene he engages in a fist-fight/sword duel with a Romulan solider. Leonard Nimoy returns in a supporting role as the future Spock. It was really awesome seeing Nimoy passing the role down to Quinto onscreen. I can't believe he's still alive, but I'm thankful for it. Bruce Greenwood (an actor known for his roles in National Treasure: Book of Secrets and as the voice of Batman in Young Justice and Batman: Under the Red Hood) plays Pike, a fatherly figure to Kirk. Rachel Nicols appears as Gaila, an Orion Starfleet member. Chris Hemsworth appears in his fist big role as George Kirk in the film's thrilling opening sequence. Ben Cross and Winona Ryder appear as Spock's parents: Sarek, his Vulcan father, and Amanda Grayson, his human mother. Faran Tahir (Iron Man, Charlie Wilson's War) appears as the captain of the USS Kelvin in the film's opening. Clifton Collins, Jr. plays Ayel, Nero's loyal first officer. Several Trek-related actors and producers make cameos throughout the film, including James Doohan, the original Scotty. Tyler Perry even makes a cameo as the head of the Starfleet Council at the academy in San Francisco. The special effects and makeup are fantastic, really bringing the world of the television show and movies to life. The action sequences are thrilling. The epic space battles and the battles on alien planets are staples of the franchise, and they are done no better than in this movie. (Well, maybe in a few other places they're done equally good.) The soundtrack is excellent as well. The writing in this movie is surprisingly clever, and the plot is pretty complicated for a space adventure movie. Star Trek is one of the few reboots that is on par with the original films. It is a great space adventure and sci-fi epic, and everything is almost perfect. It's exhilarating, funny, in some places touching, and very worthy of the Trek name. Props to you, J.J. Abrams, props to you. 5/5 stars.
Star Trek Into Darkness:
Now that the alternative universe has been set up, it's time that the Enterprise crew faced a real threat. Not saying Nero wasn't one, but after a bombing in London and an attack on Starfleet HQ, the Enterprise crew is assigned to locate and take down Commander John Harrison, a rogue Starfleet agent who knows the ins-and-outs of the organization, and has beamed himself to Kronos, the Klingon home planet to hide and plan his next move. The crew must now track down Harrison, find out what he knows and why he betrayed Starfleet, as well as trying to avoid a confrontation with the already hostile Klingons, and deal with the fact their Warp Drive has malfunctioned in enemy space. But is Harrison what he seems, or is their something more sinister going on?... That's all I'm going into for right now (there's a Spoiler Section After Review if anyone's interested) as I want you to go experience this for yourself. It's one of the best summer blockbusters in years, on par with Iron Man 3, The Avengers, The Dark Knight, and even the 2009 Star Trek. The main cast from the original: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, and Bruce Greenwood are back and better than ever. New additions to the cast include Benedict Cumberbatch (from BBC's hit reimagining Sherlock, as well as Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Fifth Estate, Atonement, The Hobbit, and August: Osage County), Noel Clarke (Doctor Who) Alice Eve (Men in Black III, She's Out of My League), and Peter Weller (Robocop from Robocop, and the voice of Batman in Batman: The Dark Knight Returns). Since I already touched upon the cast from the original in the review above, I will talk about the new guys. Cumberbatch brings new sense of menace to this film with his character John Harrison. He makes an impression on you when you first see him, and you always get a sense of unease when he appears on screen. That's the basis of a great villain. Instant terror builds inside you as you see him. Noel Clarke appears in a small role as Thomas Harewood, who is a Starfleet employee at the opening of the film. Alice Eve is a good actress, but she really doesn't leave an impression. You do remember her going out, but mainly due to her looks. She is a good actress, but anybody really could have played it. She's kind of overshadowed by Cumberbatch, but I did like her in the movie. She appears as supporting character Dr. Carol Marcus. Peter Weller gives a good performance as Starfleet Admiral Alexander Marcus. He's a character that when you leave the theater, you may be divided upon. Voice actor Nolan North (Uncharted, Assassin's Creed, Batman: Arkham series, Hulk Vs. Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions, Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, Call of Duty series, Portal 2, Young Justice, Spec Ops: The Line, The Last of Us, Avengers: EMH, Beware the Batman) and cult actress Heather Langenkamp (A Nightmare on Elm Street) appear in minor roles. Leonard Nimoy appears in a cameo role as the future Spock (Spock Prime) once more. This film is great because it mixes what made the television show great with what made the first movie great. It still has that space adventure style, but it also mixes in a lot of things for fans of the franchise, including some references to some stuff from the series: the tendency for crew members in red shirts to die (Kirk tells security guards who go with him to Kronos to "ditch the red shirts"), McCoy's over-use of metaphors, the furry Tribbles, an infamous villain from one of the movies, the appearance of Klingons, and even a passing mention of the Gorn. The movie also takes tidbits from other sci-fi entertainment, hell, one of the space sequences mimics a scene from the Dead Space games. Speaking of which, the space battles and action sequences are fantastic. The special effects are better than ever, and the makeup effects are great. The film may seem to be just another movie that tries to mimic The Dark Knight Rises or Skyfall, but it's more. It's a very satisfying sci-fi epic, on par with the first film and the original series. Star Trek Into Darkness is a jaw-dropping, fun, action-packed sci-fi adventure film, with clever writing, great acting and characters, fantastic special effects, a clever twist, exhilarating action scenes, some good Trek lore thrown in, a great soundtrack, a satisfying ending, and a compelling story. I'm glad we have one more adventure in this reboot series to look forward to in the next few years, because this was well worth the wait. 5/5 stars.
Notes: In the first film, there is a reference to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, as Nero tortures Pike with the same space slugs, the ones that make people tell the truth, and cause them extreme pain.
Editorial note, July 16, 2013: It has come to my attention I made an error in this review. I was wrong when I said Saldana and Pegg where in Mission Impossible- Ghost Protocol together, it was in fact Paula Patton who was in that film, not Saldana, sorry for the confusion.
(SPOILER SECTION BELOW POSTERS)
(Images: Wikipedia)SPOILER SECTION:
This is a twist which may divide people as Iron Man 3 did, but may not be quite as controversial, but please, I endorse you to see the film and no spoil it for yourself by reading the section below, as you're missing out on something great:
In the middle of the film, while Harrison is on board the ship, it is revealed he and a crew of 72 were frozen for 300 years, and he was awakened by Admiral Marcus. Harrison then reveals that "Commander John Harrison" was merely a fake identity, and his real name is Kahn Noonien Singh, and that he is one of 72 mutants, genetically engineered to be stronger, smarter, faster, and more endurable than most aliens. The film then becomes a clever reimagining of both the classic Star Trek: TOS episode "Space Seed", as well as it's follow-up, the acclaimed Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
Even though Cumberbatch barely resembles the original actor, Ricardo Montalban (now deceased), who portrayed Khan in the television show and movie, he pulls it off, and the twist completely works for the new "alternate reality" film series. One final word: Khaaaaaaaannnnnnn!!!!!!!!! Thank you for reading.
Editorial note, September 15, 2013: I recently purchased the film on Blu-ray, and the guys who wrote the back cover plot summary/teaser spoiled the film's twist. What a croc of shit!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment