A Solid Prequel

Rating: 7/10 (9 May 2009)

The eagerly anticipated reboot of the the Star Trek series finally has arrived with (technically the 11th film in the series) the self titled Star Trek by the popular new action/drama wunderkind JJ Abrams at the helm. In full disclosure I need to point out that I have been a huge Star Trek fan (mainly Next Generation) for a long time. When I heard they wanted to give a much needed jump start to the franchise by making a prequel, I was skeptical. I mean, c'mon, do we really need to see a movie of Kirk and Spock Go to Starfleet. But, for all intent and purpose, JJ Abrams has done a pretty good job of making a younger, slicker and action packed Star Trek that introduces us to the beloved characters that have been satirized and joked about for decades.
The film straddles the two worlds of hardcore Trekkies and non Trekkies alike by exploring the origins of the two main characters...James Tiberius Kirk and a half human/half Vulcan named Spock. Unbeknown to them, they share a common bond of family tragedy in their lives. We meet them both as precocious children in their own right. The rebellious Kirk and the ever logical Spock. But, what I liked is they give Spock more freedom of expression than what we would see in the original series and the subsequent first 6 films. Mercifully, we are quickly taken through their days of Star Fleet and how they came to join the Academy. Their paths of getting there were similar in its guise and it is here that we also are introduced to Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy who quickly befriends Kirk. All this while, the evil Captain Nero of the enemy Romulans is wrecking havoc on the galaxy and it is up to our young and inexperienced heroes traveling in the newly christened Enterprise to save the day, which you know they will...it's Star Trek.
Before I get into what is good about the film let me say what I didn't like about it. Aside from the usual predictability and necessary suspension of disbelief. I was not at all interested in the evil Romulan threat, it wasn't interesting enough. And of course, in Star Trek world, when in doubt throw in a time travel plot line. I also felt JJ rushed through the introductions of the characters and giving some of them like McCoy cute dialogue that is representative of how we have come to know these characters in the past. The climax was also quick and clean, without any real suspense. I'll get into the acting soon enough. What I liked about the film was the special effects were fantastic, seeing Leonard Nimoy again as Spock. He certainly still remembers the characterization very well. Trekkies will love bringing in Captain Pike but he seemed to be an afterthought once we are settled on to the Enterprise As for the acting. First of all, before I get slammed with angry messages, let me just say that Star Trek is not a story that demands stellar acting. However, as an actor, good work is demanded of you at all times to make the story truthful. Chris Pine who portrays the iconic James T Kirk grows on you. He embody's the characteristics we know about Kirk, a horny, rebel who plays by his own rules. But, except for one occasion he made Kirk his own with no trace of William Shatner and I applaud him for that. Zachary Quinto (Sylar from Heroes) brought emotional depth underneath all that logic and I thought he was the best of them all. The great Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead himself) was pretty funny as Scotty and I welcomed his comic relief. As for Karl Urban as McCoy. He was highly irritating. He essentially mimicked DeForest Kelley's work as McCoy and although you hear imitation is the finest form of flattery, it's not in this case. Create your own character. Same goes for Anton Yelchin as Chekov, he just mimicked. Walter Koenig. Some found it cute. I didn't. John Cho did a decent job as Sulu, we certainly see a new side of him. Zoe Saldana as Uhura also decided to create her own character and even though she is essentially filler, she made the most of her scenes. There is an interesting twist to her love life from the original series that's for sure. Finally, Eric Bana as Captain Nero was boring and completely devoid of interest for me. He was indicating badly to the point of annoyance. Great Star Trek villains like Ricardo Montelban as Khan, Christopher Plummer as General Chang and Alice Krige as the Borg Queen all made me feel something about who they are and the reasons why they did what they did. I hope JJ takes note of that in the next one.
Overall, Star Trek is entertaining with all it's faults (there are gaps in the writing). I would rate it the 4th best in the film series. It's not a great film but it exceeded my expectations. As far as prequels go, this was one of the better ones I've seen. Yes, it's is even better than Star Wars Episode 1. However, I would recommend in the sequel that JJ take his time and not rush through sequences and make the villains have more depth. I give Star Trek 3 stars and is out now in a theater near you.