Mr. Sulu, take us to the sequel

Rating: 9/10 (8 May 2009)

Java Man Reviews "Star Trek" Originally appeared in LakewoodBuzz.com May, 2009.
OVERVIEW:
J. J. Abrams and his film-making team have taken the legendary Star Trek franchise back to its origins, to a point even before the TV series had its debut in 1966. Like James Bond and Casino Royale, the narrative reveals how familiar characters were forged by the fires of experience. For example, Kirk (Pine) began as a rebellious Iowa farm boy, Spock (Quinto) a conflicted (and emotional!) half-breed, Uhura (Saldana) a linguistic genius, and McCoy (Urban) a divorced intern who was left with nothing but his bones. Chekov, Sulu and Scotty (Yelchin, Cho & Pegg) also have intriguing back stories that plausibly project into the characters we remember from the series.
After some initial rough going, including a bitter rivalry between Spock and Kirk, the crew eventually finds itself on board the Enterprise in hot pursuit of the Romulan villain, Nero (Bana), who is destroying Federation planets in revenge for his own planet's demise. Nero is from another time, and his nemesis is a future version of Spock (Nimoy). By the end of the action, the familiar scene is set, as Kirk and his crew return to the voyages of the Starship Enterprise.
REVIEW: 3 1/2 out of 4 Java Mugs
When Gene Roddenberry introduced Star Trek TV series over 40 years ago, he created a universe full of fascinating characters and situations, along with lots of action and adventure. He also mixed in imaginative ideas about literature, religion, philosophy, and what it is to be human (or any other life form). For fans of the series, the characters he created are indelible. What this film is tasked with doing is to recreate these characters with a new generation of actors, each of whom must channel their originals in such a way that fans find it plausible. (Yeah, that could be James T. Kirk, as a preteen leading an Iowa state trooper on a merry chase in a "borrowed" corvette.)
Though the appearance of Nimoy as the elder Spock does help tie the generations together, it will take the next edition of the series before we find out how well the filmmakers have done. Will the writing and characterization rise to the level of Roddenberry's genius? We can only hope.
For non-Trekkies and Star Wars fans, there is plenty for you too. The film holds up quite well as a Sci-Fi thriller with a warp-speed storyline, a suitably sinister villain, stunning visuals, lots of attractive future stars and not a few laughs.
Mr. Sulu, take us to the sequel.