Someone needs to slow down the Star Trek

Rating: 5/10 (2 June 2009)

J.J. Abrams' reboot of the Star Trek series is a nice departure from the talkiness and corniness of the previous Star Trek films. Abrams had done a good job of making this Star Trek more exciting, filming more action and less debate about intergalactic policy. Also, the aliens are not men in alien suits (see the original TV. show). The look of the film has been updated to feature sharp white modern architecture and slick costumes. The acting is quite convincing and the cast is new (with the exception of Leonard Nimoy's cameo as future Spock, more on that later). Spock's logical reasoning is balanced nicely with the bluntness of Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and the humor of Scotty (Simon Pegg). The film isn't heavy handed, nor is it philosophical. It's not dark like The Dark Knight; instead it's a pure, feel-good action flick. That's not to say the film is devoid of problems. While J.J. Abrams may have a good sense of visuals, and a better sense of action, his sense of pacing is not as well polished. The opening scene, which sets up Kirk's motivation to join Star Fleet, feels clichéd and odd. The set up is quite familiar; the main character's motivation comes from having recognized their father's sacrifice and the son tries to live up to his father's legacy. The first act, and part of the second act of the film is not that interesting because Abrams spends most of that time introducing us to characters that we know are coming. This problem may be inherent to a franchise reboot (see Batman Begins), but Abrams spends too much time with introductions. It is only the third act that shuffles between the very exciting and the averagely entertaining. In an unexpected turn, romance enter the narrative, and although giving this aspect too much focus would be bad (kudos to Abrams for recognizing this), a certain attraction between two very unexpected characters that is shown but never explained at all, is distracting. Leonard Nimoy makes a cameo appearance as Spock from the future, in a hard to understand turn that seems to function only to solve a plot hole. (His introduction is preceded by a pointless scene of action) Star Trek's real problem is that it keeps the audience at an arm's length. We never really get close with any of the characters and I did not feel any involvement. While the CGI was very well done, the film's glossiness and futuristic feel are alienating to the viewer and the film makes little impression once it's over. Star Trek is no The Dark Night, but it is a mildly satisfying feel-good action film. Star Trek seems geared towards a sequel, and let's hope that J.J. Abrams returns; hopefully he takes a page from Christopher Nolan's book (see The Dark Knight) and not the Wachowski brothers' book (see Matrix Reloaded).