Alive and well: the Enterprise and everything else

Rating: Null/10 (9 June 2009)

It's about time. Just about everybody who's worth his salt (and even some who isn't) has got a "begins" - Batman, Logan, Agent 007, Lycans and Vampires, even John Connor in a temporal-reversal style. Kirk, Spock and company may be coming lately, but they did it with a bang!
The Enterprise nobody dares to touch but everything else and everyone got revitalized, delightfully. Between Sherlock Holmes logic (after eliminating all other possibilities, whatever remains, however improbable, is the truth) and Asimov science facts (singularity, supernova, black hole), young Kirk and young Spock bring a new life to the franchise, a 21st century vitality. The dialogue, even if you have reservation in describing as "intelligent", is far from being dumb and clueless as you find in many other movies in the genre. For example, in the Spock-to-Spock scene (I'll come back to it), old Spock's farewell is "Good luck", as he explains that he doesn't to self-indulgent and self-serving. You'll smile when you remember that earlier in the movie, a piece of information has been imparted to you twice: the customary parting words between two Vulcans are "Live long, and prosper".
While there is the currently fashionable temporal juggling and alternate life-line elements (just seen in "Terminator: Salvation), the main plot line is actually quite simple – evil Captain Nero's plan to destroy Vulcan, then Earth, through planting certain "red matters" (using a most hideous-looking set piece you've ever seen – a drill that looks like a spine torn our from a ghastly prehistoric monster) to induce the formation of a black hole (a nice mix of science fiction and science fact). That provides necessary ground for some excellent special effect as well as cliff-hanging action (from lazar shootout to sabre duel).
The real fun, however, is in watching how the familiar characters have been revitalized, to what they are in their youthful days. The main event is of course the double-flip yin-and-yang relationship between Kirk and Spock, from rivalry to friendship. The ultimate irony is that stoic, logical Vulcan Spock ends up resigning his command of the Enterprise from being "emotionally compromised". Chris Pine, coming off an impressive performance in "Bottle shock" (2008), bring the same youthful rebellion to give the audience a Jim Kirk that they can root for, and follow (to new Star Trek 12, presumably). Veteran TV star Zachary Quinto (special "Heroes"), while not immediately becoming a Nimoy (let's be fair – who can?), shows promises that he'll bring a new presence into Spock as he goes along.
But it's not just those two. Beautiful Zoe Saldana ("The Terminal" (2004) and "Vantage point" (2008)) is a welcomed Uhura. Karl Urban, best remembered to me as Eomer (LOTR), is immediately convincing as Bones. John Cho and Anton Yelchin fill their respective niches as Sulu and Chekov admirably, and you may remember Yelchin, if you have seen "Terminator: Salvation" recently, as John Connor's father Kyle Reese as a teenager (sans Russian accent, of course). Last, but not least, is one of today's best British comedy actors Simon Pegg playing Scotty.
Just to start this new franchise and probably not coming back are Brice Greenwood and Eric Bana, symbolizing good and evil. Last, but not least, is he who re-defines the word "icon" – Leonard Nimoy, playing an old Spock appearing from out of a time warp (or some such thing), hence the Spock-to-Spock scene refereed to earlier. Just to see Mr. Nimoy is worth the ticket price. Bring them on....all the way new Star Trek 12.....we are waiting.