A New Universe, Yes, but at what cost?

Rating: 6/10 (8 May 2009)

There is no doubt that this is a bold telling of the origins of the NCC-1701 and its fledgling crew. And the story is compelling. The acting is very good. There are some details though that really curl my piggy tail. No one, in any universe would believe that Uhura and Spock are romantically involved and that Spock would allow himself PDA on the transporter pad. That's too much by itself. Then we see Kirk attaining the rank of Captain by trickery and the destruction of Spock's self-confidence. Not the way I would have imagined.
I love the assertion that Kirk is a bad boy. That's a given. Spock coming from a planet that is so populated that there is not a square inch of grass is trying. (Where will the combat between Spock and Kirk take place?) The worst is that we're shown that the planet Vulcan is completely destroyed. How many planets of Vulcan can and will there be? Integral to the plot of the movie but its a thumbing of the nose to the Star Trek universe that we've loved and respected for over 40 years. Creating a universe from scratch can be a real chore but it can be a curse. If you're gonna throw the baby out with the bath water (replacing long held Trek dogma for that which looks good on film) is not honorable. It becomes like the lie that covers the next lie.
I think the real treasure in this film was Checkov. He was simply adorable and a real treat. A real surprise. Who knew he was so good at math and so confident at Public Addresses.
Normally, seeing Leonard Nimoy is a rare privilege but he says his lines so drolly and so robotlike its hard to take him seriously. Also, no insult intended but he looks every day of his 78 years. He looks very old and very frail.
Finally, the movie is so busy, there's little time to enjoy the intricacies of the characters or the increasingly complicated plot.
Many things could have been done better. Many things were done well. A good introduction for Abrams into the Star Trek universe. At least his own.