Big, fun, entertaining - has it all and more

Rating: 8/10 (9 May 2009)

I think that the major reason the film is so good, enjoyable and successful, is because it manages to achieve something that few summer blockbusters manage to achieve, except for the few occasional exceptions, such as Iron Man last summer and Transformers the summer before that: Abrams' Star Trek is not afraid of comedy. Sure, it delivers in all the other facets that summer blockbusters are expected to deliver in – top-notch special effects, breathtaking set pieces and thrilling, heart-pounding action scenes – but where Star Trek succeeds where few other summer blockbusters do is that for every tense, high-octane action set piece, there is also a loose, relaxed and absolutely laugh-out-loud hilarious scene to go with it. I don't think it's coincidental that this film was written by the same screen writing duo that wrote Transformers a couple of years back, as they injected that film with a lot of intentional comedy as well. And yet, just as the likes of Shia LaBeouf, Anthony Anderson and John Turturro carried and delivered much of the comedy in Transformers, I believe that much of the comedic success of Star Trek lies on the cast.
And a truly wonderful cast it is – and an eclectic one at that. Looking over the cast list, one might wonder what all these actors have to do with one another – I mean who thought he'd ever see Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, Eric Bana, Winona Ryder and Leonard Nemoy in the same movie together? And yet, it works, and be it a testament to J.J. Abrams' directorial chops or the actors' own skills, the cast members all have truly great chemistry with one another. The film will undoubtedly make stars of Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto, both of whom prove quite impressive skills in the film. The dynamic between their characters is crucial to the film and really builds its emotional backbone, and it could have easily been a hit-and-miss thing had Abrams made the wrong casting choices. Luckily, he took two genuine talents, both of which play their well-defined characters quite well, nailing all of their personality quirks and mannerisms and truly embodying their characters. That said, the most entertaining performances derive from the supporting characters, and a few actors in particular totally steal the show from the otherwise first-rate cast. First up is Eric Bana, who delivers a particularly juicy, scenery-chewing performance as Nero, the film's villain. Next we have young Anton Yelchin, who delivers what is probably the second funniest and most enjoyable performance of the whole lot, truly nailing the quirky mannerisms of his character. But the scene-stealing crown belongs undeniably to Simon Pegg, who is an inherently funny guy as it is, but with a thick Scottish drawl, manages to be even more so than usual.
One cannot discuss a major science fiction-action epic such as this without mentioning its technical aspects, specifically its special effects. Based on this movie and also the apparent quality of the special effects work as seen in the trailers for some other upcoming summer blockbusters, namely Terminator Salvation, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, it seems like 20 years after The Abyss, CGI imagery has finally reached its peak. The quality of these effects has been quite varied these past few years – for every Transformers and Harry Potter there's a Spiderman or a Star Wars prequel – but with Star Trek at least, nothing can really be said about the CGI other than that ILM and Digital Domain did a fantastic job and that the effects look 100% real and convincing. The spaceships are sleek and shiny, environment extensions are completely seamless, and the adrenaline-pumping space battles are dynamic and exciting – all CGI. Luckily, though, Abrams did not follow in many of his mentors' footsteps, and still managed to show an appreciation of real, practical sets, instead of setting his film in entirely CGI environments. Also worth mentioning is the simply fantastic sound design and editing by Ben Burtt, who was robbed of a pair of Oscars in the sound categories at the Academy Awards last year for his unparalleled work in WALL-E, but who hopefully will get his due this year come the Oscars.
I wanted a no-holds-barred, hits-the-ground-running, pure and untainted summer blockbuster entertainment, and an entertainment I did receive. J.J. Abrams has this uncanny ability of knowing just what his audience wants to see, and delivering something even better. Although not really a re-boot as it retains much from its original source material both in terms of the content and characters but also because the plot actually manages to integrate it into the continuity of the show, this Star Trek movie still does deviate greatly from its campy roots, and is very much a completely and utterly modern, up-to-date work of science fiction. The action is bigger and better, the effects work is remarkable, the design, look and feel of this well-established world is all updated to meet the most current standards, and the characters and film itself all have a certain manner and attitude that wholly defines our era. Big explosions, impressive visuals, space battles, thrills, excitement, edge-of-your seat tension – Abrams' latest summer blockbuster has it all and more, and all that, added together with some really hilarious (and frequent) comic relief and some great performances and character dynamics and chemistry, serves to deliver a great summer entertainment, just a genuinely fun time at the movies and an early candidate for the title of best film of the summer