Utterly entertaining action movie, but an odd Star Trek

Rating: 7/10 (23 January 2017)

The last Start Trek movie I watched was about 15 years ago or so, so I watched this one as a stand-alone movie, without knowing what the previous new generation Star Trek films were about or the story was coming from. Well, surprise surprise, the movie was utterly entertaining and engaging. It was so enjoyable that I didn't even check my phone once.
Overall, the story is a deviation from what Star Trek used to be, more a galactic battle than an exploratory trip. The philosophical exploration is almost absent from this film, nothing that makes me ponder, wonder or reflect. And the little thing there, is nothing new, original or worth noting. I didn't mind it because I truly enjoy action Sci-Fi films, and this is a good example of the genre. I liked that there is some sort of exploration of Mr Spok's character, his motives and inner life.
It was great to see a few familiar faces that I always love to see on the screen: 'Robocop' Weller, 'Hot-Fuzz' Pegg, 'Sherlock' Cumberbatch, and all-round-actor Greenwood. Pegg is hilarious as Scotty, and adds the humour and wit that the movie needs. Cumberbatch is perhaps the best of the lot, as the ice-cold intriguing Khan. Zachary Quinto is also good as the robotic not so robotic Mr Spok, and the rest of the cast are all right in their respective roles. There is a great cameo that you don't want to miss if you are a hardcore Star Trek fan.
The production is great regarding interior design, city landscaping, robotics and special effects. Very sleek overall. However, it failed to me in two fronts: the dressing of some of the Enterprise crew, who seemed to be wearing active-wear more than any futuristic clothing. The second, some of the alien characters looked pathetic, like humans wearing rubber masks not real aliens.
There a few things that really annoy me in Science Fiction, because if they are there, I don't think the director, producers or writers are taking the viewers seriously. Science-fiction is fiction, for sure, but there are things that cannot change because, basically, that is impossible, those are the laws of Nature and of the Universe. One of those things is going to a planet called Kronos, which is not in our Galaxy, with a different atmosphere and environment to Planet Earth, and see the characters going out of the spaceship breathing normally. The other is thinking that a person who is exposed, unprotected, to humongous levels of radiation would come alive or could be revived using whatever.
If you don't take the story too seriously, this is a terrific action film with an entertaining story, great wit and visually spectacular.