Boldly Going Where We've Been Before.

Rating: 7/10 (14 June 2013)

"Star Trek Into Darkness" (2013), directed by J. J. Abrams, is the second in the rejuvenated Star Trek franchise, following on from the similarly-directed Abrams 2009 entry "Star Trek". The decision to start afresh was a wise decision. Paramount Studios allows new audiences to become enticed with a series that was struggling under the weight of continuity and limp direction.
However, if Abrams seemed like a gust of fresh air in 2009, in 2013 his approach has been disappointingly safe. Instead of striking out for new ways of dealing with Star Trek, he has here relied too much on the tried and tested. Even the exhilarating opening sequence that encompasses fantastic art direction and costume design is actually reminiscent of one of the opening action scenes from Steven Spielberg's "Indiana Jones" series. The cinematography too, by Dan Mindel is excellent, the primary colours of the planet and the multitudes of flashing lights in the otherwise stark interior of the U.S.S. Enterprise stands out beautifully. The striking reds and whites of the opening sequence also help make this one of the best looking major studio films of the year so far.
Yet Abrams handling of characterisation and dialogue is as assured as ever, revealing his training in American television. Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto as Captain James T. Kirk and Commander Spock respectively, enjoy an easy chemistry and banter that the rest of the crew, including Simon Pegg as Scotty and Karl Urban as Bones share. It is these character moments, chiefly in the first half of the film, that are the true highlights. Yet the film, like many other Hollywood blockbusters, is scared to be character-led, and opts for a generic revenge plot that tires itself with actions scenes that quickly lose their vitality and excitement.
Still, Peter Weller is very good in an underwritten role, as is rising star Benedict Cumberbatch as Harrison.
The main problem then, is the script, written by Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof. Not the dialogue, which builds an engaging repartee, but the plot. Action films build towards a climax through constant reversals of fortunes for the protagonists, but here it is all deplorably linear, subplots done away with presumably by the logic it would complicate the film too much. The opposite effect instead occurring: it becomes very simple and straightforward, there being only one genuinely unexpected revelation, which is too little for a movie over two hours long.
Still, "Star Trek Into Darkness" is entertaining, and made with a great deal of professionalism, in particular the special effects by Industrial Light and Magic, and is consistently well-acted and directed. It is just the recurring problem of today's mainstream Hollywood films that most refuse to take chances.