A Trip Into Darkness

Rating: 7/10 (7 January 2014)

With "Star Trek Into Darkness" J.J. Abrams directs his second Star Trek movie following Star Trek (2009). In comparison to the first movie it is clearly visible that the crew of the Enterprise now know each other better. In the first movie they had to introduce all characters to each other, explain how everyone got to being aboard Enterprise etc. In this movie this is no longer necessary and the film can therefore concentrate on its plot.
WARNING: SPOILERS! PLOT The plot is definitively more sophisticated than in the first movie. In the first movie a Romulan traveled back through time to revenge on Spock and after the destruction of Vulcan faces Kirk and Enterprise in an epic space battle. Although a similar space battle is also fought in "Into Darkness" this time the storyline is more complex. This time the distinction between good and bad is blurred - in both antagonists (Khan, Admiral Marcus). For example, Khan's motive is not only revenge but also fear for his crew and this is what motivates his actions and lets the viewer sympathize with "the bad guy". Admiral Marcus, in contrast, at first seems like a (slightly) militant Admiral (but not a foe) until it is revealed that he has built a secret starship and wants to apprehend Khan at all cost (e.g. ordering Kirk to fire torpedoes at Khan's location on the Klingon homeworld,and his fight against Enterprise when Kirk doesn't hand over Khan to him).
Although I liked the plot structure in General (Nibiru Mission - assaults on earth - Enterprise's hunt of Khan - and final confrontation with both Khan and Marcus) there were some moments that I didn't like very much.
1) Enterprise hiding under the surface of the ocean on Nibiru - This was simply illogical and only written into the plot because of the "cool" effect of the Enterprise emerging from the water. Why didn't they simply stay in orbit in order to remain undetected by the prewarp civilization? 2) The "Wrath of Khan" reference in the end - When Kirk enters the room with the lethal Radiation in order to get Enterprise's engines back online I already knew that this was meant to be a homage to Star Trek II. The only difference is that in this movie Kirk "dies" and Spock stands at the glasdoor, talking to his captain for the supposedly last time. The dialogue sequence was almost exactly copied from "The Wrath of Khan". It felt like an (over)dramatic broad hint to fans of the "old" movies. A bit less would have been more, at least in this case.
3) Saving Kirk with the superhuman blood of Khan - Of course it was clear that Abrams couldn't let Kirk die (because he's an essential part of the Enterprise crew and because of future movies)but the solution with Khan's blood came a bit too quick. Bones sees the tribble move, and seems to synthesize a cure from Khan's blood without any difficulties.
CHARACTERS KIRK - Kirk has certainly developed since the first movie - he seems a better captain than in the first movie (caring for his Crew, also questioning orders given by superior if they are ethically / morally wrong). However, he still tends to do unnecessary (stupid) things such as hiding Enterprise under the ocean and trashing Khan on Kronos (he should know that this is pointless - it won't bring Admiral Pike back to life)--- good performance by Chris Pine SPOCK - Qunito better adopts Spock's cool logic than in the first movie. Spock reacts rationally but - when Kirk "dies" - he also Shows his human side (much more than the "old" Spock) by crying and furiously shouting a certain name. BUT: When he pursues Khan on earth, he even adopts Kirk's bad thrashing attitude - by beating Khan almost to his death until Uhura stops him.
BONES - Urban Plays Bones both in his traditional grumpy way known from the original series but also with his very own humour.
SCOTTY - Fortunately more involved in the story line and not only as comic relief. He even saves Enterprise by sabotaging Admiral Marcus's ship and helping Kirk to secure the bridge. Nice Scottish Accent by Pegg;-) ADMIRAL MARCUS - good Performance by Weller. However, he somehow diminishes to a secondary antagonist in comparison to Khan.
KHAN - Cumberbatch's charismatic acting really makes Khan the strongest character in the movie. Cumberbatch's voice really sounds very threatening and he masters both emotional scenes (in his cell on Enterprise)and fighting scenes very well. It is great to see Khan as a multidimensional character and not a one-dimensional-revenge character (compare Nero from 2009's Star Trek).
CONCLUSION: 7/10