As I sat in my home town theater, sandwiched between two sisters in their prom best waiting for the midnight showing of Star Trek, the typical happened: technical difficulties delayed our long awaited experience. My sisters, who opted to meet me at the theater instead of attending their after Prom (no contest), leaned over to me and whispered epically, “The calm before the storm”. No truer words have ever been spoken.
Star Trek opens with an action packed star battle with a rogue pack of Romulans (my favorite Star Trek alien race) that brought me right back to the classic shaky camera shots and blaring deck alarms from the series. We watch a fantastically emotional back story about James T. Kirk’s father, mother, and his tragic welcome to the world. After our heart strings were tugged and all systems were set to Trek, we got the ever so familiar theme music and larger than life graphics that welcomed us with open arms. We were involved right away. The possibility for the new Trek to be a let down, however, was high, but the level of expectation from loyal fans left a small margin open for error on J.J. Abram’s part. So, understandably, I waited with baited breath for this night. I was not disappointed.
What Abrams has accomplished is a film that brings back all the old and many beloved characters in a fresh new way that makes the old Trekies smile with nostalgia and, at the same time, ushers in a whole new group of Trek lovers. First timers get to enjoy Bones exclaiming, “Damn it, man. I’m a doctor, not a physicist!” like it was the first time being delivered, while those familiar with the show laugh at the familiar saying. The beautiful thing is that Abrams didn’t have to add anything to create a new generation of followers. It was already there, it just needed the right platform to re-emerge. All of the subtle references to the original series and films are used so perfectly that they don’t drag the plot down just for the sake of the old Trek lovers; they move the plot along. For example, Nero’s usage of the mind control bug from The Wrath of Khan on Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) is a reference to the classic while fitting in seamlessly with the plot. How else is Nero (Eric Bana) going to get Pike to spill the info?
The film is a re-imagining of the franchise. It brings us back to the origins of the well known crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise. The story focuses mainly on the blossoming relationship of a young James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto). It takes place in an alternate universe, which allowed writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman to create a new story without having to worry about being unfaithful to the original. Some of the important plot points are, at first glance, hugely affronting to long time lovers. But they make it very clear in the story that this is a different world, a different dimension, created by the ever popular black hole.
The self-contained plot line made it very easy for new comers to get into the Star Trek swing. The film provided just the right amount of back ground info and character portraits of Kirk and Spock for everyone to enjoy the character interaction along with the action packed intergalactic battles.
The new Trek isn’t about the story so much as the characters. Bringing back Kirk, Spock, Sulu, Scotty, the ever cynical Dr. McCoy, etc., could only have been made possible by the actors who portrayed them. And they did it fantastically. Instead of trying to completely imitate the old characters, they brought out the essence of the particular character. It’s like you’re watching a high school reunion, only before the classmates all new each other. Every time a new character from the old series appears on screen for the first time, you just want to cheer.
Zachary Quinto shows us Spock’s inner struggle with his human and Vulcan sides, his battle with emotion, and his strong love for his mother. His relationship with Uhura (Zoe Saldana) is something newly imagined but plays in well with Spock’s struggle. I wonder how necessary it really was however. Chris Pine slowly evolves as the film progresses into the James T. Kirk that William Shatner so wonderfully created. He best resembles him in the last scene when he steps on the Bridge as Captain of the Enterprise. Simon Pegg’s Scotty is just as lovable as the original, and John Cho and Anton Yelchin are great as Sulu and Chekov, respectively. But for me, Karl Urban as Dr. Leonard ‘Bones’ McCoy really hit the nail on the head. The pronunciation and stressing of his words, along with his body language and facial expressions are dead on. Erica Bana, an old favorite of mine, took delusional vengeance to the next level with his role as Nero, the evil Romulan antagonist set on destroying Spock’s happiness. And, in his spectacular cameo, Leonard Nimoy returned to the character he made his own as Spock Prime. I don’t think you could find one Trek fan that didn’t have a smile on their face when he emerged as Kirk’s savior in the snow cave. Winona Ryder as Amanda Grayson was puzzling, however. All I could think of was her role as the old woman in Edward Scissor Hands.
But I could go on and on forever about J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek and my love for it, but I’m actually off to watch it again. Live long, and prosper!
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