I couldn't help myself.
I simply had to see the new Star Trek movie. I know. I heard all the nasty things the most hardcore of Trekkers were saying about it. Yet I could not keep myself away from the theater on opening day.
My verdict?
For the casual movie-goer, it's a fun little romp through the Alpha Quadrant. Even if you don't know any more about Star Trek than it has someone making gang signs with one hand while saying "Live long and prosper", you can figure most of it out before the end of the first half hour. Simply put, they reintroduce bloody well every character. Every single one of them. You start fresh and new, with only the plot standing in the way, just like any brand-new movie out there.
For the hardcore, I have only one thing to say: A violation of the Temporal Prime Directive is the cheesiest way of doing what J.J. Abrahms did, but it was also the easiest way. And let that be the only plot point that I give away during this review, which makes it very bloody short indeed.
Final score: Shields at 92% and holding, phasers locked and photon torpedoes armed.
2 comments:
Mother's day gift from my son: opening night Star Trek ticket.Star Trek is an important bonding tradition in my family. We enjoyed every delicious moment of action, character resurrection, and "Hey, wait a minute they can't do that!" Star Trek is refitted, refreshed, and redeemed. Kirk saves humanity once again so I can keep on having Trek moments with my children and grandchildren. Sorry about your headache. Mine's about to explode.
It's curious; I've been introducing my thoughts on the new Star Trek with words to the effect of "As a casual fan," or "I'm not a Trekkie, but..." And then my verdict is pretty much the same as yours: Enjoyable, I'm pretty sure I recognize most of those characters from reruns, and oh yeah they did always used to do that toward the end of each episode, didn't they.
What I find curious is that I feel compelled to disclaim any serious attachment to Star Trek and its universe, characters, continuity, etc., because I literally have no idea what the hard core fans---I mean the kind of folks skewered in that Bill Shatner Saturday Night Live skit---think of it. I'm vaguely aware that the plot took liberties with principles that might have been dear to the uncasual fan, but it's almost as if I'm an overcautious British tourist in some eastern country, wondering if the locals would be offended if I asked for tea.
(Word captcha is "beldene," which I recognize only as the principal's name in Saved By the Bell.)
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