Film Review: Star Trek

The Star Trek television series is one of the classics in American entertainment, and has one of the most loyal fanbases to prove it. The recent film directed by J.J Abrams entertains both lifelong Trekkies as well as those unfamiliar with the series.

In our culture today I doubt anyone has not heard of Star Trek. Perhaps Star Wars is more widely accepted, but both stand as the most famous pieces of science fiction our country has to offer. I never watched Star Trek the series. Other than maybe five minutes here or there while flipping through channels, I have no knowledge about the series.

But I suppose that is not entirely true. Star Trek has put so many words into the English lexicon that most people know them without ever watching the series. I cannot imagine someone getting through middle/high school without hearing “Set phasors to stun” or “Beam me up, Scottie!”. There are many examples that demonstrate how someone like myself could have a basic knowledge of Star Trek without ever watching an episode or film.

The new Star Trek film has a fantastic trailer that grabbed my interest even though I had no history with the franchise. The modernized franchise reboot is very much en vogue right now, with Batman Begins and Casino Royale being the two prime examples. Star Trek takes a similar approach and offers an origin story of the U.S.S. Enterprise and its crew.

The brilliance of the move is that director J.J. Abrams has taken a franchise with a long, rich history and made it accessible to the masses. Many of the references are simple enough that I caught them, though I am sure there are plenty that I missed. Star Trek also is exciting for longtime fans, judging from the amount of clapping and cheering I observed from Trekkies when in the theater. Pleasing both crowds is no easy task, but Star Trek seems to pull it off.

It stands on its own as a great sci-fi action film too. What I loved about Star Trek was that there was never a dull moment. Either the story was progressing, or the action was going all-out. It is an exciting combination of intriguing plot and spaceship battles.

The characters are superb. The drama between the characters and the way they develop through the movie are both excellent. I do question some of the acting choices for the supporting cast, but the magnificent performances of Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) overshadow that. Both their individual performances and their chemistry together powers a lot of Star Trek.

If you like science fiction, you will enjoy the plot. Know that it is definitely a pay-attention-or-else situation. At some points it was a bit hard to follow, but overall it is very enjoyable. Star Trek combines sci-fi with summer blockbuster (and plenty of lens flares). It is a great summer movie, and a great example of science fiction done in a way that can appeal to all types of moviegoers.

8/10