It’s an alternate universe

Star Trek

I am so happy. I saw Star Trek last night and it didn’t suck! It was actually pretty good. You have no idea what a relief that is. With J J Abrams at the helm I was expecting something spectacular but some of his casting choices were strange, Wynona Rider, Tyler Perry, Chris Pine, Karl Urban. The only person that made any sense was Zachary Quinto. But I have to say they did a good job.

Right from the start Abrams goes for it. All out big, spectacular, and epic. And it looks beautifully. There is a battle scene as the movie opens. Flashing lights, explosions, and photon torpedoes fill the screen. And in the midst of all that you find out where James Tiberius Kirk comes from. You also get a very short glimpse at him as a child and his sense of rebellion and dislike of authority.

They also show a glimpse of Spock as a child. The battle between his human and Vulcan sides started early in life. They show him being ridiculed and looked down upon by his peers and how hard it was for him to keep his emotions in check.

They are the only 2 characters you get to meet as children. Everyone else you meet as adult at different stages as the crew of the famed Enterprise is assembled. They bring back all the classic crew Uhura, McCoy, Sulu, Chekov, and Scotty.

I am not going to tell you too much of the story because it will give the story away. The plot plays with time travel so that the future can be altered. If you are a die hard Star Trek fan you will realize from the start that they have changed the story that has come before it. The movie creates an alternate universe for these characters to exist. I think that was a genius move by the writers because this allows them to explore these characters in a new way with out people telling them they did it wrong. When watching this you have to put aside your knowledge of the Star Trek storyline / timeline that exists.

They did keep the feel of the original Star Trek universe. They are emotional, there are points of humour, and great battles. The crew that you know and love come together and they fit, they are just younger. Kirk and Spock have battles over logic. McCoy complains. Chekov still has his accent. Uhura mans the com. Scotty works the transporter and makes things go. And Sulu flies the ship and has a sword (that is new).

Even if you aren’t a fan of Star Trek or know nothing about it you will like this movie. Most of the story is brand new. All the characters a properly introduced and everything is explained. It is a whole and complete film that is not part of anything else. There are some tidbits in the movie for the Star Trek fan. They interject small nods to the original program and movies seamlessly. As a fan you will pick up on them immediately and enjoy it but if you are not a fan it won’t affect you.

The actors do a great job taking over these iconic characters. I was surprised at how much I like Chris Pine as James T Kirk. He pulls off the womanizing, anti-authority, cocky swagger almost to a tee. He seems like a person you should hate but his charm, determination and intelligence will win you over every time.

Zachary Quinto as Spock I didn’t like as much. He looked the part and he played it as best he could. But there was something about how he moved and how he spoke that just didn’t…fit. I am just not sure about it. Don’t get me wrong, he wasn’t bad, he somehow didn’t seem right.

And another thing that surprised me was Anton Yelchin. His Chekov was excellent. The accent was great. I wanted to ask him to say “Nuclear wessel”.

Overall I highly recommend this movie. If you are a fan or not you will enjoy it from beginning to end.

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