The 3:00 AM Review (Special 12:00 AM Edition): "Star Trek"

[Note: Thanks to Paramount moving up the start time of Star Trek to 7:00 PM Thursday, I can post this review at a somewhat sensible time of day; hence the 'Special 12:00 AM Edition'. Enjoy!]

The financial coffers of Paramount Pictures, the wrath of hard-core Trekkies, and the strength of the summer movie season all rely on whether J.J. Abrams can successfully reinvigorate the 43-year-old Star Trek franchise from its recent funk. As surprising as it may seem, he's done a commendable job. In fact, I'd say this eleventh Trek film is the most fun I've had in a theater in 2009... even though it's only early May. I should be careful in my wording here, as this is technically not a 'reboot', like many other movie franchises have done recently. I shan't say too much why that is, but I will say that this movie manages to fit in with the events of the original Star Trek series' universe. Watching this movie, I got a lot of the same vibes that I had when I first watched the 2006 Casino Royale; like that movie, writers Roberto J. Orci and Alex Kurtzman (Fringe, the Transformers movies) manage to take most, if not all, of the familiar hallmarks of TOS (among them: mind melds, Vulcan nerve pinches, and even the obligaotory red shirts) and weave them effortlessly (and sometimes, very subtly) into the storyline. Even more impressive, there's a fair amount of time spent on the characters themselves, and not so much on the overarching plot. Obviously, Kirk and Spock's origins are front and center, but the rest of the classic characters get time to shine, too - even if it's only for a scene or two. A lot of the aforementioned fun comes from Chris Pine's portrayal of Kirk; you're definitely not going to hear any stilted Shatner-esque speeches from him, but you'll quickly recognize Kirk's penchant for the ladies and his fearless ways. As Spock, Sylar - I mean, Zachary Quinto - anchors the film's more serious moments reasonably well, as he attempts to accept and deal with his dual heritages. The rest of the cast really seem to embrace their characters, from Karl Urban's McCoy to the late-in-the-game appearance of Simon Pegg as Scotty. (Heck, I never thought I'd see a John Cho (as Sulu) action sequence, let alone enjoy it!) And as for the mid-movie appearance of Leonard Nimoy? Well, I couldn't help but be riveted to the screen. Yes, it may come off as fan service, but Abrams and company handle it in an extremely endearing manner. As for the action itself? Well, there's only a few major action sequences, but they're quite adventurous and carry incredibly high stakes. The pre-title battle sequence, involving Kirk's parents, manages to deftly blend action and high emotion. But, for all the risks that Abrams takes in updating the franchise, some decisions tend to be more jarring than successful; the 'Sabotage' cue that occurs early on just seems out of place to me. And I would've liked more screen time for the supporting cast; now that all the setup stuff is out of the way, I hope the inevitable sequel can fix that. But when all is said and done, the new Star Trek is one heck of a crowd-pleaser, and I think Trekkies and non-Trekkies alike will be satisfied with the end product. At the very least, it's better than Wolverine. :)

Star Rating: 4.5/5