Kirk fidgets nervously in his seat as Captain Harriman of the Enterprise B responds to a distress call from two convoy ships trapped in the nexus. He's having a hard time with the Captain's orders, to the annoyance of Scotty and Chekov next to him. Scotty leans over and says, "Captain, is there something wrong with your chair?" It's hard watching someone else pilot something you love, to steer it in a certain direction you might disagree with. You know better. You are Kirk. For 50 years, Star Trek has had several different production teams at the wheel of the franchise, to either the delight or chagrin of the ever-growing backseat fandom. Many fans watched Into Darkness with eyebrow raised; they were not amused by this flight plan. I say "they" because, like Nero with the Romulan Empire, we stand apart. STID was labelled a "lazy rehash" by the masses, to which I couldn't disagree more. The movie I saw had an original story and great character arcs, but the mob of pitchforks and hyperbole ("worst thing ever!!!") had spoken and a new captain, Justin Lin, along with his writing team of Simon Pegg and Doug Jung, was brought on board to guide Trekdom. I will always be on the bridge supporting whoever has command. I am Scotty. I'm in this just as much as you are (I bleed red...matter.) and yes, I'll admit having to sometimes squint to make it all work (50 years of continuity to keep straight), but I'm usually able to sit back and enjoy the ride. I have no problem with NuTrek, nor its intentional parallels and nods to the previous continuity. I just care that it's still flying. Rewind the clock 25 years and you have the release of the last original series cast film, The Undiscovered Country. This title, originally meant for The Wrath of Khan, was supposed to be about death, referencing Hamlet. However, director Nicholas Meyer couldn't get the TUC title until the sixth movie. The meaning thus changed to be about the future. Though Star Trek still flies 25 years later, its future is a bit uncertain...
There was a time before geek culture was such a huge part of pop culture, when Comic-Con didn't make any headlines and Doctor Who wasn't a big thing in the US. For me growing up in the 90s, Star Trek was the main thing for us geeks. Kids at my school were quick to put down ST, or any sci-fi. It was all so uncool back then. I couldn't care less; I was a proud Trekkie. I have the uniforms and props to prove it. Star Trek (or Star TRACK as the haters mispronounced it) was my escape from the world. I wanted so badly to live in the 24th century. But people, including myself, were tiring of the franchise by the early aughts thanks to Paramount's insistence on churning out continuous spin-offs. Even though the last show, Enterprise, actually ended up quite good, the timing was wrong for it to thrive. And so, Star Trek died a quiet death in 2005. A few years later, J.J. Abrams came to take the helm with writers Kurtzman and Orci, but unlike Captain Harriman, he was confident and well-equipped for the challenge. Pleasing the old guard of trekkies, trekkers and the newer generation of filmgoers is, as Scotty would say, "like trying to hit a bullet with a smaller bullet whilst wearing a blindfold, riding a horse." For the most part I'd say they hit the bullet...on the first try anyways. It also didn't hurt that people were finally ready for some new Trek again. 2016, by contrast, is an odd year for sequels and remakes as almost every single one not named Civil War has finished well below expectations. Despite it being the 50th anniversary of Trek, the timing is slightly off again. This time, though, it's not because of this franchise, but rather some broader "name-brand" fatigue. Too many bad movies trying build cinematic universes I suppose. Sadly, not even glowing reviews and positive word of mouth are helping this already under-performing movie. Trekkers will always be around, especially now in the more accepting geek culture world of today, but trying to make Star Trek trendy and mainstream might be too tall an order, especially when it comes to that stubborn international market. Paramount may be finally learning that these films will never make that Marvel money. The feature films might be in trouble, but perhaps the upcoming TV show will "restore the father's faith" so to speak. Is the timing right for TV Trek to make a comeback or will brand fatigue affect the new show as well? Hopefully, Star Trek hasn't outlived its usefulness quite yet...
This movie is a well-constructed and original tale that has big scope, but feels small and intimate. The most important thing this film does is give you time to catch up with the characters. How exactly does one deal with being isolated in deep space for years? How do you handle coming to terms with your mortality? The way our main characters deal with these issues of fear and loneliness is nicely paralleled with the big bad Krall, played by the always great Idris Elba. The more I think about Krall and his background, the more I like this character. Some criticisms about NuTrek is that the villains are weak sauce. I think they finally have a strong one here with depth. Not a lot of time is spent on him, sadly, but all the pieces of his story are here and it's good stuff.
Starbase Yorktown is the coolest thing that this current iteration of ST has added to cannon. It is brilliant and beautiful. It also represents what this universe is all about; a future full of possibility and hope. The base is filled with aliens and different cultures all coming together to chill. The reveal of Yorktown I'm sure is similar to how audiences felt first seeing the original Starbase design in STIII. Consider my breath taken away.
Sofia Boutella's Jaylah rocks. A nice addition that really needs to stick around. Again, this is what ST is about: new life and new civilizations. I hope we get to know more about her species.
I like that all of the reboot movies so far have referenced Star Trek Enterprise (MACOs and the Xindi conflict here), the most derided of the TV shows. This is the only show that has continuity in both realities so it's nice they get shout outs. Like I said previously, ENT doesn't deserve its bad reputation anyway.
Commodore Paris. Any relation to Tom perhaps?
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
I respect Justin Lin as an action director, but he dropped the ball a little bit here. The action scenes are a bit too jerky and disorienting. During the big attack on Enterprise by the swarm, it's important to know where all the characters are on the ship, but I honestly couldn't tell what was going on. It was only after the action scene had ended that I pieced together what happened. Maybe this will get better in repeat viewings, but I already miss Abrams.
In the original script by Orci (deemed "too Star Treky" by Paramount), there was more connection with the events of Into Darkness. The loss of these connective elements hurts the film a little. Being a stand alone effort is fine, but it would have been nice to have a few lines of dialogue devoted to the augments or even Carol Marcus.
No Klingons.
Finally: Stardates aren't years.
Whether you like it or not, the team of Abrams, Kurtzman and Orci captained Star Trek out of the dark. They kept the plasma conduits flowing. They weathered the stormy nebulas. Okay, I'll stop now. We can argue till we're Andorians about what "proper" Star Trek is, but it gets us nowhere. Bottom line is that movie Trek is just a different ride than TV Trek. Yes, things go boom, but that doesn't mean the films sacrifice heart and character, especially in the case of Beyond. Pegg and Jung have ironically put together the most "Star Treky" film of this series, but the studio didn't get the billion it wanted. They will no doubt continue to tinker. I'm sensing "Trek-nado" or in-movie Pokemon to catch in the future. It certainly won't be the same without Anton Yelchin, who tragically died right before the release. I hope he was proud of his work. He really took ownership of that role and made it fresh for a new audience. He IS Chekov. And he is immortalized. I'm glad they won't be recasting. And even if Paramount doesn't green light a Thor-infused fourth film, at least they went out being true to Star Trek. Like any good Trek, Beyond is about the human condition; how people can be very frightened of change. Will Star Trek change after this? We can only look now to the USS Discovery and its captains Bryan Fuller and the returning Nicholas Meyer. To them and their posterity will we commit the future of Trekdom. They will keep it alive. For the Undiscovered Country, for Anton, here's to another 50 years. I'm on the edge of my seat.
- Starbase 133
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