IAN IS BEAMED UP WITH STELLAR "STAR TREK"
Ian Clemente
Issue date: 5/14/09 Section: Arts and Entertainment
OK, you don't need to hear any cheesy catchphrases in this review. But I do not know what I can say about Star Trek that has not already been said. Let me simply say this: I cannot remember a time when so much was at stake with the release of a single movie - in terms of the franchise being revamped and the number of careers at stake (both actors and director JJ Abrams). There has yet to be a movie this year with both critical acclaim and box office success. Audiences have a desperate need for a movie that shows LOVE. Love for the story and whatever history it may have, love for the new fans the filmmakers wish to bring into their universe, and love for the effort of making something that others can take true pleasure in. With all that in mind, I can firmly say that Star Trek is overall the best movie experience I have had in years, and it does everything for the beloved franchise that I wish Phantom Menace had done for Star Wars.
I am extremely tempted to reveal the plot to you, but revealing anything from the opening scene on qualifies as a spoiler in this case. So I will list everything I possibly can about this movie that will not take away from the surprise:
1. The plot revolves around James Tiberius Kirk's transition from rugged young man to Captain of the famed USS Enterprise.
2. It involves time travel, in a way that allows for each crew member's story to be told in a familiar fashion but with a new, enlightening perspective.
3. It involves traveling…in deep space.
That is really all I can in good conscience reveal in this article; but I can tell you what will attract both newcomers and traditional Trekkers to this prequel, much like it did for me. To start with, speaking technically, THIS is what can be called a great action movie. The special effects and CGI are immaculately handled, to the degree that you forget how much of it was likely done on a green screen. The action scenes are wonderfully unpredictable, not only providing many types of combat but also using the fights themselves to move the plot forward. And the camerawork that may have seemed disorienting in Abrams' Cloverfield fits perfectly here, providing an exhilarating feeling of being in the conflict that strongly contrasts the stagnant feeling felt during many of the old TV episodes.
I am extremely tempted to reveal the plot to you, but revealing anything from the opening scene on qualifies as a spoiler in this case. So I will list everything I possibly can about this movie that will not take away from the surprise:
1. The plot revolves around James Tiberius Kirk's transition from rugged young man to Captain of the famed USS Enterprise.
2. It involves time travel, in a way that allows for each crew member's story to be told in a familiar fashion but with a new, enlightening perspective.
3. It involves traveling…in deep space.
That is really all I can in good conscience reveal in this article; but I can tell you what will attract both newcomers and traditional Trekkers to this prequel, much like it did for me. To start with, speaking technically, THIS is what can be called a great action movie. The special effects and CGI are immaculately handled, to the degree that you forget how much of it was likely done on a green screen. The action scenes are wonderfully unpredictable, not only providing many types of combat but also using the fights themselves to move the plot forward. And the camerawork that may have seemed disorienting in Abrams' Cloverfield fits perfectly here, providing an exhilarating feeling of being in the conflict that strongly contrasts the stagnant feeling felt during many of the old TV episodes.
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