Star Trek (2009)
Release Date: Friday May 8, 2009 Genre: Action Director: J.J. Abrams Cast: John Cho, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Winona Ryder, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Anton Yelchin, Eric Bana, Leonard Nimoy, Ben Cross
Firs off, never have I sat in the cinema with heart in hand waiting for the utterance of dialogue in a film–that line I so desperately awaited was "Beam me up Scotty". I was gravely disappointed this did not happen for me, but, other than that miniscule fraction of disappointment the film was PHENOMENAL. Star Trek was everything the nerd in me hoped for and so much more. J.J. Abrams did an excellent job of updating the franchise and making it more palatable for a 21st century audience. The look and sound of this motion picture is true to both the nostalgic notions of Star Trek and a contemporary vision in terms of how we imagine the future today as opposed to how past generations may have. At the end of the day Abrams was correct when he said he made the film for movie goers and not just Star Trek fans. With out this attitude he never would have been this successful.
Let’s move on to the cast. All for the new James Tiberius Kirk say "hell yeah"…ohhhhhhh helllllll yeahhhhh! Chris Pine is the new Kirk and that’s all there’s to it. A stunning, swaggering, and very emotionally present actor who brings a multi-layered nuance to this character. I love that you really get a feel for what Captain Kirk must have been like as a young man via the performance of Chris Pine. I remember Chris Pine as that "killer dude" from CSI Miami sitting across an interrogation table from David Caruso. And even though I’ve seen him in a few movies since where he’s never played the same kind of character that particular one sticks with me. From time to time I do think of him in Smokin’Aces as one of those sick and twisted Tremor Brothers and perhaps I flirt with the idea of him as the clumsy yet very sweet Jake Hardin in Just My Luck I must say nothing quite captivates me like that psycho killer in CSI Miami. Fast forward to 2009 and he’s the Captain Kirk the Y Demographic has been waiting for–even if they didn’t know it. You simply can’t miss Chris Pine in this performance, it would be a film-goer faux pas in my opinion.
The cast is stalk chalked with talent. You have the best version of a young McCoy that anyone could have ever hoped for portrayed by Karl Urban. I was inamored with this performance and so very pleased with straight from the introduction of this character on that cadet ship all the way to the end of the picture. Zachary Quinto did not disappoint as Spock. I am not a Heroes watcher nor am I a big fan of the Sylar character but Quinto doesn’t let you down with his rendition of a young Spock. There’s a twist in the Star Trek story this time’round with Uhura that you shouldn’t miss as Zoe Saldana portrays her as a very spunky, smart, and sultry young woman. Anton Yelchin is Pavel Checkov and does a fantastic job as does John Cho as Sulu and Simon Pegg as Scotty. These three aren’t on screen the entire time but they do keep us entertained while living up to the expectations of their very engrained and endeared characters. Eric Bana is the bad guy Nero (Romulan bad guy) and Bruce Greenwood is (the Canadian cutie) Captain Pike who takes one for the team while held captive by said bad guy. All of this wrapped up with a Leonard Nimoy reprisal of Spock inspires one to ask: Could this movie get any cooler? Clearly, Abrams knew exactly what he was doing when he cast this film with this roster of actors who are so beloved by audiences in the cinema that I hope they manage to lock these folks into a deal for a follow up. They all did a great job at maintaining the niche elements that we all love about these characters while updating them for a new audience. I couldn’t have been more pleased…but…I am still heart broken that I did not get to hear "Beam me up Scotty."
The verdict is that regardless of your age or sense of Star Trek nostalgia this movie is going to get right under your skin and take you on the ride of your life. After X-Men Origines: Wolverine and Underworld: Rise of the Lycans this was my most highly anticipated action flick of the year. So far it’s a three for three and I just can’t wait for the DVD’s. Get your butt to the cinema and watch this bad boy. You might even see me there as I intend to take my geek-butt back to see it again; probably on a Sunday matinee if anyone was wondering…highly unlikely–I know.