Mission: Impossible III

Note: This review contains spoilers for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.

Despite the mixed reception to Mission Impossible 2 (M:i-2), its success would lead to a sequel, Mission: Impossible III (M:i:III). Production got off to a rocky start with the search for a director, that is until Tom Cruise suggested J. J. Abrams after binge-watching two seasons of Alias. After some initial production delays, the final release in May 2006 garnered greater critical reception and became the eighth-highest grossing film of 2006. Unfortunately, it still proved a financial failure against its budget of ~$150 million and has the (dis)honor of its place as the lowest-grossing film in the entire franchise and hurting Tom Cruise’s career until Ghost Protocol revived it. Looking at the film now, it’s a shame that it didn’t do well, as it is an improvement on its predecessors, but I wouldn’t consider it my favorite either.

Second Look - Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker

Note: This review contains spoilers for the Star Wars Skywalker Saga and Avengers: Endgame.

As the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy went on, though I noticed some issues with it, I made the choice to reserve my judgement on the trilogy as a whole until the release of the final part, The Rise of Skywalker, cautiously optimistic that it might make the journey worth it as Revenge of the Sith did for the prequels. Unfortunately, The Rise of Skywalker proved what happens when you devote yourself to a trilogy without a solid outline, dragging down the entire trilogy as a result. This eventually led me to reevaluate the trilogy with the context provided by The Rise of Skywalker, though it wouldn’t be fair to go through said reevaluation without looking at the third part again, which I have not seen since the original theatrical release in 2019. Upon a second viewing, my opinion didn’t change all that much, and in fact it may have lowered a little bit.

Second Look - Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens

Note: This review contains spoilers for the Star Wars Skywalker Saga.

Between The Walt Disney Company’s acquisitions of Marvel and 20^th Century Fox, the company acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, and with it came the announcement of a new trilogy of Star Wars films, collectively referred to as the Sequel Trilogy for taking place after the Original Trilogy. The announcement of the first film, The Force Awakens, naturally generated an amount of hype not seen since the Prequel Trilogy to the point where I saw the film opening weekend and enjoyed it on my first viewing. The further away I got from this first experience, however, the more problems I began to see with it on subsequent viewings, to where I wanted to reevaluate it following the trilogy’s lackluster conclusion. While The Force Awakens did do some things right, it’s not nearly as good as I once thought it was.

Stubs - Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) Starring: Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Anthony Daniels, Naomi Ackie, Domhnall Gleeson, Richard E. Grant, Lupita Nyong'o, Keri Russell, Ian McDiarmid, Billy Dee Williams Directed by J.J. Abrams Screenplay by J.J. Abrams, Chris Terrio Based on Characters by George Lucas. Produced by Kathleen Kennedy, J. J. Abrams, Michelle Rejwan Run Time: 142 minutes, U.S. Science Fiction, Fantasy

The Star Wars triple trilogy which began with Star Wars (1977) finally wraps up the "Skywalker Saga" and the "Sequel Trilogy" with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Nine films over 42 years, with a couple of stand-alones thrown in along the way, not to mention cartoons, TV Series, video games, books, some no longer considered "canon", and merchandise. So while there haven't been all that many movies, Star Wars has never been out of the public view.

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens - The Franchise Reborn

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) Starring: Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamil, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac. Directed by J.J. Abrams. Screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan, J.J. Abrams Michael Arndt. Story by George Lucas. Produced by Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk. 135 min. Color. U.S.A. Science Fiction, Action, Adventure, Fantasy

You’d have to be off the grid and off planet not to know there is a new Star Wars film in the theaters, The Force Awakens, directed by J.J. Abrams.  Even if you’re not a part of “social” media, you can’t avoid the marketing for this film which seems to have reached most areas within the consumer market, from truck ads to food on the grocer’s shelves to the seemingly endless line of toys.

While no film could live up to such hype, The Force Awakens comes pretty close. As you’ve no doubt heard, this one is setting boxoffice records, but that’s really not a measure of how good a film is. With a built in and loyal fan base, we’ve seen far worse films from this franchise (prequel trilogy) made into megahits. Add in 6,000 screens and higher ticket prices, not to mention add-ons for 3-D and IMAX, and we could be in for a new all-time box-office champ.

I will say that while I waited with my family for the film to start at the Cinerama Dome on Sunday afternoon, I was nervous. The previous films, Episodes I through III, had been disappointing. Maybe it was time for someone else to take over the franchise, but I will admit I was uneasy about Disney putting Abrams in charge. While he might have suggested the story, the lack of George Lucas’ involvement seems to have been a good thing.

The story, and I will endeavor not to spoil anything, is actually very involving. There are a couple of Deus Ex Machina moments, but that seems to be my experience with Abrams’ work. If you accept it as part of the territory, they really don’t get in the way. The story involves many of the same plotlines that have been a part of the franchise from the beginning: parentage and the struggle of good v, evil, once again “the Force” and “the dark side.” There are other throwbacks to the original films as well and John Williams is back as film composer.

To my surprise, for the first time in a Star Wars film, people seem to talk like people talk, with awkward moments and sarcasm. It was quite refreshing. Exposition is handled much better than the clunky way Lucas often did and even the new characters seem to be well-rounded and it didn’t take an entire trilogy to tell their story. Bravo to screenwriters Lawrence Kasdan, Abrams and Michael Arndt, who have written one of the best Star Wars scripts. Not everything is explained, but that's what sequels are for, aren't they? The writers manage to pay homage to the past while at the same time pointing the way to future adventures or should I say episodes?

Lego recreation of the director and cast going through a table read of the screenplay
written by Lawrence Kasdan, J.J. Abrams and Michael Arndt.

The main actors from Star Wars through Return of the Jedi, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill, are back, but Ford does most of the heavy-lifting as far as acting goes. He does get top billing after all. Chewbacca is also back in the fold. The droids we’ve also come to love also appear, though in much reduced roles. Lucas had planned for them to be in all nine of the films he envisioned, but if they had been in this much more they wouldn’t have made this film better.

Newcomer Rey (Daisy Ridley) learns from Han Solo (Harrison Ford) in the new Star Wars film.

But The Force Awakens is really more about the next generation and they are very well represented by Daisy Ridley as Rey; John Boyega as Finn aka FN-2187, Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron and Adam Driver as Ben. Ridley, a virtual unknown, is phenomenal in what should be a breakout role for her. Boyega, is also not a familiar face, unless you count the numerous trailers for this film, but he is good as well. I can’t say too much more about these actors and these roles without giving too much away, but trust me, the acting is very solid all the way round.

John Boyega plays Finn in The Force Awakens.

As a counter to the return of C-3PO and R2-D2, a new droid, BB-8 is introduced. While he's presented as a youthful R2-D2 style bot, since he's been available for purchase since the summer, one has to wonder how much of his introduction was for story and how much for merchandising.

BB-8 is presented as the new generation's R2-D2 and is available for purchase at many fine retailers.

Having recently seen the original Return of the Jedi makes the special effects seem all the more amazing. While filmmakers endeavored to make as many of the special effects practical as possible, any film about space requires blue screens, green screens and plenty of CGI, all of which seem to mesh well with location shooting. There are the usual diversity of alien races, but these don’t look like grown up Muppets, the way they did in Return of the Jedi. And if you have a chance to see this in 3-D, then do it.

Despite my concerns, J.J. Abrams really came through here. He not only managed the myth, but he actually made a better story than I could have hoped for. Now, I guess I should worry that he’s not directing the next installment. That’s really too bad, on so many levels. A franchise, like a good team, needs strong leadership. We don’t want to see Star Wars go the way of the Die Hard franchise, which suffers without someone to give it direction. Lucas might have needed to go, but the series needs an overall vision, that constantly changing of creative teams would seem to work against.

I had my concerns, but J.J. Abrams rose to the occasion with his work on The Force Awakens.

Overall I would say that this is the best Star Wars film since the original. It may not live up to the hype, but it is well worth watching at least once. If you’re like my family, you may want to see it again. If you’re a real fan boy, you’ll go broke watching it.

Star Trek Into Darkness

Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) Starring: John Cho, Benedict Cumberbatch, Alice Eve, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Peter Weller, Anton Yelchin,  Leonard Nimoy. Directed by J.J. Abrams. Screenplay: Robert Orci, Alex Kurtzman, Damon Lindelof Based on Star Trek by Gene Roddenberry. Produced by J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk, Damon Lindelof, Alex Kurtzman, Robert Orci Time: 133 minutes. U.S. Color. Science Fiction, Action

While oftentimes a sequel is bigger but not better than the original, I think in the case of Star Trek Into Darkness that it is not only bigger, but a better movie than it’s prequel, Star Trek (2009). It is more emotional as the film examines loyalties between friends and family and once again saves the Earth and the Federation of Planets from destruction. We’re shown the personal and the heroic several times through the film and in the end it’s really a very emotional and draining experience.

Spock (Zachary Quinto) and Kirk (Chris Pine) in Star Trek Into Darkness.

While you needn’t see the re-boot, though it never hurts, like its predecessor, Into Darkness wades deep into the pool of Star Trek mythos and storylines, culling a story that is familiar to even a casual fan of the franchise. Still it manages to put a surprising twist on a storyline that itself is as fresh as last week’s bread. The film is ripe with references to the original series and films. We revisit an old villain (Kahn), an old friend (Spock Prime), old weaponry (Photon torpedoes), and an old novelty (Tribbles). But the old still gives way to the new. We’re introduced to Starfleet Admiral Alexander Marcus (Peter Weller), the egocentric head of Starfleet and his daughter, Dr. Carol Marcus (Alice Eve), the latter I would suspect (unless contract negotiations fail) should return in any third film, whenever that may be.

Dr. Carol Marcus (Alice Eve) joins the crew of the Enterprise.

The writing is better this time out, though they do lean heavily on what has come before their involvement with the franchise. A subtle nod to an episode of Lost, dealing with what a father will do to save a child, seems almost intentional, though I have nothing to back that up. There are still some pseudo-science problems, though fewer, that I don’t want to get into, since it might spoil too much of the movie to describe.

Karl Urban as Dr. McCoy.

The cast seems to be more comfortable with their roles, or maybe I’m more comfortable watching them play these iconic characters. I think we see more depth to the Kirk and Spock characters. Karl Urban still hits McCoy out of the ball park. There wasn’t a whole lot for Alice Eve to do with the Dr. Marcus character, though, as I wrote earlier, they set her up to return and hopefully there will more meat in her part then. The last time I’d seen Peter Weller on camera was on the History Channel, of all places, talking as an expert on ancient ruins and civilizations, so it was nice to see him actually acting again. I had never heard of Benedict Cumberbatch, who’s alias is Commander John Harrison (to say more is to give away more). He plays a sort of super-Spock type-character, who like Vulcans think of mere humans as an inferior species. Though his character is crucial to the movie, it is a bit one-dimensional, so I don’t think it shows off Cumberbatch’s range; at least I hope it doesn’t.

Benedict Cumberbatch as Commander John Harrison (aka Kahn).

Stylistically, Into Darkness, like Star Trek (2009), retains but updates those elements that were so iconic from the original show. That is certainly part of the appeal so far with the reboot. The films have tried to stay true to those things the fan base holds dear, from the red, blue and gold uniforms to the music. It isn’t Star Trek without the Alexander Courage and Gene Roddenbery theme and some variation on the opening “Space, the final frontier…” speech. So far these films have seemed like big screen television episodes and I don’t mean that in a bad way.

Stylistically, Into Darkness evokes and updates the original series.

But you definitely know you’re watching a J.J. Abrams film. If you were worried that Into Darkness wouldn’t have lens flares, then worry not. That lovely Abrams trademark is unfortunately alive and well and in practically every sequence throughout the movie. I’m sure some of you are thinking, all “great” (the quotes are mine) directors have trademarks. One of my favorites, Alfred Hitchcock, certainly had one too, appearing as a cameo in most of his movies. But he only appeared once per film, not in every single shot. While the lens flare is really unnecessary, there are really times when it is downright distracting, like during a heartfelt speech between Dr. Marcus and her father. Is Abrams, like a pulp writer paid per word, paid per lens flare? There are times when the flare can have a dramatic effect, but not when it is overused as it is in Into Darkness.

Sometimes lens flares are dramatic, but mostly they distract.

Overall, I really liked Star Trek Into Darkness more than Star Trek (2009). The promise, though not explicitly stated, is that there is more to come. I certainly hope so. But I would really like that now the familiar has been established that the franchise boldly moves into stories that I haven’t already seen while retaining the heart that made the original series worth watching. The longer between sequels, the harder it is to keep the momentum going and the cast intact. Personally, I would like to see them hurry up this very casual pacing of putting these movies out. Every four years is too long in between installments.

Still not buying this, by the way.

Maybe it’s time to turn the franchise over to someone new. Now that Abrams is taking over Star Wars, I really worry how long it will be before Star Trek 3: The Search for Lens Flares hits the big screen. I’m sure like Spielberg and Lucas before him, Abrams has his own Zemeckis waiting in the wings at Bad Robot to build on the foundation that Gene Roddenberry and he have already laid down.

Stubs – Star Trek (2009)

Star Trek (2009) Starring: John Cho, Ben Cross, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Winona Ryder, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Anton Yelchin, Eric Bana, Leonard Nimoy. Directed by J.J. Abrams. Screenplay Robert Orci, Alex Kurtzman, Based on Star Trek by Gene Roddenberry. Produced by J.J. Abrams, Damon Lindelof Time: 126 minutes. U.S. Color. Science Fiction, Action

With summer upon us, summer box office that is, every week there is another “new” must see film opening. Two weeks ago it was Iron Man 3, last week The Great Gatsby and this weekend Star Trek Into Darkness. Not surprisingly, like the first two summer films, this is either a remake or a sequel. In fact Star Trek Into Darkness is the sequel to a remake, or what is fashionably now called a reboot. And, as is our way at Trophy Unlocked, before the sequel we like to look back and reexamine the preceding film.

Star Trek (2009) is the long awaited reboot for the Star Trek franchise which had been a cash cow for Paramount Pictures. While the original 60’s series, Star Trek, had been a bit of a flop, only lasting three seasons on NBC, it subsequently launched 10 films before the reboot and countless TV Series, the most popular of which seems to be Star Trek: The Next Generation which came out 21 years after the original series and ran for 7 seasons and accounts for 4 of the films.

By the time the 10^th film, Star Trek: Nemesis came out in 2002, the series and film franchise had seen better days. While I did not make it a habit to follow the various films and TV Series incarnations, I think it is safe to say that by 2002 the whole idea had been wrung pretty dry and the Enterprise was shelved for dry-docking. However, all that changed in 2009, when J.J. Abrams directed Star Trek.

The Enterprise from Star Trek (2009).

For those familiar with the original TV series, Star Trek (2009) provides the back or origin story the series only hints at but doesn’t ever really deliver. Abrams had to know to tread lightly on a mythos that had taken on a life of its own. You can’t leave out a character that anyone might recognize, though you can leave out actors.

Star Trek - Old School.

The movie opens in 2233, aboard the Federation starship USS Kelvin, which is investigating a "lightning storm" in space. From the storm, the Romulan ship, Narada, emerges and attacks the Kelvin. Narada's first officer, Ayel (Clifton Collins, Jr.), demands that the Kelvin's Captain Robau (Faran Tahir) come aboard to negotiate a truce. But once aboard, Robau is questioned about Ambassador Spock, whom he professes not to know. But that is not good enough for the Narada's commander, Nero (Eric Bana), who kills Robau, and continues his attack on the Kelvin. George Kirk (Chris Hemsworth), the Kelvin's first officer, orders the ship's abandonment. Including the evacuation is Kirk’s pregnant wife Winona (Jennifer Morrison). While he steers the Kelvin into a collision course with the Narada. Winona gives birth to their son, James T. Kirk.

The Narada emerging from a space storm.

Fast forward several years, a young Vulcan after his sterile formal education is invited to join the Vulcan Science Academy. But since Spock’s (Zachary Quinto) human mother, Amanda Grayson (an almost unrecognizable Winona Ryder) is considered a disadvantage, he instead joins Starfleet.

Back on Earth, Kirk grows up from a rebellious boy to a reckless adult, a sort of prairie rebel without a cause. One night, Kirk (Chris Pine) goes to a bar frequented by Starfleet cadets and naturally gets drunk and gets into a fight when he tries to pick up Uhura (Zoe Saldana). After the fight, in which Kirk holds his own, but is eventually overwhelmed, he meets Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood). Again, this is a character from the original series, reimagined for the movie. Pike encourages Kirk to follow in his father’s footsteps and join the Starfleet Academy. At the last moment, the impetuous Kirk gets on board the shuttle. Once on board, he befriends Doctor McCoy (Karl Urban).

At the Academy, Kirk cheats on the Kobayashi Maru simulation, which if I recall correctly, is what he supposedly did on the TV series, one of those incidents that’s talked about, but never shown. Commander Spock holds a disciplinary hearing, which is interrupted by a distress signal from Vulcan, which finds itself surrounded by a lightning storm. With the primary fleet out of range, the cadets are called into action. Kirk is not allowed to go, but McCoy helps to sneak Kirk on board Pike’s ship, the Enterprise.

Kirk recognizes the storm as similar to one that occurred at the time of his birth and convinces Pike that the distress signal is also a trap. When the Enterprise arrives on Vulcan, they find the fleet is destroyed and the Narada drilling into the core of Vulcan. The Narada attacks the Enterprise and Pike surrenders. He puts Spock in command and promotes Kirk to first officer.

Kirk, Sulu (John Cho) and Chief Engineer Olson (Greg Ellis) go on a space jump to stop the drill. Olson is the designated red shirt and is instantly killed when he can’t control his chute and is sucked into an exhaust flame. Kirk and Sulu fight off Romulan soldiers to stop the drill. However, Nero has already injected “red matter” into the core, setting up a black hole inside the planet which leads to the destruction of Vulcan and all who live on it, but not before Spock returns to the planet to save the high council, which includes his father. His mother is in the party, but the unstable planet swallows her before she can be transported to safety.

Three men space jump, but only two will return. Hint the guy in  red is not a main character.

The feud goes back to when Romulus was being threatened by a supernova. Spock tries to save the planet by using the red matter to create a black hole and consume the supernova. But he is too late and Romulus, along with Nero’s family, perished as a result. Spock and the Narada get caught in the black hole and sent back through time. Nero strands Spock on Delta Vega as Nero goes to get his revenge by destroying Vulcan and every other federation planet. Spock then realizes that Nero’s time travel has changed history and created a new reality.

Leonard Nimoy as Spock Prime and Chief Exposition Officer.

Kirk and Spock Prime set out for a Starfleet outpost that also happens to be on Delta Vega. Why Spock Prime never went there before is never explained. At the outpost, they encounter Scotty (Simon Pegg), an engineering genius who had been exiled to Delta Vega, along with this alien assistant Keenser (Deep Roy), for beaming an Admiral’s beagle to an unknown location during transporter testing.

Spock knows that Kirk, not himself, should be commanding the Enterprise, so using a mathematical formula devised by an older version of Scotty, called transwarp beaming, Spock sends Scotty and Kirk to the Enterprise so Kirk can take charge. Almost immediately after arriving on board, the two are spotted and taken into custody. On the bridge, Kirk provokes Spock to the point of nearly killing Kirk. Realizing he has gone too far, Spock relieves himself and Kirk takes command of the ship.

Zachary Quinto as Spock.

Chekov (Anton Yelchin), meanwhile, devises a plan that would allow the Enterprise to follow the Narada by hiding in the magnetic field of Saturn. Spock returns to the bridge and endorses Chekov’s plan. He offers to beam over to the Narada and save Pike and the only home he has left, Earth. Kirk accompanies Spock.

Anton Yelchni as Chekov.

Meanwhile, the Narada sets up its drill right over San Francisco. Scotty beams them aboard the enemy ship, but gets the location wrong. There is a brief firefight with Romulan soldiers. Using his mind meld capability, Spock finds the location of the black hole machine and the whereabouts of Pike from an unconscious soldier. Kirk rescues Pike while Spock uses the elder Spock's ship, The Jellyfish, to destroy the drill. Spock leads the Narada away from Earth and then sets his ship to collide with Nero's, igniting the "red matter" and consuming the Narada in a black hole. The Enterprise arrives and beams Kirk, Pike, and Spock aboard.

Back on Earth, Kirk is promoted to the rank of Captain and put in command of the Enterprise, while Pike, who is wheelchair-bound in an homage to the series appearance of the character, is promoted to Rear Admiral. Spock encounters his older self. Having selected a planet for the surviving Vulcans to colonize, Spock Prime persuades his younger self to continue serving Starfleet, instead of doing what’s logical. Spock remains in Starfleet and becomes first officer under Kirk's maiden command.

Chris Pine firmly in command as Captain James T. Kirk.

While I would admit to being skeptical of J.J. Abrams before having seen the film, I do think he pulled it off. The film is faithful to the original series, but it is different enough to stand on its own. Unlike the first Star Trek film, Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) which monkeyed about with the crew, upping everyone in rank and re-decoing the uniforms, Star Trek (2009) tries to embrace its legacy. The uniforms are back to the gold, blue and red, though modernized, as are the phasers and communicators (the original series being the inspiration for the flip phone.) But this is how it should be, rather than the director throwing us a bone.

All the main characters are back: Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine); Spock (Zachary Quinto); Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy (Karl Urban); Nyota Uhura (Zoe Saldana); Montgomery “Scotty” Scott (Simon Pegg); Hikaru Sulu (John Cho); Pavel Chekov (Anton Yelchin). Even minor characters like Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) and Spock’s parents: Sarek (Ben Cross) and Amanda Grayson (Winona Ryder), who appeared in the original series, are brought back. Some new ones are added, such as George Samuel Kirk, Sr. (Chris Hemsworh) who is Kirk’s father. Even the original Spock (Leonard Nimoy) appears as Spock Prime, but the original Kirk (William Shatner) does not. I’ll let you decide for yourself if that’s a good thing or not.

Star Trek crew - New School.

Star Trek has the unenviable task of trying to appease fans of the original series, but also introduce new fans, who might only be drawn to the material because of Abrams’ involvement. And there are definitely Abrams touches throughout that make this film part of his universe. The most obvious of them is the overuse of the lens flares. What no doubt started as a mistake for some director of photography has turned into an Abrams trademark. There are more of them than I care to count or would want to. The film could almost be called Flare Trek.

Hope you like lens flare.

Where the film differs from the series, it is sometimes hard to take. The logical and emotionless TV Spock is now involved in a hot and heavy relationship with Uhura. The Star Trek series broke interracial ground when Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) kissed Captain Kirk (Shatner) on the show, but the affair between Uhura and Spock, especially given his Kolinahr upbringing, seems, well, illogical. Not to mention that Saldana and Quinto seem to have zero on-screen chemistry. But you got to mix things up when you’re making someone else’s mythos your own. This twist seems to have been added only because it was so different from what happened in the series.

Not buying this.

The movie plays fast and loose with its own pseudo-science. Cadets are called into duty because the main fleet is out of range, but travelling faster than the speed of light would probably mitigate that. And if I’m not mistaken, the Enterprise creates a black hole which consumes the Romulan Narada, but its proximity to Earth might present a clear and present danger to the planet. But that is all forgotten by closing credits. And the red matter, the Brylcreem of molecules, as a little dap is enough to create a planet crushing black hole. One wonders why the writers couldn’t have come up with something other than a name that describes the color of the matter. The name sadly reminds me of Avatar’s unobtainium, a name which was roasted for its unimaginativeness.

Red Matter by any other name would be just as destructive.

Also with all the faster than light crafts at their disposal, why did the Federation send Spock in what looks like a space bicycle to save Romulus. You would have thought an Enterprise-style vessel could have gotten there quicker.

And on Delta Vega some of the indigenous life forms seem ill-equipped to survive the cold let alone dominate. I’m thinking specifically of the son of the Cloverfield monster that chases Kirk over the icy cliff.

Does this look like a creature built for cold weather?

I think the story sort of derails on Delta Vega, a mysterious winter planet that is full of both coincidence and exposition. It’s too convenient that Kirk is marooned on the same planet that Spock Prime had been left on by Nero. In both cases if you want to get rid of someone, why put them on a planet with a Federation outpost, where Scotty is stationed? The sequence starts with Spock kicking his First Officer not only off the bridge but off the ship. That has to be against Federation regulations. Then there is the convenience that Spock Prime is there to save Kirk from the Cloverfield monster and later Spock Prime reminds Scotty of the right mathematical formula, which Scotty will only later discover, that allows them to transport to the Enterprise. And let’s not forget the juicy exposition that Spock Prime lays on Kirk via the mind meld in the icy cave. Too much of the movie relies on the confluence of these characters being in the same place at the same time. It’s not good writing.

The Star Trek chain of command is also fast and loose. Not only does a stowaway become the First Officer and ultimately the Captain, because he’s supposed to be Captain, but it would scare me that Scotty would become the chief engineer onboard the Enterprise. Not only has he never been on the brand new ship before, but wouldn’t the ship already have a chief engineer before it left the docks? For a newbie, Scotty is really familiar with the workings of the anti-matter engines. We’re told he really knows transporting, but that’s a long way from running the engine room.

The planet Vulcan, which is destroyed during the movie, seems to be both the most logical and bigoted planet in the Universe. Spock’s human half is considered a handicap of sorts and Vulcans love to tout their superior make-up compared to that of humans. Talk about racism on a species scale. But oddly enough, Spock’s Earth mother is one of those entrusted with preserving Vulcan culture. The choice doesn’t seem logical.

Young Spock (Jacob Kogan) about to be bullied for being different.

The casting is pretty good for the most part. Pine is a good fit for the unflappable Kirk and Quinto makes a very believable Spock. But of the big three characters I think Urban really nails “Bones” McCoy. More than the others, he really seems to channel the spirit of his TV predecessor, DeForrest Kelley. Simon Pegg also brings humor and fun to the Scotty character. While James Doohan’s original portrayal was an obvious roadmap, Pegg infuses Scotty with his own sense of humor. I thought Eric Bana did a good job as Nero, the overzealous Romulan who wants to destroy the Federation in order to save his own planet. His revenge/prevention method is illogical, since with time travel he could prevent the destruction of Romulus, but I’m just getting picky.

Eric Bana as Nero, a Romulan with a chip on his shoulder the size of Vulcan.

In the end, Star Trek is really a summer blockbuster, relying on well-developed characters, the foundations for which were laid decades ago. Take that away and the story is good, but not great, the love interest seems tacked on and special effects are there to save the day. While I liked the movie overall, there is a little too much J.J. Abrams throughout. The movie is not so much a Star Trek movie as an Abrams reimagining of a TV show from his youth. Star Trek covers a lot of ground, but the storytelling is flawed, something I’ve come to expect from Abrams projects. While I have concerns about the next Star Trek movie, which I already understand is Flare Trek 2, I can’t imagine what Star Wars VII will look like under this director’s helm. If anything, he’ll be treading on more sacred ground and perhaps less forgiving fans.

Super 8 - Not So Gr8

Within the last few years, J.J. Abrams has become a more prominent name in Hollywood, involved with projects like Star Trek and Cloverfield. His most recent directorial work, Super 8, is also a collaboration with major Hollywood producer Steven Spielberg. The ad campaign for this movie was similar to that of Cloverfield in that hardly anything was said, but I watched it anyway out of curiosity. For the most part, it wasn't a terrible movie, but it's pretty easy to see the influence of Spielberg throughout.

The plot seems to meld threads from Spielberg's E.T. the Extra Terrestrial and J.J. Abrams' Cloverfield, in that the events largely revolve around a group of children, only this time they are working to create an amateur zombie movie for a contest using a Super 8 camera. While filming, the group is in the middle of an explosion-filled train crash, caused by a truck driving onto the tracks that ends up releasing an unknown entity and dozens of white cubes. Terrified, the children agree with the driver of the truck, their biology teacher Mr. Woodward (Glynn Turman), to never speak of the incident again. What follows is a series of mysterious events within the town of Lillian, Ohio as the kids try to finish the movie.

While the story was able to maintain its suspense until the very end, it had Spielberg written all over it. The fact that a group of children have an adventure of sorts, if not intentional, is not unlike The Goonies, down to romantic tension between the more prominent male lead and the lone female character. In this case, that role is filled by the characters Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney) and Alice Dainard (Elle Fanning), although the romance has a new wrinkle in that both of their fathers don't want them involved with each other. More of the E.T. influence can be seen from the fact that an alien is involved and the military gets mixed up in it, not to mention that they are still depicted as more heartless and evil compared to the children, who are depicted as more innocent. Abrams' Cloverfield also gets to contribute something by influencing the alien itself. Throughout the movie, it is mostly unseen and is shown to be virtually indestructible no matter what is thrown at it. This seemed a little annoying and just made it appear as if Abrams can't write a monster/alien very well.

Despite this, the movie was actually pretty humorous at times, mostly through the children's dialogue. The child actors were pretty impressive for unknowns and I have a feeling any one of them could have a future here. The relationships were depicted quite realistically, especially the amateur director Charles' (Riley Griffith) obsession with getting the movie done every time he comes up with an idea to make the movie more "mint". Even the group's acting for the zombie flick comes off as authentically bad to the point where I kept laughing at the performance.

The special effects in the movie were also good in motion, like during the train crash at the beginning of the movie or with the constant motion of one of the white cubes that Joe has from that same scene. Besides the explosions, a lot of the effects were used to bring the alien to life.

While it felt good to finally know what the alien looked like, I was a little disappointed with the final design. Still, I just went with it and ended up accepting it in the last leg of the film. As for the music, the action is coupled with a competent, but largely forgettable soundtrack. The other sounds in the movie though were perfect and made me feel as though it were happening right in front of me.

Overall, Super 8 wasn't too great of a film despite the hype. It is generally acceptable, as long as you can overlook the various plot holes in the story and the clichés of Spielberg movies. For those who want to see what the hype is about, I would recommend seeing this movie at least once. Otherwise, you're better off looking elsewhere for a good time.

Also, I apologize for the pun in the title. I felt that the "8" in the movie's name made it unavoidable.