Director: JJ Abrams
Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Alice Eve, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, Bruce Greenwood and Peter Weller
Star Trek (2009) successfully tweaked one of the most popular sci-fi franchises of all time. Star Trek Into Darkness goes a step further and has the potential to envelope even non-trekkies into its fold. It is a high-jinks roller-coaster ride filled with thrills, high octane action and just the right emotional punch to make you queue up for the tickets again. It is a retelling of the Wrath Of Khan (1982) storyline wherein a genetically engineered superhuman from the earth’s past, cryogenically frozen into a space pod, wakes up to wreck havoc all around.
What wows the senses are the visual effects. We have seen the USS Enterprise in action before but in deep space. We have never fully grasped how big and huge it could be. Well, the opening scenes where she rises from the ocean on planet Nibiru and the closing scenes where a damaged Enterprise enters the earth’s atmosphere, present us with the behemoth in full glory. The awesome climax where the rogue ship USS Vengeance crashes into San Francisco and the chase sequence which follows alone is worth the price of the ticket. Did I fail to mention the jaw dropping sequence on Nibiru which depicts scenes from inside an active volcano? This is ILM (Industrial Light & Magic) wizardry at its best. Kudos to all the animators involved.
But it’s just not the visual effects that hook you. The film has real life roots as well. The terrorist attack on the secret service facility and the admiralty command remind you of the actual attacks on Britain’s MI6 headquarters and the Pentagon. And you applaud Captain Kirk’s decision to retaliate with a peaceful solution rather than going after the culprit with all guns blazing. So unlike our real world leaders.
The film takes us further into the Star Trek mythos, giving an insight into the rock solid friendship between Kirk and Spock and teaches us that Vulcans have feelings too. The actors, be it Chris Pine (James T. Kirk), Zachary Quinto (Commander Spock), Karl Urban (Lieutenant Commander Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy), Zoe Saldana (Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, communications officer), Anton Yelchin (Ensign Pavel Chekov, navigator) and Simon Pegg ( Lieutenant Commander Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, second officer and chief engineer) reprise their roles with ease and with familiar eccentricities intact. So be prepared for more inside humour. Alice Eve is a welcome addition as weapons expert Dr. Carol Marcus, who is hinted as being Kirk’s love interest. The film belongs to Benedict Cumberbatch, (Khan), who is fiercely loyal to his other 72 cryogenically frozen colleagues and who would do anything to keep them safe. We empathise with this flawed superman and like to see more of him in future.
A sequel is on the cards as we see a revamped Enterprise all fit and ready for a five year space mission. We can hardly wait to go where no one has gone before once more...
Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Alice Eve, Anton Yelchin, Simon Pegg, Bruce Greenwood and Peter Weller
Star Trek (2009) successfully tweaked one of the most popular sci-fi franchises of all time. Star Trek Into Darkness goes a step further and has the potential to envelope even non-trekkies into its fold. It is a high-jinks roller-coaster ride filled with thrills, high octane action and just the right emotional punch to make you queue up for the tickets again. It is a retelling of the Wrath Of Khan (1982) storyline wherein a genetically engineered superhuman from the earth’s past, cryogenically frozen into a space pod, wakes up to wreck havoc all around.
What wows the senses are the visual effects. We have seen the USS Enterprise in action before but in deep space. We have never fully grasped how big and huge it could be. Well, the opening scenes where she rises from the ocean on planet Nibiru and the closing scenes where a damaged Enterprise enters the earth’s atmosphere, present us with the behemoth in full glory. The awesome climax where the rogue ship USS Vengeance crashes into San Francisco and the chase sequence which follows alone is worth the price of the ticket. Did I fail to mention the jaw dropping sequence on Nibiru which depicts scenes from inside an active volcano? This is ILM (Industrial Light & Magic) wizardry at its best. Kudos to all the animators involved.
But it’s just not the visual effects that hook you. The film has real life roots as well. The terrorist attack on the secret service facility and the admiralty command remind you of the actual attacks on Britain’s MI6 headquarters and the Pentagon. And you applaud Captain Kirk’s decision to retaliate with a peaceful solution rather than going after the culprit with all guns blazing. So unlike our real world leaders.
The film takes us further into the Star Trek mythos, giving an insight into the rock solid friendship between Kirk and Spock and teaches us that Vulcans have feelings too. The actors, be it Chris Pine (James T. Kirk), Zachary Quinto (Commander Spock), Karl Urban (Lieutenant Commander Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy), Zoe Saldana (Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, communications officer), Anton Yelchin (Ensign Pavel Chekov, navigator) and Simon Pegg ( Lieutenant Commander Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, second officer and chief engineer) reprise their roles with ease and with familiar eccentricities intact. So be prepared for more inside humour. Alice Eve is a welcome addition as weapons expert Dr. Carol Marcus, who is hinted as being Kirk’s love interest. The film belongs to Benedict Cumberbatch, (Khan), who is fiercely loyal to his other 72 cryogenically frozen colleagues and who would do anything to keep them safe. We empathise with this flawed superman and like to see more of him in future.
A sequel is on the cards as we see a revamped Enterprise all fit and ready for a five year space mission. We can hardly wait to go where no one has gone before once more...
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