Star Trek Into Darkness: A Fangirl Review
Warning! There are spoilers ahead for Star Trek into Darkness, so if
you haven’t seen it yet and plan to, stop reading now. Come back after you’ve watched it and let me
know if you agree with me.
I love the Star Trek universe! The
Next Generation was the first Star Trek series I ever watched, and I’ll admit
that I only started to watch it because Will Wheaton was in it, and I had a
huge crush on him from the time Stand By Me.
Watching that first episode, and hearing Patrick Stewart as Picard utter
those famous opening lines, “Space, the final frontier” hooked me as a Trekker! I’m not ashamed of it; I embrace it. I went to conventions, bought T-shirts,
figures, models and even a phaser! Oh,
yes, people, I have a phaser replica! I went to see all the Next Generation
movies in the theater and eventually tried to get into the original series and
movies. I have to admit that I don’t
have the love for the original series as most hardcore Trekkers do, but I
respect it because, without it, we would have nothing.
When it was announced that there was a reboot of Star Trek coming to
theaters based on the original series, I was over the moon about it, but was also concerned that I might be a
bit lost because I wasn’t as familiar with the original series as the Next
Generation. All my worries were put to
rest when the 2009 reboot was released.
JJ Abrams made me fall in love with the world all over again and brought
a new love to the characters that I didn’t have with the original.
I couldn’t wait for a sequel. The
first one was so perfectly done that I had high expectations for the second. I stayed away from any kind of spoilers. I didn’t want to know who the villain was and
what the plot might revolve around. I just
wanted to go into it with an open mind and enjoy it for what it was.
This is your last chance. There will be spoilers ahead.
Back in December, when I went to see the Hobbit at my local IMAX, we
were treated to a 10 minute preview of Into Darkness. I was so blown away by
the footage that I forgot I was there for the Hobbit and was a little sad when
we went back to middle earth instead of boldly going where no one has gone
before. Finally on Wednesday night, when
the theater went black and the movie came on, I was beyond excited. We were
going back and I couldn’t have been happier.
The movie opens up with the crew of the Enterprise observing a planet
and its inhabitants on the verge of extinction due to the eruption of a
Volcano. They are only supposed to be
observing, but with death immnent to the people on the planet, Kirk ignores the
prime directive and intervenes with a plan to stop the volcano from
erupting. The first 10 minutes are so
exciting and visually stunning that I wondered if JJ could keep it up for the
rest of the movie. The answer is yes, he
could!
There are so many great aspects to this movie. The relationship between Spock and Kirk is hands
down the heart of the movie. Both Chris
Pine and Zachary Quinto are so believable as Kirk and Spock that you feel all
the emotions they go through as the movie progresses. Every one of the actors embodies their
characters and the audience is treated to the rare occasion that makes you
believe they are who they say they are.
You are totally immersed in the world and the movie soars for it.
I was thrilled when Benedict Cumberbatch was cast, but when rumors
started to swirl as to who he would play, I stopped reading. The biggest rumor, of course, was that he
would be Khan, the end-all, be-all villain of the original Star Trek movie series. The hardcore Trekkers were not happy with
this rumor. They felt the character had
been played to perfection by Ricardo Montalban and that some things in the Star
Trek series should be left alone. My
opinion on it was it’s an alternate timeline, and if the villain is Khan, can’t
he be different than the one everyone knows and loves?
Cumberbatch’s character is introduced as John Harrison, so for the
first act of the movie, I thought the rumors were wrong, that he was no more
than a terrorist that had it in for the Federation. When his true identity was revealed and he
said to Kirk and his away team, “I am Khan”, I knew there were a few fanboys
who cringed, but I yelled out “I knew it!” lol I thought his take on Khan was fresh
and fitting to the plot. He was amazing
and made you fear him as well as root for his cause at the same time. My advice to the fans that had a hard time
with this is to just let it go and go see it again with fresh eyes. You will always have “Star Trek II: The Wrath
of Khan” to watch and love, but now you also have a new version of his character
to embrace and love.
The movie is visually stunning!
The color timing applied to the movie was beautiful and it enriched the
look of every scene. There may have been
one to many lens flares, but I will forgive JJ because the rest of the movie
exceeded all my expectations.
I’ve read some reviews saying there are plot holes in the movie, but I couldn’t
find any. I think much of that is due to
the overall timeline of this version of Star Trek. I really don’t want to reveal too much—I know
I spoiled the villain—but the movie is so much more than that. I don’t want to give too much else away, but I
think it’s unfair to compare it to other movies when this is clearly a new
version of Star Trek history. There are
things that happen because, alternate timeline or not, they are fated to
happen. Choices are made and events set
in motion that make it so.
My only complaint about this movie is that I want more! I want the next adventure now! I want a TV
series with this exact crew! The 3rd
installment has been greenlit, but it’s not slated for release until 2016…sigh.
Until then, I will just have to watch this one over and over again, and
let Chris Pine as Captain Kirk give me the goose bumps every time he begins the
famous lines “Space, the final frontier”! Let’s hope we get to explore this
Universe with this crew for many years to come.
Go see this movie. It is truly everything a summer blockbuster should be,
and if you’re not a trekker, this may just make you one!
Tell next time!
-Lisa
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