This is not a terrible movie, as some have said, but it seems ordinary by today's standards. It is mostly action with little intellect. Why these guys go off on this mission with such recklessness is beyond me. They get themselves in an incredibly untenable situation through their own carelessness. The one thing that so many of these movies never address is the wear and tear on the human body that seems acceptable. People are thrown against walls, drop from great heights, and bounce back without a broken bone or a concussion. These aren't superheroes; they are flesh and blood. The other thing is that the designs of the evil force are never abundantly clear. To create suspense, we need to have a better understanding of the threat. And don't tell me that it was explained. I know it was, but it needs to be reinforced. As things came to a head, I kept thinking back to what exactly the importance of that object was. Many cheap tricks and close calls are gratuitous. I'm a real fan of the whole Trek canon and so this wasn't what I had hoped for.
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Hitchcoc1 August 2016
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cherold9 November 2016After the noisy and irretrievably stupid (though reasonably entertaining) Into Darkness, I wasn't desperate to watch this one, but when I finally did I was relieved to discover that it was even more enjoyable than the first film in the reboot, a rollicking adventure with terrific alien weapons, fun McCoy/Spock repartee, a promising newcomer alien, and a lot of really excellent action scenes.
The movie had almost all the qualities of the original series except one - the thinking part. The smartest thing in the movie is the funny opening scene, which suggests the difficulty of communication between different cultures.
But that's the last thing in the movie that suggests even a moment of thought. The main villain has very little in the way of motivation, and when he explains his purpose it's quite disappointing. Nothing in this movie is there to provoke thought, and I'm not entirely convinced that anything in the movie really makes sense, although there's nothing at the time that hit me as too absurd to live with (unlike the previous movie).
If you expect this movie, like the series, to explore racism and war culture, well, you're not going to be happy. But if you just want some old-fashioned action with some familiar characters, this totally hits the spot. -
Whether you like the newest Star Trek movie will really depend a lot on what you like in a movie. If you love near-constant action, tons of amazing special effects and explosions, then there is more than enough to delight you. On the other hand, if you want a film that is more plot-driven and a multidimensional villain whose actions make any sense, then you are also in for a big letdown.
The plot is very, very simple. Enterprise is sent on a rescue mission that turns out to be a trap. A baddie and his minions attack and blow up a lot of stuff. Most of the crew is taken prisoner or killed and it's up to the rest of the crew to figure out a way to rescue them and save the quadrant. There really isn't much more to it than this.
Apart from the breathtaking special effects, the film is nice because like all the newer Trek films, it doesn't all rest on the big three--Kirk, Spock and McCoy. There is a nice ensemble feel to it and everyone contributes about equally. Additionally, the crew's new friend, Jaylah (Sofia Boutella), is an excellent character-- strikingly beautiful and amazingly tough as well as likable. I anticipate you'll be seeing more of her in upcoming installments of the franchise.
As far as the bad about the film goes, the baddie is played by the excellent actor, Idris Elba. However, he's hidden under such thick prosthetics through most of the film that he seem wasted at times. Additionally, his actions and motivations just seemed confusing and muddled. Also confusing was the big confrontation scene at the end where he and Kirk square off. Now considering if Elba's character wins, he might be able to kill millions...or more. So what does Kirk do? Instead of instantly killing the guy once he's gotten the upper hand, they stop and chat a bit! What?! Kirk's spent the entire film trying to defeat the guy and the villain is nearly invincible and hell-bent on genocide...you talk and give him a chance to escape?! It just came off as anticlimactic and a bit silly. -
tieman6419 August 2016"There are numerous examples where terrorism has successfully promoted political change. Is it therefore not fair to say that terrorism is acceptable when all options for peaceful settlement have been foreclosed?" - Commander Data
"We killed 20% of the population of Korea. 20 killed, everyday for 1100 days." - USAF General Curtis Lemay.
Directed by Justin Lin, "Star Trek: Beyond" opens with one of its better scenes. Here Captain James Kirk (Chris Pine) of the United Federation of Planets attempts to broker a peace treaty with comically tiny aliens.
Unfortunately, because no "Star Trek" movie can go two inches without ripping off Nicholas Meyer's "Wrath of Khan", Lin then gives us a familiar scene in which Kirk and his buddy, Doctor McCoy (an overacting Karl Urban), discuss "birthdays" and "getting old". Because Kirk looks like a teenager, because we barely know him, because we've seen better similar scenes in "Khan", and because we've never watched Pine's Kirk meaningfully grapple with regrets or the passage of time, this sequence feels exactly like what it is: a hack writer's attempt at pathos. The film was written by Simon Pegg.
We're then introduced to Lieutenant Uhura and Commander Spock. They're having a rocky "romantic relationship"; a series of formulaic domestic disputes which the filmmakers mistake for "depth" and "substance". To hide the fact that she's been reduced to a nagging housewife, Uhura occasionally "subversively" kicks butt and "rescues men". But counter-clichés are still clichés.
Kirk and his spaceship, the U.S.S Enterprise, then arrive at Starbase Yorktown. Emblematic of Federation values - cooperation, sharing, caring etc - Yorktown serves as a meeting place for different species. But where previous Trek bases looked elegant or functional, Yorktown looks like eye-candy for morons: unnecessarily busy, vulnerable and over-designed. The Enterprise docks with it, in a sequence which unintentionally flaunts much needlessly dangerous engineering.
Kirk is then tasked with investigating a nebulae. Here the Enterprise is ambushed (why doesn't it warp away?) by thousands of vicious mining vessels; they decimate and destroy the Enterprise. Lin and Pegg offer the ship's destruction as a "big emotional moment", but it's not. This rebooted franchise has never treated the Enterprise as anything other than fodder for ridiculously powerful enemies. Unlike its previous incarnations, this Enterprise has no character, is not a home, never feels like an extension of its captain, and has never been something its crew could rely upon.
And so our heroes escape to an alien planet. Here we're introduced to Krall (Idris Elba), an evil Starfleet officer who crashed on the planet hundreds of years ago. Krall blames the Federation for his abandonment. Yes, another vengeful super-villain.
Things get stupider: Krall found a fountain of youth and an army of a gazillion mining drones. This fountain of youth allows Krall to "suck the life-force out of living beings" because apparently all modern super-villains must be contractually able to "steal your energy". More stupid is Krall's fleet of mining drones; instead of using them to fly home, Krall stays on this planet and embarks upon a 100 year quest to find an alien Mcguffin which Kirk randomly finds and which turns out to be an alien weapon. Krall wants to use this weapon to destroy the Yorktown, despite the fact that his drone fleet is much more powerful.
Things get stupider. Because all adventures need a random local chick to help point the way, Kirk runs into Jaylah, an alien girl who lives in the cloaked wreckage of Krall's old spaceship. Why can't Krall find this ship? Doesn't he know where he landed his own ship? Doesn't its sudden disappeared throw up red flags?
The film ends with the usual dogfights and fisticuffs. Throw in some ticking time-bombs, the Beastie Boys, much ignored property damage and a series of cliffhangers which would be easily avoided if our heroes simply used their transportation devices - and why are they still using spaceships? This franchise has made it clear that transporters can beam human beings across entire solar systems! - and you have one unimaginative climax.
The film's final scenes see our crew inheriting another Enterprise, a moment which highlights how disposable and hasty everything in this franchise is. We also learn that Kirk turned down a promotion - he inexplicably jumps from kid to Captain to Vice Admiral in the blink of an eye - because he "enjoys being an explorer" and "hanging out with his buddies". But what this franchise says it's about and actually shows are completely at odds: we've never seen Kirk do anything other than engage in slaughter, carnage and mayhem. He's James Bond in space.
And like Bond, "Star Trek: Beyond" is political in the worst ways. Here is a film in which an angry black terrorist decides to blow up a "bastion of democratic and co-operative values" because he "hates our freedoms" and "refuses to get with the times". In other words, like all mainstream Hollywood terrorists, Krall is an utterly irrational strawman without a coherent motive. He must thus be destroyed by our enlightened, multi-ethnic, tolerant, multi-coloured white boys, who apparently can't solve anything without themselves resorting to gigantic levels of violence and carnage. The film's politics might make sense in the context of its supposedly Utopian future - Star Trek is, after all, the product of 1960s hippies - but is mostly superficial and dangerous when overlain upon our real world. Ours is, after all, a world which deifies democracy, co-operation, multiculturalism, trans-nationalism, tolerance and the binding of all nations under a "common market", all for the purpose of ransacking nations and ecosystems, fostering class divisions, scapegoating, finding cheap labour and pushing down wages. Most major acts of barbarism over the past century have been hypocritically done in the name of the very values "Beyond" deifies. A better film would examine this.
2/10 – Highly illogical. -
Marthian8027 October 2016With two great movies under it's belt, the latest installment in the Star Trek reboot has some big boots to fill. I was skeptic when I heart J.J. Abrams was not directing it and the writing was done by Simon Pegg and Doug Jong. Fortunately, it turned out to be a solid trek film.
Star Trek Beyond begins with the Enterprise and it's crew on a five year research mission in uncharted space which was assigned to them at the end of the previous movie. Kirk is struggling staying focused as captain of a starship and he is doubting himself if this is the life he wants to live. The Enterprise takes a break from exploring in a massive star base called Yorktown. The star base receives a distress call from an alien woman who lost it's crew on a distant planet. Of course the Enterprise is the best ship to help the alien woman and search for the crew. But this search and rescue mission turns very ugly when they encounter one of the most ruthless villains who's hatred of the Federation puts the whole enterprise crew to the test.
I think they did a marvelous job again and made a Star Trek movie just as great as the previous two installments. The villain was not as interesting as Kahn but the movie makes up for it by focusing on the characters. The story lays more focus on new development like the bond that grows between Bones and Spock and the new female alien character Jaylah (Sofia Boutella, who did a marvelous job) which Scotty encounters. The third act of the movie is the best (with an excellent soundtrack, Beastie Boys and Star Trek mixes very well!) and they once again pull out all the stops with visual and sound effects.
The only caveat I have with this film is the slow start and the main plot being a bit simplistic. Sometimes it feels just like a regular Star Trek episode, but then again that is also one of it's strengths.
So definitely check this one out if you liked the previous two Star Trek films, it's a solid and very entertaining journey. -
claudio_carvalho3 October 2016The USS Enterprise arrives at the Starbase Yorktown for a leave of the crew and Kirk (Chris Pine) intends to be promoted to Vice Admiral to stay at Yorktown and has recommended Spock (Zachary Quinto) for his present position of Enterprise's Captain. However, the survivor from a spaceship called Kalara (Lydia Wilson) is rescued in a lifesaving pod and the Enterprise is assigned to bring the other survives from the distant uncharted planet Altamid. But they are attacked by a swarm of spacecrafts and the Enterprise is destroyed. The crew escapes in pods while the alien leader Krall (Idris Elba) seeks a relic called Abronath that Kirk has kept on board after an unsuccessful diplomatic mission. Krall captures the crew while Spock and Dr. McCoy (Karl Urban) team up with the native Jaylah (Sofia Boutella), who is a skilled engineer that lives in an ancient spaceship from the Starfleet that is stranded in the planet. Meanwhile Kirk, Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and Kalara look for the Abronath in the partially destroyed saucer section. They discover that Kalara is part of Krall's army but they succeed to escape from Krall's warriors and stumble upon Jaylah and their friends. Now the group intends to save the Enterprise's crew and return to Yorktown.
"Star Trek Beyond" is an entertaining adventure totally different from the original series with the excessive use of CGI and explosions. The exaggeration is part of the recent blockbusters and there is no exception in "Star Trek Beyond" with the excessive number of spaceships in Krall's swarm. The Enterprise being destroyed is something unthinkable years ago. Further, to turn Sulu into a gay member of the crew is awful. At least, the characters are charismatics and Jaylah is an interesting new member of the crew. My vote is seven.
Title (Brazil): "Star Trek: Sem Fronteiras" ("Star Trek: Without Boundaries") -
amaskedman25 July 2016I was worried when Justin Lin was signed on to direct. I am not a fan of the mindless Fast and Furious franchise with its ridiculous stunts and silly plots. I gave him a chance, because after all, its Star Trek.
What we got was Fast and Furious in space. Just running, fighting, explosions, one frantic scene after another with no time to develop characters, motivations, or even plausible Sci-Fi. It feels shallow, a promising plot sacrificed to the alter of YA expectations.
Another Star Trek movie where the enterprise is destroyed, again? Is this sci-fi disaster porn now?
The dialogue is forced, the banter off tempo, and in the end, the actors talents and IP were wasted on what feels like a B movie. -
cotita-110 September 2016I had very little expectations on this film but I really liked it.
Maybe its because it has no lens flare and the shaky cam actually works.
It seems the characters have "aged" well, Kirk seems more mature and Spock seems to genuinely care about Uhura.
Jaydah eclipses Uhura as the female lead, she has much more screen time and action sequences. Bones is so much better than the previous films. He manages to bond both with Kirk and Spock, it doesn't feel fake or forced like in the past 2 films.
I didn't like the "Sulu is Gay" scene. I really doesn't add anything to the story. Why are his partner and daughter in the Starbase in the first place? Besides, it looks like everyone already knew about it. Even George Takei didn't like it.
Krall feels more like Khan (from ST WoK) than John Harrison/Khan (from Into Darkness) . He was stranded on a desert planet, he blames the federation for it and wants revenge. But even so, I think Idris Elba did a good job, its clear Krall has a personal agenda, not just "destroy the federation"
BTW Krall reminded me of Jerry from Enemy mine. Just saying.
The Spock prime scene was touching, but they missed to mention how he died. Again no biggie.
It was kind of weird having Scotty be the ladies man (sort of) and not Kirk, but it kind of worked.
The action scenes are good, no lens flare and a little bit of shaky cam (no where near Bourne levels), a couple of scenes suffer from bad CGI but for the most part it gets the job done.
In the end I think its be best of the trilogy, lets see what the next installment will bring.
I wonder how will they deal with Anton Yelchin's death. Will they kill the character? or replace him? -
stebird24 August 2017As crazy as my title sounds, it's actually very apt..., looking back at the original Star Treks, they're starting to look old, for a futuristic show it sure is like stepping back into the past. However, with Star Trek Beyond, the Star Trek universe looks futuristic once again, spectacular action sequences and outlandish locations..., this is the Star Trek we all thought we loved, but it's only now we can actually say we love it.
Where no man has gone before..., until now, the crew of the starship enterprise is attacked by a gang of unknown aliens, rendering them stranded on an exotic planet unknown to the federation..., many of the lesser crew perish, but our heroes survive albeit getting split up and separated in the process.
What follows is a very modern action/sci-fi flick that is attractive to the casual viewer, but somewhat alienates the die hard Trekkie's..., less Star Trek, more modern blockbuster..., obviously the casual viewer isn't clever enough to keep up with the gist of "real" Star Trek, so it's toned down a lot.
The casting is pretty much the same as the previous two films in the series, albeit this was the last film ever made by the late Anton Yelchin who plays the ever reliable Mr. Chekov..., where the series goes from here is a mystery; they can either stay faithful to the original series by replacing Yelchin with a new Chekov, or they can throw the book out of the window and kill the character off completely, either way the next film will suffer from fan backlash.
Did I enjoy Beyond or didn't I? Difficult question, if it were a stand alone film then yes I enjoyed it very much, but as it's part of the Star Trek universe, I can honestly say I was very disappointed, as a life long Trekkie I don't like how they're trying to make the series mainstream..., Star Trek has a cult following and should appeal only to it's true fans, not the wider audience.
My personal favourite was Captain Kirk played by the amazing Chris Pine, the guy at least embodied the spirit of William Shatner, giving an extra kick to the iconic character, making him new again and breathe again, while staying true to the original, for that I can't fault the actor..., just a shame the film's crew didn't share the same sentiment.
Yes Star Trek Beyond is most certainly deserved of a watch, as a casual viewer you'll love it, as a true Trekkie you won't, a bit like marmite to be honest. -
paul-scollon5 August 2016Okay, as a lifelong Star Trek fan and not a big fan of the last movie, I had serious reservations about this one - especially as it was directed by Justin "Fast & Furious" Lin. However, credit where it's due, he made a great attempt at this, and it turned out to be good fun (and WAY better than Jar Jar Abrams' "Into Darkness" mess). It's STILL not Star Trek like the REAL Star Trek - there are no memorable lines here and you won't be playing particular scenes over and over in your head, but this is the world we now live in. They've given all your other favorites the same treatment (and ruined them too), James Bond and Star Wars being among the countless franchises to fall victim. Somehow we've got the point where ALL movies need to be a politically correct as possible, have as a diverse a cast as possible, and appeal to as wide an audience as possible. Hollywood want EVERYBODY to be fans of EVERYTHING from here on - no more closed communities thank you very much.
Given all this, and that Star Trek now has to fit this terrible template, this movie could have been SO much worse. Yes, it has plot holes galore (they're on purpose, don't you know? So the fans can have "insane theory" videos on YouTube), but it also has lots of references to the Star Trek Universe over the last 50 years to celebrate the 50th anniversary. These are subtle enough to indicate that they were put there for the real HARDCORE fans, which I thought was respectful and made me sit up and pay a bit more attention every time I spotted one. One thing that really bugged me though - some of the actors, as they get older, look even LESS like the characters should on screen. For instance, Simon Pegg would want to start piling on the pounds to play an older Scotty, and in the same vain Zachary Quinto should probably lose a few. But these are minor details for sure.
To finish on a positive note, Sofia Boutella who plays the alien Jaylah is really good, and a very likely contender to replace Anton Yelchin who sadly passed away recently. As I've read they won't be recasting Chekov (good!) then I think she would make a fine addition to the crew. Someone make this happen!
If you're a Trek fan at all you SHOULD go see this one. It's SLIGHTLY dragged out near the end, but there is at least a solid 90 minutes of big screen action to be enjoyed in there somewhere. A fitting way to celebrate 50 years of Trek? Maybe. I certainly didn't feel like walking out like during the last outing.. and during Star Wars... and during SPECTRE.... -
bob-the-movie-man31 July 2016OK, so I'm a Star Trek fan being old enough to have watched the original series BEFORE it was in re-runs! But Star Trek Beyond just plain disappoints. It's not terrible but it's not great either.
It's Star Date 2263.2 and Kirk (Chris Pine) is into the third year of their "5 year mission" (which seems to somehow throw away a lot of potential sequel opportunities already doesn't it?). Less buoyant and confident than he used to be, Kirk is feeling a little emotionally 'Lost in Space': after all, as the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy put it "Space is big REALLY big". Spock (Zachary Quinto) also receives some news of a personal nature that unsettles him. They are both in need of a vacation, and Starbase Yorktown (queue some spectacular special effects and an operatic Michael Giacchino track) appears to be able to offer them that. The crew disperse for a bit of R and R: Sulu (John Cho) goes off to spend time with his family (after the big internet furore, the gay aspect of this is very subtle); Kirk gets career advice from the Admiral; and Spock and Uhuru (Zoe Saldana) go their separate ways since – like Ross and Rachael – they are "on a break".
The reverie is rudely interrupted by the arrival of a frantic alien called Kalara (Lydia Wilson) from the other side of a dense nebula. She needs help to rescue her crew, stranded on a planet there. Kirk's rescue mission however goes far from to-plan, and he and his crew are caught in the clutches of the warlord Krall (Idris Elba).
What's nice about this film is that the core crew of Kirk, Spock, Uhuru, Bones (Karl Urban), Scotty (Simon Pegg), Sulu and Chekov (the tragically departed Anton Yelchin) gel together really nicely as an ensemble cast. The traditional by-play between the characters feels unforced, comedic and provides a warmth at the heart of the film. There is also a touching tribute to Leonard Nimoy, who died while the film was in pre-production, woven into the story of which I'm sure he would have approved.
Supporting the crew as a potential new character is the strikingly attractive and kick-ass Jaylah played by Sofia Boutella (the evil amputee Gazelle from "Kingsman").
There's also some fine and innovative alien technology on display with the 'swarm-like' alien fleet harking back (in an expanded scale) to the invulnerability of the nanites from an original episode.
Unfortunately, all of these positives are severely offset by a largely planet-bound Simon Pegg and Doug Jung story (didn't the woeful "Insurrection" teach writers that this tends not to be a good idea?) and action sequences that are so manically fast-moving that it is almost impossible to keep track of what exactly is happening. (Perversely, this is a film that might actually make more sense on the small screen than the big one, which is just BAD CINEMA!). There was even one point in a final fight scene where I seriously feared Kirk and Krall might have a 'sharing of mother's names' moment (if you know what I mean) but fortunately this script apocalypse is avoided.
At the conclusion the story actually makes no sense to me at all: without spoilers, it is difficult to discern exactly what the motivations of Krall actually were. Throw in a graphic in the final reel that looks like Krall is attacking the Death Star (no, seriously – watch for it!) and the concoction just doesn't hang together very well. I know Simon Pegg and director Justin ("Fast and Furious") Lin are huge Trekkers, but – sorry guys – this was a C- for me.
It's a mildly diverting popcorn movie, but with (for me at least) yet another disappointing film, its getting to the point where the best 'summer blockbuster' is likely to be Deadpool and that was released in February!
(Please visit http://bob-the-movie-man.com for the graphical version of this review. You can enter your email address there to automatically receive my future reviews. Thanks). -
jrarichards18 August 2016Those of us who know and love Star Trek are fully aware of the enormous wealth of its universe (indeed several parallel universes, and even recently this reimagined timeline that is anathema to some, but acceptable to others including myself). The whole comprises tens of films and hundreds of episodes in many series, and even life-imitates-art aspects like comments made by makers and stars at Conventions years later! This all has the paradoxical effect (also very visible with series like the BBC's Dad's Army) that the version we hold in our imaginations is now always likely to be richer and more meaningful and greater than any individual installment - past or present - that we actually get to see. And that is as true of ST "The Original Series" as it is of Abrams's new offering "Beyond", not least given that many of the Kirk-Spock-Scott-McCoy outings from the 3rd season of the "Original" were weak, and only erased as turkeys from our memory by reappearances of the original cast in great films like STIV and STVI.
All of this is a lengthy if relevant way of building up to the idea that criticism of "Star Trek Beyond" (what a bad title, BTW!) for failing to match standards is inevitable, given that NO individual ST item can fully represent something that has notched up thousands of hours of screen time! Personally, I'm prepared to accept the revamped timeline in order to meet up again with beloved characters. And I don't even find the crossovers between timelines provided (perhaps now for the last time) by Nimoy-Spock and Quinto-Spock annoying. They touch the hearts of those of us who have been faithful to Star Trek for decades. It's also right that Quinto plays it a little differently to (if worse than) Nimoy, Pine likewise compared with Shatner, and Soldana with Nichols. Perhaps Karl Urban's McCoy is closest to the prototype (from DeForest Kelley), and after coming to that conclusion on the basis of three films, I'm not sure it's a good idea.
Anyway, these are characters we somehow know, diverging gradually from the universe we remember, but it's mostly OK and even fun. Scotty in this film resolves into a semi-comic character from Simon Pegg (who also co-wrote the episode), and even that's OK.
But of course a huge aspect of Trek is the way the key characters interact with each other - and with aliens they encounter. Idris Elba as the bad guy here does alright, but far more so in the last 10 minutes of the film than in the whole of the rest. Jaylah the alien played by Sofia Boutella is also moderately interesting in and of herself, and in the way she connects with our heroes. There are also moments here when all key characters seem to contribute to resolving a problem in a way that the Original would never have done, so plus-marks for that.
On the minus side, some dialogue is just plain banal, and we do get rather few of those profound moments so vital to the ST concept. To be fair though, these are NOT absent altogether, so the standard criticism of "dumbing-down" cannot be applied fully here. We do have some interesting and novel McCoy-Spock moments in this film, as well as Sulu-Uhura moments. The fact that Sulu has a male partner back in port is reasonable, and a fitting enough tribute to George Takei (art imitates life in this case). The Spock-Kirk interactions do not give us much that is new, and the idea that Captain and Number 1 both might have had faltering commitment at the same time is surely inconceivable for those of us who know and love those characters!! As others have pointed out, the whole pseudo-military and naval side of ST is vanishingly weak in this film. Clearly this matters less and less to 21st-century viewers, but hurts a bit if you're an old-timer.
Which brings us to the plot of "Beyond", which is neither especially interesting nor especially inspiring (but then that too could be said about many individual ST episodes). Many aspects are implausible (even beyond what we are used to), and not everything seems to gel into a logical and satisfying whole. Like several large-scale (and long) films of recent times, this one rather flies by without quite seeming to have given a full 122 minutes worth of content.
Effects take up quite a lot of that time (too much, of course), and in quality terms they naturally go way, way beyond what we remember from the old days - but also annoyingly so. Things go whizzing by at such speed that we still don't know at the end of a 2-hour film what we have really been seeing! To me that's an inexcusable sacrificing of substance for the sake of style. Likewise, the Bridge on the Enterprise is to a design so ludicrously "busy" that no crew could possibly function in it for 5 days, let alone 5 years! However, very much on the plus side is the boundless imagination that has gone into conceptualising both the Yorktown Space Station and the planet Altamid. These aspects made the film for me, along with certain serious and comedic interactions between the main characters.
Overall, then, this is a mixed bag of a Star Trek film that will doubtless prove quite acceptable to viewers with less historical and emotional Trek baggage. Old-timers may find it more problematical, but will probably (mostly) conclude as I do that better this Trek than no Trek at all. Given my own clear conviction (expressed in other IMDb reviews) that better no new "Independence Day" than the new outing, and better no contemporary "Star Wars" than the latest offering, this may be considered reasonable praise for the makers of "Star Trek Beyond", and for the film itself. -
snoozejonc14 January 2023Enterprise is attacked whilst responding to a distress call.
This is a fun action-adventure with enjoyable character moments.
The story's premise is nicely reminiscent of an original series episode, where the crew have to overcome the challenges of an alien planet, including a baddy with a grudge against the federation and its principles. It unfolds in a series of extensive, fast-paced action sequences and fan-pleasing character exchanges.
For me the highlight is the humorous banter between established characters and the more dramatic exchanges that stay true to the spirit of the original crew's personalities and their relationships with each other. It feels like it was written with genuine affection for the franchise, but who really knows if it's motivation was simply to maximise profit from existing fans, whilst attempting to attract the new generation.
The cast are all on great form, embodying the original characters nicely and the likes of Chris Pine and Simon Pegg bring their own charisma to the roles. Idris Elba, for me, successfully adds his name to the list of good Trek villains with an aggressive and committed performance.
The visuals are technically impressive, with great art design, action sequences and effects that generate a large amount of spectacle. For me there is a bit too much emphasis on pure action for a Star Trek production, with the main obstacles being overcome by combat, piloting, and bike-riding skills, as opposed to intelligence and clever plotting. -
ardast27 July 2016Where do I begin? As a lifelong Star Trek fan I had an uneasy feeling while watching this movie. I could not shake the sense that I was just looking at another mediocre summer popcorn flick; an experience that would evaporate from my brain just hours after I leave the theater.
I remember sitting in the cinema with my head low embarrassed by the movie, although I wanted it to prove me wrong ever since I saw the "Beastie Boys" trailer back in 2015. Instead, it dragged along with that "proven" Hollywood formula of what a summer hit should look like. Constricted by its own creative limitations I was looking at a product that was not a science fiction in its core, but a creation that had only one intention since its birth: to milk as much money as possible.
Star Trek Beyond was so devoid of the primordial concepts set up by Mr. Gene Roddenberry that it contributed to the confused identity of the picture. The plot of the movie is so "light" in its essence that it lacks the moral dilemmas, the exploration (inner and outer) and the development usually present in the Star Trek universe. There was neither message nor any character evolution and we did not learn more about anything really. Instead of Kirk, Spock and Scotty you could stick just any name over the protagonists and nobody would have noticed. The story was atrocious and full with plot holes patched up by unnecessary although flashy looking CGI.
Star Trek Beyond also has one of the weakest villains in its history. It was definitely not the actors fault and such a shame to waste the opportunity of having a strong artist like Idris Elba. It was the fault of the writer and the director who missed the opportunity to take Star Trek back on its track. Instead they created a cute flick full with needless CGI scenes, explosions and dialogue written for "dumb" audiences. Everything had to be explained to the viewers, nothing was left to the imagination. There was nothing to debate with your friends after the movie or something to stir your imagination or to push you to prod its meaning. Nothing like that at all, everything was given on a run-of-the-mill plate for the audience to consume in a shortest possible time frame.
The movie had its moments, so not everything was complete rubbish. I liked the character of Jaylah and some of the humor, but that was it. Some of the scenes were of course visually impressive though sometimes things would fly around too much and contaminate the image. Of course this movie was done by people, who know their job, but I am not pondering the execution and the skill of the artists, I am merely concerned about the soul of this thing we love so much.
This thing we used to know of as Star Trek. -
sunbreak7-125 August 2016If you want a movie that has a lot of action, fighting and graphics, this is the movie for you. If you want a well developed plot and good acting, it just doesn't deliver. The acting is uneven. The Spock character seems to do the best job and is believable. Some of the others seem like they are at times still reading from the script. The old original Star Trek movies had well defined relationship stories in them but in this, it seems like the characters are secondary to the graphic presentations and fighting scenes. I would even say they don't click together like the original cast. So, to me it was entertaining to a certain extent, but disappointing in that the plot was not as developed as it could have been. The actress who played the "helper" in the end did seem to be very strong and believable.
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jetorbit21 July 2016Not a Star trek fan, I'm a sci-fi fan. There's a difference. Loved the first, disappointed with the second, then this. I don't know why early reviews are so positive, but anyway, it's my view. Been so long since a movie of this genre has been the complete package, story, acting, directing, CGI, etc. This movie does nothing to address that. I got bored 2/3 way in, wanting it to end. So many plot holes, just so many. Go see it, but don't have great expectations. It was nice to look at, but that's all. The bad guy started out being very good (at being bad I mean). Opening was OK, nice special effects, just no credibility. And way too much shaky camera, way to much.
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This ain't your daddy's Star Trek (and the 3D is so unnecessary that it is NOT worth the extra cost):
(1) The plot is close to incomprehensible (2) The directing is mediocre (okay, that is a characteristic in common with the original series) (3) The audience manipulation is palpable (4) The action is overblown (5) And did I mention the plot is close to incomprehensible?
Don't get me wrong. The film is generally fun. But it lacked the heart and soul present in all five television series (ain't counting no cartoons). The "Spock Prime" character is about as confusing as it gets. And while the homages to Leonard Nimoy were touching, they were a bit heavy handed.
But worst of all was the loss of any subtlety and heart. This reboot increasing seems to be solely about the money.
And the negative reaction to Zulu being gay -- which was handled with taste and, unlike the rest of the film, subtlety -- was just plain crazy. I would think that fans would have been a lot more upset about the Uhura-Spock romantic relationship given the nature of Vulcans, even half-human, half-Vulcan ones -- now that's moving away from the Roddenberry playbook far more than making Zulu gay.
All in all, Star Trek Beyond is a pleasant, but not very satisfying addition to the Star Trek compendium. -
Nine hundred and sixty-six days into its five-year voyage, the USS Enterprise arrives at Starbase Yorktown, a massive "snowglobe"-like station with its own internal atmosphere and cityscape, to replenish dwindling supplies while the crew takes shore leave. Struggling to find continued meaning in their mission, Captain James Kirk has applied for a promotion to Vice Admiral of Yorktown, and plans to name Spock as the new captain of the Enterprise. Meanwhile, Hikaru Sulu reunites with his husband and daughter, Spock and Nyota Uhura have amicably ended their relationship, and Montgomery Scott works to keep the ship operational. Spock also receives word from New Vulcan that Ambassador Spock, his elder counterpart from the original time-line, has passed away.
An escape pod drifts out of a nearby nebula. The survivor, Kalara, claims her ship is stranded on Altamid, a planet in the nebula, and the Enterprise is dispatched on a rescue mission. The rescue turns into an ambush when the Enterprise is overwhelmed by a massive swarm of ships and is badly damaged. The swarm's alien commander, Krall, boards the ship searching for an alien artifact that Kirk had obtained on a recent mission. The swarm rips apart the Enterprise, and the saucer section crashes to the planet as the crew abandons ship in escape pods.
On the planet's surface, Sulu, Uhura and other surviving crew are captured by Krall. Kirk and navigator Pavel Chekov, accompanied by Kalara, find the crashed saucer section. Kalara is discovered to be Krall's ally when she attempts to retrieve the artifact for him. To escape Krall's crew, Kirk activates the still-functional boosters, causing the saucer to lurch forward and crush Kalara. Meanwhile, a seriously wounded Spock and Dr. Leonard McCoy search for the other survivors. Spock tells McCoy of Ambassador Spock's death and that he intends to leave Starfleet to continue his counterpart's work on New Vulcan. Meanwhile, Scotty is rescued by Jaylah, a scavenger who previously escaped Krall's encampment. She takes him to her makeshift home, the wreck of the USS Franklin, an early-generation Starfleet vessel that went missing over a hundred years ago. With Scotty's help, the ship is repaired, and Scotty, Kirk and Chekov, and McCoy and Spock, reunite using the ship as a base. The group plans to raid Krall's camp to rescue the crew and transport them to the Franklin then escape the planet. Meanwhile, Krall coerces a member of Kirk's crew to hand over the artifact that she had kept hidden for Kirk. Krall reveals the artifact is the missing half of an ancient bio-weapon, created by the planet's original inhabitants, that can disintegrate a humanoid life form in seconds. With the device now complete, Krall intends to attack Yorktown and kill its inhabitants, and, using its advanced technology, go on to attack the Federation.
Kirk and the others free the crew as Krall launches from the planet with the bio-weapon, leading his fleet to Yorktown. The Enterprise crew pursues Krall in the Franklin. Scotty transports Spock and McCoy into one of Krall's drone ships where they eject the crew. They discover how the drone vessels coordinate. Krall's communications is disrupted with VHF transmissions, causing mass confusion that results in the fleet's destruction. Krall and his three remaining officers crash in Yorktown. As Krall escapes into the city, Uhura and Kirk discover from the Franklin's logs that Krall is actually Balthazar Edison, the captain of the Franklin. A human soldier from before the Federation's formation, Edison became disillusioned with his life and purpose after peace was established with humanity's enemies. When he and his crew were stranded in the nebula, he believed he had been deliberately cast aside. Having prolonged his life using the planet's alien technology that also physically deformed him, Krall/Edison now plans to destroy the Federation in revenge. Kirk pursues Krall into the Yorktown's ventilation system where Krall attempts to unleash the bio-weapon on the entire station. Kirk forces Krall into a portal, causing the weapon and Krall to be ejected into space, where the weapon consumes Krall. Spock and McCoy save Kirk before he is blown into space.
Kirk is offered the promotion to Vice Admiral, but he opts to remain as a captain. Spock receives a box containing some of the personal effects of Ambassador Spock; reflecting on an included photograph of the aged crew of the Enterprise from the original time-line (circa Star Trek V: The Final Frontier), he chooses to remain in Starfleet and resumes his relationship with Uhura. Jaylah is accepted into Starfleet Academy on Scotty's recommendation. As the crew celebrates Kirk's birthday, they view the construction of their new ship, the USS Enterprise-A. -
Xstal12 March 2022Boldly going where no man (or woman or non-bianry) has gone before, climb aboard the Enterprise and let it fly and soar, as old friends gather, reunite, off to battle and to fight, strange new worlds, civilisations to explore.
There's a square Pegg in a large round hole, without any passion or any vision and without soul, a ridiculous accent, leaving nothing but lament, a veritable irritant, annoyance and own goal.
That aside, failing to build on the previous epic and nowhere near as enjoyable. -
Domzer21 July 2016Spoiler free review: I was lucky to go to the premiere in San Diego at comic con... the night was amazing but it ended with a super fun movie. That's the best word to describe it... fun.
The difference with the past 2 Trek movies was that unlike the original films we didn't bond with this cast over 100 or 200 episodes of slower paced TV. These guys were just tossed into it. This movie gives us an idea what a show with them would be like. It's impossible of course to do. But it was such a nice break form the overreaching drama from Into Darkness.
This is still serious and has tearful moments and sincere motivations from characters... but it's also fun. Some people forget the original trek as Justin Lin told the crowd at the premiere that the original series was fun. It was funny. It was a pure comedy at times. and he's right. This movie takes all the elements the series was... (serious, funny, action, fantasy) and mixes it into one giant movie. Including the Shatner like fist fight.
Loved it.
Dialogue from Simon Pegg and Doug Jung was absolutely natural to the characters and everyone had their moments. The scenes of different characters sharing moments with each other was great.
New characters Jayla is terrific. Sofia was great in the part.
It's sort of a typical Justin Lin movie too as in the set pieces, action scenes fx were simply amazing... breathless... the character moments fantastic, warm, sweet... the story was very good but some holes and confusion at times but it's so worth having that for the pure fun this is. -
Finn_Rllm20 July 2016*At first i have to apologize: Sorry for the bad English, I am not a native speaker.*
I am a big fan of the Star Trek Series and when I was young I loved the old series and movies. When in 2009 the first "new" Star Trek movie arrived I was excited about the good cast and the intelligent Plot. The second one doesn't have this tricky intelligent story the first film has, but was also a good movie. The Third one with the sub title "Beyond" is unfortunately more like the second movie, but pro's first and here we go. Star Trek Beyond from director Justin Lin, who is known for Fast and Furious, bring some good action on the big screen. In "loud" moments Lin is in his element. Lin knows how to make some good dynamic action scenes. My personal Highlight is the Enterprise fighting scene with Beastie Boys – Sabotage underlaid. This part of the movie is very entertaining and in these points the movie has his great strength. Also so the Cast is very lovely and with Sofia Boutella as Jaylah there is another coherent likable character. The whole cast perfectly matched and I hope to see all of these guys back in Star Trek 4 (a silent minute for Anton Yelchin, Rest in Piece!). So the action is strong, the cast is strong, whats wrong with the movie? Why it is not a 10/10 for me? So I think the story is the first problem for me. I can't help me, but the whole story is for me more a reason to go beyond different places, then a real continuation of the Star Trek saga. The hole film feels like a episode of the series but in a negative way. There is a bad guy who is bad and good guys who are good. Lin just manages not quite the whole to give it more depth and make the plot more interesting. I don't want to Spoil anybody, but the motivation of the antagonist is not very resourceful in my opinion. We all know why Captain Kirk and his crew do what they do, but there enemy is a little bit "flat". Maybe I don't get it right now or doesn't understand the big point and when I see this movie a second time I will find it, but for now Beyond has the weakest Plot. The second Point is very subjective, but for me the tracking shots were a bit to fast so that the motion blur make some whole scene not pleasant. Maybe the 3D supports this effect, but the many "moving the camera" in a circle about objects and characters were a bit too much. I never become Motion sick in any Movie. I saw the movie "Hardcore Henry" without motion sickness, but in Beyond there were some moments I have to close my eyes. With 48 frames per second I think this problem would be fixed, but with cinematic 24 frames a second it was not perfect in my opinion. Otherwise you become a typical Star Trek movie and it is fun to watch it. I think it is a Cinema Cinema Film, so watch it on the Big screen with good sound. So guys please don't hate me, but in my opinion this is the weakest one of all 3 Movies. Please don't get me wrong. "Beyond" is not a bad movie, but it stands like "into darkness" in the shadow of the brilliant first "new" Star Trek movie. So the "genre-rating" for fans is around 8. For everybody else it is a solid 7 out of 10. -
sykespj16 November 2016I was a bit surprised by the number of negative reviews this movie received on IMDb. The main complaint seemed to be that the film had too much action?! Anyone old enough to remember seeing 1979's 'The Motion Picture' on the big screen is a unique person... most of us fell asleep. Fortunately, 'Wrath of Khan' saved the day in 1982, with lots of action and a recycled, but disturbingly menacing villain.
C'mon folks... even the original series didn't get too deep and meaningful. It was the more action-oriented pilot featuring strong characters that knew how to have a laugh every now and then that got it the network green light. This is exactly what the reboot movies have been like up to now. Admittedly, there hasn't been a classic in the bunch yet, but the potential is certainly there.
In my view, the reboot films are one really scary villain away from producing a classic. With TNG it was the Borg. Doctor Who has the Daleks. Both races completely inhuman, really nasty, seemingly indestructible, and hellbent on destroying (be it assimilation or extermination) everything in their way. Boldly going where Trek has gone before, so to speak. -
ma-cortes27 November 2019The 12th feature film in the Star Trek franchise and third produced by J.J. Abrams results to be an exciting and thrilling roller-coaster . At the beginning , in the opening scene , Captain Kirk is suddenly attacked by hoards of small aliens. After being beamed back to the Enterprise , he remarks: "I ripped my shirt again¨. The Enterprise is on the 966th day of its five-year mission and after stopping off at Starbase Yorktown , the crew of the Enterprise is called a new assignment at a remote outpost on the fringes of Federation space . As the USS Enterprise, halfway into their five-year mission to be aware a fleet being destroyed by an unstoppable wave of unknown aliens , then Captain Kirk takes command and joins his team and they set out in investigating . With a personal score to settle , Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a nasty contender who wants to carry out a mass destruction. As the crew of the USS Enterprise explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space , where they encounter a new ruthless enemy leading an evil force , who puts them, and everything the Federation stands for, to the test and leaving our world in a state of crisis . Along the way , the USS Enterprise 1701 suffers warp fields or a static warp bubble and the aircraft is seriously damaged . Later on , Kirk along with his crew (Zachary Quinto : Spock , Zoe Saldana : Uhura , Karl Urban : Bones , Simon Pegg : Scotty , John Cho : Sulu , Anton Yelchin : Chekov) take the Enterprise deep into the dark and mysterious zone . There an alien warlord calles Krall (Idris Elba) seeks an ancient weapon called the Abronath that Kirk has kept hidden later an unsuccessful diplomatic assignment . Only a rebellious alien warrior called Jaylah (Sofia Boutella ) can help them reunite and leave the planet to stop this deadly menace from beginning a possible galactic war.
This epic story is concentrated on characters as well as thrill-packed action and state-of-art special effects , in fact , there're numerous of that too . The movie has thrills , tension , emotion , suspense and sensational space scenarios like is customary development of the franchise , though it doesn't features any scenes on or near Earth . The first film of the franchise produced/written by J.J. Abrahams was ¨Star Trek¨(2009) and this film ¨Star Trek : Beyond¨ (2016) is the follow-up to ¨Star Trek Into Darkness¨ (2013) and takes place two and a half years after .Here the Enterprise crew find an unstoppable force of terror from beyond that has detonated a fleet and everything it stands for , as they are stranded on an unknown planet and with no apparent means of rescue , and subsequently, they encounter themselves fighting a ruthless enemy with a well-earned hatred of the Federation . Spectacular , exciting , fast-paced , thrilling this is the description of this new outing of Star Trek , film that reinvents the saga through a perfect pulse narrative that does not give a second of rest to the spectator who is trapped for two hours and some approx. in a genuine visual spectacle . Idealism , humor , humanity , a motley group of agreeable characters and trademark effects abound and will please the enthusiasts as well as the neophyte . As our heroes are propelled into an epic chess game of life and death , love will be challenged , friendships will be torn apart , and sacrifices must be made for the only family Kirk has left : his crew . The nice acting convinces , especially the avenger Idris Elba in a super-villain role , Zachary Quinto in his usual serious character , and the sympathetic Simon Pegg , while other players also make a fine work . And of course , attractive appearance by Sofia Boutella who wears an extreme make-up , giving a sympathetic and enjoyable intervention . As well as brief acting by Greg Grunberg , being his second Star Trek film in the current franchise , but only his first on-screen appearance as Commander Finnegan . And being Anton Yelchin's final Star Trek film before his death on June 19, 2016 , at the age of twenty-seven years old and caused by a car accident .
Stirring final amazing really the spectator , in which the moving and spectacular scenes create a perfect union that terminates with an ending that leaves you stuck in the armchair facing the formidable spectacle as a privileged witness . Interesting screenplay , well written by various screenwriters : Simon Pegg , Doug Jung and uncredited : Roberto Orci , Patrick McKay , John D. Payne , J.J. Abrams , based upon "Star Trek" created by Gene Roddenberry. Screen-writer/actor Simon Pegg explained that the dilemma for the sequel was whether to pit the crew against another villain like in Star Trek (2009), or to have an "exploration sci-fi plot where the unknown and nature itself is somehow an adversary", like on Star Trek , the original series (1966) . Breathtaking soundtrack by Michael Giacchino , he composes an impressive musical accompaniment to the film . This marks the first time a Star Trek film has shot outside the United States and not in Hollywood . In fact this is the only Star Trek film to be shot primarily in Vancouver , British Columbia, and the existing sets were rebuilt for special effects sequences . Furthermore , a colorful and evocative cinematography by Stephen Windon ; however , being first Star Trek feature to be shot entirely digital adding a lot of frames in CGI . Paramount Pictures requested the notorious director Justin Lin who provided a nail-biting and sensational science-fiction movie , he previously made a lot of successes , such as : Annapolis , Better luck tomorrow , Fast & Furious , Tokyo race , Fast and Furious 5 , Fast and Furious 6 , among others . Suitable for family viewing , it's an entertaining adventure which young and old men will enjoy . Fans of the series will find very amusing and charming . It is fun to watch and Trekkies are sure to love it , resulting to be one of the best Star Trek sequels of all time and the highest grossing film of all the Star Trek movies. -
magnuselm22 July 2016How is it possible to spend so much cash making a movie so utterly meaningless and bad? 185 million USD?
This is 2 hours of your life that you will never get back.
So, where to start? First off the story is so thin and seems like a child wrote it. It has no depth and right from the beginning you feel basically nothing for the bad guys or the good guys, and there are so many holes in the story.
There happens to be a huge base far out in space where the Enterprise is going to restock? Isen't the Enterprise supposed to be out in deep space exploring?
Next to this large space base there is a nebula and apparently a planet with perfect conditions for human survival. It seems to be right next to the large space base, which would seem very very unlikely considering the vastness of space. And the crew happen to land on the same small area of this huge planet so they can all meet up.
Then they meet a character that seems to be a bad mix of Rey from Star Wars and Neytiri from Avatar who happen to have found an old federation ship (that of course they can get to work after 150 years on a deserted planet), very unoriginal.
So the reason for the bad guy Krall to lure the Enterprise to his planet and destroy it seems to be a device that Kirk has that will help Krall kill people. But in the end of the movie it is very clear that using his ships alone he could have easily destroyed the base - so what was the purpose of this relic device in the first place?
There is quite bad CGI during the whole movie. In every action packed scene especially the fighting the camera moves around so much it is hard to grasp what is happening. But even with this shaky camera trick it's impossible to miss how utterly bad these scenes are. The fighting scene between Manas and our Rey character is one of the worst Iv seen in a long time.
The only thing decent with this movie are some of the actors and their dialog. Everything else, from story to script to CGI is just garbage.
Im sorry I like Star Trek I really do, but this movie is not worth seeing in the cinema. -
I'm not a 'Trekkie' and I doubt I ever will be. The Next Generation played regularly on television when I was young but I never took to it, as I was too busy getting lost in The X-Files. Like most people, I enjoyed roughly half of the original movie series that starred the likes of William Shatner and Patrick Stewart, but was completely won over by J.J Abrams' reboot/remake/alternate timeline effort in 2009, and it's sequel Into Darkness in 2013. With Abrams abdicating for that other nerd-heaven franchise beginning with the word 'star', I had little interest in seeing Justin Lin's Beyond after seeing the trailer, which made the movie look like it had little to offer in the way of originality.
What eventually made me want to see were those slightly trippy, wonderfully colourful posters, which offered a dazzling throwback quality not seen in Abrams' strobe-heavy, more 'grounded' vision. After seeing the film, this retro feel is precisely what makes Beyond such an enjoyable experience. Lin of course was the man to turn the Fast and Furious franchise from cult car porn teetering dangerously close to straight-to-DVD to a multi-million dollar powerhouse capable of attracting the talents of Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham, and delicately handling an ever-expanding ensemble between the ludicrous set-pieces. Lin's experience with a big cast and bigger budget, combined with co-writer Simon Pegg's obvious affection for Gene Roddenberry's original series, results in a winning combination of character, heart and explosive action.
After spending three years of a five-year mission drifting in space, Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) of the U.S.S. Enterprise is struggling to find meaning in his work. If there is truly infinite space left to explore, then where does it all end? Docking at Starbase Yorktown, Kirk recommends that his Vulcan friend Commander Spock (Zachary Quinto), current mourning the death of his older self (in a touching moment that references the passing of Leonard Nimoy) takes over as captain upon the completion of the current mission, When the Enterprise is called into action after they receive a report of a stranded ship on a distant planet, they are ambushed by Krall (Idris Elba), a scaly being with a serious grudge against Starfleet. With their ship destroyed, Kirk, Spock, Bones (Karl Urban) et al must rely of their basic survival skills to defeat Krall and return home.
The 'Beyond' of the title seems almost ironic, or a working title somebody forgot to change. In terms of plot, this is the most unambitious entry into the Star Trek canon in memory, and certainly doesn't go beyond anything we've seen before. However, this is all perfectly fine when the chemistry between the actors is this good, with Pegg and co-writer Doug Yung clearly having fun with Spock and Bones' bickering in particular. While the likes of Zoe Saldana (as Uhura) and John Cho (as Sulu) are oddly sidelined, and Elba doesn't get anywhere near the screen-time his sheer presence deserves, there's the welcome introduction of Sofia Boutella, who appeared in Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014), as alien freedom fighter Jaylah.
The standout set-piece is without doubt Krall's initial attack on the Enterprise. The astonishing special effects lend an almost operatic quality to seeing an iconic piece of pop-culture crash and burn, completely tearing it to shreds in spectacular fashion. Such a bravura display of CGI trickery is then in contrast to what we see when the characters touch down to a seemingly barren planet. Often it feels like a gust of wind could cause the set to wobble, and this is no doubt a wink to the charming set design of the originals. This juxtaposition of thoroughly modern blockbuster and kitschy nostalgia works extremely well, and will no double please the hardcore fans unimpressed by Abrams efforts. While it may not boldly go where no other Star Trek movie has gone before, there is a delight to be had in simply watching these beloved characters interact. Isn't what made the original so popular in the first place?