Man, I'm just funnin'! thanks, loved your comments too. Trying to catch up to comment on your comments!
----- Original Message ----- From: "sincere1906" <sincere1...@gmail.com> To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Sunday, May 10, 2009 10:04:09 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [scifinoir2] Re: Keith's Take - "Star Trek" oops. guilty as charged. i ain't been back on here enuff to know that was yer thing Keith. apologies. :) good review tho! Sin --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com , Keith Johnson <keithbjohn...@...> wrote: > > Someone took my "My Take" review opening, so I had to change my subject line! > :) > > My quick take: The new Star Trek is a fun movie, full of jokes ( a few too > many perhaps), exciting action scenes, and great FX. The cast is good, the > updates to the ship not too bad, and the stage is set for future films that > should also be fun. JJ Abrams has been respectful to the spirit of > Roddenberry's vision, and the human core of the franchise is there, > especially for future efforts. Still, changes to Kirk and especially Spock > were puzzling and unnecessary, and the change to the Trek timeline is > puzzling and frankly needs to be reversed. Overall a fun movie that needs a > few tweaks in future efforts. > > My Full Take: > > > > “You will always be a child of two worlds. The decision is yours to decide > which is right for youâ€�. > > > > This is Sarek’s advice to his half-human, half-Vulcan son, Spock, trying to > help him deal with the conflicts of his heritage. Neither half is > intrinsically better than the other, Sarek explains, and his son can benefit > by taking the best of each. > > > This seems to be the philosophy taken by director J.J. Abrams in his update > of the sci-fi classic. Abrams has succeeded in making a fun film that is > great on the eyes, and respectful of the human drama at the core of “Star > Trekâ€�. But in bringing “Trekâ€� into a new world, Abrams has modified > some of the core elements of the old. Like Spock, he has endeavored to > combine the best of each; and like Spock, it is up for moviegoers to decide > if the result is right for them. > > > > Things start off quickly enough, as the USS Kelvin is confronted by the sight > of a giant spaceship emerging from a literal hole in space. The commander, a > Romulan named Nero (Eric Bana) is bent on revenge for a past hurt. Before > long, the captain is dead, Kirk’s father is in command, and ultimately > sacrifices his life to save his crew--including his pregnant wife. > > > > Twenty-five years later, Kirk’s son Jim (Chris Pine) is a young ne’er do > well who spends his time flirting and getting into bar fights. That is, until > Kirk is approached by Captain Christopher Pike of the newly commissioned > starship Enterprise. Pike encourages the young man to make something of > himself by joining Starfleet. > > > > “I dare you to do betterâ€� (than your father), he challenges Kirk. > “Enlist in Starfleetâ€�. > > > > Kirk takes up the challenge, and thus sets on the path that will lead him to > meet Spock and the rest of his future crewmates. > > > > Abrams keeps things zipping in “Star Trekâ€� from the first moment. The > explosions, phaser battles, and fightsâ€"and there are a lot of them--come at > warp speed. Indeed, many times the action is a bit too frenetic: space > battles move by too quickly to be taken in fully, and Abrams loves to put the > camera right in the faces of people during fights. One wishes the camera > would pull back every now and then, and that the action scenes were more > drawn out rather than a series of quick-cuts. Still, it’s not boring. > > > > No expense has been spared in the look of the film: the Enterprise has been > updated outside with a sleek new look that’s less angles and more smooth > curves. Inside it’s all white and plexiglass surfaces, floating holograms, > vivid computer displays, and surprisingly cavernous sections where crewmen do > their stuff. One could cynically note a strong “Star Warsâ€� feeling here, > but give Abrams credit: he does pay great homage to the old as well. The > uniforms (women in skirts! red-shirted security guards!), phasers, and > communicators all hail back to the look of the series. Throw in sweeping > vistas of Vulcan, beautiful shots of Starfleet Command in San Francisco, and > you can see Abrams was really serious about making this movie look > “authenticâ€�. Even some of the soundsâ€"the transporter, alerts, some > computer noisesâ€"are very familiar indeed. Overall, the changes are nothing > to complain too much about. > > > > It’s a great looking film, but as any fan will tell you, the true center of > Star Trek has always been the relationships between its characters. Does > Abrams manner to capture that feeling? Well, yes---mostly. > > > > At the center of this movie are the struggles Kirk and Spock are undertaking > to find their way. Each man has in a way been running from his pain, with > Kirk seeking escape in emotional excess. Though in the Academy, Kirk is still > hiding behind the character of the irreverent, devil-may-care rogue. He’s > still a womanizer, still thumbing his nose at authority. > > > > Spock has mostly avoided the issue of just how much of an emotional creature > he canâ€"and shouldâ€"be, by trying to be the cool, consummately logical > Vulcan. Some of the best scenes in the movie involve Spock issuing commands > with authority, steely logic in control, cutting down smart remarks with dry > witticisms. These moments best captures the wry Spock of old, and they’re > great. But like Kirk, we see that Spock hasn’t really found himself. > Despite his cool exterior, one can still sense the anger just beneath the > surface, evidenced whenever someone challenges him. > > > > It’s the march of both characters toward realizing their potential that is > the heart of this film. Along the way, they go from initial mutual dislike to > respect, and we see the glimmer of the great friendship that is to come. > > > > For the most part it works, with some exceptions. In a small way, the > portrayal of Kirk feels just a bit over the top. He’s too much of a rebel, > too flip, such as when he cheats on a test simulation .It’s a funny scene, > and another great nod to Trek history, but it feels a bitâ€"off, as if Abrams > is playing up the cavalier Kirk to set the stage for the hero he will one day > become. > > > > A bigger problem is Spock’s emotional control. One character who challenges > him is literally thrown off the ship in a fit of pique. And in one pivotal > scene, Spock is goaded by insults into completely losing control, nearly > killing a man in the process. Sure, he’s suffered a huge loss at this > point, but really! Most surprising of all are the outward signs of affection > Spock shows for his lover: kissing in the turbo lift, hugging in the > hallways. Like Kirk, his character seems to have been exaggerated just a bit > to highlight the struggle. > > > > In a recent interview, Abrams related, “I wasn’t a fan of Star Trek as a > kid. I could never understand why I should care about the characters.â€� > Perhaps that explains changes to the characters, with Abrams thinking the > originals were too boring? Too bad if so… > > > > And perhaps it explains the curious tact of rewriting continuity. Abrams has > said he felt the move was necessary in order to let him bring in a younger > cast, but frankly the need wasn’t there. A story could have been crafted > that brought the crew together temporarily, and it could have been done in > the original timeline. The changesâ€"especially a particularly devastating > attack by Nero that will have permanent repercussions to the Trek > universeâ€"really don’t seem necessary to tell a good story. And the final > resolution of the crew’s fate seems a bit too rushed to be believable. > > > > Despite these changes, Kirk and Spock are fun, as is the rest of the crew. > Karl Urban does an okay job as McCoy, though he needs to work on that > Southern accent. Simon Peg as Scotty mostly plays the character for laughs, > though we get a hint of some dramatic possibilities underneath. Anton > Yelchin’s Chekov is just a funny kid, flittering about nervously, deep > accent really played up to affect, especially when trying to pronounce the > letter “Vâ€�. John Cho is surprisingly effective as Sulu. He makes the most > of a fight scene, showing a steel underneath that bodes well for future > movies. Disappointing however, was Zoe Saldana’s Uhura, who really has > little to do beyond playing the object of two men’s desire, and flashing > her underwear in one brief scene. She’s a good actress, but really needs > more to do. > > > > Most disappointing of all is Eric Bana’s renegade Romulan Nero. Despite the > devastating havoc he wreaks, Bana’s Nero is actually one of the least > memorable villains in Trek movie history. He’s not onscreen much at all, > and has very few lines beyond “I want Spock to suffer as I have!â€� > Nero’s motivation for the murderous rage he feels seemsâ€"illogical. And > the writers don’t explain how this former self-described family man and > simple miner has somehow turned his ship into a dreadnought capable of > defeating several starships at once. Nero is simply a plot device, an excuse > to give Abrams a way to rewrite history. Once that’s accomplished, Nero is > defeated in spectacularly under whelming fashion. It’s rather a wasted > role. > > > > In the end, is “Star Trekâ€� a good movie? Absolutely. It’s fun and > exciting, holds one’s attention, and provides laughs as well as thrills. > Abrams has been respectful to the spirit of the original. The cast is roundly > good, and can easily be entrusted to carry the mantle of the franchise toward > whatever future awaits it. Still, the little changes to Spock, Kirk, and > continuity are puzzling, with their potential to render everything that’s > come before obsolete. Perhaps in a future movie, the now two realities can be > reconciled, and everyoneâ€"old fans and new alikeâ€"can be completely pleased > with the result, turning what was a very good effort into the great one it > can be. Until then, the new “Star Trekâ€� and any sequels will definitely > be a fun ride, if not a perfect one. > > > > > > My Grade: B >
