A Most Excellent Star Trek

[dr_phil_physics]

A Comment on Movie Perfection

The Usual Suspects is one of my favorite movies, in part because of the deliciously perfect way it has been assembled. You have this great cast of characters, this incredibly convoluted plot, and when you get to the end you say "Oh no..." and immediately want to see it again. And you do. And realize it was all in vain, because it is all a wonderful lie.

The track record of the previous Star Trek movies is pretty spotty. It doesn't mean we didn't rush out and go see it. It just means they aren't quite in the same league as Really Great Movies. But the pressure that Star Trek fans can put on any new project is tremendous. The serious fans know the Star Trek canon backwards and forwards. And the hard core OST -- "original Star Trek" -- fans are a very tough crowd.

I am here to tell you that J.J. Abrams has pulled a real rabbit out of the hat here. The ad phrase "This isn't your father's Star Trek" is literally true. This is an alternate Trek, in the best sense of the word, and is from the opening moments of the film to the credits.

Trust me. I think Star Trek fans can live with this.

Star Trek in IMAX [PG-13]

Celebration Cinema North IMAX, 7pm

We chose to go the IMAX route on first viewing, because we could. As I mentioned the other day, we were surprised to still get tickets on Wednesday morning. The perfect spot in this theatre is dead center in row 4 -- we were slightly off from center in row 3, which was good enough. Settle back and let it unfold.

The new Spock I knew would be perfect. Even before I saw the make-up, I knew he'd be right. Indeed, the cast is spectacular. McCoy especially, though having Simon Pegg as Scotty is somewhat inspired. The only one I might quibble with is James T. Kirk, who is scrappy and reckless in a way that is more raw than the young Shatner. But... there's a reason for that and I'm willing to accept it for the moment.

Just as Battlestar Galactica modernized the old designs, while keeping up appearances, Federation starships look like Federation starships, old school of course, and shuttlecraft look like shuttlecraft. And for several crucial scenes, the vacuum of space is silent.

This is not a secret, I don't think, but we begin on the USS Kelvin and when we meet Captain Kirk, it's Daddy, not sonny boy. Events are set into motion which bring out starship crew together years later -- set in motion by a distressed madman. Or mad Romulan, actually. He's the weakest link in the whole movie, by the way. We get scant mention of his motivations and just have to deal with him. That's okay, but we're not talking Khan-level villainy here.

Numerous times in the film, things happened or characters voiced lines we expect them to say and we were greeted by polite applause from the sold out audience -- and cheers at the end. There's humor here and a few surprises. I suppose some will not settle well with some people.

Okay, so I've not told you a damned thing about the movie, have I? What I have tried to do is let you know that I think they've done a good job. This is a re-imagining of Star Trek, this is a New Trek. There is, I have heard, already work being done on a second script.

I think the Star Trek franchise is in good hands for now.

Highly Recommended

Dr. Phil

Comments

[nerwengreen.livejournal.com]

Cool. I was wondering whether it was going to be worth watching in the theaters rather than waiting for a DVD. Guess I'll go. :)

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

Well, we think it's worth seeing on the big screen -- even worth seeing on a giant five-story IMAX screen. (grin)

Dr. Phil

[jimhines.livejournal.com]

Good to know! We're planning to see it tomorrow. So far, I've been hearing very good things.

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

You even have an IMAX in town, if you want to splurge. (grin)

Dr. Phil

[1wilson.livejournal.com]

We are going to see it Tuesday...this is the first ST movie that I have not seen on opening night..but schedules don't allow it this time around.

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

What's funny is that everything keeps saying opens 5-8-09, but Celebration North in Grand Rapids MI had regular showings on Thursday night May 7th for 7pm, 8pm, 9pm, 10pm and IMAX showings at 7pm and 9:50pm. Both IMAX showings I know were sold out -- Channel 13 news was even there at the 7pm show and we caught the clip on the 11 o'clock news.

Mrs. Dr. Phil and I speculated that since it is opening in early May, that it's still a school night and maybe having midnight first showings wasn't a good idea. (grin)

Dr. Phil

[1wilson.livejournal.com]

It opened for us here yesterday, but in some cities it doesn't open until today. Either way, we'll go on Tuesday, when all three of us can see it for the price of what it would normally cost ONE of us.

I'll second everything Dr. Phil said

[shouldersofgiantmidgets.blogspot.com (from livejournal.com)]

It's good. It's fun. It has a number of moments that are "good movie good" and not just "Trek-movie good," along with enough fan-service bits to keep old friends of the franchise happy. (In Charlotte, too, some character appearances, lines, and an actor got applause for just being who and what they were.)

Yes, it's worth seeing in the theater, and it's worth the extra bucks for IMAX if you have the opportunity.

Re: I'll second everything Dr. Phil said

[dr-phil-physics.livejournal.com]

I think that that's one of the differences one notices right away. Too many of the previous Trek movies were just an excuse to get "the old band back together again" and not spending any time on decent special effects or plot. (grin)

Dr. Phil