Star Trek review (5-9-09)

I’ve actually been pondering whether to see this movie…

I don’t EXACTLY agree with Doctor who (MODERN doctor Who) being cheesy, but it’s fine. I’m not going to go to Arizona and kill you.

But it did help me decide that I should see it.

Concerning that whole Nero waiting 25 years for Spock. Aparently, what happened after attacking USS Kelvin, Nero gets captured by Klingons and spent a good chunk of his time trying to escape. This subplot was cut due to length.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek_(film)#Filming

I personally thought this was the best made film so far this year (granted, that hasn’t been much of a accoplishment), though Watchmen is still my favorite (if that makes sense).

I don’t know whether anyone’s mentioned this already, but why does the guy who plays Kirk in this film look like he has shit smeared all over his face in every scene in this film?

Spoony, are you getting your Trek movies confused? Undiscovered Country was awesome.

And why are hard core Trekkers freaking out about this film? If it’s set in an alternate reality, all they have to do is say ‘it’s set in an alternate reality, it’s separate from TOS’. Those are the kind of fans I don’t like, the ones who have to explain every little continuity error, every little difference between episodes. It’s just a TV show. I love it, but I’ve learned you should just sit back, relax and let yourself be entertained (unless it really blows chunks like Enterprise and about 90% of Voyager).

was the lizard fucking worse than Mansquito?
btw it’s nice to see another positive reveiw, the things you didnt like were the things anyone wouldnt like and you didnt harp on vulcan

To be fair, Voyager did get better as the series progressed as well. It was never on caliber with the others, but it did get a little better.

I think the time police were not around in Kirks time…mabye.

And yeah, Dr. Who is one of those So-Bad-it’s-good shows…kinda like Lost in Space (which, by the way never had a full length move. Nope, not a one)

Speaking of selective amnisia, I like to pretend that Enterprise does not exist.

i had the distinct feeling that this was a reinvention and a reboot on top of that. they are trying to pull new fans in. which they did. like the new star wars movies fans hated. but it grabbed many new ones. plenty of younger people like the new and not the old because they find them cheesy. i thought this movie was really well done. i didnt like the time travel bit. it is way overplayed in science fiction and not neraly as well done as others. but ya. great movie :) side note i only ever liked the next generation. and only cuz i like a couple characters. action has always sucked. lol

I saw this movie and I got to say, it just feels like this is a desperate move to save a dying franchise. The original Star Trek was before my time, I saw it, but I guess I just can’t appreciate it like people who grew up with the series did. What I loved was the Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. Voyager was alright, but I’m big on continuity and progression. Voyager offered none of that as it was essentially one small ship off in the middle of no where. It had it’s good moments, but it contributed very little to the larger Star Trek plot (unless making the Borg look surprisingly weak and ineffective can be considered a contribution).

Enterprise really bothered me because there’s nothing I dislike more than prequels, and even for a prequel, it was really poorly done. It had no regard for what comes after it and even without the time travel stories, it really felt like an alternate timeline (with the exception of the final season, which tried to undo the damage of all the previous seasons). I think Enterprise failed because loyal Star Trek fans didn’t want to see and and the series had no mainstream appeal, so it’s one of those unique series that really appealed to no one.

As for the new Star Trek movie…it was good, but like I said, it was a desperation act and one that boxes them into a corner. I really doubt we’re ever going to get another movie or series that takes place in the main timeline. I think Enterprise and this movie suggests that the studio just feels there’s no more money in more sequels. A reboot was the only way. Even if there was to be a sequel, they just destroyed Romulus in a fashion that probably crippled the Romulan Empire. So there’s the last major adversary of the Federation gone.

All the same, we got this new Star Trek timeline that can go in any direction. But so what? Yes, with the original crew made young again you can probably come up with 2-3 more good movies before this alternate timeline just collapses on itself. We’ve already seen a lot with this people with the original series and the movies, how much more can they do with them before it gets stale and repetitive? Even if it doesn’t, how much longer can they hold this new group of actor/actresses intact? After they can’t anymore, what do they do? Make a sequel to the alternative timeline? We’ve already seen the Federation grow from the 23rd century into the 24th once, do we really care to see it happen again? And once you’ve milked this alternate timeline, is there anywhere left to take Star Trek? Back to the original timeline, where all the major villains (the Dominion, the Romulans, the Cardassians, the Borg, etc) have been essentially neutralized? This timeline that modern fans are increasingly unfamiliar with because you haven’t really touched on it since the end of Deep Space Nine in 1999. Do you create yet another alternate reality?

I think the franchises long term health would have been better served through a sequel. Set it a hundred years after the events of Nemesis if you want with an all new crew. Take the Enterprise out of it entirely if you want, focus on a darker Federation if you want, make very few references to the past if you want. The future has the luxury of ignoring the past and not getting trapped by it. But most importantly, with a plot that takes place in the future of the series, you have room to grow. With this movie you’re boxing yourself into a trap.

Anyways, that’s my take on the movie. It’s not that I thought it was bad, it’s that I was hoping that this would be the movie to save the Trek franchise. Instead it just bought it a few more years.

First off, understand that I was raised on Star Trek. A full decade before I discovered Lord of the Rings or Star Wars, or any other major geeky thing (15 years before I discovered D&D for example) I was watching every single episode of Star Trek the Next Generation as they aired, catching the Original Series in between, thanks to my huge Trekker mother. I’ve owned multiple costumes of Star Trek, etc.

And you know what? I don’t feel betrayed in the slightest by the new movie. Yeah, it had some minor plot problems, As Spoony himself said, all movies have problems. I actually thought it had less than some of the rabid fans have been saying, particularly about the rapid rise of Kirk from cadet to captain. (even so it is still fast) Throughout the film there are subtle hints that Nero attacking the Kelvin actually starts a war (or perhaps cold war) between the Federation and Romulan Empire. Such a war, and all it’s casualties would cause a greater demand for competent officers. (And PIke was the one who saw Kirk’s potential) It seems they were trying to emphasize greatly how much one event like the Kelvin would really effect the time-line in a quarter century.

You know what though. It’s a movie. Not real. Not sacred. A movie for our entertainment. That doesn’t mean it can’t talk about important issues and make people better or more hopeful for the future, but it is still a movie. I loved the movie, and thought it was a great way to give the franchise a fresh start, free from all the dead weight of bad episodes and movies. (as well as the good ones)

This might have been mentioned already, I’m not feeling in the mood to go back and check.

But to the fans that complain about this making the Trek universe meaningless… numerous times throughout most of the various series, there is a parallel universe shown (aka the universe of the “Terran Empire”). Where humanity is violent and cruel, they conquer planets and take their achievements, forget Prime Directive and all that, all your base belong to us, primitive or not, but especially if not. Enterprise made the defining difference in that universe when Cochran (sp?) killed the Vulcan captain of the ship that came to see him and they took his ship. True, things were already very different before that point, but the point is that there can be MULTIPLE universes in Trek, there already are. Why can’t a fan, who should KNOW this, see this as a 3rd parallel universe now?

Then again, I never did understand how single universe time travel (“affecting the universe we’re from!”) AND parallel universe (“Not out universe, but same time!”) plots can happen in the same continuity. Then again, my personal belief is that if time travel is EVER possible, paradoxes will be impossible because of the concept of a multiverse, every choice and every option gets chosen, every possibility has been selected, and every time there’s a parallel universe from it. In one universe you wore white socks, and in another you wore black socks that same day, and nothing else different from the former. But that’s just my thought, take it or leave it.

To Spoony: I have to say, your defense of creating a black hole vs. letting the sun go supernova is the best possible defense there. It’s flimsy, but it’s something lol.

awesome

Having just watched the film, I find it hard to believe we watched the same movie. I watched the review first and was looking for the plot holes you mentioned. They are all explained perfectly and some, like Spock’s anger problems, don’t even seem to be near what you made them out to be. Except for young Spock defending his mother and Kirk pissing him off near the end he seemed very cold and logical. They even made a point of his having a subdued reaction to his entire planet, including his mother, being destroyed. Also, I’m sure others have pointed this out but the star was NOT their sun and the black hole was supposed to be created to suck in the star before it could destroy the planet. Spock creating the black hole out of the star was a last ditch effort.
I am not a big trek fan but I thought this film was great and the divergent time lines (the original time line still exists by the way or else old Spock wouldn’t remember a different future) was a perfect way to create new stories not held down by continuity rather than just rebooting without any reference to the original series continuity. Now anything can happen to these characters including unexpected deaths.

I don’t get why people say this movie invalidates everything that came before it. (real world chronology) nothing in this movie would have happened the way it did if it hadn’t been for events in the original continuity. That all still happened. this movie creates divergent continuity with essentially alternate reality versions of the old characters. different Jim Kirk, different Spock Etc. It didn’t wipe away the previous series at all.

Since I’ve got all you Star Trek fans in one place, can some of you tell me why Nemesis gets such a bad rap? I thought it was okay (at least as Trek movies go) but not stellar, but I don’t understand why people seem to hate it so much. So, honest question, why DO so many Trek fans hate Nemesis so much?

I like Dr.Who, and I thought that Spoony was only half right on that regard.

The old series was awesome, and cheesy as hell, but the new series is awesome and much better. :D But then, I’m British, so of course I’ll stick up for it. XD

I mostly agree with Spoony here. Although I think he’s underselling the franchise in some regards. Trek at it’s best can be deeply philosophical, hopeful, dramatic and exciting. At it’s worst, it’s preachy, campy, slow-paced, and especially in the later series, filled with insane amounts of technobabble. The actual ratio of good episodes to bad ones varies with the series and the original series definitely had a good dose of crap, but I try not to watch those episodes ;D

This movie has/had lots of potential. I agree that the plot was pretty dumb, but not nearly as dumb as some of the episodes or even one or two of the other movies. A sequel would be good, but I hope they try to take more time for a better plot and more character work. Basically, slow the pace a bit. It can still be exciting and action-oriented, but I think they need to focus some more on the characters and less on flashy effects… but that could be said about a lot of movies.

As a visual artist I also had a problem with the sets in some places. Besides the obviously ludicrous Romulan ship, did anyone else think that the Enterprise had some really bad sets? I mean the engine room was like a mass of random pipes, like it was filmed in a disused factory (like something out of Space Mutiny, from MST3K)and the bridge was just too bright and shiny, so that I had trouble working out what was what. And what’s with the federation outpost having distinctly twentieth century ceramic tiles on the walls?

i really don’t understand why hardcore trek fans are so against this film. this film basically creates an alternate universe that can exist in divergence from the original trek time line. it doesn’t undo the original time line at all, at least to me it doesn’t.

I saw this movie just last night and I’m not a hardcore fan of Star Trek. I mean the original show used to come on TV on whatever channel I just happened to have it on and I would just eavesdrop. I know about Spock’s epic sleeper pinch thing and some of the quotes I remember hearing in the movie. The film was very entertaining. I almost regret not watching everything up to this but in regard to what you said about hardcore fans being displeased or everything after Next Gen going downhill, I guess I didn’t miss much XD.

Awww you didn’t like Sabotage? It sure got me into the mood. Although in the presence of the movie it did seem really off. Not in terms of Kirk being rebellious but in the terms of time. I mean, what year is this? Isn’t this some kind of futuristic world? Sabotage has got to be somewhat of an oldie by then. And in that logic why would a rebellious kid listen to an oldie rock song? Wait, don’t answer that x.x

Actually I think I might have some kind of counter argument for Nero on the whole 25 years thing which the way you explained it is a major flaw in the movie. 25 years and they do nothing? It’s an awful concept but really… Was Nero really aware that he was in the past? I mean he even asked the old commander of the USS Kelvin what the stardate was. Which he didn’t really answer that question. So he might have not even known it was the past at all until which 25 years later when they see a younger Spock and Kirk.

Also the whole hardcore fans ravaging over the fall of Vulcan was kind of just irritating. OH NOES! ALL IS LOST! T_T Really? I thought it was the most interesting thing to have happened in the movie. So a character (Spock’s Mother) and a whole planet that was important in the plot of the old series was wiped out completely? Wow o.o Now what happens? I just happen to like alternate realities. It’s fascinating to watch events unfold differently. Just watch Higurashi no Naku Koro ni to see what I mean.

And the thing about Spock losing control of his emotions frequently in the movie well… I think old Spock said it best. “I just saw my home planet and it’s six billion inhabitants along with my mother just get instantly vaporized. How do you think I feel?” Not the exact quote but that alone should explain the conflict with Spock. Oh and I never noticed the ongoing lens flares. I don’t look for stuff like that, sorry. You gotta hand it though. Compared to the 60s show, this is a pretty exciting movie. I mean back then in it was just a little plastic model on a string just slowly moving across the screen. Now it’s WHOOSH BEOM BEOM! BOOM! In all it’s complexity.

Any hardcore fans who hate this movie can have their opinions. I honestly don’t care for it. I liked the movie so there. You can’t ruin my experience by whining about nit picky things. It’s almost as if no matter what the producers do, a group of fans were gonna hate it. They just think everything made after the classic productions are worthless or not as good. Just look at the Sonic The Hedgehog Franchise which is actually more true. This movie was just a good action/adventure movie. Stop being such haters.

I saw your Vlog. I agree with you with nearly everything…
Karl Urban was really great as McCoy.
I didn’t like Scotty. I love Simon Pegg but they design Scotty as a bidimensional character that work only as comic relief.

You should call it an Impresssion, rather than a review, since you didn’t even give a spoiler-free run-down, you just kinda gave your impression about it and the different views.

I’ve gotta say that I’m a trekkie and I thought it was a betrayal like you said.

I’m not so much upset that they reset the trek continuum…. next gen, DS9, voyager… not too terribly mad that those didn’t happen according to the plot cause well, they’re still on DVD and they’re still great, the movie didn’t take them out back and shoot them imo…

What I DO feel betrayed about is that the star trek universe seems to be stuck on trying to come up with a good prequel. they tried it with enterprise and they tried it with the new movie (which, I think will be more well recieved than enterprise overall), but it seems like every star trek writer has the same stupid time travel plot stuck in their head.

I mean, there was a time travel incident that changed the future…. wasn’t that the whole plot of like every season of enterprise???? Seriously… go ahead and make your prequels but come up with something new for the love of pete!

I loved the film and I don’t see in anyway that it negated the other star treks, for one they could still happen with minor adjustments; there is still going to be a Vulcan and knowing Vulcans they will just call the planet the same name as the other one. They were never a major race in the show (they didnt have an empire nor did they have influence many episodes). So the vulcans being gone isnt that major of a deal.

Kirks dad being dead not a big deal as he was never a major character (not even sure he made an appearance in the original series).

In fact the only thing the show did was allow them to make an origin story for Kirk and Spock and company without having to worry about making every fan boy cry havok let loose the dogs of war because they got one fact wrong. Two they already stated its an alt reality so the little fan boys still have their reality due to the fact that the reality they whack off too must occur in order for the alt. to be created. And There and final it was a damn good show which is about time because frankly after Deep Space Nine I all but abandoned the hope that a decent film or series would come out again.

the reason why the Narada was all dark and green was because befor they went into the black hole (it’s not in the Romulan home system just near it) they went to a near by military research staion the was reverse engineering Borg weapons and other systems and grafted them on, which is also the reason why a mining ship can take on 40 Klingon warships

I’m also just guessing that they did blew up the sun that was going to go supernova, the writers must have though it was a no brainer and didn’t put it in.

and like others said, yeah it’s an alternet uniserve so there are two main ones, “Prime” the old one, and this new one.

Was the Enterprise even the Flagship in this movie? Pike referred to it as a “new” ship…but even if Kirk’s ascendance to the throne was pretty weak, I really don’t think it was considered the “Flagship” upon it’s launch. I think you’ve got the future’s future confused with this new movie (cause yeah it IS the Flagship in the 24th century). Yeah I know, a silly nitpick.

To be honest though I liked the new movie. Before it came out I knew personally I’d never consider it “canon” so I wasn’t too worried about it ‘undoing’ Trek because even if it was just a straight up “retelling” of Trek in that things were different without the Time Travel devise, the technology is obviously too advanced looking to be considered “canon”. Plus that aside the whole Time Travel thing was done basically so they can go anywhere with the future movies and surprise audiences. As a Star Trek fan we can consider this an alternative universe and we have this along with the Original Series…..it’s just another view on a similar theme….that atleast has a reason to be different.

But that aside, I think it was a pretty great love letter to the Original Series characters. I hope if anything, the movie compels people to search out The Original Series (TOS) and movies to see where the inspirations come from. Also, while I thought the guy who played Chekov kind of laid it on pretty thick which couldn’t be helped, Karl Urban did an awesome characterization of Dr. McCoy. It was eerie because it was that damn good Spoony…and you know I ain’t just quoting Triple H here! Scotty now has an authentic Scottish accent! We see Kirk’s cheating the Kobayashi Maru…all good stuff.

oh and one more thing…..you think Star Trek fans were bad after this movie? Clearly you’ve never been to the “Star Wars (1977)” IMDb board! Where the topic of the day changes on a dime from Han Solo’s motivations on waiting for Greedo to shoot to Hayden Christensen’s 5 second cameo that totally ruins an entire movie…nevermind the moment he’s apart of.

You didn’t like The Undiscovered Country? Damn, It’s the best one imo. As McCoy is my all-time favourite, I’m glad he was done right. It helps that Karl Urban is the only Trekkie in the cast. As for Nero just sitting around waiting for 25 years, Nero was kidnapped and held by Klingons for the whole time, but the scenes were cut for some reason. And yeah, Highlander 2 & 3 sucked.