How do you craft a truly exciting and emotional action movie? After seeing “Star Trek Into Darkness” I have the answer to my own question: You simply following the example of director J.J. Abrams. His 2009, “Star Trek”, a resurrection of the classic TV series, was a wild ride and a whole lot of fun. This sequel is a near-masterpiece.
Abrams wastes no time getting us hooked. The movie begins with Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) running from weird-looking inhabitants of a distant planet while Spock (Zachary Quinto) is attempting to stop a volcano from erupting and destroying their world. There’s more pure energy in this opening scene than most recent sci-fi films provide in two-hours.
Decisions are made by both Kirk and Spock that lead to Kirk losing command of the USS Enterprise and Captain Pike (Bruce Greenwood) taking back control of the ship. But before that can happen Starfleet is attacked by one of their own members, a man named John Harrison (played by Benedict Cumberbatch, best known as TV’s “Sherlock”). And Kirk, Spock, and the rest of the Enterprise crew are sent to hunt down Harrison and kill him. Obviously, there’s a lot more that takes place in the set-up, but I’m not going to face the wrath of fans by revealing anything else. What I will say, and it’s one of the many strengths of “Into Darkness”, is the script is complicated enough to keep you thinking and guessing throughout and yet you have no problem following what’s going on. Much like a well written TV series. Imagine that!
It’s unfortunate that “Star Trek Into Darkness” is being overshadowed this movie season because it’s sandwiched between “Iron Man 3” and “Man of Steel”. In reality this is the definition of a true Summer blockbuster. It’s just over two hours of non-stop action, drama, suspense and laughs. There’s nothing more you could possibly want out of a popcorn movie.
The ensemble cast is excellent. Zoe Saldana returns with all the others from the original as Uthura, along with Karl Urban’s Bones, “Harold & Kumar”‘s Jon Cho as Sulu, Anton Yelchin’s Checkov and British actor Simon Pegg, whose Scotty, once again provides some of the movie’s lighter moments. Alice Eve (“Men in Black 3”) and Peter Weller (the original RoboCop) have good supporting roles. And Abrams treats all of these iconic characters with both the respect that diehard “Star Trek” fans demand, but also gives the actors the freedom to make these characters their own. The romantic relationship between Spock and Uthura is a perfect example. At one point during “Into Darkness” I was thinking to myself: “I would watch stories involving these people every single week”. I can clearly see how the Trekkie phenomenon began.
It seems odd that Abrams is now going to switch “Stars” and direct the next installments of “Star Wars” instead of sticking with this franchise that he’s become such a master at steering. With “Into Darkness” he not only crafts great action sequences but is able to draw pure emotion out of every character and situation. There’s a dramatic scene following the big opening sequence that catches you a bit off-guard and Abrams continues to weave serious themes throughout the film, which is also enhanced by effective quiet moments and a perfect score.
High grades go to the visuals and effects as well. On the negative side, occassionally things get a little wordy (including Spock’s analogies and Bones’ metaphors) and the final few minutes are basically thrown away, but considering everything that comes before I can forgive Abrams for that.
“Star Trek Into Darkness” is rated PG-13 for the sci-fi action/violence and some adult language. It’s appropriate for kids 12 and up. Fans of the TV show – Gotta see it. Fans of the first film – Gotta see it. And even if you’ve never been exposed to anything “Star Trek” before – I still say – Gotta see it. It’s intense science fiction with both humor and heart.
On The Official LCJ Report Card, “Star Trek Into Darkness” gets an A-. It’s one of the best action films of 2013.