In 2009, with J. J. Abrams at the helm, a revamped crew of the USS Enterprise rose again to boldly go where no one had gone before...again. A mixture of euphoric excitement and careful scepticism greeted the first Star Trek adventure of this new generation, yet it was a massive hit, making stars of the new actors behind Kirk, Spock, Scotty and the rest of the crew, as well as truly establishing the film within the legendary Star Trek saga. Now, they’re back to conquer the final frontier once more, the difficult second album from the new team bringing forth an old idea.
Yet they’ve done it again. The effects, the action and the
good old fashioned sci-fi are bigger and better than ever. Phasers were set to
well and truly stun here (I hope to God this is the last of the terrible
clichéd Star Trek references – I apologise). Yet epic in every sense of the
word, this film is.
We of course see the glorious return of staple figures James
T. Kirk and Spock, played by Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto. From these new faced characters being firmly
established in the first film, we see some genuine progression within them
which pleasantly surprised me. Chris Pine’s Kirk goes on a journey of
self-discovery when his triumph from his first outing is quickly inverted then
restored just as quickly, as he must prove himself as captain and leader of the
Enterprise, as well as learn what it takes to accept such responsibility. His
time on screen presents us with brilliant, if slightly predictable moments that
only go further in familiarising us with this 21st century Kirk. The
half human, half Vulcan Spock would always have been a go-to-guy for character
development. Yet for a lot of the film we see Spock as he always was, daring,
impassive, occasionally touching, logical and supremely competent. It is only
in the latter half of the film I feel, that Spock truly comes into his own,
giving audiences some incredible emotional and physically powerful moments
(with a little help from his predecessor Leonard Nimoy who makes another brief
appearance – which diehard fans will
probably faint at).
We also see other familiar faces we were introduced to last
time. Hikaru Sulu’s responsibility increases along with Kirk’s, we welcome back
the ever-down-to-Earth Bones played by Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana’s Uhura gains
more depth too. Her new female co-star, Alice Eve (in the midst of her own
slight controversy at the moment regarding her “gratuitous” underwear scene in
the film) as Carol Marcus, and a well needed injection of humanity and comedy
with Simon Pegg’s Scotty. But the big new addition to the cast is of course the
superbly sublime Benedict Cumberbatch, the film’s main antagonist. I don’t wish
to spoil it for anyone yet to see the film by going into his character detail
too much, let me just say that it will appeal to Star Trek virgins and age old
fans alike. Not only that but his sheer power as a performer comes across in
spades, in pretty much every scene he is in. His range is deep enough to give
him an incredibly interesting, and emotive character, as well as his presence
being ample enough to give us an established sci-fi villain. Interestingly
however, and greatly to his credit, Cumberbatch’s performance does not totally
dominate every scene he is in, moreover he enhances the watch-ability of those
opposite him as well as himself with every direction his character takes. Such
a thing was truly a joy to watch.
So then, I feel the people behind this film should be very
proud indeed. It surely matches its predecessor in terms of sheer Star Trek
appeal, if not more so. The cast, the story, the visuals; it is simply all
there to behold. And, as the newly re-christened Enterprise embarks on her
first five year long mission in the film’s final moments, I cannot wait for the
next blockbusting adventure, which surely has to be a must. Until then I will
simply say to all those behind the film, and the legions of fans who go to see
it... “Live long and prosper”. I just couldn’t help myself!
