A Look at Star Trek Into Darkness
by: Ben Hayle, NMTV
It had been four years since Star Trek was reborn on the big screen by director J.J. Abrams when Star Trek Into Darkness recently warped into theatres. Star Trek was hailed by many for making the science fiction franchise accessible to a mainstream audience. Long time fans of Star Trek like me took one of two routes – they either hated the new version of their beloved franchise or they embraced the changes and jumped aboard Abrams’ thrill ride. I chose the later and I have not regretted my decision. Abrams’ Star Trek is both accessible for a mainstream audience and filled with enough “inside Star Trek” references to please the trekkies.
In Star Trek Into Darkness Starfleet is rocked by a terrorist attack on Earth. The terrorist attack is determined to be the work of John Harrison and former Starfleet officer. Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise are then given a mission to track down and apprehend Harrison who has taken refuge on the Klingon home world. The story explores emotion and at the same time the need for lack of emotion. Emotions like rage, revenge, and remorse are explored as we become connected with these well known characters on a deeper level. Ultimately, Kirk is faced with a decision that all Captains need to be prepared to make which brings the film to a heart wrenching climax.
J.J. Abrams proved with the reboot of Star Trek in 2009 that he knows how to make a solid space blockbuster. He shows no signs of losing his touch as Star Trek Into Darkness is a blockbuster through and through. There are epic battles in space and on land, fantastic settings, and great special effects. What moves Star Trek Into Darkness to another level is the tremendous acting by the ensemble cast. Our villain, John Harrision, is played by Benedict Cumberbatch an English actor with an impressive resume and a very bright future.
The visual effects done by Industrial Light & Magic are fantastic as are the sequences that were shot with IMAX cameras. Abrams included about 30 minutes of footage into the film that was shot with IMAX cameras making those scenes larger in an IMAX theatre. The entire creative team made sure that this film had the look and feel of a big budget blockbuster.
With Abrams guiding the ship the Star Trek franchise will continue to flourish. However, chances of Abrams directing another film appear remote as he is now set to embark on taking over another iconic film franchise, Star Wars. The seventh Star Wars film is scheduled for release in 2015 and with Paramount targeting 2016 for the next Star Trek film it is almost inevitable that Abrams with have to hand over the reigns of the franchise to another director. The good news is that with the success of the last two films the studio should have no trouble finding a highly qualified director to take the helm.
Star Trek Into Darkness is a fast-paced, fun, exciting thrill ride that will please both new and long time fans of Star Trek.
4.5 out of 5 stars.
