Out and Back: Star Trek

I almost didn't bother.

That'll sound strange coming from not only the son of a Trekkie (Mom has the entire original series on VHS. VHS!) but from someone who has more friends that are into the franchise than any human being should be allowed to have.

I don't have to tell any of you out there that there's an inherent danger when you've given the keys to a franchise property. And if there's any group that's more fanatical about accuracy than comic book fans, it's Star Trek fans (Though both pale in comparison to Star Wars fans. Seriously.), and they've seen their franchise fall upon hard times (see: the last two feature films, the entire run of "Enterprise".) J.J. Abrams and company had to get this right. So when I saw the trailers, I wasn't turned off, but I was... concerned. It almost looked too - and I'm about to make up a word here because I'm not sure how else to say this - "actiony" for a Star Trek movie. But practically everyone I trust said this was worth seeing.

They were pretty much right.

In 1966, they couldn't make an original Enterprise that looks the way it does in this movie. It's a "modernized" look, but it doesn't necessarily outshine those that came after it. A move like this needs to look good, and this one does - sleek and shiny in all the right places; and dark, gritty and foreboding in all of those right places.

I don't envy Chris Pine at all. This movie with Lindsay Lohan in 2006 was his highest billing before getting the role of Kirk, and I'm not sure that ever saw the inside of a theater. So going from that to this... not exactly baby steps. But he's up to the task and plays well with everyone else in the cast, which is so important for these characters. Zachary Quinto plays the most conflicted Spock ever (they've done some playing around with Spock battling his half-human side in the movies, but that envelope's never been pushed like this), and everyone else falls into line. Also, and this is as spoilerish and I plan to get, I like when guest stars serve a purpose and don't just show up for the sake of showing up.

One thing I will say, understanding that you don't want the movie to be too long, is that now I kind of want to see a "Kirk at Starfleet Academy" series. Abrams and company did their homework and stayed true to the characters while freshening them up at the same time, so if that's on the horizon, I'll be there.

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