To Boldly Go Back to the Beginning

Today has been a lovely day weather-wise down here in Wiltshire. I had to go see a client this morning, and it was a joy to be driving through the rolling countryside as I made my way towards Salisbury. I started out especially early, so that I could clock-off a little earlier once I had finished work. Flexible working hours are a wonderful thing sometimes!

I wanted to finish early today because Dori and I were going to the movies this afternoon to see the new Star Trek film. We prefer to go in the afternoons if we can, because it avoids all of the crowds and happens to be cheaper too, which is a bonus! :-) As it happened, even though we got there in the early PM, there was still almost a full house to see this movie – no wonder it is at the top of the Box Office lists!

I am sure that most of you have already heard about this movie being a “re-imagining” of the Star Trek universe, and that JJ Abrams has “rebooted” the franchise. Well, all of that is true – and more! The casting of the film is superb, with Zachary Quinto in particular looking almost identical to the Spock we remember from the original series. But, the other main characters are also very well cast, with Karl Urban’s portrayal of Dr “Bones” McCoy very reminiscent of that of DeForest Kelly. Simon Pegg does a comic turn as Scotty, without it grating against the action-packed main storyline. And Zoe Saldana, John Cho and Anton Yelchin all do excellent jobs at recreating the roles of Uhura, Sulu and Chekov.

The film tells the story of how Kirk, Spock et al all came together before their famous 5-year mission began. There is plenty within the script to delight any Trek geek (like me!), as well as those totally new to this cosmos (if such a person exists). There are plenty of references that Trek-savvy movie-goers will pick up on, but you really don’t need to be a full-on Trekkie to enjoy this film. There is plenty of action, humour and pathos to go around, and JJ Abrams directs with a light touch to breathe new life back into the 43 year old franchise.

9 stars out of 10 from me. Go see it – Boldly or otherwise!