Director: J.J. Abrams
Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch, John Cho, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Anton Yelchin, Alice Eve.
Plot: After making some rash decisions as captain of the Starship Enterprise that breach the directives of Star Command James Kirk loses the command of his ship. When a dangerous new foe begins a series of attacks on the high command Kirk is sent on a manhunt across the universe that has more at stake than he expected.
Review: If there’s one thing that stands out about this sequel is that it stays the course. There’s very little to separate it out from the first film in this rebooted series. Not that this is a bad thing by any stretch. Abrams new take on the legendary sci-fi brand was a hit for fans and newcomers, and rocking the starship would not have been on anyones agenda. The flip side is that the characters rarely get anything new to do and while the villain is more of a menacing presence the end result is like that of a sitcom – everything returns to the status quo by the end. Safe to say you could watch the movies back to back without any noticeable shift between the two.
The crux of the first adventure was the relationship between Kirk and Spock, as they both learned to value the perspective of the other and work together. Although everyone was BFFs by the closing credits a conflict is dragged out in the opening scenes. Nothing new – just Kirk’s recklessness coming into conflict with Spock’s logic driven mindset. Although Kirk loses the Enterprise as a result it doesn’t take much for him to get it back and the adventure to keep on rolling.
The result of the ensemble cast being introduced in the first film was that many of the characters weren’t given the screen time they could’ve used, but by the end of the story they had all had their hero moment that saw them working as a cohesive team. Sadly many of the characters get even less time on this adventure, with Sulu, Chekov, Uhura and McCoy having very little to contribute to the story. As expected Benedict Cumberbatch is fantastic as the villain Khan, bringing his intensity to the role while kicking all kinds of ass. He does not seem like the natural fit for a genetically engineered super soldier but he nails it. His shifting dynamic with Kirk is easily the high point of the movie.
Although the full cast don;t get their opportunity to step into the spotlight, which is something we’d hoped to see with this sequel, there’s little real fault to this. Unlike the first voyage the villains here play a central role and are interesting to watch. The heroes are put in a genuine moral dilemma that brings some very real tension to the flick. At the end of the day this is a damn good adventure. Visually rich and full of awesome action, great characters and some wry humor. If you were on board with the first film there’s nothing to disappoint this time around.
Score: EIGHT outta TEN
