Star Trek
Paramount Pictures
10/10
I am a Star Trek nerd, I admit it wholeheartedly. I have had eight hour make out sessions to the third season of TNG, had the playboy with Denise Crosby in it, and have offered up the following Star Trek themed sexual innuendos:
– Are you a Data on the streets and a Lore in the bedroom?
– (In reference to taking a virginity) Can I go where no man has gone before?
– I want to put my dilithium crystals in your warp core
And while it is obvious that I prefer The Next Generation above all the rest, you can not deny the roots laid down by the original series. Kirk’s womanizing, McCoy’s catchphrases, Spock’s curiosity in regards to the humans’ emotions getting the best of them… And it’s all in the movie, captured by what I believe to be one of the best casting jobs I’ve seen in a long time.
I think the most surprising to me was Karl Urban as a young Leonard “Bones” McCoy. How this was the dude who played Eomer in The Two Towers is beyond me. From copying DeForrest Kelley’s facial expressions to his trademark “I’m not a _____, I’m a doctor!” line, he had it down 100%. And while I love that Simon Pegg was Scotty simply because I have loved everything he has touched, I think he did a fine job as the young engineer. Even John Cho was a solid Sulu, though I assume he was brought on less for his acting talents and more for the name.
Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto have a solid Kirk/Spock relationship with Kirk’s gut-feelings at odds with Spock’s quest for logic perfectly balanced with comedic timing an dramatic moments.
The film starts- now, I am not going to be giving away any spoilers here, so don’t worry… Ok, so the film hits the grounds running and only takes a few, brief moments to lay down some character development or dialogue (or half naked green alien chicks) before cutting away to more destruction, explosions and more shit that mid twenties nerds like me look for in a movie. The movie makes a solid move in not introducing some crazy new species as the main villain, but the flick does incorporate some plot devices seen many a times in the Star Trek world. But, hell, it’s Start Trek, you can’t hold it against them.
Visually, the movie is flawless, from badass starships to the sweet hand to hand battles, everything looked awesome. Total nerdgasm. I was physically aroused for several hours afterwards, which I’m sure was awkward for my roommates. So, it comes out May 8th, and I know that I, too, will be in line with you guys at the midnight showing. It’s so good, I will actually PAY for it, and that’s saying something.
–Jonathan Yost