Escape to the Movies: Star Trek: Into Darkness

[Calibanbutcher]

I wouldn't call this a movie "good" either...

This movie is GREAT and I wholeheartedly recommend you go see it now, screw whatever bob says and go watch it.

Why? Because it's fun without being stupid.

It's better than Iron Man 3 in every single way, the action is better, the cinematography is nicer, the climax is better the "twist" is better and if it wasn't for RDJ, this movie would blow Iron Man 3 so far out of the water that Greenpeace would have to bring a semi-truck to get it back in. THis is of course my opinion, so feel free to scream at your screen now about how I am wrong etc.

It's better than Wrath of Khan, it's damn well better than every Star Trek movie that came before it (in MY OPINION, bear in mind, I am not a Star Trek fan, nor did I never watch an episode of the Star Trek series).

Hell, I liked it better than most of the Marvel movies that came before it, including The Avengers (yeah yeah, I said Jehova, get your beards ready now). (I never read Marvel/DC comics either).

This movie was everything I wanted it to be.
A fun science-fiction action-romp with a likeable cast, great cinematography, a great score, good performances all-around, some throwbacks to the "original" even complete and utter dolts like me can understand and a good plot. Of course, this is far from being on-par with science-fiction classics, such as Moon and "2001", but then again this movie doesn't try to go that route.



(Also, why did Bob need to "critique" this movie and feels that revealing the "twist" is something he has to do, when in his Iron Man 3 review, he tiptoed around it, telling us how great the twist was, when, in all honesty, the "Iron Man Twist" is just as bad, if not worse than this movie's "twist".)

 

[teamcharlie]

Star Trek: Into Darkness is fun. Probably the most fun thing out this weekend, even moreso than Iron Man 3 if space is the sort of thing you're into. It's not Wrath of Khan (1982), but aside from having similarly named but clearly distinct characters why would you expect it to be?

 

[Windu23]

Oh no, Star Trek Into Darkness has a hamfisted political message which makes it bad and it doesn't quite live up to the best Star Trek movie ever. And yet, Bob will fellate the hell out of The Avengers which is about as politically minded as a six year old knocking over lego and lives up to its premise only by not being absolutely terrible.

I think I'm done with this show.

I don't think he's saying that the movie is bad because of the fact that it has a political message. What he's saying is that the message, and in fact a lot of the movie itself, doesn't do anything. The movie changes nothing, advances nothing, doesn't grow characters or the universe, and is just a filler piece until JJ and Co. can pump out the next feature. In The Avengers, things happen for a reason, characters grow and change, people learn things, and the mythos of the world is affected.

And you're right, The Avengers' number 1 goal was to not suck and fuck up years of shared world building, and it accomplished that goal. Sometimes, when one takes a massive risk like that, it's all one can really hope for.






This is a personal gripe (and such has nothing to do with the quoted message and should not be taken as part of any reply), but I wonder when people are going to get that Bob loves movies that try things and take risks more than ones that don't, and noticeably so. He'll admit when it doesn't work (Suckerpunch, for example), but when movies just trot out the old stuff because that's what the movie-makers think is going to work and make them money (The Expendables, for example), he doesn't enjoy himself as much and typically ends up disappointed.

 

[AnarchistAbe]

So, with all this hate, I just wanted to throw out that I really liked it. I'm not a huge Star Trek fanboy (though I do like the series), so if you are you can take this with a grain of salt.

The movie was well produced, and kept me entertained for 2.5 hours...which is more than I can say for a lot of movies. You can nitpick all you want, but (IMO) this was a solid entry, and I will definitely be waiting to see what can be done with the rest of the series.

 

[walrusaurus]

Spoiler filled? Why?

This means that I can't watch this review.
The general consensus seems to be that it's good, I'll have to go by that - as I don't want a review spoiling the movie.

Once You'll see it you'll understand why. The way the movie is structured its basically impossibel to talk about it ina a meaningful way without giving away really pivotal plot events.

In terms of whether or not its good. I personally had a lot of fun, the script was a bit worse than the first one and the last half hour of the movie is super predictable but the acting on the whole was a cut above the previous, and it felt a lot more intimate than the first one did. Likely because the central threat was a bit narrower in scope than "crazy guy with a doomsday weapon trying to wipe out all of society" like the last one.

Based off everyone i know thats seen it, how much you enjoy the movie is inversly proportional to how big a fan you are of the original star trek. The bigger the trekkie the more they hate the movie.

 

[Thunderous Cacophony]

The reason you liked this film is because you're not a Trekkie. Only non-Trekkies could enjoy it because that's what Abrams wanted. You can't make money unless you pander to the larger audience and not a niche, and Abrams is a Jew after all.

That last bit is not OK.

OT: I guess we'll see if they leave Abrams with Star Wars. I haven't heard reviews as terrible as this in general, though (even from other fan sites), so it seems unlikely.

 

[AnarchistAbe]

Abrams is a Jew after all.

Damn. That's a great way to critique his work on the movie. It really tells me how you feel about the story, the narrative, and the overall filmmaking technique he used. Well done, sir.

P.S. That comment was so saturated with sarcasm, it actually drowned in it.

 

[ExtraDebit]

I kind of really enjoyed the movie, sure it got a completely different "feel" from other star trek but I was throughly entertained never the less.

Bob, you said they didn't "GET" star trek and I kindda assumed you're talking about the general flow and feel of the reboot that differs from the old treks, but would I would love to hear you elaborate some more on the matter on "intermission" in your own words of all the things you thought they didn't "get".

 

[Windu23]

I wouldn't call this a movie "good" either...

This movie is GREAT and I wholeheartedly recommend you go see it now, screw whatever bob says and go watch it.

Why? Because it's fun without being stupid.

It's better than Iron Man 3 in every single way, the action is better, the cinematography is nicer, the climax is better the "twist" is better and if it wasn't for RDJ, this movie would blow Iron Man 3 so far out of the water that Greenpeace would have to bring a semi-truck to get it back in. THis is of course my opinion, so feel free to scream at your screen now about how I am wrong etc.

It's better than Wrath of Khan, it's damn well better than every Star Trek movie that came before it (in MY OPINION, bear in mind, I am not a Star Trek fan, nor did I never watch an episode of the Star Trek series).

Hell, I liked it better than most of the Marvel movies that came before it, including The Avengers (yeah yeah, I said Jehova, get your beards ready now). (I never read Marvel/DC comics either).

This movie was everything I wanted it to be.
A fun science-fiction action-romp with a likeable cast, great cinematography, a great score, good performances all-around, some throwbacks to the "original" even complete and utter dolts like me can understand and a good plot. Of course, this is far from being on-par with science-fiction classics, such as Moon and "2001", but then again this movie doesn't try to go that route.



(Also, why did Bob need to "critique" this movie and feels that revealing the "twist" is something he has to do, when in his Iron Man 3 review, he tiptoed around it, telling us how great the twist was, when, in all honesty, the "Iron Man Twist" is just as bad, if not worse than this movie's "twist".)

While I haven't seen the movie (I plan on it today, actually), if I don't like it, it won't be because your opinion is wrong. It will be because your opinion comes from a different place than mine. I LOVE Star Trek. I've seen most of each series, seen all of the movies, even read some books.

So, basically, if you're not a big fan of Star Trek, the movie is good because it delivers in a way that most sci-fi action movies should be able to. However, if you ARE a fan of Star Trek, the movie will disappoint because you may have certain expectations that the movie either can't or has no interest in catering to.

 

[Kenjitsuka]

Spoiler filled? Why?

This means that I can't watch this review.
The general consensus seems to be that it's good, I'll have to go by that - as I don't want a review spoiling the movie.

Only from the halfway point on, geez!
That's totally acceptable IMHO.

Anyway, I liked the review, it makes clear why it sucks in detail.
Because what some may think sucks others find entertaining.
But this seems like a big bucktet of the kind of suck I hate.

Bob: Tweeted you about that twist when you posted that first trailer!
Oh, how clever do I feel *Massive tongue in cheek*

 

[marscentral]

So, with all this hate, I just wanted to throw out that I really liked it. I'm not a huge Star Trek fanboy (though I do like the series), so if you are you can take this with a grain of salt.

The movie was well produced, and kept me entertained for 2.5 hours...which is more than I can say for a lot of movies. You can nitpick all you want, but (IMO) this was a solid entry, and I will definitely be waiting to see what can be done with the rest of the series.

I am a huge Star Trek fanboy and have been since watching TNG's first run and I love TOS (and it's films) as well. I really enjoyed this film. I was a little disappointed with the spoiler Bob was ranting about being what were told it wasn't, but I got past that and liked the way they used him.

 

[Blood Brain Barrier]

The reason you liked this film is because you're not a Trekkie. Only non-Trekkies could enjoy it because that's what Abrams wanted. You can't make money unless you pander to the larger audience and not a niche, and Abrams is a Jew after all.

Way to be randomly anti-semitic, jackass!

Ya well, if Shakespeare and South Park can do it then so can I. Historical stereotyping is great.

 

[uchytjes]

Please tell me I'm not the only one that was taken out by the whole "fall" that enterprise had.

Spoiler: spoilered for those that don't want spoiled

Okay, how the hell do they fall to earth in the first place. Disregarding the whole "it took 5-10 minutes to fall to earth from the FUCKING MOON", how did they decay at all!? T.HEY WERE TRAVELING IN ORBIT AS FAST AS THE MOON. If they weren't doing so, then HOW IS IT IN THE BACKGROUND THE ENTIRE BATTLE!? I may not be entirely keen on physics, but I know that if you are traveling as fast as the moon, you are pretty much in orbit.

As for the whole plot of the movie, I thought it was pretty damn good up until the big reveal. At that point I just gave a little "Really? aw come on! That ain't healthy, man" but that was it. I honestly liked the movie and, even if it wasn't better than the first one, it was still good.

Spoiler: spoilered again, for ending stuff/twist stuff

Without making the obvious comparison with Wrath of Khan (which shouldn't be done in the first place due to the fact that any project should be judged as if it was the first movie someone has seen) it was actually pretty good. Without knowing the backstory behind everthing from the orginal series, it is a pretty damn good movie with some rather good scenes. But, since we can't forget the past, it will not live up to the fanboy's expectations. Once they see what they did with the movie, they will not like it. But, to the fresh, new generation of people out there going to see this movie, it will be pretty damn good to watch. But when all is said and done, they really went in over their heads with this one, trying to emulate a movie which some still hold as one of if not THE best movie in the entire franchise.

 

[knight4light]

When i first came out of the movie i was all hyped up because of the visuals. i'm a sucker for the ships. But then i got to talking with my fleetmates in sector 31. everyone gave it around a 6-7 because of the story.

Spoiler

Its nothing but a rehash of the first movie. I we liked the relationship bits. pike was awesome and we were upset that he died so needlessly. we love the new ship and some like the new kirk. but heres the problem. again. its a rehash.

enterprise is supose to be the most advanced ship in the fleet. yet it gets torn appart by so blatantly overpowered super ships in both movies. this makes the space battle scenes too short.

they more or less made chekov. and mcCoy joke filler characters. they ruined klingons (though their fighters look awesome) they also mad klingons look stupid by how they managed to let them get to kronos uncontested. or how there were no ships after all that time patroling the neutral zone. i mean seriously. they have patrol fighters on kronos but they are only 20 minutes away apparently. you'd think they would have. oh i dont know. planitary defense fleets. and starbases keeping watch. i mean they should be able to scan incoming warp signitures.

then there was the whole khan bit. yah. didnt need to happen. was perfectly fine with a rogue agent of section 31. i mean even the admirals plot was a nice thing. was talking and saying. "if the admiral actualy finished his plan we might have been seeing the start of the terran empire from the mirror universe"

Did they really have to do the whole 'KHAAAAAAAAN!!" thing.. durring the movie iw as all.. what...really.. i had to stop myself from laughing.

the ship jumping scene is a blatant copy of the freefalling scene. the blood thing. yah we all knew that was going to happen. what we didnt understand was why did they need HIS blood. heres a number. 72. yah. gah! visually. all members of fleet agree. we want those ships in game. story wise. kill it with fire except the relationship bit. that was a nice little thing :3

As my fleet comander said when their friend who loved the movie asked him "what did you think"

Admiral Roki replied. "the masses will love it"

We all agree. yes jj is brining interest back into startrek. but its not our startrek anymore. If they make another series it will most likely be based of the new timeline.

As far as we are conserned. untill they make a series based after voyager. our game we play is canon. and the last vestige of the original timeline. the new timeline. while started with the old. romulus's destruction is the changing point. one path follows spock into the past which changes and alters that time. the other continues and shows new romulus and how everyone is working on picking up the pieces.

 

[maninahat]

What does NVP stand for? Something something protagonist?

 

[Chessrook44]

Im not a star trek fan, but what is stupid is JJ had the whole ST universe of characters, aliens etc and all he could come up with is "This just redo film 2". Thats just lazy and a lack of imagination. Is this what he will do with the Star Wars, make episode 7, which will just be a remake of 4 but about a kid called Lance Skillwacker learning the force and fight Darth Verder who will be a clone.

Lazy JJ, very, very lazy.

Or they could just have Luke fight and kill one of Palpatine's many clones. Yes he actually had clones in the lore. Several of them.

 

[2xDouble]

Yep. It was a forgettable, C-plus-at-best, Stallone-eque action movie that is actively hurt by the Star Trek branding and downright pathetic attempts at fan service.The "secrets" and "twists" in the movie, aside from being pathetically unsurprising to anyone who has heard anything about the movie beforehand (and even less so to fans of the classic franchise), did absolutely nothing to advance what little plot or development there was. See if it you like "lazors pew pew" or (ironically) "gubment is teh sux because violence", but otherwise give it a pass.

 

[Chris Mosher]

Spoilers

The reason you liked this film is because you're not a Trekkie. Only non-Trekkies could enjoy it because that's what Abrams wanted. You can't make money unless you pander to the larger audience and not a niche, and Abrams is a Jew after all.

Well I am a Trek fan so please speak for yourself. I think having watched every episode for the first three series qualifies me as a fan and I enjoyed this film. Its not the best Star Trek film but I would still put it above most of the original set of movies and all of Next Gen's movies except First Contact.

I think that the use of Cumberbach and Weller how their characters work in the plot is what saves the movie. Despite what bob says about Khan being all over the place I saw straight line of a character who only real concern is to beloved crew back to continue their goals. Weller was great example of everything that the federation is not and what impulses their leaders need to work against. For Kirk, I liked his character arc more that it was stretched out over two movies. I never felt like he earned what he got by the end of the movie. It is not until he learns the lessons of this movie that he learns what it is to be a leader thus leading to his sacrifice.