Unbox Rating: 4/5
I was fortunate enough to be one of the first few people who were able to watch J.J. Abram’s second installment of the newly “rebooted” Star Trek franchise, Star Trek: Into Darkness, last Friday at SM North Edsa IMAX Theater. We’re sorry it took this long before we could release our review but we didn’t want to spoil anything before the movie even hit the theaters (that, plus intermittent internet connection yesterday didn’t help 🙁 ).
In any case, I’m happy to announce that you guys don’t have to worry about anything with the new Star Trek because it is way freakin’ geeky awesome! J.J. Abrams did it once again with a powerful successor to his first Star Trek film reboot back in 2009. Star Trek has never felt sexier since J.J. Abrams sat on the helm of the franchise. And yes, to those who may be asking, we are treated with less lens flair than before. It’s still there but not as crazy as before.
Star Trek Into Darkness follows the adventures of Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine), Spock (Zachary Quinto), Uhura (Zoe Saldana), Bones (Karl Urban), Scotty (Simon Pegg), Chekov ( Anton Yelchin), and Sulu (John Cho) aboard the USS Enterprise (NCC -1701) – this time a bit older and now working as a team whose lives are about to be turned on itself when a mysterious terrorist, known only as John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch), suddenly declares war on the Federation. In the process of one of Harrison’s attacks, Admiral Pike (Bruce Greenwood) –friend and confidant of Kirk—gets killed. This starts Kirk’s personal vendetta against Harrison leading towards a black-ops mission to go to the war-world of the Klingons, Kronos (who are not friendly towards the Federation), to kill off Harrison. But, as always, things are not as they seem.
When the first few trailers of Star Trek Into Darkness came out, a lot of people have been speculating who exactly Benedict Cumberbatch’s character is and what the plot would be. And not wanting to spoil any fun, let’s just say that his character does get interesting. In fact, I dare say that he’s one of the most fun villains I’ve yet to see in a Star Trek film. J.J. Abrams truly didn’t just reboot a franchise. He expanded the world of Star Trek without sacrificing its heritage. I love how J.J. Abrams gets to integrate these little (but pronounced) nods to the fanboys without sacrificing the appropriateness of it in the scene. There are two twists in the movie: one in the middle and one in the end… and both are deliciously satisfying – I almost squealed like a school girl in one of them. Haha
Star Trek Into Darkness clearly surpasses the first movie due mainly for Benedict Cumberbatch’s titular performance. His is a character that you can’t wait not to see on screen and, every time he’s there, he just grips you. Amazing! But as much as this is Benedict Cumberbatch’s movie the spotlight is also thrown in Kirk and Spock’s direction as they explore their dynamic relationship. Themes of what needs to be done versus protocol and value of life versus value of service is thrown constantly within the movie.
All in all, whether you’re a Trek fan or just someone who enjoys a good sci-fi adventure movie, you owe it to yourself to watch this on the big screen. Also, and this is particularly a first time, I’d recommend watching it in 3D. I know, I know. I don’t usually like 3D as well, but this one is fun, trust me.
Oh before I forget! We’d also like to take this opportunity to congratulate again the winners of the Star Trek Into Darkness Advanced Screening tickets and thank Solar Entertainment. Thanks guys, hope you had fun that day! 🙂
