The Pub Discussion Board

Okay, first off:  There are no spoilers in this.  I will not even discuss specifics of the plot in this review.  (This may not necessarily be true of any replies in this thread, so read beyond this post at your own risk.)

Also, a disclaimer:  I went into this movie thoroughly expecting to hate it.  Knowing that it was a "reboot" of the Star Trek universe, I expected total crap.

That is not what I got.

This movie is something that most Star Trek movies are not:  It is an action film.  Even the action in previous Star Trek films has been... well, secondary.  Not so in this movie.  It is an action film almost from beginning to end.

The movie makes an attempt - and I'll leave it to the viewer to decide how successful of one - to explain the new version of events that goes on in the movie (and presumably other, follow-on movies).  In my personal opinion, it was a bit weak, but acceptable.  (It is weak because the science involved is complete crap.  They chose to use a phenomenon which is not nearly as potent as they portray it to be.)

The movie portrays characters with a bit more... personality... than the original series did.  I am actually glad of this, as the original series, good as it was, was a bit stereotyped and stiff in its characters.

I imagine that die-hard ST:TOS fans were not happy with this film.  I'm not a die-hard TOS fan.  Hell, anymore, I'm not a die hard Trekkie of any flavor, though I was, in the early '90's.  Having said that, I liked the movie.  It was fun.

My advice for enjoying this movie:  Forget you know anything about Star Trek.  Pretend you have never seen any portion of the Star Trek universe before.  Take this movie in total isolation.  After all, as a reboot, that is exactly where they are putting you:  Nothing else you've seen before... has actually happened, in this universe.

On that basis, as a movie, by itself, I would give it 8 out of 10.  As a Star Trek movie in the traditional style, I would give it perhaps a 5.

I'm not sorry I watched it.  It was an enjoyable 2 hours.  If you can forget about the world of Star Trek that you already know, I think you will enjoy it, too.  Especially if you prefer action films.

Just my two cents...
Eric Storm