Plot
One year after saving Earth from the Romulans, Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and his USS Enterprise are an established member of the galactic Star Fleet. Peace is not on the agenda however. Following a terrorist attack in London, Star Fleet finds itself under fire from within and Kirk, along with First Officer Spock (Zachary Quinto) and the rest of his crew, go on a hunt into enemy space to capture the one-man army John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch).
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| So far as "Guess who the villain is?' games go, this is amateur level. |
Once upon a time, it was tantamount to social suicide to even remotely attribute yourself to ‘nerd-dom.’ Sci-fi wasn’t cool. Neither were video games or space unless it was the ‘landing on the moon’ type. Times have, of course, changed and the fate of famed sci-fi television series Star Trek was steered confidently into the mainstream sphere by J. J. Abram’s 2009 big-budget cinematic reboot. Star Trek Into Darknessmarks the return of Abram’s universe to the big screen, but can it prove to be a case of Star Trek Strikes Back?
Abrams went on record saying that he wanted Into Darkness to be a far more fan-friendly affair, a homage to the beloved universe of Gene Rodenberry’s original series. Thankfully, with references and quips galore, along with a story playing heavily off the 2009 film’s time-travel/new-universe trick, it performs admirably. Doing everything it can to please longtime enthusiasts without losing the previous film’s sense of contemporary fun and vigour (and the crowds consequently captured) Into Darkness strikes a happy medium to make a film that is equal parts goofily amusing, electrically engaging and peerlessly entertaining.
All of the original crew are back and better than ever, seemingly far more comfortable in their roles, with each helming far more substantial personal story arcs than in the previous film. While Kirk and Spock’s love/hate ying & yang relationship is still very much at the heart of things, each member of the Enterprise’s crew has their time in the limelight. Abrams has proven his ability with ensemble casts before (Lost) and the writing/direction is such that the characters feel as real as they could ever hope to in Into Darkness’s high fantasy, sci-fi universe. Oddly enough, it’s the Kirk-Spock dynamic that often feels weakest (outside of the cringe worthy ‘romance’ between Spock and Uhura (Zoe Saldana)) and ham-fisted, their interaction – while often witty and entertaining – too obviously expositional to work organically.
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| In the future, London's gonna freakin' love polygons. And blue. |
While the supporting cast are unanimously engaging - Simon Pegg’s Scotty is immaculately comedic while Karl Urban is the master of hammy over-acting as ‘Bones’ McCoy – it’s Cumberbatch who steals the show however as the one man WMD John Harrison. Oozing an icy malevolence and incomparable power, he’s effortlessly intriguing and wonderfully developed across cat & mouse battles of wits and brutal head-cracking battles of strength alike.
It’s just a shame that, much like the narrative in general, his development seems slightly off-key, never quite reaching the dizzying heights he seems capable of. Into Darkness makes a big deal of emphasizing pseudonym Harrison’s genocidal power but never gives him the chance to prove it. Ultimately, for all the talk of war, death and darkness, everything concludes feeling more than a little damp and anti-climactic. Plot gaffs aside, the second act does an outstanding job of ratcheting up the dramatic stakes and tension, but fails in providing a satisfying enough conclusion.
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| 'And a tickle under there!' Bones reverts to his paediatrician origins. And love of blue. |
Having said that, Into Darkness is an action home run and whatever narrative niggles that crop up during are easily drowned out by the sheer visceral excitement of it all. The introductory scene – opening deliciously in media res during a Star Fleet mission – gives the audience a tribal chase, a lush alien planet and a supervolcano explosion. All before the opening credits role. It’s masterful stuff and while later scenes may fail to live up to the unassailable benchmark set early on, they’ll still get the blood pumping and the goose bumping. Warp speed space battles, plenty o’ punch-ups and a huge-scale free-fall: there’s more than enough going on to sustain that ‘edge-of-the-seat’ sensation.
Into Darkness - and it’s place within it’s own legacy - is perhaps best summarised by one of it’s strongest scenes. In clear homage to it’s 2009 forbearer, one scene sees Kirk and co performing a space jump between ships through a minefield of debris. It’s tense, exciting stuff – flashy and beautiful - and yet…not as good as the respective scene in Star Trek 2009. While bigger and flashier, Into Darkness just cannot quite get from under its predecessor’s shadow – so to speak – and ultimately feels universally ‘not quite as good’ outside of the action set pieces and antagonist. The story and pacing are weaker, dialogue too outside of the majestically OTT ‘Bones’ McCoy and it cannot even claim to be darker. Despite the subtitle, there is very little darkness – metaphorical or otherwise – to be had while the first film sported planet destruction, actual genocide and the near destruction of Earth itself.
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| See how they're in shadow but it's light in the background? It's like a metaphor or something... Also blue. |
While hardcore Trek fans may lament the commercialisation of their beloved series into a mainstream action extravaganza (despite Abrams efforts) and the narrative feel several shades of weak throughout, Star Trek Into Darknessis still a glorious success. Musically, graphically and dialogically remarkable, it never stops striving for that all-important cinematic principle: ‘entertainment.’
Quite where the series will go from here is anyone’s guess with Abrams jumping ship to a galaxy far far away, but he has left it in an imperiously strong position to boldly go where no Star Trek series has gone before.
Verdict
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| Alice Eve's Dr. Carol Marcus, one thing Star Trek 2009 certainly didn't have. BLUUEEE! |
Though the ending may fail to successfully build upon an outstanding opening and raucous second act build-up, Star Trek into Darkness is a robust success. Championing set-piece after set-piece of explosive action the likes of which other films could only ever dream of, excellently realised characters and a genuine sense of fun without losing the respective sense of drama, it’s the embodiment of full-faced cinematic entertainment.
4/5
Embrace the darkness. Or something. And blue:
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