Star Trek review
STAR TREK COUNTDOWN: 6 DAYS
Critical reviews of Star Trek are starting to appear, perhaps most notably from Variety (no Ebert yet!). The review (which contains spoilers) is positive, saying that the movie has re-invigorated the franchise just like Casino Royale re-invigorated the James Bond franchise. They are similar since both remakes explore the origins of their respective characters, going back in time beyond the original source material. The new movie has the "DNA" of Roddenberry's original series but in "a trim new body that hums with youthful energy." The reviewer, McCarthy, praises the updated look of the movie as well as the entertaining ensemble cast. He likes how action-packed the movie is.
Of course, the fear I have always had is that the new movie will be too action-packed. Yes, the original series was a space western, filled with fisticuffs, bad guys, and women. It was, in other words, full of sex and violence. However, that aspect of Star Trek was always balanced, perhaps even over-ridden, by the intellectual content one expects from good sci-fi. An excellent illustration of the spirit of Star Trek is the (second) pilot episode ("Where No Man Has Gone Before," Sept. 22, 1966, one of the best episodes of the original series), which results in a typical fight to the death between Kirk and the bad guy. The bad guy, however, is Kirk's best friend, who has been thoroughly corrupted by god-like psychic powers. Until the final showdown, the episode is entirely heady.
The best Star Trek, in my opinion, is not the original series but its two immediate successors, The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. Many fans would agree with this assessment, discounting Golden Age fans who have little patience for anything but the original. The Next Generation advances on the intellectual quality of the original series while discarding (for the most part) the lowbrow fist-fights. Deep Space Nine brings the violence back, but in the form of an interstellar war that offers political and moral food for thought.
This movie is rolling back the clock and, from the looks of it, amping up the sex appeal and violent action of the original series. This is not necessarily bad, and the movie will hopefully be glorious, but I am concerned that the intellectual content may fall to the wayside.
Critical reviews of Star Trek are starting to appear, perhaps most notably from Variety (no Ebert yet!). The review (which contains spoilers) is positive, saying that the movie has re-invigorated the franchise just like Casino Royale re-invigorated the James Bond franchise. They are similar since both remakes explore the origins of their respective characters, going back in time beyond the original source material. The new movie has the "DNA" of Roddenberry's original series but in "a trim new body that hums with youthful energy." The reviewer, McCarthy, praises the updated look of the movie as well as the entertaining ensemble cast. He likes how action-packed the movie is.
Of course, the fear I have always had is that the new movie will be too action-packed. Yes, the original series was a space western, filled with fisticuffs, bad guys, and women. It was, in other words, full of sex and violence. However, that aspect of Star Trek was always balanced, perhaps even over-ridden, by the intellectual content one expects from good sci-fi. An excellent illustration of the spirit of Star Trek is the (second) pilot episode ("Where No Man Has Gone Before," Sept. 22, 1966, one of the best episodes of the original series), which results in a typical fight to the death between Kirk and the bad guy. The bad guy, however, is Kirk's best friend, who has been thoroughly corrupted by god-like psychic powers. Until the final showdown, the episode is entirely heady.
The best Star Trek, in my opinion, is not the original series but its two immediate successors, The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. Many fans would agree with this assessment, discounting Golden Age fans who have little patience for anything but the original. The Next Generation advances on the intellectual quality of the original series while discarding (for the most part) the lowbrow fist-fights. Deep Space Nine brings the violence back, but in the form of an interstellar war that offers political and moral food for thought.
This movie is rolling back the clock and, from the looks of it, amping up the sex appeal and violent action of the original series. This is not necessarily bad, and the movie will hopefully be glorious, but I am concerned that the intellectual content may fall to the wayside.