Star Trek Into Darkness (Pre-release)

Okay, deep details. I like Chris Pine. In fact, my two favorite performances by him are in Bottle Shock and Unstoppable. However, I just didn't buy him as being James T. Kirk. He just didn't give any common details to the character that said, "This is James T. Kirk. His history was affected, but its still him."

Sorry to sound like a broken record, but I didn't NuKirk simply because he was just a pompous a**hole. You could argue that classic Kirk wasn't really an angel himself, but he had genuine moments that reassured you he was a real good guy. I don't get that at all with NuKirk. I mean, the guy quotes star fleet regulations on how Spock left him on that ice planet yet he himself probably broke a dozen regulations when he berated his superior officer, disobeyed direct orders and, not this is pretty big, assaulted two on-duty security officers. And he's complaining that Spock left him on a planet?

The same with Uhura. I'm sorry, Zoe Saldana may be a good actress, but she didn't give off anything that reminded me of Uhura either. She comes off as being more of Uhura's sassy sister who didn't go to Starfleet and just wants to jump on a Vulcan.

Oooo. I've written so much about NuUhura on why she bothers me. So freaking much. It doesn't even have anything to do with the actress either. It's about how the writers are so delusional in the idea that they think Uhura is actually important. She's not. She's assigned to a station that is really not needed (TNG, DS9 and VOY gave communication duties to tactical officers), her one contribution is done off screen and only referenced during a scene where she's taking her clothes off (And defend that by saying Kirk was in his underwear either. He didn't have any close up shots), and the movie spends so much time developing how good she is with languages, yet when it comes time for it to pay off, the aliens speak perfect english. And to add the cherry on top, Chekov does the actual hailing! She's useless!

I got into an argument with Bob Orci over at trekmovie.com a while back when I made the point that Uhura's klingon transmission discovery didn't end up helping things at all. The Enterprise still arrived at Vulcan the way it was supposed to, and didn't come under attack by the Narada for a whole minute. I seriously doubt going to red alert and raising shields would take longer than that. As for the debris destroying the Enterprise? Not buying it. The way the Enterprise was getting damaged looked like the shields weren't doing a thing. If those were in fact the shields working during that scene, than hull must have the strength of butter.
 
I loved every single thing about ST09. The only way that movie could have been better was if I was in it.

Hated the design, forgave the plot holes, loved the movie.

Out of about 25 people only one didn't like AbramsTrek.

You folks, can post your three year old jokes and lenses flares all day, but I think that's a fine endorsement.

I love that. Really gives some perspective.

With that kind of money a ton of people could have made a great Trek movie

Check...

that everyone would want to go see

Check...

and could still do it with established canon.

Also check. What was your complaint again? :p Really, that is what Abrams did. He gave us a new timeline in which Kirk's life is profoundly different from birth.

He didn't do anything AT ALL to the established canon. It all still exists - he even went out of his way to establish that!
 
You know...we can accept that this is the new Star Trek moving forward or there will be no new Star Trek at all. My vote is the new Star Trek. If those that did not like the new ST can not accept it, don't watch the new movies. The rest of you can just reminisce about the older versions. It is a choice.
 
Reminisce isn't the word for me.
Does one reminisce about the classic original works from Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Rod Serling?

They are timeless classics and for the ages, well worth returning to.
Roddenberry's TOS is well at home with them.
 
I think something that sort of got missed in this timeline is the fact that Kirk was supposed to be a bookworm in his early days in the original Trek timeline. They don't really have any indication of him paying his dues learning the in's and outs of Star fleet, and the ship designs, etc... in the new Trek timeline.

They made it seem more sort of impulsive and dumb luck mixed with some natural skill than having the character really have some knowledge to draw from to make his decisions. I liked the new movie but thought that the Kirk character had been made really shallow compared to the character it was drawn from.
 
...the writers are so delusional in the idea that they think Uhura is actually important. She's not...She's useless!...

But, but, she demonstrated exceptional oral sensitivity. That must be worth something.

...If those that did not like the new ST can not accept it, don't watch the new movies. The rest of you can just reminisce about the older versions. It is a choice.

I want to watch new Star Trek. But what they're making isn't Star Trek anymore, it's some other universe with characters who have the same names.
 
I want to watch new Star Trek. But what they're making isn't Star Trek anymore, it's some other universe with characters who have the same names.

This pretty much sums up how I feel. It's really disappointing because I could see moments that made me think Quinto and Urban could really be the folks to play a new Spock and McCoy. Everyone else - not so much.
 
This pretty much sums up how I feel. It's really disappointing because I could see moments that made me think Quinto and Urban could really be the folks to play a new Spock and McCoy. Everyone else - not so much.

I had no real problem with the cast, I'm sure they could do a good job with the roles. They just weren't given anything to work with.
 
I don't want to step on anyone's toes, but there's something I dont get.

Those who didn't like the movie say that it's lacking the deeper more important factors that that define Star Trek.
But whenever they point out the specific things wrong with the film, or things that need to be fixed in the new film, 90% of the stuff mentioned is trivial cosmetic details.

Lens flare
Continuity with the props and costumes
The design of the bridge.
The design of the ship.
The brewery for the engine room
The types of aliens


It's starting to sound as though the only things that define Trek is the production designs.

Well, first, keep in mind that you are on a prop and costuming board :p

Production design was always very much a part of Trek; from TOS to the 24th century. Would Spock still be Spock if he didn't have his bowl haircut and pointed ears? Would Uhura still be Uhura if she wasn't African?

But the look and feel of Star Trek was meticulously crafted over the years. The Star Trek universe is a place that has a certain feel to it due to it's look.

Think of visiting a city like Paris, or New York or other places. They have a unique feel to them due to the way the city looks and the way the people look. You know you're there just by looking around. This does not mean that those are the only things a place has to offer... but the look of a place is all part of it.

The designs were just another slap in the face of fans. It was his way of separating from classic Trek which he felt had a kitschy, geek stigma. It was his way of telling people "This isn't your daddy's Trek." Any of the designs he felt were too close to the original were tossed out because he felt they were too close to the original.

But if you'd like a critique of the plot: it's childish, as though an 8 year old with access to Memory Alpha had written it. It lacks any type of moral or lesson, which Trek was built on. It's about a two dimensional villain with another doomsday device that was barely thought out. It involves a completely different type of Kirk that gets put in command of the Federation's newest ship right out of the Academy. It basically dumbs down Trek for the casual movie viewer. It tosses any real logic or science out the window to look or sound cool. The only part that fits with TOS is Spock's childhood and most of that was lifted right out of TAS. It's a vapid copy written by people that excel at making dumbed down action flicks for the public and one man that doesn't even like Star Trek but is a huge Star Wars fan... because if you were a kid liked Star Wars, you were cool. If you were a kid liked Star Trek, you were a geek.

And I counter your argument with what I've heard from people that actually liked it.

The cast was hot.
It was action packed.
It wasn't like original Star Trek, which was lame.
Leonard Nimoy was in it.
It makes Star Trek cool for a new generation.
It's called Star Trek.

Not one person has told me the plot was amazing... that the characters were compelling... that the set design and props were great. Not a single fan who liked the movie has said that they saw a movie that they'd consider to be like TOS.
 
Not one person has told me the plot was amazing... that the characters were compelling... that the set design and props were great. Not a single fan who liked the movie has said that they saw a movie that they'd consider to be like TOS.

You're talking to the wrong people. MOST of the people that I know that know Trek liked it just fine. Including all the elements you site.

Sorry to burst your bubble but it IS a success with the fans and the general public and has brought new life to the franchise.
 
But the look and feel of Star Trek was meticulously crafted over the years.

Perhaps POST-TOS this might be true. And certainly there was a lot of thought put into it but TOS was always cutting corners for time and money. With diminishing budgets the whole way.

And all of that was all but abandoned in the third year. Basically Roddenberry didn't care anymore and was sick of fighting the studio. Hence the somewhat lackluster majority of the third season.
 
You're talking to the wrong people. MOST of the people that I know that know Trek liked it just fine. Including all the elements you site.

Sorry to burst your bubble but it IS a success with the fans and the general public and has brought new life to the franchise.


It's a great delivery system, but no payload and they flushed 40 years of Trek canon in the process.
 
Sorry, Star Trek is about a Philosophy and a feeling.

Not the names, places and stardates.

You'll probably only have to suffer through one more with this group anyway. The actor will want to move on after this one. As will Abrams, unless all his other stuff tanks.
 
The crew is rattled by an encounter with a menacing unknown, stressed from drills, maybe some new recruits are rethinking their hard earned career choice.

A single voice comes over the intercom......


"Captain to crew.
Those of you who have served for long on this vessel
have encountered alien life-forms.
You know the greatest danger facing us is ourselves,
an irrational fear of the unknown.
But there's no such thing as the unknown--
only things temporarily hidden,
temporarily not understood.
In most cases we have found
that intelligence capable of a civilization
is capable of understanding peaceful gestures.
Surely a life-form advanced enough for space travel
is advanced enough
to eventually understand our motives.
All decks stand by.
Captain out."



I really thirst for that in Trek, I require it at some point.
The last film that delivered that kind of thing was Master and Commander.
It out-Treked Trek.

Can Abrams find a way to throw a bone to us that need a little of that between
battles and time traveling alien assassins?
 
You're talking to the wrong people. MOST of the people that I know that know Trek liked it just fine. Including all the elements you site.

Sorry to burst your bubble but it IS a success with the fans and the general public and has brought new life to the franchise.

I never said that Star Trek fans didn't like it. I've heard fans tell me they liked it. What they can't tell me is WHY... other than those vapid reasons I mentioned above. And the only defense I hear from the fans that did like it is that, which you mention above.

And how much life did it really breath? It's a summer blockbuster that no one cared about after the summer was over. It's now five bucks or less for the DVD. The merchandising didn't make any money. There's no new shows in production. The next movie will be another summer blockbuster that no one will care about a month after it's release. It's a movie for casual movie goers. It didn't create a bunch of fans... at least not of the JJverse. At most, it caused a few people to go back and visit the originals and enjoy them. That is about the only good thing that tin plated sack did.

Don't spit on my cupcake and call it frosting!
 
I really thirst for that in Trek, I require it at some point.
The last film that delivered that kind of thing was Master and Commander.
It out-Treked Trek.

Can Abrams find a way to throw a bone to us that need a little of that between
battles and time traveling alien assassins?

Sorry, I don't think so. That died, sometime near the end of the second season and briefly re-appeared in the third.

Anything after that with each iteration became less than that.

I honestly feel they stack in quality, in direct order of their production, series wise.
 
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