This is one of my main criticisms of the film. The destruction of Vulcan is a major event in the trek universe, and the film didn't seem to treat it very well. I can understand the need of the writers and director to move things along, but with respect to the story telling, the destruction of Vulcan and the implications for the Vulcan people were very limited.

The massive field of debris kind of helped my imagination. The implication is certainly that planets had defences - Nero tried to use Pike to get Earth's, so presumably he did something similar to get Vulcan's.For example...from a dramatic stand point it would have made so much more sense to give the audiance some indication that the Vulcans were actually defending their planet. I know we see the Enterprise arrive and we what is left of the fleet that left Earth....but I certainly didn't get the impression Vulcan had any planetary defenses. It was just glossed over, left to the viewer's imagination.
You wanted the movie to stop while we go on a long ponderous voyage around the remaining Vulcans watching them be emotional? Good films don't rush off on a tangent like that. And Trek XI dealt with it be personifying it - ironically in a human woman. Spock and Sarek's loss (the only Vulcans we really know in the film) is personified in her and their reactions to losing her.Also, it would have been nice, and I do think they tried to do this, to see a bit more of the aftermath. Perhaps more lines in the film about how the remaining Vulcans were dealing with the loss of their planet....I know the last couple of scenes attempted to do this.....but it wasn't enough for me.