STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS - Grading & Discussion [SPOILERS]

[Blue_Trek]

I wasn't sure where to put this, a fun clip, some Trek scenes from the movie but with a twist at the end.
http://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/video/jaywalking-star-trek-into-darkness/n37000/

If your a fan of the other series JJ is working on you will so get this.

 

[Agent Richard07]

Some of the themes within the action are just starting to sink in for me. I especially like the Kirk/Pike exchange over what happened on Nibiru. It's a Prime Directive issue and for the first time I can think of, I can see where each side is coming from even if I don't entirely agree with Pike. I also liked what Spock said about why he chooses not to feel anything. It got me thinking a bit about how the Vulcans as well as a lot of eastern philosophies relate attachment to suffering.

 

[Qutluch]

I just saw the movie in IMAX 3d...I do not think I can ever watch a Star Trek movie in 2d again...awesome! Loved the warp drive graphics. My favorite part ( which is small, insignificant, and silly....my trek pet peeve).... They had seatbelts!! I always complain about the lack of seatbelts in Voyager...


I loved the character development and humor! Although, my husband, me, and the guy down from me in the same row were the only people laughing, and the theatre was only 10-15 percent filled....

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

The "message" in this movie that startled and pleased me was this one: it's immoral to kill people with remote missiles without benefit of trial. Wow...imagine that.

 

[Chu'lak]

I added my own, "Out there. Thataway" on premiere night. I thought I'd only just beat him to it.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who hoped for that line to come out. The moment just seemed so appropriate.

I was really hoping for that away as well.


-Chris

I really thought it would be

Kirk: Where shall we go?

Spock with raised eyebrow: Where none have gone before.

 

[cbspock]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who hoped for that line to come out. The moment just seemed so appropriate.

I was really hoping for that away as well.


-Chris

I really thought it would be

Kirk: Where shall we go?

Spock with raised eyebrow: Where none have gone before.

That would have been good too, but maybe would have gotten an UGH reaction from the audience. I thought for sure they would have used thataway, it would have been the perfect time to use it.


-Chris

 

[cbspock]

The "message" in this movie that startled and pleased me was this one: it's immoral to kill people with remote missiles without benefit of trial. Wow...imagine that.

I guess that depends. You can do anything you want to terrorists, they aren't protected and are deliberately excluded from the Geneva Conventions. The problem really is sending those drones into Klingon territory to do it. I don't think Harrison was a terrorist, Marcus just called him that to justify his unlawful order. He rushed things along before someone called him on his orders. Dead men tell no tales. You would think Starfleet would want to capture him alive if possible see who else he is working with, etc.

Pretty topical since Obama loves using drones to off people instead of capturing them for intel, also not getting permission from the country he is targeting people in as well.

-Chris

 

[Chu'lak]

The "message" in this movie that startled and pleased me was this one: it's immoral to kill people with remote missiles without benefit of trial. Wow...imagine that.

I guess that depends. You can do anything you want to terrorists, they aren't protected and are deliberately excluded from the Geneva Conventions. The problem really is sending those drones into Klingon territory to do it. I don't think Harrison was a terrorist, Marcus just called him that to justify his unlawful order. He rushed things along before someone called him on his orders. Dead men tell no tales. You would think Starfleet would want to capture him alive if possible see who else he is working with, etc.

Pretty topical since Obama loves using drones to off people instead of capturing them for intel, also not getting permission from the country he is targeting people in as well.

-Chris

Spock Prime. It was superfluous and unnecessary but I loved it. And when Quinto asks Nimoy how they defeated him, Spock said “at great cost.” Yeah, that’s how they defeated him the second time.

But the scene cut away and I’m sure Spock Prime said, “However, in our first encounter, Khan was defeated by a lead pipe that Jim bashed over the base of his skull, knocking him into unconsciousness. Here, despite Khan’s awesome skull crushing finishing move, Spock pulls a metal handle off of the floating garbage scow and beats Khan in the face to get the upper hand. Trek destiny is fulfilled.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

The "message" in this movie that startled and pleased me was this one: it's immoral to kill people with remote missiles without benefit of trial. Wow...imagine that.

I guess that depends. You can do anything you want to terrorists, they aren't protected and are deliberately excluded from the Geneva Conventions.

That's not the definition of doing what's right.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

I saw the American IMAX 3D premiere last night. I went in wanting to love this movie. I avoided all the spoilers. I left incredibly disappointed. I found the movie pandering, gimmicky, poor attention to detail, and just a lazy treatment. I can deal with my beloved franchise being re-booted or re-imagined. I just wish it was being done with original stories.

Even with the far-fetched and poorly thought out volcano scenes, I found what immediately followed to show promise. However, my hopes were quickly dashed. And then, there seemed a moment where Khan actually may have been re-invented as a sympathetic character who took offense to Section 31 using him and his crew for their own purposes. Again, those hopes were soon dashed as he quickly reverted back to a two dimensional villain.

All in all a fun sci-fi movie for new fans. But, I stand by my opinion of it being lazy writing, pandering, gimmicky, and just lacking the heart of the original material.

My grade = C to C-

I agree it would have worked better had they made Khan somewhat sympathetic and had Him and his crew exiled at the end of the film

 

[Garak]

I'm very happy and fortunate in terms of being able to have seen this movie not under the spell of some deluded concept and expecting "my" Star Trek to unfold before me on the screen. Of course there is no such thing as "my" Star Trek.

And what a treat. The movie is definitely a step up from JJ's first attempt. A significant step up.

Entertaining from start to finish. Without a doubt some of the best shots of the Enterprise we will ever see. Solid acting, most notably from Pine who I was a bit lukewarm on, but not any more. Karl Urban stole the show once again as Bones. A believable villain, also played very well by Cumberbatch - the scene where he's negotiating terms with Spock is instantly a classic. The visuals and CGI work are without a doubt some of the best I've seen, definitely the best I've seen from a Trek movie. The present day parallels were noticeable and appreciated by me. The humor wasn't as in your face and blunt as the last movie, which I liked. Alice Eve is all kinds of hot and actually played her role well I thought, definitely more than a pretty face. I enjoyed this take on TWOK, well executed. It also got me excited for what could possibly be next - you have the 5 year mission, the potential war with the Klingons and Khan is still alive along with 72 other superhumans. Oh and did I say entertaining from start to finish?

I think they've hit it out of the park with this one. Can't wait to see it again, that was money well spent.

 

[cbspock]

I saw the American IMAX 3D premiere last night. I went in wanting to love this movie. I avoided all the spoilers. I left incredibly disappointed. I found the movie pandering, gimmicky, poor attention to detail, and just a lazy treatment. I can deal with my beloved franchise being re-booted or re-imagined. I just wish it was being done with original stories.

Even with the far-fetched and poorly thought out volcano scenes, I found what immediately followed to show promise. However, my hopes were quickly dashed. And then, there seemed a moment where Khan actually may have been re-invented as a sympathetic character who took offense to Section 31 using him and his crew for their own purposes. Again, those hopes were soon dashed as he quickly reverted back to a two dimensional villain.

All in all a fun sci-fi movie for new fans. But, I stand by my opinion of it being lazy writing, pandering, gimmicky, and just lacking the heart of the original material.

My grade = C to C-

I agree it would have worked better had they made Khan somewhat sympathetic and had Him and his crew exiled at the end of the film

There was never anything sympathetic about Khan, especially this version of him.


-Chris

 

[cbspock]

The "message" in this movie that startled and pleased me was this one: it's immoral to kill people with remote missiles without benefit of trial. Wow...imagine that.

I guess that depends. You can do anything you want to terrorists, they aren't protected and are deliberately excluded from the Geneva Conventions. The problem really is sending those drones into Klingon territory to do it. I don't think Harrison was a terrorist, Marcus just called him that to justify his unlawful order. He rushed things along before someone called him on his orders. Dead men tell no tales. You would think Starfleet would want to capture him alive if possible see who else he is working with, etc.

Pretty topical since Obama loves using drones to off people instead of capturing them for intel, also not getting permission from the country he is targeting people in as well.

-Chris

Spock Prime. It was superfluous and unnecessary but I loved it. And when Quinto asks Nimoy how they defeated him, Spock said “at great cost.” Yeah, that’s how they defeated him the second time.

But the scene cut away and I’m sure Spock Prime said, “However, in our first encounter, Khan was defeated by a lead pipe that Jim bashed over the base of his skull, knocking him into unconsciousness. Here, despite Khan’s awesome skull crushing finishing move, Spock pulls a metal handle off of the floating garbage scow and beats Khan in the face to get the upper hand. Trek destiny is fulfilled.

LOL Yeah I noticed he took that handle or whatever it was off the platform and wacked Khan with it. Just like Kirk took that thing in Engineering and beat Khan with it in Space Seed..lol


-Chris

 

[DalekJim]

Didn't plan on seeing it but my mate paid for me as he didn't wanna go alone.

It's a pretty mediocre action film and the script is an atrocity but the actual production was very solid. Really liked the cast (With the obvious exception of Alice Eve!), special effects and the opening sequences. Nothing could raise the film above its script though.

I have no idea why Khan was even in this movie, or why the writers felt so lazy as to just rehash surface beats from Star Trek II. Instead of taking important stuff (Like the depth surrounding getting old!), they just took a bunch of famous lines and used them in increasingly cheesy ways. Quinto's "Khaaaaaan!" being the lowpoint of the film.

A solid C-. Fun, noisy, dumb entertainment.

 

[Chu'lak]

Didn't plan on seeing it but my mate paid for me as he didn't wanna go alone.

It's a pretty mediocre action film and the script is an atrocity but the actual production was very solid. Really liked the cast (With the obvious exception of Alice Eve!), special effects and the opening sequences. Nothing could raise the film above its script though.

I have no idea why Khan was even in this movie, or why the writers felt so lazy as to just rehash surface beats from Star Trek II. Instead of taking important stuff (Like the depth surrounding getting old!), they just took a bunch of famous lines and used them in increasingly cheesy ways. Quinto's "Khaaaaaan!" being the lowpoint of the film.

A solid C-. Fun, noisy, dumb entertainment.

I don't belive that you didn't pay for it.

 

[Crazy Eddie]

I saw the American IMAX 3D premiere last night. I went in wanting to love this movie. I avoided all the spoilers. I left incredibly disappointed. I found the movie pandering, gimmicky, poor attention to detail, and just a lazy treatment. I can deal with my beloved franchise being re-booted or re-imagined. I just wish it was being done with original stories.

Even with the far-fetched and poorly thought out volcano scenes, I found what immediately followed to show promise. However, my hopes were quickly dashed. And then, there seemed a moment where Khan actually may have been re-invented as a sympathetic character who took offense to Section 31 using him and his crew for their own purposes. Again, those hopes were soon dashed as he quickly reverted back to a two dimensional villain.

All in all a fun sci-fi movie for new fans. But, I stand by my opinion of it being lazy writing, pandering, gimmicky, and just lacking the heart of the original material.

My grade = C to C-

I agree it would have worked better had they made Khan somewhat sympathetic and had Him and his crew exiled at the end of the film

Except that in the prior two occasions we met Khan he has consistently been a crazed megalomaniac bent on global domination who tortures and kills people when he doesn't get what he wants. The one and only time Khan comes across as "sympathetic" it's when he's playing his little violin to get Kirk to help him, primarily because Kirk has him by the balls but also because Marcus has Kirk equally by the balls.

Much like TOS, in fact; Khan's one redeeming characteristic is that he's a charming son of a bitch. That doesn't actually mitigate the fact that he's a murdering psychopath with delusions of grandeur.

 

[HaventGotALife]

I still think Karl Urban is being sickeningly underutilized.

Well, they can't do everything. I'd rather see Uhura and Carol Marcus have substantial roles.

Urban is really good as McCoy, though.

"enough with the metaphors. That's an order."

 

[HaventGotALife]

Didn't plan on seeing it but my mate paid for me as he didn't wanna go alone.

It's a pretty mediocre action film and the script is an atrocity but the actual production was very solid. Really liked the cast (With the obvious exception of Alice Eve!), special effects and the opening sequences. Nothing could raise the film above its script though.

I have no idea why Khan was even in this movie, or why the writers felt so lazy as to just rehash surface beats from Star Trek II. Instead of taking important stuff (Like the depth surrounding getting old!), they just took a bunch of famous lines and used them in increasingly cheesy ways. Quinto's "Khaaaaaan!" being the lowpoint of the film.

A solid C-. Fun, noisy, dumb entertainment.

I am curious what your thoughts were about the vengeance theme?

 

[Crazy Eddie]

The "message" in this movie that startled and pleased me was this one: it's immoral to kill people with remote missiles without benefit of trial. Wow...imagine that.

I guess that depends. You can do anything you want to terrorists, they aren't protected and are deliberately excluded from the Geneva Conventions. The problem really is sending those drones into Klingon territory to do it. I don't think Harrison was a terrorist, Marcus just called him that to justify his unlawful order. He rushed things along before someone called him on his orders. Dead men tell no tales. You would think Starfleet would want to capture him alive if possible see who else he is working with, etc.

Pretty topical since Obama loves using drones to off people instead of capturing them for intel, also not getting permission from the country he is targeting people in as well.

-Chris

And especially since this film depicted the Klingons as a bunch of backwards yet heavily-armed barbarians who live in a decimated barely-habitable shithole but nevertheless manage to be a constant pain-in-the-ass to the rest of the civilized universe.

Which sort of confirms what I've suspected for a long time now: If every different Trek race is just a standin for a particular human group, Klingons would be Muslims (and the Romulans would be Russians, Cardassians would be Nazis, Ferengi would be Jews, etc).

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

I support the President and voted for him, but the one thing I find very objectionable about him is that he has not differentiated himself from Bush much with regard to national security. So I very much appreciate the Star Trek writers taking a stand on the shit that's gone down in my country since 9/11/2001. I was really shocked at something so explicit - and it's not momentary or cursory; Kirk comes back to the theme in his address at Starfleet which ends the film.

Given that this is a central aspect of the movie I think we're on topic up to this point, but this is touchy and I'll say no more about it in this forum.