Sorry for not posting in the " The Official STAR TREK Grading & Discussion Thread [SPOILERS]" thread, but it's always crowded with pointless arguements and discussions about canon, so I thought I'd make my own thread as a "review".
Right so, me and my friend have been eagerly awaiting the new film since we first heard about it and promised ourselves that we would watch the film in "style". That "style" being the £14 tickets in Cinema De Lux in the centre of Bristol. Unfortunately for us, Cinema De Lux weren't doing the £14 tickets for STXI, so we decided to go to VUE and get the premium seats, but they were all sold out.
We got there a little late so had to sit only a few rows from the very front of the screen, and watched a fantastic trailer for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and what seemed like an hour of adverts before the film actually started.
Then it did, and the Kelvin straight away looked fantastic. So much so I'm going to list the things I liked and didn't like to make things a little easier on the eyes!
Characters
Leonard Nimoy (Spock Prime) - Can't say much about him, except he is still a sensational actor, he almost made me cry when he told Kirk that "I have been and always shall be your friend".
Karl Urban ("Bones") - I really think Karl should recheck his lineage because he was born to take over from DeFrost Kelly, the very first line he has in the film made the Trekkie inside of me cheer with joy. I honestly don't think anyone could have possibly played "Bones" better than Karl, absolutely spot on.
Zachary Quinto (Spock) - Another person who was a perfect pick for the role, during the whole film I couldn't tell I wasn't watching Quinto instead of Nemoy. He was perfect for the role and I loved how he balanced his emotions and just made the role his own - which is hard to do as the man who originally played him was outstanding. Great chemistry with Pine.
Chris Pine (Kirk) - For me, Pine again made the character his own. During the first half an hour of the film I didn't really see a connection between the Shatner Kirk and Pine's Kirk but then I realised that the two characters are completely different. This Kirk didn't have his father to look up to and eventually join Starfleet, whereas Shats Kirk did. In Pines defence, there was some scenes where I really saw Captain Kirk shining through, and at the end where he was sat in the Captains chair with his legs crossed just like Shat used to, that made me happy.
Simon Pegg (Scotty) - One thing I didn't like was that he wasn't in the film as much as I had originally hoped for. I'm a long time fan of Simon Pegg and he promised James Doohan's son that he would make sure he would make a complete tribute to his father, and I think he did. Pegg brings natural humour to the film with nothing forced or that gave a forced laugh. I also liked the obsession with food!
Bruce Greenwood (Pike) - I always liked Captain Pike, I can't really explain it, but when you get those little references to Captain Pike in the TV series, and you know that he was the original (or as far as we know, original) captain of the Enterprise, and it gives that little "oh wow cool" moment. Well that is what I got throughout this film, whenever I saw, or heard Pikes name I thought it was great. I hope JJ doesn't give him the same fate as he should because I really like Bruce Greenwood and I think he played the part really well. Also I don't think the wheelchair is perminate as he pratically walked away from the Narada (with aid from Kirk).
Anton Yelchin (Chekov) - I know people don't like Anton's Chekov, but I thought he fit rather well. Remembering that Chekov in this film is only 17 compaired to the much older and wiser Chekov we're used to, some of us were probably like him (when he was running around saying "I can do that, I can do that!". I loved the fact he replaced the v's with w's in this film, and the fact that, Chekov is the real hero in this film - not only saving Kirk from a very gorey end, but coming up with the idea of warping pratically on to Titan and hiding from the Naranda.
Eric Bana (Nero) - Lastly, we have Nero, Bana once stated that Nero was more like a "cameo" role, and his position in the film reminds me slightly of the Alien from "Alien". It's dark and elusive, rarely seen on screen, kills without mercy or regret and both are bald. I do like Bana, but during the film I never saw him as the Eric Bana I know from other films, which was completely amazing.
Captain Robau - We all know that when the Kelvin screen said "Terminated", it didn't mean Robau had died, it ment that the universe, and everything inside would soon be terminated, by Robau. In all seriousness, it was good to finally see a captain who, not only stood up for his ship and made critical decisions, but was also not like a bumbling sidekick to the man who'll become captain, or subsequently killed due to his own errors.
The Ships
USS Kelvin - I loved every last bit of the Kelvin. People have been bitching for months because the registration had a 0 in it, and the fact it had one warp nacelle - but who cares? I loved that the uniforms seemed to be a natual progression between "Enterprise" and TOS (although I couldn't tell who was in what rank, I never saw any distingusing marks or insignias that told me they were a commander or whatever). I loved that the ship looked like a marine ship from our present time, that's the feeling I got from it. And the fact the bridge when the Narada attacked, it was exactly what I expected it to sound like, a military bridge. All the systems seemed to be like an advance of the NX-01.
USS Enterprise - I don't care what anybody says otherwise about this ship, it is beautiful. The first time you get to see it in space took my breath away, it really was an amazing ship. I never thought at any point in the film "that isn't the Enterprise, that's the JJPrise" or something along those lines. What people seem to forget is, by the time Kirk actually got the ship in our "canon", the ship was atleast 10 years old already - it was an old ship and it looked it. Now this Enterprise has it's maiden voyage some 10-15 years later than it would have originally and it looks as though it's had a natual facelift. Plus the fact that it's 2009 and people just wouldn't accept an Enterprise that looked like it was pulled from the 60's. I loved Engineering, and that warp core was in several peices and not just one massive core. Amazing looking ship, and I wanted more.
Story
Before yesterday, my top three favourate films were Transformers, The Matrix, and The Shawshank Redemption. Not only did STXI beat all three movies, but it completely battered them. I have never sat through a film, impressed throughout the entirety of the film. I'm not a big fan of time travel storylines, but this was executed perfectly. The opening shot of how the Vulcan children were educated, and Spocks obvious love for his mother and letting his emotions getting the better of him. What we need to remember as well is that this Spock is our Spock up until the point he joins Starfleet as the destruction of the Kelvin wouldn't have had any effect on Vulcan or Spock's natual timeline until he crossed with Starfleet.
I loved the story of this films, and the little references to past Trek, the Delta Vega one wasn't needed, but then again we don't know where Delta Vega is, or what it's climate is natually like. I loved the fact that the tiny bit of Red Matter was enough to completely wipe out Vulcan, I was a tiny bit annoyed that Vulcan had been destroyed, but I thought "fuck it", what's the worst that can happen? Tuvok not being born, then being Janeway's spy, and ultimately the entire story of Voyager not happening?... "Damn".
I loved how the Kelvin was mentioned to be one of the most advanced ships in the fleet at the time, and how militarised it looked. The shuttles and how the warp drive worked. I loved how due to a curtain set of circumstances, the crew wound up in their rightful positions (Olsen died near the start that made way for Scotty, Uhura spoke in all three dialects of Vulcan and Romulan, Kirk became captain from Pike, and Sulu was on helm because the helmsman was ill.
Things I didn't like
Zoe Saldana (Uhura) - I hold nothing againts Zoe, he has big boots to fill when she is the only main woman in the series. I didn't like how she had a romantic relationship (or atleast the start) with Spock. That was the only thing I was unsure about, and I didn't feel like she was Uhura, she seemed a bit too bitchy.
John Cho (Sulu) - I can't see John Cho without thinking of Harold and Kumar, which I despise. But he definately held the role well but I think after the scene with him and Kirk on the drill, he wasn't really seen much after that. I do wonder if we'll see him in command of the Excelsior.
It's not something I didn't like but I thought I'd mention it. I've read some reviews on Star Trek and the people who have reviewed it (and I've seen some people say it here as well) have been comparing it to Star Wars. I have a major problem with this because there was only a very few things I saw that even remotely reminded me of Star Wars.
People have been saying that Kirk is like Luke Skywalker because of his position in the film (death of his father, now he's trying to get back his rightful place). Bullshit. His storyline was a typical story of the hero trying to come out on top, just like most movies released. People are just too desperate to find bits that are similar or the same because Star Trek and Star Wars have always been a big infulence on eachother over the years.
Another thing I've seen in a review is the warp drive is too much like the hyperdrive from Star Wars. Again I didn't think it was like this. When the ships went in to warp it sounded as though they were breaking barriers (I was unhappy that there was no little flash, that always told me that it had gone faster than the speed of light). It was a very good adaptation of going to warp, there has always been a different way of doing it, and you can see the warp nacelles glow brightly before going in to warp. The phasers I've also seen in mention that they are too much like Star Wars, once again I protest. They seem more like our conventional guns, even pinging againts metal. Sure they're not the phasers of old times, but they still impressed me.
I think what people have forgotten is JJ is trying to bring us Star Trek, he's trying to show us that this could happen in the future. Even down to the military aspect, down to the designs of the ships. And I loved it.
Also people have been annoyed at the Kelvin having 800+ people on board when it's smaller than the Enterprise. Am I wrong in saying the Kelvin had colonists on board ready to colonise the planet Kirk grew up on?
I said it before and I'll say it again. It's the best film I've ever seen in my life. I've even booked tickets to go see it again in the week. Fantastic film that I enjoyed from start to finish. I just can't believe we have to wait for a long time til the sequel! Me and my friend are going to dedicate two days to the 10 Star Trek films, and on the second day go to the cinema again!
Anyone else feel the same? I've seen some very harsh things said about this film (which to be honest, I think is just people who can't let go and don't have an open mind to the film).
JJ, thank you.
Right so, me and my friend have been eagerly awaiting the new film since we first heard about it and promised ourselves that we would watch the film in "style". That "style" being the £14 tickets in Cinema De Lux in the centre of Bristol. Unfortunately for us, Cinema De Lux weren't doing the £14 tickets for STXI, so we decided to go to VUE and get the premium seats, but they were all sold out.
We got there a little late so had to sit only a few rows from the very front of the screen, and watched a fantastic trailer for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and what seemed like an hour of adverts before the film actually started.
Then it did, and the Kelvin straight away looked fantastic. So much so I'm going to list the things I liked and didn't like to make things a little easier on the eyes!
Characters
Leonard Nimoy (Spock Prime) - Can't say much about him, except he is still a sensational actor, he almost made me cry when he told Kirk that "I have been and always shall be your friend".
Karl Urban ("Bones") - I really think Karl should recheck his lineage because he was born to take over from DeFrost Kelly, the very first line he has in the film made the Trekkie inside of me cheer with joy. I honestly don't think anyone could have possibly played "Bones" better than Karl, absolutely spot on.
Zachary Quinto (Spock) - Another person who was a perfect pick for the role, during the whole film I couldn't tell I wasn't watching Quinto instead of Nemoy. He was perfect for the role and I loved how he balanced his emotions and just made the role his own - which is hard to do as the man who originally played him was outstanding. Great chemistry with Pine.
Chris Pine (Kirk) - For me, Pine again made the character his own. During the first half an hour of the film I didn't really see a connection between the Shatner Kirk and Pine's Kirk but then I realised that the two characters are completely different. This Kirk didn't have his father to look up to and eventually join Starfleet, whereas Shats Kirk did. In Pines defence, there was some scenes where I really saw Captain Kirk shining through, and at the end where he was sat in the Captains chair with his legs crossed just like Shat used to, that made me happy.
Simon Pegg (Scotty) - One thing I didn't like was that he wasn't in the film as much as I had originally hoped for. I'm a long time fan of Simon Pegg and he promised James Doohan's son that he would make sure he would make a complete tribute to his father, and I think he did. Pegg brings natural humour to the film with nothing forced or that gave a forced laugh. I also liked the obsession with food!
Bruce Greenwood (Pike) - I always liked Captain Pike, I can't really explain it, but when you get those little references to Captain Pike in the TV series, and you know that he was the original (or as far as we know, original) captain of the Enterprise, and it gives that little "oh wow cool" moment. Well that is what I got throughout this film, whenever I saw, or heard Pikes name I thought it was great. I hope JJ doesn't give him the same fate as he should because I really like Bruce Greenwood and I think he played the part really well. Also I don't think the wheelchair is perminate as he pratically walked away from the Narada (with aid from Kirk).
Anton Yelchin (Chekov) - I know people don't like Anton's Chekov, but I thought he fit rather well. Remembering that Chekov in this film is only 17 compaired to the much older and wiser Chekov we're used to, some of us were probably like him (when he was running around saying "I can do that, I can do that!". I loved the fact he replaced the v's with w's in this film, and the fact that, Chekov is the real hero in this film - not only saving Kirk from a very gorey end, but coming up with the idea of warping pratically on to Titan and hiding from the Naranda.
Eric Bana (Nero) - Lastly, we have Nero, Bana once stated that Nero was more like a "cameo" role, and his position in the film reminds me slightly of the Alien from "Alien". It's dark and elusive, rarely seen on screen, kills without mercy or regret and both are bald. I do like Bana, but during the film I never saw him as the Eric Bana I know from other films, which was completely amazing.
Captain Robau - We all know that when the Kelvin screen said "Terminated", it didn't mean Robau had died, it ment that the universe, and everything inside would soon be terminated, by Robau. In all seriousness, it was good to finally see a captain who, not only stood up for his ship and made critical decisions, but was also not like a bumbling sidekick to the man who'll become captain, or subsequently killed due to his own errors.
The Ships
USS Kelvin - I loved every last bit of the Kelvin. People have been bitching for months because the registration had a 0 in it, and the fact it had one warp nacelle - but who cares? I loved that the uniforms seemed to be a natual progression between "Enterprise" and TOS (although I couldn't tell who was in what rank, I never saw any distingusing marks or insignias that told me they were a commander or whatever). I loved that the ship looked like a marine ship from our present time, that's the feeling I got from it. And the fact the bridge when the Narada attacked, it was exactly what I expected it to sound like, a military bridge. All the systems seemed to be like an advance of the NX-01.
USS Enterprise - I don't care what anybody says otherwise about this ship, it is beautiful. The first time you get to see it in space took my breath away, it really was an amazing ship. I never thought at any point in the film "that isn't the Enterprise, that's the JJPrise" or something along those lines. What people seem to forget is, by the time Kirk actually got the ship in our "canon", the ship was atleast 10 years old already - it was an old ship and it looked it. Now this Enterprise has it's maiden voyage some 10-15 years later than it would have originally and it looks as though it's had a natual facelift. Plus the fact that it's 2009 and people just wouldn't accept an Enterprise that looked like it was pulled from the 60's. I loved Engineering, and that warp core was in several peices and not just one massive core. Amazing looking ship, and I wanted more.
Story
Before yesterday, my top three favourate films were Transformers, The Matrix, and The Shawshank Redemption. Not only did STXI beat all three movies, but it completely battered them. I have never sat through a film, impressed throughout the entirety of the film. I'm not a big fan of time travel storylines, but this was executed perfectly. The opening shot of how the Vulcan children were educated, and Spocks obvious love for his mother and letting his emotions getting the better of him. What we need to remember as well is that this Spock is our Spock up until the point he joins Starfleet as the destruction of the Kelvin wouldn't have had any effect on Vulcan or Spock's natual timeline until he crossed with Starfleet.
I loved the story of this films, and the little references to past Trek, the Delta Vega one wasn't needed, but then again we don't know where Delta Vega is, or what it's climate is natually like. I loved the fact that the tiny bit of Red Matter was enough to completely wipe out Vulcan, I was a tiny bit annoyed that Vulcan had been destroyed, but I thought "fuck it", what's the worst that can happen? Tuvok not being born, then being Janeway's spy, and ultimately the entire story of Voyager not happening?... "Damn".
I loved how the Kelvin was mentioned to be one of the most advanced ships in the fleet at the time, and how militarised it looked. The shuttles and how the warp drive worked. I loved how due to a curtain set of circumstances, the crew wound up in their rightful positions (Olsen died near the start that made way for Scotty, Uhura spoke in all three dialects of Vulcan and Romulan, Kirk became captain from Pike, and Sulu was on helm because the helmsman was ill.
Things I didn't like
Zoe Saldana (Uhura) - I hold nothing againts Zoe, he has big boots to fill when she is the only main woman in the series. I didn't like how she had a romantic relationship (or atleast the start) with Spock. That was the only thing I was unsure about, and I didn't feel like she was Uhura, she seemed a bit too bitchy.
John Cho (Sulu) - I can't see John Cho without thinking of Harold and Kumar, which I despise. But he definately held the role well but I think after the scene with him and Kirk on the drill, he wasn't really seen much after that. I do wonder if we'll see him in command of the Excelsior.
It's not something I didn't like but I thought I'd mention it. I've read some reviews on Star Trek and the people who have reviewed it (and I've seen some people say it here as well) have been comparing it to Star Wars. I have a major problem with this because there was only a very few things I saw that even remotely reminded me of Star Wars.
People have been saying that Kirk is like Luke Skywalker because of his position in the film (death of his father, now he's trying to get back his rightful place). Bullshit. His storyline was a typical story of the hero trying to come out on top, just like most movies released. People are just too desperate to find bits that are similar or the same because Star Trek and Star Wars have always been a big infulence on eachother over the years.
Another thing I've seen in a review is the warp drive is too much like the hyperdrive from Star Wars. Again I didn't think it was like this. When the ships went in to warp it sounded as though they were breaking barriers (I was unhappy that there was no little flash, that always told me that it had gone faster than the speed of light). It was a very good adaptation of going to warp, there has always been a different way of doing it, and you can see the warp nacelles glow brightly before going in to warp. The phasers I've also seen in mention that they are too much like Star Wars, once again I protest. They seem more like our conventional guns, even pinging againts metal. Sure they're not the phasers of old times, but they still impressed me.
I think what people have forgotten is JJ is trying to bring us Star Trek, he's trying to show us that this could happen in the future. Even down to the military aspect, down to the designs of the ships. And I loved it.
Also people have been annoyed at the Kelvin having 800+ people on board when it's smaller than the Enterprise. Am I wrong in saying the Kelvin had colonists on board ready to colonise the planet Kirk grew up on?
I said it before and I'll say it again. It's the best film I've ever seen in my life. I've even booked tickets to go see it again in the week. Fantastic film that I enjoyed from start to finish. I just can't believe we have to wait for a long time til the sequel! Me and my friend are going to dedicate two days to the 10 Star Trek films, and on the second day go to the cinema again!
Anyone else feel the same? I've seen some very harsh things said about this film (which to be honest, I think is just people who can't let go and don't have an open mind to the film).
JJ, thank you.
