Now it makes sense to have cut Nero's back story...

[srombomb]

At first I was very bummed out when I heard all of Nero's rura penthe scenes were axed, essentially explaining where the hell he and his crew were for 25 years.

However, when you get down to it, this is a movie about KIRK, SPOCK and how our favorite crew got its start, and not about Nero. Had Nero's scenes been kept, they more than likely would have been placed in right after the opening credits versus Young Kirk and Spocks opening scenes as kids. Meanwhile the audience would have been thinking OK, why are we sitting here watching a film that is more focused on the villian right from the get go versus staying true to the advertisements depicting it as an origin story for our beloved characters.

I don't know, I suppose it could have worked, but I think now I see why abrams ended up cutting Nero's back story. The flow of the movie, the quicker pace would have been slowed up even more. And lets face it, aside from young Kirk's car chase scene, there was about 10-15 minutes of slow dialogue with young kirk, young spock, and of course older kirks bar fight mixed in. If you added in Nero's back story on top of that, it really would have bogged the film down to a slow slow pace.
​

 

[davejames]

Yeah I agree it would have been an awkward fit at that point in the story, but I still think they should have found some way to further flesh out Nero's character.

Who knows, maybe the Rura Penthe scenes could have been used as a flashback later on (perhaps at that point where we get a HUGE closeup of his face for no apparent reason. lol).

 

[Anticitizen]

I dunno... that method worked pretty well for Star Wars. The opening shot is the big, imposing Star Destroyer, setting up the threat. It's not for a while that we're introduced to the farmboy.

Personally, I would've scrapped the '25 years ago' story. At least as far as Nero's concerned. Show Kirk and Spock's childhood, if you wish, but I thought that whole 25-year-gap was rather muddled.

 

[Anika Hanson]

I just wish they had addressed all these issues in the movie novalisation. I wish they book had fleshed out the story more. But either way Im happy with the movie. Just pre-ordered it although it's not out until november.

 

[schatenjager]

They could have moved the Rura Penthe scenes up to the point where he escapes and not shown any of the earlier stuff. That would have allowed for a one line throw-away like "I spent the last 25 years here blah blah blah" and the audience would have gotten at least a hint of what he'd been doing while still leaving the "growing up" to Kirk and Spock without intrusion.

Even putting the Klingon ships decloaking around the Narada could have been done effectively. Show the shuttles leaving, pan back to the narada, decloak the klingons and cue the opening credits...It was do-able.

 

[diankra]

They could have moved the Rura Penthe scenes up to the point where he escapes and not shown any of the earlier stuff. That would have allowed for a one line throw-away like "I spent the last 25 years here blah blah blah" and the audience would have gotten at least a hint of what he'd been doing while still leaving the "growing up" to Kirk and Spock without intrusion.

Even putting the Klingon ships decloaking around the Narada could have been done effectively. Show the shuttles leaving, pan back to the narada, decloak the klingons and cue the opening credits...It was do-able.

And maybe something as simple as a line like (when Spock's ship emerges):
Nero: "This is what we've been waiting for, my friends. It was the dream of this moment that kept us alive, and together, for all those years in a Klingon prison. And now, we will share our pain... welcome back Spock." Dub-able!

 

[Holder]

Even putting the Klingon ships decloaking around the Narada could have been done effectively. Show the shuttles leaving, pan back to the narada, decloak the klingons and cue the opening credits...It was do-able.

Yeah that scene you described above, followed later by some lines from uhura about intercepting a Klingon transmission regarding an escape at Rura Penthe (or however you spell it) and an entire Klingon fleet being destroyed would have done so much for clearing up the muddled 25 years thing. It would have added maybe 1 minute to screen time.

 

[davejames]

Even putting the Klingon ships decloaking around the Narada could have been done effectively. Show the shuttles leaving, pan back to the narada, decloak the klingons and cue the opening credits...It was do-able.

Yeah that scene you described above, followed later by some lines from uhura about intercepting a Klingon transmission regarding an escape at Rura Penthe (or however you spell it) and an entire Klingon fleet being destroyed would have done so much for clearing up the muddled 25 years thing. It would have added maybe 1 minute to screen time.

I don't know, I think it might have left the audience scratching their heads, wondering where the heck those ships came from and what they were doing (it's only the diehards who would be able to recognize them as Klingon probably).

I think the way Abrams leaves that scene works really well.

They definitely could have explained things better later on though. To not say anything at ALL about where Nero spent the past 25 years is a definite problem.

 

[Rackon]

Even putting the Klingon ships decloaking around the Narada could have been done effectively. Show the shuttles leaving, pan back to the narada, decloak the klingons and cue the opening credits...It was do-able.

Yeah that scene you described above, followed later by some lines from uhura about intercepting a Klingon transmission regarding an escape at Rura Penthe (or however you spell it) and an entire Klingon fleet being destroyed would have done so much for clearing up the muddled 25 years thing. It would have added maybe 1 minute to screen time.

I think the way Abrams leaves that scene works really well.

They definitely could have explained things better later on though. To not say anything at ALL about where Nero spent the past 25 years is a definite problem.

Exactly - "those 25 years in a Klingon prison"...

Er...WHAT Klingon prison???? Huh???

Takes the audience right outa the movie IMO, plus breaks the cardinal rule of filmmaking - show don't tell.

The original film structure was very different from the finished film, which was at one time intended to open with shots of the destruction of Romulus. There was also a deleted shot of the Narada after George Kirk has rammed it, the ship hanging wounded in space and Klingon ships decloaking around it.

But I think Abrams (rightly IMO) felt this shot took away from GK's dramatic and emotional sacrifice...and it wasn't really needed when the prison stuff was cut. Besides, I LOVE that image of the Narada hanging in space with the tiny little shuttles fleeing, just catching the light, right before the cut to the title.

It woulda been kinda nice to work in the Rura Penthe stuff somehow, but in the end, it would also have distracted from the spine of the story.

 

[Therin of Andor]

and besides, I LOVE that image of the Narada hanging in space with the tiny little shuttles fleeing, just catching the light, right before the cut to the title.

Exactly! And with that beautiful music.

 

[Rackon]

and besides, I LOVE that image of the Narada hanging in space with the tiny little shuttles fleeing, just catching the light, right before the cut to the title.

Exactly! And with that beautiful music.

Yes!

The music just sells the striking image that much more! That was a "wow" moment for me, a piece of "movie magic" - proof to me that Abrams might in fact be a visual storyteller and a real filmmaker.

 

[Hartzilla2007]

Yeah that scene you described above, followed later by some lines from uhura about intercepting a Klingon transmission regarding an escape at Rura Penthe (or however you spell it) and an entire Klingon fleet being destroyed would have done so much for clearing up the muddled 25 years thing. It would have added maybe 1 minute to screen time.

I think the way Abrams leaves that scene works really well.

They definitely could have explained things better later on though. To not say anything at ALL about where Nero spent the past 25 years is a definite problem.

Exactly - "those 25 years in a Klingon prison"...

Er...WHAT Klingon prison???? Huh???

Takes the audience right outa the movie IMO, plus breaks the cardinal rule of filmmaking - show don't tell.

The original film structure was very different from the finished film, which was at one time intended to open with shots of the destruction of Romulus. There was also a deleted shot of the Narada after George Kirk has rammed it, the ship hanging wounded in space and Klingon ships decloaking around it.

But I think Abrams (rightly IMO) felt this shot took away from GK's dramatic and emotional sacrifice...and it wasn't really needed when the prison stuff was cut. Besides, I LOVE that image of the Narada hanging in space with the tiny little shuttles fleeing, just catching the light, right before the cut to the title.

It woulda been kinda nice to work in the Rura Penthe stuff somehow, but in the end, it would also have distracted from the spine of the story.

I'm hoping some of that stuff is on the DVD/Bluray release in the deleted scenes section.

 

[Rackon]

I believe the prison stuff is one of the deleted scenes that will be on there.

 

[Hartzilla2007]

I'm hoping some of that stuff is on the DVD/Bluray release in the deleted scenes section.

I believe the prison stuff is one of the deleted scenes that will be on there.

What about the Klingon ships decloaking near the Narada?

 

[timelord1010]

I think the 25 years business was too much. Wouldn't the Klingons have tried to take the Narada apart during the 25 years Nero and crew were locked up? The Klingons had scientists as seen on Enterprise (the show). In 25 years the Narada should have been cut to pieces in a Klingon shipyard and the Klingons probably would have gone to war with the Romulans over this.

 

[davejames]

I think the 25 years business was too much. Wouldn't the Klingons have tried to take the Narada apart during the 25 years Nero and crew were locked up? The Klingons had scientists as seen on Enterprise (the show). In 25 years the Narada should have been cut to pieces in a Klingon shipyard and the Klingons probably would have gone to war with the Romulans over this.

I doubt they would have dismantled it. Knowing the Klingons, they probably just would have claimed the Narada as their own and started using it as their big, scary ass flagship. lol

 

[Jeri]

Hmm, this ^ rings a bell.

In ENT:Bounty, we do actually hear what happens to a ship that the Klingons have seized: they totally do a chop-shop on it!

When the Tellarite, Skalaar, finally learns news about his ship, it turns out the Klingons completely gutted it.

 

[Lonemagpie]

I'm hoping some of that stuff is on the DVD/Bluray release in the deleted scenes section.

I believe the prison stuff is one of the deleted scenes that will be on there.

What about the Klingon ships decloaking near the Narada?

I'm not sure that will have been shot/rendered before they decided to drop that subplot, whereas the prison-escape beatdown was filmed with live actors.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Nero just wasn't very interesting. Revenge as a motive is too generic - doesn't say anything about him as a character - and certainly not as a Romulan (the whole Rommie vs Vulcans thing was entirely absent). I didn't really want to see more of his backstory, and I hope the next Romulan character they write has a story that would not be just as possible if he were a Klingon or a frakkin' Ferengi.

 

[NCC74894A]

I think the 25 years business was too much. Wouldn't the Klingons have tried to take the Narada apart during the 25 years Nero and crew were locked up? The Klingons had scientists as seen on Enterprise (the show). In 25 years the Narada should have been cut to pieces in a Klingon shipyard and the Klingons probably would have gone to war with the Romulans over this.

Just how would the Klingons have gotten the Narada into their space? Assuming it was still crippled when they found it (otherwise the Narada could have just blown them away as they approached), they couldn't have piloted it themselves, even if they'd managed to commandeer it. And they'd probably have needed half their fleet to tow away something that size.

And what about Nero and his crew - if the Klingons really did capture their ship, what are they even still doing alive? Being Romulans, wouldn't they have preferred to get slaughtered to the last man in combat by the Klingons - and wouldn't the Klingons have been more than happy to oblige?

What I'm getting at is that it's just as well that Abrams and company chose to simply gloss over Nero's encounters with the Klingons; that's an awful lot to have to explain away, and it wouldn't have advanced the main plot much.