I know a lot of you were very concerned. I got all the letters. Really? You couldn't send me an email or a text? I had to sift through THOUSANDS of hand-written letters of concern for my well being. And how did you get my address? Creepers!!! In a related story, that didn't happen.
........MOVING ON
Star Trek: Into Darkness
Starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, and Benedict Cumberbatch
Overview - The crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise face a new foe. A genetically altered man who is hell-bent on destroying Starfleet and everyone in it. We follow Captain Kirk (Pine) as he leads his intrepid gang of brilliant misfits against the world's most indestructible foe yet!
Review - I have been pining for this one since the first one hit the silver screen in 2009. After watching TV's massive hit, "Heroes", I developed a bro crush on Zachary Quinto. The guy can act his pants off! Which sounds weird following my statement about having a bromance. But then I stumbled onto a British smash hit called "Sherlock" starring Benedict Cumberbatch. Watch 2 episodes and tell me if you don't consider him to be probably one of the best actors we have seen in a REALLY long time!
One thing that J.J. Abrams (director) is really good at is keeping a lid on his projects while they are in production. If you see a poster, a behind-the-scenes picture, or a leaked video clip, it was orchestrated by Abrams himself. Because he is so good at keeping everyone's mouth shut about his films, you go into it knowing nothing more than what the trailers show you. With the nature of rabid movie fans and social media, it is nearly impossible to go see a movie without knowing the full plot by the time you get your bag of 3rd grade undersalted popcorn. What I love so much about Abrams is that he is extremely good at communicating emotion through a camera lens. If you watch the TV show "Lost" or "Mission Impossible 3" you will notice very soon that you feel connected to the characters. He is a fantastic story communicator, and spent many many years wtiting for big projects like, "Fringe", "Alias", "Super 8", "Forever Young", etc. The guy is solid gold!
They got the same Cinematographer as the first Star Trek in 2009. The graphics are stunning, and the visuals are incredible! Daniel Mindel (Cinematographer) has worked on "John Carter", "Enemy of the State", and "Mission Impossible 3". So, when I hear Mindel's name mentioned, I know the film is going to be stunning. The writing, especially the dialogue, in this film is great! Abrams and his writers really know how to set up punch lines, create verbal hurdles and twists, and establish true intense fear. When Kahn (Cumberbatch) is threatening Kirk, you feel like he's threatening you. When the Enterprise is under fire, and destruction is immanent, you feel like you will go down with the ship. And when the crew overcomes obstacles, you want to jump up and shout a victory chant along with them.
Regarding acting, I still continue to be surprised by Chris Pine. The guy was a virtual nobody until "Star Trek". After watching him as Captain Kirk, I truly can't see anyone else filling his shoes. The same goes for Karl Urban (Bones), who seems to be doing the only beat-for-beat impression of a crew member. Zachary Quinto (Spock) is close to the way Leonard Nemoy portrayed him, but does throw in some twists of his own. Simon Pegg (Scotty) just flat out makes me smile. He's has a bit more exaggerated interpretation of the character than the others, but I wouldn't want to see him done any other way. But the one I want to expound on is the near-unknown actor, Benedict Cumberbatch. I heard he was cast in "Star Trek: Into Darkness" and decided to find out what else he had been in. I found the British TV show "Sherlock" in which he plays the neurotic hero, Sherlock Holmes. I felt he did such a good job at his interpretation of Holmes, that I started to get excited to see him in a full-length feature. Then I saw the first trailer for "Star Trek: Into Darkness" he says the line, "Now, shall we begin?" and I about crapped my pants. He has an absolutely phenomenal villain voice. When he threatens, you believe him. When he screams at you, you poop. If you can see this in a theater, I highly recommend it. Hearing Cumberbatch's voice in bass-shaking surround sound, is fully worth the price of admission.
I know that there are a lot of Trekkie's out there who are still enraged at the fact that anyone would mess with the Franchise. However, I think those people need to pull their head out of their nethers, and admit that the new Star Trek films are nothing short of genius. When Abrams wrote a timeline-changing worm hole in the first film, he found a way to create his own story line, while still being able to utilize remnants of the old stories, and not step on anyone's toes. I'm truly excited to see where they go from here. I hope and pray that the cast does not lose interest in the continued success of the Franchise. I believe that with this cast, and Abrams at the helm, they simply can not miss the mark.
I give it a 5 out of 5. I would buy it on Blueray, I would see it again in the theater, and I would recommend it to anyone I know. If you haven't seen any Star Trek films, fear not. My sister in-law watched the first one and was taken by how great of a Sci-Fi action movie it was. So, to those who are not in the category of Trekkie, you will still enjoy it if there is a creative gene in your DNA.
Any comments or suggestions? Email me at entertaindave@gmail .com and follow me on Twitter @entertaindave
+
No comments:
Post a Comment