REVIEW - 'Star Trek Into Darkness'

'Star Trek Into Darkness' (PG-13) ***1/2

After Starfleet Headquarters is attacked, Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and the rest of the Enterprise crew including Mr. Spock (Zachary Quinto), Scotty (Simon Pegg), Sulu (John Cho), Dr. 'Bones' McCoy (Karl Urban) and Uhura (Zoe Saldana), go on a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch), a one man weapon of mass destruction.

Now I should probably get this off my chest first:  I am NOT a Trekkie.  I've always been more of a 'Star Wars' guy.  I've seen some episodes of the original series and of 'Next Generation' but I've always thought that those were boring.  I didn't think they were bad by any means, I just couldn't really get into them.  I have seen some of the 'Star Trek' movies, but that will be later in this post.  But I did like the 2009 'Star Trek' movie.  It was a humorous, action-packed breath of fresh air to a franchise that I thought was stuffy and dry and primarily appealed only to it's fan base (to an extent), and with the approach to it I was eagerly awaiting its sequel. 

But what does this non-Trekkie think about the new 'Star Trek' movie?  I thought it was really good and a lot of fun.  There was plenty of action and great special effects.  It has several suspenseful moments and plenty of twists and turns in the last half of the movie.  It's also quite funny, livening up situations and character exchanges with witty banter and one-liners.  The actors fill the rather iconic roles quite well, although the main standout amongst the cast is Benedict Cumberbatch ('War Horse', 'The Hobbit' trilogy, the recent BBC show 'Sherlock') as the villain.  Cunning, intelligent, creepy, and a sinster voice to boot, it's a really intense performance.  Some actual Trekkies might get a little upset with some of the twists and turns and direct references to certain previous 'Star Trek' movies, but none of that bothered me at all.  Afterall, the previous 'Star Trek' movie had established that this is an alternate timeline from the TV series and movies, so the J.J. Abrams and the writers literally could do whatever they want with whatever character they please.  Well, J.J. Abrams will soon be moving on to 'Star Wars Episode VII', so hopefully whoever is picked to do the inevitable 'Star Trek 3' will continue the pace set by Abrams & Co.

So as a stand alone movie it's really good, but how does it compare to the other 'Star Trek' movies?  Well, I haven't seen all of those.  I've only seen 'Wrath of Khan' (I liked it), 'Search For Spock' (Also liked it), 'First Contact' (Also liked it, easily the best of the 'Next Generation' movies), 'Insurrection' (didn't like it, felt more like an extended episode of the show), 'Nemesis' (didn't like it all, just not a good movie), and the 2009 reboot 'Star Trek' (I liked it for the most part).  'Into Darkness' is better than it's predecessor, and honestly it's the best 'Star Trek' movie I've seen.  But as I've said before I'm not exactly a Trekkie, so you can take it however you want. 

Like most other movies nowadays this is available in 3D (Thanks 'Avatar').  Today I had the option of 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D.  I opted for 2D, since I saw the previous one in 2D and I think 3D live action movies don't really work all that well.  Most of the time while watching a live action movie in 3D nothing really happens that could merit the need for 3D (apart from extra box office profits) so it ends up feeling like your watching a 2D movie with funny glasses.  Now, having seen this in 2D, there were a few things that would've looked cool in 3D, such as whenever the Enterprise enters warp, or whenever we're watching something in outer space and not on a planet or starship.  It was fine in 2D, but I suppose if you REALLY WANT TO see it in 3D, go ahead.  But consider this:  It wasn't filmed in 3D, it was post-converted.  So there ya go. 

Overall, whether you are a Trekkie like my eldest brother and grandfather, or a non-Trekkie like me, there is plenty to like about 'Star Trek Into Darkness'.  Action-packed, funny, good performances, a great villain, and great special effects.