Star Trek Beyond, 2016.
Directed by Justin Lin.
Starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Idris Elba, and Sofia Boutella
SYNOPSIS:
The USS Enterprise crew explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space, where they encounter a new ruthless enemy who puts them and everything the Federation stands for to the test.
Star Trek Beyond is one of those movies where all of the marketing and promotional material should just be used to wipe asses. Changing directors from J.J. Abrams to Justin Lin isn’t necessarily a drop in leadership quality, but given that Lin is going from absolutely mindless Fast and Furious vehicular carnage action flicks to the next installment of one of the most popular science fiction franchises of all time, it wouldn’t be wrong to expect a different kind of Star Trek, especially judging from the misleading trailers. The advertisement for Star Trek Beyond makes the film come across as Star Trek for a newer generation, but the actual movie is anything but that; it is actually something true fans will receive the most mileage from.
At one point Captain Kirk (once again played by Chris Pine) utters something along the lines of things beginning to feel episodic, and while in the context of the film his character is meant to be bored of what has become a standard routine, the actual movie plays out like a two-hour episode of one of the versions of the classic television show. There isn’t much here at all that affects the current line of movies, meaning that for the most part Star Trek Beyond could be watched on a whim without much knowledge of what has happened so far. In many ways it feels like the perfect gateway into the rejuvenation of the franchise; you can watch it and simply have fun. It is literally like watching an episode of a television series.
With that said, there are certainly many numerous nods to the history and lore of Star Trek, especially one gentle touch making reference to Leonard Nimoy who passed away last year. Even much of the dialogue and interactions between the various characters (it also must be noted that Kirk and Spock have a greatly reduced amount of screen time that falls more in line with the rest of their teammates, allowing them to subsequently shine more) feel in touch with the past. That’s what happens when a proud nerd like Simon Pegg doesn’t just star in the film as the classic engineer Scotty, but also co-writes this entire particular installment. The banter between Spock and Bones is also a highlight.
Realistically, Justin Lin was not selected to take over directorial duties from Abrams because of his storytelling techniques, but naturally because he is gifted at staging action, and that is something that definitely shows when watching Star Trek Beyond. Without spoiling too much, there is a sequence in the first act of the movie that depicts the siege and destruction of the Enterprise, and it is staged very tightly and lasts a good amount of time, similar to the many elaborate out of control spectacular sequences in his Fast and Furious movies. There are also quite a few entertaining one-on-one battles between significant characters toward the end of the film that are fairly exciting.
The problem with Star Trek Beyond is that just like Justin Lin’s aforementioned Fast and Furious movies, much of the action is all style and no substance, with little to none dramatic or emotional stakes. For as impressively crafted as the action sequences are, a lingering sense of “don’t care”settles in; we know no one is going to die. Even moving past the fact that there is no danger present, the action simply feels completely free of anything worth investing in, and that is most definitely unfortunate. You can say what you want about Star Trek Into Darkness, but at least that installment made moviegoers care about the primary characters.
Thankfully, there are a few new alien faces in Star Trek Beyond that mitigate some of the shortcomings. Krall is a menacing piece of work that is thankfully in a rubber suit and not some CGI travesty, who is fiercely played by Idris Elba. To elaborate on that, Elba is so damn good and unrecognizable as the villain, I had absolutely no idea he was in the movie until it was about to end, which is made all the more embarrassing considering that I frequently check his IMDB profile to see what the talented actor has lined up next. There is also a very resourceful female alien warrior that kicks loads of ass, but most definitely could have been fleshed out more as a character.
This should also go without saying, but Star Trek Beyond is also beautiful to look at. Exploring new worlds and discovering mysteries is always pleasing to the human mind, so when you factor in all of the other computer-generated effects and futuristic technology on display, there is something aesthetically pleasing here. Likewise, the same goes for the action. Just don’t come to Star Trek Beyond expecting to get invested into a rich story, even if the personalities themselves are fun to be around.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Robert Kojder – Chief Film Critic of Flickering Myth. Check here for new reviews weekly, friend me on Facebook, follow my Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
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Originally published July 22, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
