Review of Star Trek, the Movie of 2009

After seeing the movie myself and being aware of the gripes of profaning the vision of its Creator, Gene Roddenberry,  I have to say many of the complaints come from viewers who aren’t old enough to be familiar with the Gene Roddenberry legacy to really judge. Or, are the complaining fans just so much older that they don’t want this cherished icon to change?

Back in the bad-ol’-days, we fans were faced with bomb shelters and Power Mongers  with fingers on the buttons that would end the world and our lives.  “Star Trek” gave us hope that civilization wasn’t going to end with us.  We gained hope that the adults who had fubarred the world would find a way after all to let us live long enough to try to fix the problems. (We baby-boomers are still working on it and we did find a cure for AIDS with transplanted mutated genes.)  

What do you mean this new movie doesn’t follow the original vision? For one thing, if Gene Roddenberry needed a circumstance for a plot,  he invented one: everything from Universal Translators to love interests that would be terminal to a salt vampire for a villain were written in to make the show flow.  The excellent writers of this production did the same thing.  Why not a paradox that simply exists?  How many Americans bought the Magic Bullet Theory from the Kennedy assassination?  A paradox in time is more likely than that story line.

“Star Trek” was so much more than a television show.  I know: I wrote to the network to save “Star Trek” when the deplorable news circulated that they wanted to cancel the show.  NBC has been the “Nothing But Clown’s network to me often since the next year after we saved the series, they cancelled it anyway.  They killed it off by putting it on Friday nights, the night the school’s athletic events took place and date night for many of us kids.  Recorders were not in place yet so we were Fouled Up Beyond All Recognition, or F. U. B. A. R., over that decision.
Then the bright people with vision did a wonderful thing, SEVEN long years later: they made a movie which passed into legend.  Better late than never, folks.

For you old-line fans, what’s wrong with learning about the favorite characters before they were on the Enterprise?  Nothing.  It was good to see some more of the influences that made them who they are.  You didn’t complain when we learned about Jean Luc Picard’s life in France. The “Star Trek” legend grew to make how many spin offs for decades? And ten movies! The information about the crew is still intriguing even at this late date; plus, it is novel for fans who haven’t waited over thirty-six years for it. And even the new fans remember Kirk’s shirt being torn off for the delight of young, romantic girls.  That hasn’t changed. Bet on it.

Coming upon the scene with the brand new Enterprise was thrilling for this original Trekkie who saw the episodes the first time they were broadcast when I was still in high school.  Gone are the cardboard doors we fans noted in favor of a beautiful bridge, gleaming like a newly-cut jewel. I was so proud of the directors, J. J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof, and grateful for that surge of pride and wonder after all these years.

It is important to tell the new generation fans (some of whom are geeks and nerds who will run the world fairly soon) to quit belly-aching about bastardizing Roddenberry’s vision.  The vision still holds and grows and that’s the real legacy of the visionary Gene Roddenberry.   The new generation star ship is gorgeous with the crew bound for glory, just like yesterday.

As for the cast, there is some brilliant casting for us Trekkies.  We have accepted characters for the new crop of bridge personnel due to the intelligent picks. We all know Zachary Quinto who played Sylar from "Heros" as Spock and accept him completely as a more three dimensional character than Dear Leonard Nimoy was allowed to be most of the time. Chris Pine as James T. Kirk  is faithful as the Young Turk of early Enterprise days.  He is going to be a household name from this.  
Harold, John Cho, is back from White Castle and from his part in "American Pie". He is playing Sulu, who fences still. Maybe we can have him visit an intergalactic White Castle in an upcoming movie. And Leonard Nimoy: it is so good to see you again! Did you folks know Leonard released an album long ago?   (One line we all loved was, “Stars falling on Alabama? Most illogical.”)

Bones, Karl Urban,  was earlier related to King Theodan in "Lord of the Rings".  He is a perfect and grand version of Leonard McCoy in younger years.  Uhura is getting it on with Spock, how cool, and she, Zoe Saldana, was in "The Chronicles of Riddick."  Bruce Greenwood, Captain Christopher Pike, is in keeping with the original series and a welcome addition to the cast of our legend.

Simon Peg, “You bet yer arse!" Scotty, is terrific. The audience roared at his declaration as he ran like a banshee to save the day.  He avoided becoming a zombie in "Shaun of the Dead" and was an excellent policeman – excuse me, Police officer, in "Hot Fuzz," to name two movies he has been in.

We liked Anton Yelchin as Pavel Chekov.  (Seventeen! Dear Lord, we feel old now and so did the officer he told his age to.)  The man can run when necessary even if he can’t pronounce a “v” properly.  Eric Bana as Nero is excellent and staring in yet another movie playing soon.

In short, the new cast, heros and villains,  is appropriate, talented and promising.  We want to see more movies with them in space in whatever time line they can manage to exist in. And the new gray knobby guy, too. (Did you know the network was timid about portraying aliens in the original series as being too frightening or weird for many viewers? We fans knew better and wanted more aliens.)

Everything about this new vision is spot on, including the music by Michael Giacchino and the musicians who played it. The “In Memory of” to the Roddenberrys, Majel Barret- Roddenberry and Gene, of course, was necessary. Cinematography's Daniel Mindel, and all the good people who made this possible are owed a standing ovation, too.  The audience did clap at the ending, by the way.                 

The Torch is passed for a new generation of Trekkies to create more of the legend that is “Star Trek”.  Boldly go were no one has gone–yet. * * *