Star Trek: Beyond (2016)

Star Trek: Beyond (2016)

To start off, I find it apt to express my admiration for this reinvigorated franchise. Growing up not given the proper exposure to Star Trek canons as compared to Star Wars, the new J.J Abrams instalments took my breath away. Star Trek (2009) is still one of my favourite sci-fi features to date, craftily making use of an alternate timeline whereby the original films coexist alongside the new reinvented franchise (in two separate universes as it were). The sequel to the immense success of the first, that had both the old lovers of Star Trek and the new (myself included) on board, was Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013). It did not quite reach the heights of its predecessor but still had the same raucous charisma and relentless pace that many enjoyed in the 2009 blockbuster. Where these two films succeed in spades however is, even with a limited melodramatic narrative of space exploration and encountering enemies, the character development and interactions remain the sole component which all other narrative events feed off. We have to care about these characters unconditionally so when a battle does ensue, the stakes are elevated to another level.

And this newest addition Star Trek: Beyond, with Justin Lin at the helm instead of Abrams after his achievements with the Fast and Furious franchise and Abrams pledging his allegiances to Star Wars: Force Awakens. Accompanied by Simon Pegg in screenwriting capacity as well as his appearance as Scotty. And happy to say even with these changes in personnel, both provide an excellent and fun sci-fi adventure which captures the central essence of the characters. Along with exuberant spectacle, brilliant performances and as always it is incredibly funny.

The plot to the final chapter of this trilogy begins with a narration from Jim Kirk (Chris Pine) detailing the fatigue of their deep space mission. Raising philosophical questions such as, if the universe truly is endless then why attempt to search the deep recesses of space? In the opening sequences we also begin to see Kirk question his role as captain and as an individual; echoing the themes of Kirk hoping to emulate the heroism of his fallen father and the nobleness of surrogate father Christopher Pike.

Yet midway through the first act, this fatigued crew are attacked by unknown assailants with the leader going by the name of Krall (played by Idris Elba). The Enterprise suffers immeasurable damage leaving the entire crew stranded or captured on a nearby planet. Spread out across acres of land, the disparaged crew must work together to find shelter, survive and muster up a plan to save the captured crew.

I don’t want to go into too much detail as to avoid spoiling any of the second and third act.  But this film was absolutely brilliant! I was very surprised, as the marketing and trailers for this film didn’t grab my attention unlike the way Into Darkness did. The repeated use of Sabotage by the Beastie Boys felt like they were attempting to play it safe yet this film had the same edge the previous two instalments possessed. Furthermore, a refreshing aspect to the narrative was the fingerprints of a true Trekkie in Simon Pegg’s screenwriting. Paying homage to the original Star Trek whilst expanding the mythos of this newly known universe.

However one drawback in all three films of this trilogy is the depth of the antagonist. The Romulan Nero in the first, John Harrison in Into Darkness and now Krall in Beyond. Not to say their motivations aren’t understandable or well performed, it is simply that the depth of these motivations isn’t truly fleshed out. In Beyond, Krall’s motivations are not truly expressed until the latter parts of the third act. Even being incredibly performed by the consistently brilliant Idris Elba, it leaves a bittersweet aftertaste knowing these crucial plot points could have been investigated sooner and expanded upon. This links back crucially to the central point of Star Trek, in the fact that we must stay with the crew of the Enterprise to fully connect with their plight. So in truth, it gives a lot with one hand but leaves an unfortunate what could have been for most of the antagonist’s story arcs.

RIP Anton Yelchin & Leonard Nimoy.