star trek beyond

Star Trek Beyond Review

I’m not a mad trekky fan, but I am a HUGE Simon Pegg fan, and after seeing the trailer I have to admit I was a little bit excited to see this one!

I can’t really tell you too much about the plot line as I did get lost in the terminology and madness of the epic battle at the start, but loosely Captain Kirk takes a risk on saving some alien scientists who are stranded in a yet to be discovered nebula, and all doesn’t turn out to be quite what it seems. Kirk and his trusty crew on the USS Enterprise must save Starbase Yorktown from destruction, and themselves. What is Starbase Yorktown I hear you ask? Well, it’s a kind of Centre Parcs for Aliens who need RnR after their adventures, the Star Fleet need to save lives and keep the Federation intact.

You can tell instantly that Simon Pegg co-wrote this movie with Doug Jung, the dialogue is smart, fresh, funny, yet keeps the sentiment of the Star Trek millions love. This movie definitely leans more towards the TV series, with retro weapons and all kinds of beings that walk on two legs. I’m not sure if I happened to be in a good cinema, or had a cracking pair of 3D glasses, but the 3D effects drew me in and seemed much sharper and smoother than other 3D movies I’ve seen recently; my stomach lurched a few times when my brain told it that we were hurtling into space oblivion!

Acting wise, Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto are back to their best as James T Kirk and Commander Spock, with Zoe Saldana and Anton Yelchen playing perfect foils to the main characters as Uhura and Chekov respectively. It was a heartbreaking moment to see Yelchin on screen for the first time after the news of his untimely passing. Idris Elba is solid as bad guy Krall, but not a part I will remember for long in his portfolio of work, whilst Sofia Boutella as Jaylah was wonderful; the perfect mix of alien tomboy, with a softness that will make young male trekky fans blush. The rest of the cast are bank and you can tell that Simon Pegg relishes his role as Scotty, whilst Karl Urban as McCoy brings the eye candy.

It’s a standard plot, not huge scares, twists or ooooh moments there, but that’s the beauty of Trek; switch off from all the heavy stuff and enjoy the ride of good guys vs bad guys with exciting, sexy, badass aliens thrown in for good measure. In saying that, there are certainly topical parallels and a message I felt while watching. We can all live together in harmony, whether you are green, one-eyed, lobster headed, or very small and lizard like, all talking different languages with different agendas and points of view. No-one is bad when they are in their own reality. The Federation keeps a lid on things and keeps the iniverse stable.

I don’t think The Federation would have Trump around for long though!

Two hours went in the blink of an eye and I give this a solid 7 out of 10. See at Vmax!

 

Out in cinemas now, hop along this weekend!