Star Trek: Beyond Movie Review

Reviewed by Maroon5gurl88

Three years have passed since Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and the crew of the Enterprise invited audiences along with them to explore "the final frontier." Though Star Trek Into Darkness received a harsh tongue lashing upon release in 2013, the latest venture, Star Trek Beyond, hopes to heal those old wounds. With Fast and Furious director Justin Lin on-board as director, Star Trek Beyond is a rollicking good time with enough action and character development to get even the most jaded fans back onto the ship.

Kirk and his crew go to save a stranded ship, only to find it is a trap that puts them in the path of the villainous Krall (Idris Elba).

Director Justin Lin knows how to present action, and though critics are split on how much is too much, the movie capably blends moments of fun with heart. By splitting the Enterprise crew members up, you're entertained with a multitude of different stories that gives everyone a chance to shine (well, Zoe Saldana's Uhura is still wasted). The various character pairings create at least three buddy comedies, but the standouts are Bones and Spock (Karl Urban and Zachary Quinto) and Scotty and newcomer Jayla (Simon Pegg and Sofia Boutella). Urban and Quinto's deadpan delivery allows for a lot of dry wit to come through, while Pegg and Boutella give us a new glimpse at the alien species and present a humanized approach to the "Other" without losing sight of the main objective. When the action ramps up though, things get fun. Lin never forsakes momentum for a cool shot – although there are plenty of cool shots – and the action is intense. Then again, would you expect anything less from a Fast and Furious director?

Idris Elba as Krall threatened to be the film's undoing, especially since he's another amazing actor covered in makeup from head to toe, so comparisons to the recent X-Men: Apocalypse beckoned. Thankfully Elba rises above the problems that plagued Oscar Isaac because Krall has additional motivation that humanizes the character. He's much like Kirk, questioning what good this mission to space will do. In fact, there's a lot of interesting discussion in the film about futility and one's purpose in life. Chris Pine's Kirk plays down his cockiness in favor of questioning his mortality and what he's doing with his life, something you wouldn't think to question when you're seeing the wonders of the universe (and certainly setting up the return of Chris Hemsworth as Pine's father in the next film). By this point the rest of the actors have bonded with each other, and there's a real camaraderie between everyone. You finally want to see more adventures with them.

If anything, Star Trek Beyond is a must-see for the sad goodbye to actor Anton Yelchin. Outside of the tears there's a lot of fun in Star Trek Beyond. The story is focused, the action is intense, and we finally a villain with some heft to him. I'm finally, finally interested in where this franchise goes from here.

Grade: B+