Star Trek: Into Darkness

Four Stars (out of four)

I have to tread very lightly here, because I don't want to spoil the plot.  But rest assured, if you are a long time fan of the Star Trek franchise, I guarantee you will not be disappointed by this entry.  JJ Abrams has done it again.  The guy is almost Speilbergian in his ability to pick great stories.  He is a triple threat, a great writer, producer and director.  This film does not disappoint.  It is action-packed, taut, and takes you on a mile-a-minute thrill ride.  I have to say, after the on-again, off-again record of the original crew's six, and the almost uniform awfulness, with the exception of First Contact, of the Next Gen cast (proving once again that there would be no Next Generation if not for the Original), I was getting gun shy about Star Trek in the movies.  But when I saw the rebooted Star Trek in 2009, my fears were put to rest.

I have really enjoyed this reboot.  Going back in time and totally resetting the entire Star Trek canon was nothing short of a stroke of genius, both financially and creatively.  We now can have totally new adventures with old friends and not be mired down by decades of previous mythology to which the story must be faithful. It also helps that the new, old cast is just as personable as the originals, and are a joy to watch.  And now, we even get great new editions to our story.  Benedict Cumberbatch, famous for his turn as Holmes in the BBC's Sherlock, plays our bad guy.  He is fantastic to watch, ruthless and coiled into a steel spring of menace.  I can't wait to see what he will do next (but get on the next season of Sherlock, dammit!).  Also, Alice Eve (my new celebrity crush), joins the cast in what I hope will be a recurring role.  She was beautiful, but also intense.  The rest of the cast was great, as usual, but I would like to see more of Bones.  The reason the original Trek worked so well was because of the triumvirate of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy.  They are the three sides of humanity: emotion, logic, and the jumble of both.  Their foibles play perfectly off each other and provide us our guiding point through the stories, giving us different perspectives to consider in every situation.  Save your money though, this movie does not really need to be seen in 3D.  It is not bad, just not really worth the 33-50% upgrade in price you will have to pay.