Star Trek: Into Darkness

Last week, thanks to the generous babysitting of Nanny, Mr Birks and I went to the cinema. The last time we went was to see Skyfall, which I loved and started writing a big blog post about straight away.  Unfortunately, I never quite finished it and now it seems a bit dated.  But nevermind, I will tell you about Star Trek instead! Now, I wasn't entirely sure what was on at the flicks when we arrived, it seemed to be mostly action films and in the end we decided on action of the sci-fi variety.  It seems unusual to me that two big action films (the other being Iron Man 3) have been released at around the same time but judging by the number of people watching Star Trek, the gap between the release dates has been significant enough.

Those who know me, know how much I love to get a bargain. Which is probably why I find parting with nearly £10 to go and sit in a darkened room a bit of a rip off,especially as I'm not convinced you really get what you pay for. I'm not criticising the film (although I might a bit later) but there is always a huge queue at the various counters - doesn't matter which one you choose- and never anyone around to help.  It seems to me that if cinemas want to keep attracting audiences in the age of digital technology, they need to look not just at what is on screen but the whole experience.  Which leads me to my next point:  can someone tell me please, why the cinema has to be so loud these day? I realise this makes me sound about 108 years old but sitting in the cinema with my ears bleeding whilst I try to enjoy a film, is not my idea of fun!

Anyway, anyway I digress. Star Trek Into Darkness. I confess I might not have chosen to see this if there was a nice little romcom on but having quite enjoyed the first film I was quite looking forward to it. I'm not a big fan of 3D, so we opted for a normal 2D presentation but having watched it, I can appreciate it probably looked pretty spectacular with the extra dimension. 

I did quite enjoy the film. The storyline wasn't too complicated (as can happen with sequels of a sci-fi kind) and of course Benedict Cumberbatch was amazing.  When we first see him on the Klingon planet, he really kicks arse!  He looks like something out of Assassin's Creed as he wields an enormous gun and performs kung fu moves.  This is not the only reference to computer games in the film and there is a sense that this film is trying to sell us other stuff beyond the film itself.  Which is not surprising considering this film must have cost a considerable amount to make.  Other characters I like in the franchise are Bones - I think Karl Urban has really captured the original character, in voice, facial expression and body language and Chekov - who remains optimistic at all times even though he fails to step into Scotty's shoes. I'm not quite so keen on Scotty - Simon Pegg doesn't really cut it for me and I'm still not sure why Dr Carol Marcus had to be seen in her bra and knickers or even why you'd still need to wear a bra in the future - I hope to god that by then, something more comfortable would have been designed!

This film features a lot of running.  It starts with running, ends with running and has a lot of running inbetween.  What I wish is that there had been less running and a shorter film overall.  For me the film was about 20 minutes too long.   Apparently, at the end, there were lots of intertextual links to other Star Trek films, but to a non-trekky like me, they were lost and it just seemed to go on forever.  Eventually, when the running came to a stop, I came out of the cinema feeling like I wanted 20 minutes of my life back!  That said, overall the film was a real romp!  The chase scenes and effects make it very exciting, Cumberbatch is mesmerising and there is a real sense of spectacle about this film.  I would definitely recommend it to others but with a few warnings about length first.