So Star Trek is back again. This is the 13th installment of a film franchise that began 38 long years ago. Many of the films have been successful, some less so. But the reboot in the 11th installment of the film franchise helped the famous history.
So once again, after eight years, the rebooted crew of the famous Enteprise has returned, dominated by a crew from an alternate lineage featuring the famous characters in a youthful rendition. The first two films were directed by J.J. Abrams, who had defected to Star Wars, so Justin Lin, who made his name directing four episodes of The Fast and the Furious franchise, took the reins.
Thanks to the fact that the screenplay was written by Simon Pegg, many references to serials throughout the show's 50-year history made their way into the film. This isn't a dry, humourless film; fans who have memorised all the character backgrounds, the famous battles in space, will be swooning with bliss.
Unlike the previous two films, this isn't an action-only film. Justin Lin managed to shoot the action scenes well, perhaps even better than Abrams in some ways. We get to see the Enterprise from many new angles. This is a film of good dialogue that entertains within the Star Trek framework, takes us back to the endless missions of the main characters, the exploration of the unknown, and most importantly the fight against adversaries who have their own ideas about the good of the United Federation of Planets.
The crew of actors have become so close friends by the third film that every moment, between the old familiar characters, is very entertaining and exactly matches the crew, who have gained so much experience and adventures over three years.
Michael Giacchino once again composed the right music for the whole film, although it's true that Jerry Goldsmith was still better, but I won't compare, it's modern times, but let's face it, at some points in the film I was pleased that he never composed anything that put the whole film to shame. Leaving aside the music from the end credits (Alexander Courage) and Rihanna, the film's script is lifted in one part from the first Star Trek film. The Enteprise makes a very similar flyby of the new station as the transporter in 1987. Similar music will be played, referencing what is best about the Star Trek films.
Although I'm a bit Star Trek-centric, it's still a great film that pays homage to all previous (film, TV) work. It's like part of a never-ending series. An episode that takes big money to make sure it's flawless and the story doesn't just appear in poor set pieces. It meets the criteria of a great movie that, while the crowds won't go to see it, its artistic merit harkens back to the best Star Trek movies and episodes of the series.
Simon Pegg surprised as a writer, and it's mostly to his credit that the movie is so good. Where there aren't action scenes, it's mostly the dialogue that simply entertains well. This time, it's mainly a film for fans, not the general public, who will remember the references to the show's 50-year history nicely. There are so many references throughout the film that the entire internet is already devoted to them. For me, it's the best movie of the year. There were some things in Suicide Squad that just bothered me, you could see all the overkill and mistakes the filmmakers forgot about. Star Trek 13 is flawless, and it's given as much love and care as it needs.
Photo: Paramount Pictures / Kimberley French
Review written for the 10th release date. August 2016
Original release date May 28, 2020 – Kritiky.cz
