Back Stage

SASA MAJUMA | Friday May 15, 2009 00:00

Star Trek XI (2009) is now showing at the New Capitol Cinemas. It had its worldwide launch on May 7. In its first long weekend in the United States of America (US) it grossed over P600 million, and more across Planet Earth. It has been hailed as the 'greatest prequel ever made'.

If you are an old timer Trekkie you may not agree with this. Star Trek XI does go back to the origins, but parts of the myth have been re-invented, so those of you who have been following the evolution of all the Star Trek movies over the last 30 years since the launching of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) may be disappointed? Then there are the older purists who may have grown up with or know the television series that began in 1966-yes, Mr Spock may be hundred of years old, but to us lowly humans he is only 43.

The previous movie in the series that made it to Botswana was Star Trek: Nemesis (2002). It tested the loyalty of Trekkies and may have turned off new Seekers, as it was unbearably dull and convoluted. The best of the previous 10 (if you want to seek them out in a DVD shop or by mail order) are: 1) Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) in which Captain Kirk and Dr McCoy are convicted of the murder of a peace envoy from Klingon and Mr Spock comes to their rescue; and 2) Star Trek: First Contact (1996) where Borgs try to prevent earthlings' from having first contact with aliens who will help save Planet Earth from conquest.  Star Trek XI opens with some pre-credit sequences that present the amazing death of Captain Kirk (played by Chris Hemsworth) and the birth of his son Jim or James Tiberius Kirk, who is also destined to become Captain Kirk of the US Starship Enterprise. So to really appreciate what XI is all about you must not be late. It is the evil, revenge-seeking Romulan, Captain Nero (Eric Bana), who is responsible for this calamity. The action now shifts rapidly between events on earth in Iowa, USA, when Jimmy (acted by Jimmy Bennett) is 11-years-old and steals a rare sports car; then to planet Vulcan, the scientific academy and the education of Spock Junior (played as a kid by Jacob Kogan).  For those who do not know, Vulcans are meant to eliminate emotions and operate only on a higher rational plane, but Spock Junior's mother was an earthling so he is constantly challenged to show that he can transcend the normal human emotions that should be part of his constitution.

Then we shift another 11 years forward to Kirk's education as a space cadet at the Starfleet Academy. James Tiberius Kirk (now acted by Chris Pine) appears to be juvenile, idiotic, flip and with a chip on his shoulder, but beneath his gruff exterior glows a fine intelligence. We also continue to vacillate between events on Vulcan and on Nero's black, tentacle-laden space ship. Nero has a false perception of what happened on Romulus, but it has caused him to seek a means to destroy all planets associated with the Federation. 

Then we move forward three years and Kirk is graduating top of his class. He has an infatuation for Uhura (Zo Saldana) but she consistently rejects him. Kirk is helped out of predicaments by an older friend, a medical doctor and space cadet, Leonard McCoy, a.k.a Bones (a great Karl Urban). One of Kirk's instructors is Mr Spock Junior (a subtle Zachary Quinto). Kirk and Spock develop a hate-love relationship that is effectively explored during the movie.  When Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) is recruiting crew for the new flagship Enterprise he rejects Kirk because of a prior incident.

Kirk is smuggled on board by Dr McCoy, and thus begins his transformation. It is a star crew, including (besides Pike, Spock, Uhura, Kirk and McCoy) fine characterisations from Sulu (John Cho), Pavel Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and eventually Scotty (Simon Pegg).

They all have tight roles to play and help to raise the temperature and escalate the humour.

Only a few Vulcans out of six billion survive the imploding of their planet, and they include Spock Senior (back again, the great Leonard Nimoy) who, somehow, succeeds in tying the whole enterprise together across various time warps and adventures.

Star Trek XI is two hours and seven minutes long. It is rated 10+ because of magic, violence and illusions. The new director is J J Abrams. He has worked to a new script by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. The cinematographer is Daniel Mindel. The editors are Maryann Brandon and Mary Jo Markey.  The music is by Michael Giacchino, but Alexander Courage's original Star Trek theme is left until the end. The production designer is Scott Chambliss and the art director Keith P Cunningham with costumes by Michael Kaplan. The effects get better, even when they are from Industrial Light and Magic.
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