BACK COVER SYNOPSIS: The future begins in J.J. Abrams’ “high-octane hit” STAR TREK that has taken audiences by storm. When the Romulan Nero comes from the future to take revenge on the Federation, rivals Kirk and Spock must work together to stop him from destroying everything they know. On an “exhilarating” journey filled with “spectacular action”, comedy and cosmic peril, the new recruits of the U.S.S. Enterprise will voyage through unimaginable danger, boldy going where no one has gone before. “Even if you’ve never seen Star Trek before, this movie is for you!”

FILM REVIEW: The Star Trek franchise had fast become tired and out of ideas by the time the last film Star Trek: Nemesis was released, the first film in the franchise that I felt was the only true disappointment in the franchise in that it had nothing new to offer and simply lifted plot and character moments from earlier films (at least the other bad films in the franchise tried something more than that). Something very dramatic had to occur to make the franchise relevant again so after a longer than usual absence, the film franchise has thankfully come back to life in spectacular fashion with the simply titled “Star Trek”, with a fresh vision by new wunderkind director J.J. Abrams. Combining an origin story with a very clever parallel universe concept, Abrams and his team have fashioned a new vision of Star Trek that simultaneously adheres to all the came before it but is free to explore new territory. This was no small task, but thanks to the big risks Abrams and company have taken on this film, “Star Trek” is now an exciting franchise again with limitless potential; not a bad job considering the forty plus years of history of film and television episodes attached to it.

Rather than try to reboot the franchise directly, the filmmakers have chosen to use a clever time-travel device to allow for the continued existence of the original Star Trek universe while being able to create one of their own. Troubled Romulan Nero (an excellent Eric Bana) is pulled in to a black hole, travelling back in time from the 24th century back to the time of Kirk’s birth. Wanting revenge for the destruction of his home planet in the future, Nero wants to destroy the Federation one planet at a time, and from the beginning of the story, he has altered history. Kirk’s father now dies as he is born, fighting off Nero in space. Kirk grows up as a rebel, who eventually finds a path when Captain Pike (a very strong Bruce Greenwood) and offers him the chance to enlist in Starfleet. Meanwhile, we also get to see Spock grow up with his dual human/Vulcan heritage, leading to his enlistment in Starfleet which ultimately brings the two future friends together, but at first, they are at complete odds with Kirk’s unpredictable and cocky behaviour conflicting with Spock’s logic and reason. Before long, they are thrust together, along with the entire original bridge crew of the Enterprise, to fight off the threat that Nero presents.

What is so brilliant about this story is that it serves as a sequel and a prequel at the same time. Nero is from the post-Nemesis time period, yet his presence in the original series timeline allows the filmmakers licence to change what they feel they need to, re-introduce the feeling of not knowing the destinies of the characters, and also be a prequel in that it tells the first story of the bridge crew of the USS Enterprise. Abrams and company in some cases take huge risks in the story, with the biggest being the destruction of Vulcan at the hands of Nero and his black hole device. There is a point when Chekov says that the planet only has minutes left and you realise, wow, they are actually going to screw with the timeline and canon of the franchise; but then they are not really, because we are now watching an alternate reality, where the history of these characters and their universe are now unpredictable and different to what we know.

The film is an origin story, essentially telling how the original bridge crew of the USS Enterprise came together. This is a return to the days of Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu and Chekov; but now they are played by a fresh new cast, all of whom miraculously step in to these iconic roles without a misstep. They are not the original actors, nor are they the original performances; but somehow, they manage to channel the characters brilliantly, reminding you of what made these characters so great in the first place while still offering their own interpretation. Chris Pine as Captain Kirk is perfect; not only did he have to create Kirk, but he had to do it without impersonating William Shatner, who brought his own quirks to the role. Zachary Quinto as Spock was the only cast member who had to physically resemble the original cast member (in Leonard Nimoy), but somehow he is that character as well; he does not have Nimoy’s depth of voice but he is that character. Karl Urban is a revelation as McCoy; incorporating many of the late DeForest Kelley’s performance characteristics in to the role, there are times where you can almost feel as if you are watching Kelley himself. Simon Pegg is great as Scotty, as is Zoe Saldana as Uhura, John Cho as Sulu and Anton Yelchin as Chekov. In every respect, this cast has been perfectly assembled and are perfectly capable of carrying these characters forward in to the future. The icing on the cake of course is Leonard Nimoy as “Spock Prime”. With his presence legitimising what came before, and in effect passing on the baton to the new cast, particularly in the scene with the younger Spock Zachary Quinto, Nimoy makes the whole thing work despite his small role. No wonder the filmmakers were so desparate to have him.

The pacing, visuals and production design of this film have been significantly overhauled for this franchise. Now given a proper budget, “Star Trek” has had loving amounts of detail lavished upon it, forever shedding the ‘cheap’ aspect that the franchise has had to endure ever since its inception. The space visuals are astonishing and grand, but that style has also been given a super-charged, hyperkinetic quality that is completely new. Some of the spaceship fight sequences are more akin to Star Wars than Trek, but this is the idea. A modern audience is not in to the more pedestrian style of the Star Trek of old. The result is a very exciting, sensory thrill ride that will leave a lasting impression.

“Star Trek” is a fantastic entry in the franchise and does an exceptional job of making the franchise relevant for a new audience. What is best of all is that despite all the changes, it is still “Star Trek”, and as the Enterprise sales off in to space to begin its mission at the end of this film, you will have the feeling that you cannot wait for the subsequent sequels.

TECHNICAL REVIEW: Stunning would be the most appropriate word to describe the transfer of this film to DVD. The visuals are perfectly captured in the transfer, complete with a richness, vibrancy and clarity that are simply amazing. The audio transfer is second to none, making complete use of the surrounds, from the big action sequences to the quieter character and emotional moments. This is a perfect transfer.

EXTRAS REVIEW: The extras package comprises of an excellent audio commentary featuring JJ Abrams, Bryan Burk, Alex Kurtzman, Damon Lindelof and Robert Orci, and a series of featurettes. The commentary is perhaps the most extensive featurette, with each of the five member team responsible for bringing Star Trek back from the dead offering a multitude of scene-specific and more general information about what they had to do as filmmakers to make the film work. This commentary is supplemented by five featurettes focusing on the overall vision of the film, the casting, the aliens, and the musical score. There are a lot of great moments here, from Abrams’ admission that they would have been ‘screwed’ if Leonard Nimoy said no to the film, to composer Michael Giacchino asking the Trek fans in the music crew after a take if his newly composed theme lived up to the standard of its predecessors. The deleted scenes, with optional commentary, are actually interesting for a change as they all add more detail to the story, particularly the setup of Nero’s character and his time on a Klingon prison planet; ultimately though you can see why they were deleted because as good as these scenes are, you cannot imagine them fitting comfortably in to the film. Overall, this is a good collection of extras that will give you a good overview on what went in to the making of this film.

BOTTOM LINE: Buy it.