Also agree with 252 the movie was fun and kitschy and doesn’t deserve to be slammed just because purist want to cry that Shatner isn’t in it–Star Trek was never Shakespearean in scope or acting–it was a sci fi TV series and one that was a bit of a parody of itself true be told.

I think the film kept the heart and spirit of the original even in the midst of the changes which were, in reality, quite minimal–we got the same crew with the same personalities and the same ship–everyone was just younger.

355. A more emotional Spock-heck yah! LOVED IT. Besides, he was still a YOUNG MAN–the more stoic Spock could have come much later as he grew older and had more life altering experiences. Out heroes are made not formed from the cradle.

In fact , all of these primary characters were young versions–they were more foolhardy and not as seasoned or grounded as the characters we grew to know and love because of their youth which is what breathed new life into the franchise.

I also think they will grow into their roles and in time, become as associated with the ST mythology as Picard from TNG…

I loved the fresh take–the new look–the feel–the storyline–the visual effects–the ability to romance a new crowd and enchant the old guard who was willing to give it a chance ad not rely in rigid rules…smart, smart, smart..

Indeed–this was a Star trek that will bring on a new beginning and perhaps rev up interest in the Start Trek franchise we adore–this is a good thing.

Rather, it was an attempt to rewrite the story line, wipe away the real Star Trek, and make a `new Star Trek’ with the same characters — sort of — and an entirely different universe.

Most unsatisfactory is
a) non-existence of Vulcan,
b) the removal of Spock’s mother,
c) an emotional Mr. Spock.

I thought the people who did the real Star Trek did it right the first time. A classic like Star Trek should be treated with respect.

The alterations demonstrate just how arrogant these Hollywood producers have, and how little they respect what what ought to be respected.

Well, if you watched the film you saw Kirk offer a rescue.

Picard had the chance to destroy the Borg – with ‘Hugh’ but didn’t…

But then Next Gen was never considered as cool as TOS.

After watching the Abrams movie I can say I was pleasantly surprised. There was a lot to like. For starters the movie looks great! The space effects were incredible. The Enterprise is still as cool to look at as ever and the story is probably the best since “Khan” or “First Contact”. It had a fresh look with a powerful score. The casting of actors who have a sense of comedic timing was also a very smart move. Pine and Quinto did a fine job. Their chemistry together make them a great duo. Karl Urban had moments it looked like he was directly channeling DeForest Kelly and Leonard Nimoy is Obiwanesque as the older Spock. The movie itself is paced much faster so the action feels more like Star Wars than Trek which I found to be a good thing. Overall, the movie was fun and left me feeling good.

There were a few things that I didn’t like so much. For starters the enterprise bridge feels more like an Apple store than a ships command center. The engineering room was frankly a disappointment compared to the previous designs. It looked like a school boiler room. Neither issue wrecked the movie for me. But considering the quality of the exterior effects I found this very noticeable.

The story on a whole was pretty compelling but I just couldn’t buy Kirk going from dropout bar brawler to captain in just three years. The way they went from Kirks board of inquiry to everyone reporting for duty felt very much like it came right out of Starship Troopers. I groaned when Pike made him first officer just moments after he was suspended and caught aboard the Enterprise. I realize the need to restart with younger actors but now you have a 28 year old captain and a 17 year old navigator? Now that’s believable!

The best Trek episodes as well as the movies have a strong connection to literature. Good Trek scripts aren’t always strong in science but they feel smart. It isn’t just about space battles…it’s true space opera with strong dramatic elements. “Wrath of Khan” for example echoes Mobey Dick. The characters have humorous moments but there is still serious core. I realize Abrams who claims to be a big Star Wars fan didn’t want this movie to take itself too seriously for the benefit of non trek movie goers. I couldn’t agree him more. But without those classical underpinnings Trek loses its substance. Even Star Wars with all its action and humorous one liners has moments that feel like a greek tragedy. Take away the substance and and what you have left is Starship Troopers meets Lost in Space!

Overall, I think this is a very promising begininng…eh re beginning. They’ve managed to recondition an old classic and give it new life. Hopefully, they won’t pimp it out so much they forget why it was a classic in the first place.

I saw the new film lst night and I really enjoyed it. I really like the look of the new Enterprise. The storyline was bit far fetched but nessesary breath life into the franchise. All the actors were good apart from Simon Pegg’s dodgey Scottish accent. I loved the whole atmosphere of the film. Personaly I JJ Abrams had dopne for Star Trek what Ronald Moore did for Battlestar Galactica, breath life into the franchise

Wow.

I say again: Wow:

I have to admit that there wasn’t a better way they could have done it.
Star Trek is a painting…a very good painting – but, the original has been copied multiple times…and while it has been improved some on subsequent copies (and destroyed in others) – overall, the story being told has, well, been set.
Let’s be realistic, here: Star Trek became what it became because of the actors (and stories) that were selected…nearly five decades ago. Shatner, Nimoy, Kelly, et. al…and then fleshed out further during the last 50 years.
10 movies later, 4 (and a half – we don’t treat Enterprise as a real series because of what they did to it) TV series, and hundreds of books later…you now have a codified, and darned near unbreakable universe.

So – let’s be honest: The creativity that you can experience with an already painted canvas is limiting. A prequel to help establish how Kirk and everyone joined starfleet? We’ve already seen the finished painting – that’s like showing someone the pencil sketch the was the inspiration for the painting. Worse – you can’t start over and recreate the same painting…but, with different colors…which is effectively what they’d do if they just did a “Starfleet Academy” movie with new characters – the end is still the same – there’d be anarchy and mutiny. You cannot take the existing people and REPLACE them! No Shatner? No Takei? No Doohan? While they’re all old…no one could see replacing them…

What’s a painter to do?

Start over. Get a new canvas. But, you’ve got to have the plot requirement to do so.

Alot of people won’t be happy with “Star Trek: Reboot”. I for one, however, believe it is the most brilliant move they could have made. It gives the painter a new set of canvasses to play with – without the limitations of the current Star Trek Universe and the way it has been codified through all the media during the last five or so decades.

At last – they’ve figured out a way to start over…and be able to explain the subtle nuances and differences that just…aren’t…the…same with the original that were inevitable when dealing with a new set of actors.

Spoiler alert: They’re not the same. Take a big blob of red-matter, add to it a couple of singularities, your typical everyman romulan archvillain, two Spocks, and you’ve got yourself one hell of a movie, with a great (YOUNG) cast with almost spot-on reduxes of the tried and true that we like, incredible special effects, and, at last, a way to start over with a new painting…new paint, new canvas.

To quote a very wise man: “There are always possibilities…”…

With all that said, it’s obvious that I am not a hard-core “Trekkie” but I have a high level of appreciation for what Star Trek has meant to a lot of people for all these years. I agree with the review that most of the movies were somewhat disappointing. Not necessarily “bad” movies but there was no way for them to live up to their expectations.

This movie was a good movie but not the best one I have ever seen. I am going to have to get used to the concept that everything is “different” now and you can never be sure what’s going to happen because their futures are now “erased”… you can no longer say “He CAN’T die because he has to still be here in 20 years. We (they) are now living in one of those “alternate timelines” that were never really allowed to happen before. So in a way the 21st century version of Star Trek IS going where none of the other series or movies have gone before. Maybe it’s because Gene Roddenberry, his wife, and a lot of the people associated with the “classic” universe of Star Trek are either dead or don’t really care anymore. Maybe it’s because a clever team found a unique way to tap into a successful franchise so that they could keep the concept but get rid of those pesky details called “continuity”. Or maybe everything old is new again with enough computer generated graphics and special effects. Who knows?

I can see why the “hard core” Star Trek fans will absolutely hate this movie but I also believe most of them will eventually buy the DVD.