[Christopher Halsey]

MOVIE DISCUSSION

Star Trek Into Darkness
Original Air Date: 9th of May 2013
Series: The Original Series - Alternate Reality
Movie: 12

SUMMARY

Captain James T. Kirk volunteers for a mission to apprehend the culprit of a number of terrorist attacks targeting Starfleet installations on Earth. Kirk's relationships with his crew will be pushed to their limits as he tackles a threat unlike any he has ever experienced as he discovers that beyond the darkness, lies greatness.

"The truth. That I believe in you. That if anybody deserves a second chance, it's Jim Kirk." - Christopher Pike

DISCUSSION
Star Trek Beyond is fast approaching and following the release of the 2nd trailer it seemed like a good time to revisit the latest film in the Star Trek movie series, Star Trek Into Darkness.

What did you think of the movie? What did you think the key moral messages were? What did you think about the idea to feature Khan? Did you like how the Klingons were portrayed?

[Kerry Malone]

I thought the movie had so much promise, and failed to deliver.

First of all, what in the name of god were those uniforms they're wearing at Starfleet HQ? They look like Parker from Thunderbirds! Also, I'm failing to see a direct correlation between their position and their rank. When Kirk is bumped to First Officer, Spock called him "Commander", yet he's still wearing Captain insignia, and referred to as Captain Kirk? Yet when he was First Officer in "Star Trek", he had no rank at all for the entire movie until the very end, apart from "Cadet".

The fact that the Klingons looked like a Heavy Metal band also annoyed me somewhat. I miss my traditional Klingons too much.

The bringing back of Khan was so obvious, it hurt. The remake of the death scene as Kirk dying and not Spock, with Spock screaming "Khaaaaaaaan!" like Shatner did in WoK, hurt me in my childhood and my inner geek at the same time.

Overall, the film was terrible as a Star Trek movie. They had every opportunity to go in a totally different direction from the main-stream Trek Universe, being in an alternate time-stream, and do something *NEW*. Instead we got a crappy rehash of Wrath of Khan.

As a movie however, it was very visually stimulating with lots of firefights and space battles. I honestly would never want to work in San Francisco, since in the first one they had that massive space drill, and in the second one they had an entire space-ship crash into it. It was a film aimed at today's generation of kids and movie-goers who have to have lots of action, battles, phaser fights and sex to make it appealing. There's none of that thought-provoking content we got in other movies, where we had to ponder our own internal demons as we watched, or were forced to confront unpleasant truths about ourselves (Star Trek 4).

[Flicky]

Into Darkness was a good action movie at best. From the story perspective of a Star Trek movie, it's just about polar opposite to what the factions and characters in the series stand for (the movie even starts with several blatant breakages of the Prime Directive, a Starfleet incursion onto the homeworld of the most immediate threat to the Federation, a Section 31 coup, Spock going Rambo and beating the ever-loving hell out of Khan, etc.). The fact that the movie is essentially a reboot of The Wrath of Khan is also very apparent (KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAN, anyone?), and the fact that JJ tried to hide it is pretty despicable. Even if he did apologize for doing so, it's something that should never be done. I also think they especially jumped the shark at the end by essentially doing 9/11 times 400, then having Khan walk away from it unscathed. The man is a superhuman, but not invincible. If they just leave the aftermath and consequences of the leveling of a huge swath of San Francisco unmentioned in the next movie, I will be very disappointed.

I of course am only cherrypicking the bad above and may be missing or off on a few things. The movie served as the best example of my opinion of the new Star Trek movies: typical decent sci-fi action movies that happen to have people named Kirk, Spock, and a ship named the Enterprise in it. I didn't hate it, but I sure didn't like it.

[Christopher Halsey]

I'm going to watch Into Darkness again before I actually cast my vote. My recollection of the film is possibly influenced by a few very specific things to do with the script that I thought were just unbelievably poor and really quite amateurish.

Things like being able to transport across quadrants and 'super blood' that heals death are the sort of things that you would expect to see in poor fan-fiction not a professionally made motion picture with a budget of $185 million, FYI Roberto 'I hate Star Trek' Orci, that is why the fans aren't keen on you... well that and your thoughts about Star Trek and it's fans.

The use of 'old Spock' was, I feel, really disappointing as well, *does his best Leonard Nimoy impression* "I'm here to tell you all that Khan is a massive threat because the writers haven't been able to convey that to you because they are talentless hacks, of course some of those watching the film have some idea because they have seen the far superior 'Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'"

For a film that isn't a remake of 'The Wrath of Khan' the writers seem far too concerned about nods to it and each time they did it just reminded me how much better 'The Wrath of Khan' was. Either re-make or re-imagine it or don't but please pick one, they didn't.

The whole John Harrison thing really annoyed me as well, "honest everyone Khan isn't in the film, Benedict Cumberbatch isn't Khan he's a completely new and original character called John Harrison". I get trying to throw people off so your big shock twist (which was neither by the way) still has some impact but if you're going to lie don't lie and say you are creating something original when you aren't, again it just makes you all look like you are awful at doing your job.

To me Into Darkness did just come across as bad fan fiction. Again though, I'll watch it again before I actually cast my vote.

[Christopher Halsey]

I'm going to watch Into Darkness again before I actually cast my vote. My recollection of the film is possibly influenced by a few very specific things to do with the script that I thought were just unbelievably poor and really quite amateurish.

Things like being able to transport across quadrants and 'super blood' that heals death are the sort of things that you would expect to see in poor fan-fiction not a professionally made motion picture with a budget of $185 million, FYI Roberto 'I hate Star Trek' Orci, that is why the fans aren't keen on you... well that and your thoughts about Star Trek and it's fans.

The use of 'old Spock' was, I feel, really disappointing as well, *does his best Leonard Nimoy impression* "I'm here to tell you all that Khan is a massive threat because the writers haven't been able to convey that to you because they are talentless hacks, of course some of those watching the film have some idea because they have seen the far superior 'Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'"

For a film that isn't a remake of 'The Wrath of Khan' the writers seem far too concerned about nods to it and each time they did it just reminded me how much better 'The Wrath of Khan' was. Either re-make or re-imagine it or don't but please pick one, they didn't.

The whole John Harrison thing really annoyed me as well, "honest everyone Khan isn't in the film, Benedict Cumberbatch isn't Khan he's a completely new and original character called John Harrison". I get trying to throw people off so your big shock twist (which was neither by the way) still has some impact but if you're going to lie don't lie and say you are creating something original when you aren't, again it just makes you all look like you are awful at doing your job.

To me Into Darkness did just come across as bad fan fiction and possibly the worst Star Trek film of all time (not sure if it beats out 'The Search for Spock' "oh look there he is, right where we left him, THE END"). Again though, I'll watch it again before I actually cast my vote.

[Silynn]

It was entertaining. There were moments where I laughed, where I was in awe, and where I raised an eyebrow.

I suppose if one looked at the moment from a purely old school Star Trek... the movie didn't hold much of a candle to previous movies. I certainly felt that the TNG movies were way better in a story perspective. This movie had more of an action perspective.

I know that my nephew (9) and nieces (4 and 14) were more attentive (quiet and watching) these JJ Star Trek. They can't sit still for more than a few moments for the older Star Trek movies (ToS or TNG).

[Dylan Erikson]

I like Into Darkness overall, about the only problem I had with it, was the reverse kirk/spock death scene... and to be honest I didn't like spock's death in Wrath of Khan lol with Star Trek 2009, the only thing I wasn't fond of was seeing the Enterprise being built in Iowa...(starships are built in space) but I do understand why Enterprise was shown being built on the ground; it was to show its massive size when Kirk and the others were boarding the shuttle...
but again, I like both movies (and I'm sure ill like Beyond also) and I have no major issues with any of them... and despite what people say, I think they are good and through them (as well as Star Trek Online & the 2017 series and books) Star Trek lives on!

[Deltron]

It was a good movie. It was a really good action movie. maybe i was disappointed a little because the 1st reboot was so good! The story blew me away. Redoing Kahn then switching Spock out for Kirk seemed a little lazy to me. Its because when Spock died, it ignited a trilogy. But Kirk was saved, not surprisingly and therefore the scene didn't have the same impact.

[Stormy]

I saw the movie only because it was Star Trek. While I did enjoy the first movie despite its inconsistencies with TOS, Into Darkness may have succeeded as an action movie but failed miserably as part of the Star Trek universe.

What J.J. did to the Khan storyline is inexcusable and slanderous. I realize the "alternate universe" crap meant Abrams had free license to totally destroy decades of canon, he should have been intelligent enough to know that completely altering an iconic plot like TWOK would be about as acceptable to his core audience as a fluffy kitten in the midst of a pack of starved wolves. The result was.... well... shall we say... ugly.

While I could continue this tirade for quite a while, I think the point has been made and spending any more time on this disaster of a film would really be a waste of time.