'Star Trek Into Darkness' is a satisfying sequel
J.J. Abrams鈥檚 鈥�Star Trek Into Darkness,鈥� the sequel to his prequel, delivers the goods, even if some of the goods are less than fresh. Since Disney has also entrusted him with the 鈥淪tar Wars鈥� franchise, I guess he鈥檚 officially Hollywood鈥檚 anointed one for all things outer space.
Capt. James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Mr. Spock (Zachary Quinto) are the emotional core 鈥� such as it is 鈥� of this space odyssey. After Kirk disobeys a Starfleet dictum and rescues Spock from a bubbling volcano on a prehistoric planet, heads roll. Kirk feels unloved by the man he rescued, but, hey, the guy is only half human. (I鈥檝e often wondered if the Vulcan half is actually the emotional half.) Their rapprochement is the film鈥檚 true climax, even more than the battle royal between the Enterprise and a very bad, cyborg-like guy whose name is John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch) but who actually inhabits an identity hallowed in the annals of Trekkiedom.
Since 9/11-style terrorism is very much on display here, I suppose it鈥檚 fair to say that 鈥淪tar Trek Into Darkness鈥� is a sci-fi blow-out with overtones of the real. Series founder Gene Roddenberry would, I think, approve. Grade: B (Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence.)
