J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek: A New Frontier

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However, in order to emulate the mass appeal of Star Wars, while FAITHFULLY reinventing the Trek franchise, Abrams needed a script with an equal mix of high adventure, themes of racial harmony, good versus insidious evil, kick-ass F/X, eye-widening technology, a hefty dose of emotion and enough tongue-and-cheek to lighten the mood, should it get too heavy. In order to cook up a story with that many necessary ingredients, Abrams tapped some of the best cooks in Hollywood’s sci-fi kitchen, including Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof (a confessed Trekker); M:I-3 and Transformers screenwriters Bob Orci (a hardcore Trekker) and Alex Kurtzman (a quasi-Trekker like myself)–all of them longtime members of the J.J. Abrams collaborative team.

…And what a story Abrams and Co. have cooked up. We don’t do spoilers here at Screen Rant (if you want to read the full script synopsis you can do so here), but I will say that Abrams’ reboot explores the early days when the original crew of the Enterprise first meet and set out on their mission to “boldly go where no man has gone before.” At the forefront: the fledgling bond that ultimately grows into the glorious bromance between impetuous young Captain, James T. Kirk, and his second-in-command, the stoic Vulcan, Mr. Spock. The action revolves around an imperious and warmongering alien race known as the Romulans (imagine Star Wars‘ Sith Lords crossed with LOTR’s orcs); their evil general, Nero (Eric Bana, above); and a time-travel plot-twist that results in certain members of the Enterprise bumping into a familiar face of the Star Trek universe.

Before traumatic time-warp memories of Star Trek: Generations have you tearing out your hair in patches, consider Leonard Nimoy, the original Mr. Spock’s, glowing endorsement of the film:

”I thought Spock was behind me. I had no unfulfilled wishes,” Nimoy says. But Abrams was persuasive. ”I felt J.J. and his writers had a very strong sense of who the characters were and how they should work. To find a team that was interested in putting it all back together was very exciting.”

But enough about the old: what about the new?

As you can see from the photos above, the new Enterprise crew is a pretty good embodiment of the characters that were created before some of them were even twinkles in their daddies’ eyes. Heroes’ Zachary Quinto (Spock) has already had the Spock-torch officially passed to him from Nimoy (”I called J.J. and immediately told him [Zach] was going to work [Nimoy said].”) Actor Chris Pine (who had that unforgettable heart-to-heart monologue with Ben Affleck’s bullet-ridden corpse in Smokin’ Aces), seems to be holding his own as well, redefining William Shatner’s Captain Kirk for a new generation. According to EW: “Watching Pine and Quinto work on set — and seeing some of their work on screen — suggests both may deliver star-making performances.”

And with co-stars such as Simon Pegg (Scotty), John Cho (Mr. Sulu), and Zoe Saldana (Uhura), who have all proven in the past that they have the necessary acting chops to do right by their characters, Star Trek is shaping up to be worthy of Abrams’ optimism–at least from a performance standpoint.

But the proof, as they say, is in the preview. Star Trek will launch its first full trailer before the next James Bond installment, Quantum of Solace, on November 14. How that trailer is received by the general public will determine who and how many line up at the theater to see the Enterprise go to warp speed when Star Trek hits theaters on May 8, 2009. (Was it prudent for Paramount to move the release date from this Christmas to next summer? Only the box office will tell.)

For now, I’ve hopefully left you fanboys and non-fanboys alike with a clearer indication of what is warping your way next May. Again, you can read the Entertainment Weekly feature in its entirety by going here, but remember, there are spoilers. When you’re ready, let us know what you think about Star Trek’s new makeover, which installment of the series you loved best, and how you feel about Abrams and Co. waiting so long to give us a bloody peek at it!

Source: Entertainment Weekly