Star Trek (2009)

Betsy Sharkey gives the Critics' Choice award for 'Star Trek' 2009:

Star Trek Warp speed has never felt so fast, the deep rumble of the engines as they power up a visceral experience as much as anything else. The black witchy menace of the Romulan spacecraft, like a dark ghost ship floating across the sky, never so lethal. The wave of nostalgia never so sweet as when the words "USS Enterprise" first come into view against the white sweep of the starship. With a "Top Gun"-styled James T. Kirk infused with arrogance and smarts thanks to Chris Pine and a cerebral, sly and wry Spock from Zachary Quinto, you've got a classic not so much remade as reimagined by director J.J. Abrams. Now that "Star Trek" is settling into its second weekend, all that will be far easier to savor, with the crowds thinning a little. So go where many have boldly gone before, because "Star Trek" 2009 is on its way to becoming a classic in its own right.

Kenneth Turan pitches in too:

Here's a challenge: How do you implant a potentially lethal alien organism into a body that desperately needs the help but might die if things don't go just right? No, it's not the plot of an old "Star Trek" episode, it's the back story of the new "Star Trek" motion picture.

It's no secret that director J.J. Abrams and his writers of choice, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, were brought in by Paramount to reformulate the venerable space opera franchise that was viewed as requiring a jolt of energy. What was not often focused on was that the differences between what they wanted to do and what had gone before made this a perilous endeavor.

So it is pleasant to report that though it's not perfect, the reconstituted "Star Trek" is successful enough for everyone to breathe a sigh of relief. Though it has its over-caffeinated aspects and its missteps, this "Star Trek" has in general bridged the gap between the old and the new with alacrity and purpose.

Read Kenneth Turan's full review of Star Trek (2009) at the LA Times