****

‘Star Trek’ comes with a lot of baggage. Not the new movie, necessarily, but the entire universe. It can be exhausting and more than a little off putting to consider the numerous television programs, movies, novels, fan created webisodes, conventions, etc. that tend to bog this series down. For a lot of people, it seemed like they had missed the ‘Star Trek’ bus and it wasn’t going where they wanted to go anyway.

Well, the bus has come around again and I urge everyone to get on, fan and non-fan alike.

J.J. Abrams (“Lost,” “Alias,”) and his buddies Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman (“Transformers,” “Fringe,” etc.) have rebooted the series. Everything that you might have seen dealing with Star Trek has happened, but when Spock (the pointy eared dude), an ambassador for the Federation, can’t stop a planet from being destroyed in time, one of the survivors decides to go back in time and get revenge on Spock. This sets up an alternate universe. Kirk still gets to be captain of the Enterprise, but it takes him awhile to realize that he can still be a rebel and follow in his late father’s footsteps. Spock can befriend Kirk, even if their styles are completely different. McCoy, the medical officer, can find numerous humorous ways to work a certain salty phrase into his everyday vernacular.

‘Star Trek’ works because the characters are familiar, even to people who have never watched a minute of the series. It has become such a part of popular culture that even spoofs and satires have made it easy to identify who does what. This isn’t a tongue in cheek movie though, nor is it completely an homage. Abrams and crew have made a summer blockbuster out of the classic characters and a fun, sci-fi plot. The crew of the Enterprise must come together and defeat Nero, the time-traveling alien bent on revenge. The effects look good, but not so good that they take away from solid storytelling. ‘Star Trek’ never feels like an effects driven movie. Instead it relies hevily on performances and the cast delivers.

Chris Pine maintains Kirk’s charisma and rebellious streak and gives him normal line delivery (Sorry..Shat..but.. I always..thought..you kind of stunk), while Zachary Quinto is a great Spock, proven when he gets to interact with the older version of himself played by Leonard Nimoy. Scotty (Simon Pegg), Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and Sulu (John Cho) get a couple of cool scenes each, but it is Karl Urban’s McCoy and Zoe Saldana’s ultra-hot Uhura who really get things going among the supporting cast.

I have to admit, I loved seeing the old characters as young people just joining the Federation. I have nothing against the original cast (liked Capt. Picard better, though) but they were already old when I started watching the films. Space wars are a young man’s game and this just felt right. I was hooked from the opening minutes and entertained throughout.

So, if you weren’t part of the crowd that took in this film during opening weekend, you’re probably still debating whether or not this movie is for you. If you like (or at least don’t actively hate) sci-fi, then yes, you will like this movie. If you have any familiarity with ‘Star Trek,’ especially the original cast, you will love this movie. If you like summer blockbusters that give you laughs, action, thrills and chills, then there is no reason you will not like this movie.

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