Star Trek Beyond is the Kelvin timeline's most purely enjoyable entry and its most honest, a picture that abandons the franchise mythology references and the self-conscious darkness of Into Darkness in favour of a straightforward ensemble adventure of considerable energy and warmth. Justin Lin's 2016 film is not a picture of great philosophical ambition or complexity. It is a picture of great entertainment and great character, a work that uses its action framework to demonstrate the crew's collective chemistry with a fluency and a conviction that makes it the most purely enjoyable franchise entry since The Voyage Home. Beyond is the Kelvin timeline's most confident picture because it is the one most comfortable being exactly what it is: a fast, funny, and thoroughly enjoyable science fiction adventure that trusts its characters to carry the weight.
At a Glance
Director: Justin Lin
Runtime: 122 minutes
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, Idris Elba, Sofia Boutella
Release: 2016
Critics Rating: ★★★½ (3.5/5 stars, the Kelvin timeline's most enjoyable entry)
Audience Rating: ★★★½ (3.5/5 stars, thoroughly enjoyable)
Review Breakdown
Plot
The Enterprise is destroyed by a swarm of alien vessels commanded by Krall, and the crew is scattered across an uncharted planet. Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and the others must find each other, discover Krall's plan to destroy the Federation's new space station Yorktown, and stop him before he can execute it. The plot is the franchise's most straightforwardly functional since The Search for Spock, a series of steps designed to separate the crew and then reunite them in the service of a climactic confrontation. It is handled with enough energy and character intelligence to make the journey worthwhile, and the willingness to give each crew member a specific function gives the ensemble adventure a structure and a momentum that more character-focused entries in the series do not always achieve.
Characters
The ensemble is the greatest strength, and the decision to separate the crew and pair them in unexpected combinations gives the picture a freshness and a character energy that the more conventionally structured Kelvin timeline entries do not always achieve. The Spock-McCoy pairing is the most purely enjoyable combination, a double act of such complete comic and dramatic chemistry that it generates the most consistently entertaining sequences. Chris Pine's Kirk is given the most interesting material in his confrontation with the question of whether he has chosen the right life, and Pine plays it with a conviction and a quietness that makes this his most affecting franchise performance. Sofia Boutella's Jaylah is the picture's finest new character, a survivor of considerable capability and presence whose relationship with Scotty gives the film a secondary thread of interest. Boutella's Jaylah is the franchise's strongest new character since Woodard's Lily Sloane in First Contact. Idris Elba's Krall is a more interesting villain than Cumberbatch's Khan, a character whose motivation is rooted in grievance and whose function is more coherently integrated into the thematic concerns.
Tone
Lin pitches the picture at a register of kinetic excitement and ensemble warmth, and the approach is entirely successful. Beyond has the energy and the momentum of the franchise's best action entries, with set-pieces staged with visual invention and physical clarity that makes them the most purely exciting since the 2009 reboot. The tonal range, from the comedy of the Spock-McCoy sequences to the more serious material of Kirk's existential uncertainty, is navigated with a fluency and a confidence that makes the transitions feel entirely natural.
Meaning / Themes
The central concern is the question of purpose and belonging, whether Kirk has chosen the right life and whether the crew of the Enterprise represents a community or merely a professional arrangement. This is handled with enough intelligence and emotional precision to give the picture a thematic dimension that its more spectacular elements serve rather than overwhelm. Krall's motivation, rooted in a sense of betrayal by the Federation he once served, gives the villain a dimension that Into Darkness's Khan did not always achieve.
Direction
Lin's direction is the Kelvin timeline's most assured in its action sequences, with a command of physical space and ensemble choreography that makes the planet-based sequences the most visually inventive in the series. The Yorktown space station is the franchise's most striking piece of production design since the V'Ger sequences in The Motion Picture. Michael Giacchino's score builds on the identity established in the 2009 reboot with a warmth and a confidence that suits the picture's more optimistic register.
Cultural Reception
Beyond received positive reviews on its release but was a commercial disappointment, grossing approximately $343 million worldwide against a production budget of $185 million. Critics praised the ensemble chemistry, Lin's direction, and the picture's return to the franchise's more optimistic register, and it is now regarded as a considerably better picture than its box office suggested, a victim of franchise fatigue and a release schedule that did not serve it well. Its reputation has improved steadily since its release.
Who Should Watch
Star Trek fans and general audiences who approach it as a fast, entertaining ensemble adventure will find Beyond a more rewarding experience than its commercial performance suggested. Those who found Into Darkness frustrating will find this a welcome return to form.
Final Verdict: The Kelvin timeline's most purely enjoyable entry and its most honest. Justin Lin's direction is assured and inventive, the ensemble chemistry is the series' strongest across all three Kelvin pictures, and Sofia Boutella's Jaylah is the franchise's most compelling new character in years. Beyond is not a picture of great ambition. It is a picture of great entertainment, and it achieves that with a completeness and a confidence that makes it the most satisfying Kelvin timeline entry by a considerable margin.
0 comments