Star Trek Beyond(2016): Movie Thoughts

Growing up Trek as a kid wholly enamored with the possibilities of pluralism in space, I opted to attend school miles from home because of a greater mixture of kids my age. As colorful as my childhood background was, the world of Starfleet was something that had become important to my personal development while a few took on the traits of their less than at ease parents. A part of me longed for a future where a poor kid from a largely migrant farmer community would become a supporting player in this greater realm of play and cooperation. It's a belief that continues to drive my every decision from how I socialize to who I support intellectually and politically. A lot of this is still so important due to Gene Roddenberry's science fiction evergreen. And while many continue to wrap themselves into seemingly irrevocable knots over JJ Abrams' take on the world of the Enterprise and crew, a great deal of that optimism and belief in family shines through with Star Trek Beyond. With Justin Lin now at the helm of the Kelvin Timeline, we find ourselves at a course correct complete with reverence for every incarnation thus far with warmth as beacon.

Now, three years into its five year mission, the crew of the Enterprise has begun to settle into a groove of episodic regularity. Expressed with charm, the captain's log of James T. Kirk(Chris Pine) denotes a growing sense of "what now", as his role has found itself into a groove. Now reaching a birthday one year older than his late Starfleet hero father, weighing in on the future seems to hover over him. Beginning to think that maybe leaving command and moving on might make for a good new move. Even more troubling, Spock (Zachary Quinto) has received news that his elder alternate universe self, Ambassador Spock has passed away(a sweet nod to the late, great Leonard Nimoy), all while having broken up with Uhura (Zoe Saldana), he contemplates heading back toward helping his now fledgling kind on New Vulcan. There is a sense of crossroads for our heroes, as they have now become the classic characters, endlessly encountering troubled spots across the universe.

But upon arriving at the Federation's latest achievement, Yorktown base, a humongous multigravity space station and community, an emissary comes knocking. Leading to an encounter with a hostile force bent on capturing nearly all of the Enterprise crew, and taking them to a hidden class-m planet where Kirk, Spock, Bones(the ever wonderful Karl Urban), Chekov( R.I.P. Anton Yelchin), Scotty(Simon Pegg, who's scripting duties here help immensely), Uhura, Sulu, and the rest must band together to escape an increasingly hopeless situation. All with the assistance of the resourceful Jaylah(Sofia Boutella), the crew find themselves against the imposing Krall(Idris Elba), a creature seemingly bent on not only capturing the starship, but breaking everything they stand for. His belief that unity between beings is a weakness, and that conflict defines all beings is  echoed throughout, often placing isolationism first. And with an ancient object found by our heroes, Krall's plan may at last find fruition after he is through with them.

Beyond is one part affirmation session, equal parts celebration of the mythology and ideals of Trek. Not merely concerned with nods to the past, and more about breaking these archetypes down, and examining why they're still beloved 50 years later. One clever conceit that helps bring up Beyond, are the script's needs to split characters up, forcing them to better open up about where they are now, and what they face together or alone. Through the crisis, McCoy and Spock are stranded together with the Vulcan injured. A decision that forces the often bristling duo some much needed exchange about what comes next. Meanwhile, Kirk find himself with Chekov (In a choice that feels so eerily prescient now), which pits youthful optimism with a growing weariness in the captain's brow. There are these quiet moments sprinkled throughout that help in ways that even Abrams' entries could not. With us now fully invested in who these characters are, the action at last finds itself well balanced enough to pop. We've finally moved past the recycled father issues and time travel baggage, and are at last more concerned with the here and now, which is refreshing for a film series that took a bad left turn previously.

And while the action department at times suffers from either a lack of winning timing or energy, it's hard to fault everything else. This is also where it bear mentioning that Star Trek Beyond, is also a very funny film. Lin has always had a knack for finding good humor in the absurd, which is perfect considering this version of the Trek timeline. If we aren't going to delve deep into the supposed hard science of Trek, we could at least focus on what makes these characters so universal. Beyond is also willing to use the now cookie cutter "stranded antagonist with an axe to grind against the Federation" toward discussing something more prescient, and less venal. By taking what was hinted at with Into Darkness, in this case a militarized state, and placing it against the explorer nature of Starfleet, we at last have a case for what makes Kirk and crew so worth rooting for. By not making the film Kirk-centric, we finally have a case for Roddenberry's ideals and also explore the cost of laying that foundation. The implication is that none of this is easy, and that shifting gears between the two is often fraught with peril, and the possibility of a population of those left behind by time. While it isn't entirely successful in breaking free from the need for a killer Macguffin to be featured in an action finale, Lin and co. do make up for it with a lot of charm.

So for all its laughs and sense of breeze, Beyond remains a safe means of celebrating what helped shape me as a young one. I do not expect the Kelvin world to be one that flirts with godlike beings, or time travel shenanigans in Depression era New York. And it's perhaps all said knowing full well that Into Darkness didn't happen according to this film. Which is all for the better honestly. This cast deserved a much better trip to the races than they got last time. What we have here, is an appropriate and refreshing take on old leftovers. A beloved mixtape from an old friend. Faith, reaffirmed. Here's to the challenges ahead.

We're back on track with Trek, and all is well.    

Thematic Wanderings : Pacific Rim

Mind is aglow with thoughts of Del Toro's Pacific Rim this week. And even though I may not have spent much time on these pages singing praises of the premise, and its pedigree, I can earnestly say that the film is among the core reasons why this site exists.

And even though much of the film treats itself like a wafer thin tribute to all things anime and tokusatsu, there was just enough symbolic meat to this particular bone that grants the film an optimistic edge that is sorely lacking in current blockbusters.

As mentioned in the review I posted to Anime Diet, the film centers on the value of unfettered human connection, and this is made explicit by way of the story's most challenging concept: "The Drift". The means by which our protagonists are capable of psychically linking themselves to their Jaeger mecha. And also, this cannot happen without a partner, so all Jaegers (with the unique exception of China's Crimson Typhoon which carries three pilots) require a well-synced duo to enhance the mammoth machine's fighting ability. In the process of The Drift, the minds of our two central pilot characters must intermingle, sharing everything from memories and feelings in a process of what is lovingly called a "neural handshake". And while this is on many levels more a concept at home in hard science fiction of the past, and even in anime, this is the kind of idea that must have been a pretty hard sell to the studio heads. And what most likely helps undo this fear, is a consistency of this idea carried over onto multiple planes in the script. Between the pair who inevitably conjoin to form the new Team Gispy Danger, pilots Raleigh Becket, and Mako Mori form an unlikely alliance that is the emotional backbone of the entire story. And this is also examined in the various quirky meetings that are sprinkled throughout.

"This is a dialogue..Not a fight."

Upon their initial meeting, Becket merely sees Mori as a bright would-be pilot with a number of simulation kills under her belt, but when she more than proves her mettle during replacement co-pilot trials, it becomes clear that she has overwhelming potential. Even so, the path to their destinies are blocked by not only the protests of a concerned guardian, they are also tested by Mori's lack of experience in Drift. This is illustrated beautifully in a sequence where Mori finds herself trapped in her own memories in what the program calls "chasing the rabbit", also known as RBBT. A trancelike rigor where the pilot find themselves unable to function as their brain is trapped in a significant memory. Not unlike losing a tether out at sea. It is within this sequence that Becket finds himself inside her childhood trauma in hopes of recovering his would-be partner. With such sync misaligned, matters are made worse as both minds must identify perfectly in order for any of this to work. It's a visually and sonically fascinating shorthand for the barriers that can often thwart the early stages of any relationship, be it personal or professional. Sharing in the moment seems to be the prime goal in the script, and this sequence of events is played with just enough sensitivity, and a respect for the urgency of the situation that it largely works.  


Connections: Father and Son, Brother and brother, culture to culture, generation to generation, axiom to axiom (Alan Turing and a modern "rock star" wannabe genius ala Steve Jobs?), connection is the central component to the entire script. It is even expressed in a larger sense by way of duality, represented largely by the nature of twos within our own bodies. Cerebral hemispheres, arms, and even shoes are illustrated as examples of this as if to imply that there is a more organic drive that is behind something our technology tends to obfuscate. Like anything else in the developing world, there are enablers, but the will to express is central to the user. As much as the Jaegers are an extension of our will to overcome nature, it is in us that we make strides, or slide backward.

There is even a large push in the film toward the loss of arms within the Jaegers during battle, as if there will always be situations where a binary choice cannot always be enough to overcome a situation. Even as a major character deduces a course of action as possibly "incredibly stupid", there is an almost blind faith in improvised action that the film seems eager to make into a point. Unlike your classic anime mecha, human movement is essential to proper Jaeger use, and Del Toro goes out of his way to make this clear. What the pilots do within their sync, the Jaeger will do. And it isn't simply a joystick, or panels that take care of everything. These machines are pretty much oversized suits that require an impressive amount of concentration and physical ability.


And let's not forget about the reason behind all this need for the film to emphasize connection. This is the easiest part.

"Category 3 Kaiju" - Followed by the possibility of Categories 4 & 5? And the explanation for the kaiju attacks, and their role in the general global scheme? This is where the film is as clear as day. Suddenly, the primary theme carries with it ecological concerns. A kaiju eiga tradition.

Although I am a little curious as to the film's finale, and the implications of the kind of weapon that is humanity's last option. While it can also be seen as tribute, it does send some slightly odd messages.

That said, so much of Pacific Rim is pretty straightforward. Ripped almost perfectly from years of many of my favorite things sprinkled with a dash of welcome pluralism, it is a movie event not to be missed.