The difficult thing about taking on such a well known formula, whether it be from the perspective of a director or an actor, is remembering to stay true to the formula while shaking up enough that you don’t fall into the traps of what came before you. If push comes to shove, when you boil down what the critics of Abrams Star Trek have to say is that they are upset that it deviated in style and tone from the series they remember. My rebuttal to this would be that if the formula, style and tone had been working then it wouldn’t have been changed. Abrams was brought in to breathe new life into the Trek franchise and that’s exactly what he did. As someone who never got caught up in arguing about the difference between a Trekkie and a Trecker he could do what so many couldn’t; together with his creative team he was able to take five decades of plot and characters and sift away at it – allowing the chaff to blow away into the breeze and be left with the real meat of concept.
I am waiting to see what a sequel to Star Trek will bring to the plate. I hope that Abram’s take on the franchise will be more than a one-note wonder, but only time will tell.
Spock: I would cite regulation, but I know you will simply ignore it.
Kirk: See? We are getting to know each other.
6 comments:
Well-written piece.
I never thought you'd say that about a piece on JJ's Trek. :)
Good writing is hard to find on the internet, and I wanted to give credit where it was due. My feelings haven't really changed about the film, but you had something to say and you said it well. I may not necessarily agree with you, but I can understand where you're coming from.
On another front, I finally watched Iron Man.
And? I imagine it's not the same experience for the first time on DVD, but it's still well crafted...
I really liked it. Wasn't crazy about the way the climax went, as it seemed kind of a big jump from Bridges' character to suddenly be this evil guy, but I liked Tony Stark. He reminded me of me in some ways. I also really liked the Tony/Pepper dynamic. I'm hoping to see Iron Man 2 before the week's out.
I know the movies have flaws, though I think they are really well crafted, but the stand out thing that makes them so good is Tony Stark. Great character. Lots of meat to work with as an actor, writer or director.
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