Star Trek...Beyond

I will begin this mini review of Star Trek Beyond by saying I am not a big fan of the Star Trek reboot series.  I have said this many times before, but it's a bit too much Star Wars and not enough Star Trek (which might seem weird since I'm a huge Star Wars fan, but the two need to be separate).  That being said, either I have softened my stance, or this third one really is the best of the bunch so far.

Pros:

The effects and makeup are fantastic.  There's one scene at the end (I don't want to spoil anything) with the good guys facing off against the bad guys in space.  If you've seen it, you know what I mean.  That looked great.

The cast has always been the strongest part of the reboot, though they've had a bit of a problem balancing between playing the originals and being themselves.  I think they've finally got it down just about right.  And the relationships, especially between Bones and Kirk, are good.  Idris Elba was pretty good.  Sofia Boutella was a stand out.  Jaylah is a great character.

The story was original but still "Trek-y" enough.  It was a fun movie.  And, unlike the first movie (outrunning a black hole) there wasn't any obnoxiously bad science.  Bad science, yes, but not stupid.  And no second-rate retreads of baddies.

Cons:

Still a little too much action for me.  I guess you can tell I'm a fan of the Next Generation, because they were the pinnacle of the series for me.  They had action when needed, but they also made you think.  The series is missing the cerebral part that makes Star Trek Star Trek.

Speaking of action, this runs into the same problems as too many action movies today: quick cuts, close up cameras, and too dark making it impossible to see what's going on.  You get the general idea, but at times it's very hard to follow the action.

Conveniences.  This kind of goes with the cerebral part.  We need something...oh there it is!  This happens a bit too many times and it gets annoying.

Again, overall it's a good addition to the franchise. 

7.5/10

Now, let me share my unquestionably perfect ranking of the Star Trek movies:

13.  Star Trek V: The Final Frontier  2/10

            The pretty much universal worst of the bunch.  There's nothing good to say about it.  And then Nichelle Nichols dances.

12.  Star Trek: The Motion Picture  4/10

            It took me three tries to get through this dull attempt at copying the terrible 2001.  The only good thing about this is it includes the best score of the franchise.  That poster is a thousand times more interesting than the movie.

11.  Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home  4/10

            Some people love this (one in particular I have argued over this), I hate it.  The "humor" is mostly dumb and it just doesn't feel like a Star Trek movie.  Heavy handed environmentalism much?

10.  Star Trek: Nemesis  5/10

            The first time I saw it, I thought it was alright.  Each subsequent viewing it gets worse.  Too bad this was the send-off for the best crew.

9.  Star Trek Into Darkness 6/10

            The bombing scene is pretty great, the rest is a mess of over-the-top action and bad copies of Wrath of Khan.

8.  Star Trek III: The Search for Spock 7/10

            It's not a bad movie, but there's also little in it that stands out.

7.  Star Trek (reboot) 7/10

            I remember walking out of seeing this in IMAX at Kennedy Space Center and immediately disagreeing with my two friends who said this was the best Star Trek movie ever.  The villain is lackluster, and I can never get over them escaping a black hole.

6.  Star Trek: Generations 7/10

            I think this movie gets more flack than it deserves.  It's a pretty good bridge between the crews.  And get over the ending.

5.  Star Trek Beyond 7.5/10

            See above.

4.  Star Trek: Insurrection 7.5/10

            Saw this in the theater and didn't like it.  For a long time it was in the bottom three for me.  Rewatched a couple of years ago and really liked it.  My love of the Next Generation crew comes out.  One thing that can't be argued: that's got to be the worst Star Trek movie poster.

3.  Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan 8/10

            Start the hate.  Yes, it's a good movie with a great villain and an iconic ending.  That doesn't mean it's the best.

2.  Star Trek: First Contact 9/10

            Such a great use of the Next Generation cast and the best villains in Star Trek.  The borg are frightening, the tension is always there, but it doesn't have to be a non-stop action thrill ride because the movie lets the story play out.

1.  Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country 9/10

            The first one I saw in the theater.  It still blows me away.  I nearly used it in class as an allegory for the Cold War.  And you can have Khan, give me Christopher Plummer's Chang quoting Shakespeare (in the original Klingon) any day.

Bonus: Galaxy Quest 9/10

            Yes, if I were to rank this (as one Star Trek convention poll did), I would have it #3.  That's right, above Wrath of Khan.  Again, bring the hate.  The best parody movie ever.

A quick ranking of the scores, because there are some great ones.

13.  Voyage Home (Leonard Rosenman) F

            The only one I don't bother having.

12.  The Final Frontier (Jerry Goldsmith) D-

            Nearly as bad as the movie.

11.  Nemesis (Jerry Goldsmith) D

            Pretty forgettable, unfortunately.

10.  Insurrection (Jerry Goldsmith) C

            Goldsmith losing his touch.

9.  Beyond (Michael Giacchino) C+

            I have yet to hear it on its own, but in the movie it did not stand out.

8.  Generations (Dennis McCarthy) C+

            I like the Nexus theme, but the rest is somewhat forgettable.

7.  Wrath of Khan (James Horner) C+

            Some people have this #1, and that's because they're idiots.  It's more important for basically making Horner's career.

6.  Search for Spock (James Horner) B-

            Basically just a copy of Wrath of Khan with some good

5.  Into Darkness (Michael Giacchino) B

            Like the movie, the bomb scene is great, the rest is ok.

4.  First Contact (Jerry Goldsmith) B

            Some good action cues.

3.  The Undiscovered Country (Cliff Eidelman) A-

            Here's a composer who came out of nowhere, wrote a fantastically epic score, then has done basically nothing, unless you count The Beautician and the Beast something.

2.  Star Trek (Michael Giacchino) A

            Giacchino does a great job of making the themes to the original series epically great.

1.  The Motion Picture (Jerry Goldsmith) A+

            It might be Goldsmith's best ever. The six minute Enterprise flyby is one of the greatest compositions ever.  Oh yes, and it gave us the Next Generation theme.

Another bonus: Galaxy Quest (David Newman) B

            Sounds a little too television at times, but that's kind of the point.  Somewhere around #5 on the list.