Star Trek into Darkness

I saw the latest Star Trek film, got thrilled by the same characters all over again, came out feeling smug.

When you go to see a Star Trek movie you don't go for the cinematic quality. You go to a family reunion -the good sort. There you laugh at the expected behaviour of every single character in your beloved saga. You chuckle and go tsk tsk at Kirk's bed hopping. You forgive Spock his lack of sensitivity, because deep inside you know you'd like to be as aloof as him sometimes. 

Star Trek has always been about escaping into a better world and, above all, away from this one. Why such a big Buddhist as I sometimes like calling myself likes the stuff is one of my many contradictions. I guess I'm not that committed to the here and now, after all, and the there and then continues to allure me.

Anyway, I enjoyed the film. I particularly liked Spock, McCoy and Chekov. Zachary Quinto is one hell of an actor, although I'd rather have my Spocks a bit less round-faced. The by now traditional Leonard Nimoy cameo was more disturbing than anything on this occasion. And uncanny and probably intended was the resemblance of the actors playing James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Bones McCoy (Karl Urban) to their 60's originals, William Shatner and DeForest Kelly. 

I heard somewhere, and I agree, that this film could be regarded as a modest beginning for greater things to come. Let's hope so. Given that society seems to boldly go (sorry, couldn't help myself) in the direction of more freedom once again, the saga might be still in time to capture and lead the spirit of the times, just like TOS did back in the 60's.