STACK NZ November 2016 Issue 79

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Despite having departed
the Star Trek universe for
another galaxy, far, far
away, J.J. Abrams remains as a
producer on Star Trek Beyond – the
third film in the franchise he was
instrumental in rebooting back in
2009, and the thirteenth Star Trek
movie. With the director’s chair
now vacant, a new filmmaker had
to be found to boldly steer the
Enterprise crew where no one has
gone before.
Edgar Wright, Rupert Wyatt and
Duncan Jones were all contenders
for the gig, but it was Justin Lin –
who had successfully driven the
Fast and Furious franchise to new
box office heights – that ultimately
took the helm, bringing his high-
octane brand of filmmaking and
kinetic action set pieces to the
Trek universe. And if Lin seems
like an unlikely choice for a Star
Trek movie, Trekkers can breathe
easy – he’s one of them.
Lin first encountered the series
at the age of eight and has been
a fan ever since. With a new
Star Trek film as the ultimate
playground and working from a
cracking screenplay by Simon
Pegg and Doug Jung, Lin sticks
closely to Gene Roddenberry’s
original vision, and the director's
love of the classic TV series is
evident in the strong themes of
diversity and unity that run through
the film.
Moreover, there are numerous
references to the Original Series
in Star Trek Beyond , including nods
to the episodes Who Mourns for
Adonais? and The Trouble with
Tribbles, which will please the
diehard Trekkers.
Set three years into the
Enterprise’s five-year mission
to explore strange new worlds
and seek out new life and new
civilizations, Star Trek Beyond is the
first of the new Trek films to take
the action into deep space and an
alien world, with a stopover at the
Federation Starbase Yorktown.
A rescue mission soon becomes
a fight for survival against a
powerful new enemy, Krall (played
by Idris Elba under lots of latex),
who holds a grudge against the
Federation. “I wanted a character
that’s there to deconstruct the
Federation’s ideals, but to do it in
a way where he has a very valid
philosophy,” explains Lin.
Krall also deconstructs the
Enterprise with a swarm of bee-
like ships that tear through the
starship like shrapnel – the third
time we’ve seen it destroyed in
the Trek movies. “Watching the
Enterprise crash and burn felt like
I was destroying a legacy,” notes
Idris Elba. “Krall is certainly going
to be remembered for that.”
Stranded and separated on a
hostile alien planet, the crew must
regroup if they are to defeat
Krall, and unity becomes
an important theme of
the film. “The crew can
achieve more together
than they can alone,
and that’s the message of this
movie,” offers Karl Urban, who
gets a lot more screen time as
Bones.
“Ultimately it’s about family, it’s
about working together to achieve
something great,” adds Chris Pine,
whose Captain Kirk is experiencing
some personal issues.
“Being the Captain of the
Enterprise is probably the defining
feature of his life” says Pine.
“There’s this reality of loneliness
and of figuring things out.
“Is he willing to trust anyone
outside his circle, and is he willing
to let his empathy lead him and his
crew into mortal danger?”
Issues concerning Kirk’s father’s
legacy are also brought to the fore
in the wake of the Enterprise’s
destruction. “His father was the
captain of a ship that was also
destroyed, so when he sees the
[Enterprise] destroyed, it brings
up a real complex set of emotions
that are tied to where he was born
and who he is,” Pine explains.
With a fourth Trek film already
announced and tipped to feature
the return of George Kirk, as
played by Chris Hemsworth,
Captain James T. Kirk
might finally get some
closure.
With the director’s chair now vacant, a new filmmaker had to be found to
boldly steer the Enterprise crew in Star Trek Beyond. Words Adam Colby
visit DVD&BD FEATURE
14 NOVEMBER 2016
DVD
&
BD
• Star Trek
Beyond
is out on Nov 2
The crew can achieve more together
than they can alone, and that’s the
message of this movie