Starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana and Benedict Cumberbatch
A terror threat from within Starfleet is causing havoc with the organisation so Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise must find him before it is too late.
I love J.J’s first Star Trek and was very excited about seeing this latest incarnation and what it might have in store and I was not disappointed.
The regular crew members of the Enterprise are all on form and once again the actors play the characters brilliantly and the addition of Benedict Cumberbatch as the villain is just genius. He’s a very strong, scary character and is a perfect adversary for Kirk and Spock to take on. Each character has their own starring part in the film to make them stand out from the rest and Urban’s Bones has some of the classic lines we know and love. The film looked visually amazing and the classic music gives you a warm happy feeling inside. Having seen this in IMAX 3D I must say that some of the scenes looked brilliant in 3D and some of the best ive ever seen.
The introduction of some classic villians such as the Klingons could easily lead to potential story lines in future films as well as some other characters that made appearances. The Enterprise jumping to warp effect that was used looked amazing and put a smile on my face every time.
Will there be a third in the series, and if so will it be directed by the Star Wars bound J.J. We can only hope.
Recommend
The film was a fun thrill ride through space showing the levels of friendship that have grown within the crew. Pine and Cumberbatch were fantastic together on screen and the script was brilliant and fresh all while keeping faith with the hardcore trekkies. If you enjoyed the first one then you will also love this. Catch it at the cinema while you can because I want to talk about it with everyone.
TheFriedGold rating 9/10 – Maximum warp. Punch it.
Film Fact
Edgar Wright got people talking when he tweeted that he had filmed a shot for a big film this summer. Everyone thought it was going to be something Marvel related due to his future involvement. However it turned out that he had been involved in a shot with the Klingons in this film
Following thefriedgold’s recent post on top 10 films to look out for in the rest of 2012 and the comment of not having Brave (how can Brave not make the top 10? It’s Pixar dammit) on the list, here are the next 10 to look out for. These could go either way in terms of quality, but I think they could be worth a watch.
A Fantastic Fear of Everything
Directed by Crispian Mills
Starring Simon Pegg, Sheridan Smith
Crime author Jack has an overriding fear of being murdered. His big break comes followed swiftly by a bigger breakdown.
Reason to watch: Pegg.
Release date: 8th June
Ted
Directed by Seth Macfarlane
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis
The creator of Family Guy steps in to the film world with this: a boy has a teddy bear that is alive. What happens if the bear grows up with the boy?
Reason to watch: Lewd humour and the juxtaposition of a child’s toy drinking and smoking. Could be laugh a minute or all the laughs could be below.
Release date: 1st August
Brave
Directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman and Steve Purcell
Starring Kelly Macdonald, Emma Thompson, Kevin McKidd, Robbie Coltrane
Merida, an independent young archer, is forced to undo a curse she has brought upon her family.
Reason to watch: Are you kidding? Pixar’s output is second to no-one. Even if you “don’t watch cartoons” I would recommend you see this film – it will change your mind. Plus you get a bound-to-be-excellent short before the main event. See this.
Release date: 17 August
The Watch
Directed by Akiva Schaffer
Starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, Richard Ayoade
Four friends form a neighbourhood watch to get away from their wives. They are forced in to action when they discover an alien invasion plot.
Reason to watch: Formerly “The Neighbourhood Watch”, The Watch reunites Vince Vaughn with Ben Stiller in a film written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Superbad). Potential for comedy greatness if they are all on song…
Release date: 29 August
Total Recall
Directed by Len Wiseman
Starring: Colin Farrell, Jessica Biel, Kate Beckinsale
A factory worker suffers from nightmares. But are they actually nightmares – could they be suppressed memories trying to return and could he be a spy with the power to change the world?
Reason to watch: A remake of the Arnie version, directed by the guy who gave us Die Hard 4.0 (enjoyable action, worthy addition), Colin Farrell headlining, written by the guy who wrote Equilibrium (dsytopian sci-fi). I enjoy a big budget complex sci-fi and if they can get close to the quality of the 1990 version, this could be good. The trailer looks really good. Plus Kate Beckinsale is in it.
Release date: 22 August
Dredd
Directed by Pete Travis
Starring Karl Urban, Lena Heady
No nonsense lawman Judge Dredd teams with young Judge Anderson to track and take down a drug supplying terrorist organisation.
Reason to watch: Forget the Stallone version, self-confessed fan Urban is taking on the helmet and becoming The Law, promising a more faithful interpretation of the 2000AD character.
Release date: 7 September
The Sweeney
Directed by Nick Love
Starring Ray Winstone, Damian Lewis, Hayley Atwell, Ben Drew
To protect the law and their city, virtuoso flying squad cops are forced to break the law.
Reason to watch: An update of the 70’s TV show sees Nick Love and Ray Winstone do what they do best – The Sweeney is a Lahndahn film filled with Geezahs fighting other Geezahs. But this time Love is working with an established property and Danny Dyer is nowhere to be seen so I’m hopeful this Brit-flick, which looks classy in the trailer, is going to be a worthwhile watch.
Release date: 12 September
Looper
Directed by Rian Johnson
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt
Joe is a hitman, killing people sent back from the future. One day his future self is sent back. What does he do?
Reason to watch: We have JGL playing a young Bruce Willis trying to kill him in a time-travel film directed by the man who brought us Brick. Two heavyweight actors and a strong director playing with a mind-bending premise. What more reason do you need?
Release date: 28 September
Taken 2
Directed by Olivier Megaton
Starring Liam Neeson, Famke Janssen, Maggie Grace
The father of a kidnapper Bryan Mills killed when his daughter was abducted has retaliated by taking something precious to Mills. This has pissed him off and a rampage will begin.
Reason to watch: If you like action films and haven’t seen Taken yet then you have a treat awaiting you. If you have seen Taken then you know exactly what the reason to watch this is: Liam Neeson waging a one man war. Directed by the man with the best name in action films.
A young boy, Pi, finds himself adrift in a lifeboat with a zebra, a hyena, an orangutan and a Bengal tiger following a shipwreck.
Reason to watch: I’m a big fan of Ang Lee who has a strong record with adaptations (Sense and Sensibility, Brokeback Mountain) and Life of Pi is based on the highly acclaimed novel of the same name. It’s bound to look good, the story will be strong – much will rest on the performance of newcomer Suraj Sharma as Pi.
Release date: 21 December
Obviously all dates are subject to change…I’ll try and put trailers in as and when they are released. And I’m sure I’ve left off something good…
In a post-apocalyptic world where the church is the sanctuary of man a Priest, played by Paul Bettany, goes against what he is told and goes on a quest to save his kidnapped niece from vampires.
The film run quite smoothly and has a clear narrative while at the same time looking great. The fight scenes have a matrix feel to them with the slowed down effects and having watched this not in 3D you can see where the 3d scenes would be. The vampires in the film are not the vampires everyone is used to these days as they are not in a human form but more in the form of a licker from the Resident evil game series, but instead of a tongue they have vampire teeth.
The film was enjoyable for a popcorn flick and the opening credits that show the story of the Priests in a war with the vampires in a graphic novel style is really good. If you would like a no-nonsense sci-fi action film then give this a go.
Film Fact
(Possible spoiler but not really)
Stephen Moyer, who plays Vampire Bill Compton in True Blood, is killed at the start of this film by a vampire hoard.
thefriedgold 