Star Trek Beyond: A Return To Form For The New Trek Films

I think the best way to describe the New Trek Films is the Star Trek movie franchise going through a midlife crisis. They tried to recapture their youth in Into The Darkness but it's like seeing an old man trying to be young and hip to a younger crowd. It's embarrassing to watch. Star Trek Beyond is the film series taking a metaphorical self-examination and sets itself to get its life back on track. And boy did it ever did!

I actually have a good time with this movie. Everything about this movie was enjoyable. From the fight scenes to the story and to the characters. When a movie didn't have one character that took me out of the movie or pissed me off then the film did something right.

I thought this movie played up the character interactions pretty well. Since it is directed by the same guy who did the Furious Films, who seriously should direct more movies, expect some good characterization with witty dialogue.

The MCU should take notes from this film when it comes to using humor in a serious situation. I never once ask myself if the joke was necessary nor did the humor irritated me. The characters involved played the witty parts pretty well and in a less embarrassing manner. I thought Bones and Spock had the best chemistry.

Lets talk about new characters. Jayla was a fun character. To properly describe her she's Gamora done right. She's a badass female character who can carry her own and doesn't have to play the damsel in distress card. And there was a believable ship tease with Scotty. Which I can honestly get behind more than say.....Natasha/Bruce Banner. Sigh. And they didn't do a forced romantic hook up either. It was a gradual build that could lead to something serious in the next film. But it never devalued Jayla in any way.

Oh and the movie was written by Simon Pegg. Talk about the man of many talents!

I thought the film's villain was a huge improvement but I was a little disappointed that he didn't survive to the point that he could pop up in the next movie. Then again, with Trek's rich history, it's one of the few franchises that doesn't need a recurring villain.

I also like James T. Kirk in this. This movie made the new version of Kirk more humanized rather than trying to have him imitate the original Kirk. After two films this one managed to make Kirk likable. Good job.

I should warn those considering seeing this. The tribute to Leonard Nimoy could tug the heart strings.

Overall I give Star Trek Beyond an A. This was a good booster after the mess that was The Killing Joke and it renewed my faith in Science Fiction movies. It harkened back to the Star Trek themes that we love while including some new elements in it. If this is the new direction it's going to take then continue following that path.