Star Trek sets phasers to stunning

In theaters Friday: Angels & Demons, The Brothers Bloom, Management

New on DVD and Blu-ray: Taken , Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, Passengers

So, what other decayed and wheezing series can J.J. Abrams revive? That’s the question people should be asking after watching Star Trek this weekend, the critically acclaimed reboot of the classic series that comes off as bold and brash as series originator Gene Roddenberry first envisioned Captain James T. Kirk to be. As helmed by the creator of Alias, Lost and now Fringe, this Trek is a dazzling reinvention of a dead-end franchise, a fun, fresh popcorn flick that at the very least is something no Star Trek has been since, well, ever: a buzz-worthy water cooler movie. Maybe nerds are inheriting the earth. Though, the new stars of Trek are some of the hottest properties in young Hollywood.

Chris Pine assumes the captain’s chair as Kirk, a swaggering daredevil who joins Starfleet after a bar brawl ends in a lecture from a captain who knew Kirk’s fallen father and challenges him to continue his legacy. Heroes star Zachary Quinto, a doppelganger for Leonard Nimoy, plays Spock as a logical authority monger and a tortured soul torn between his human and Vulcan chromosomes. And in the “Where has she been?” file is Zoe Saldana as Uhura, a character fleshed out incredibly well compared to the original, who just seemed like a wise-cracking Bluetooth addict. Saldana puts enough passion and wit into her linguistics specialist to make even Spock’s green blood boil red. If ever a film existed with such crucial casting decisions, I can’t think of it. The rest of the crew brings comic relief, keeping the tone light and the pace swift. Shaun of the Dead star Simon Pegg plays engineer Scotty with a wink, Terminator Salvation’s Anton Yelchin portrays Russian wiz kid Chekov with a geeky exuberance, like Doogie Houser in space, and just about every line out of Lord of the Rings star Karl Urban’s mouth as salty doctor “Bones” McCoy is pure gold. Then there’s the much-publicized cameo from Nimoy, whose Obi-Wan Kenobi-like appearance at this point feels like a visit from a sage master.

As a guest last week on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Abrams declared with no apologies that this movie was not made for Trek fans because he himself was never a big fan of the old show or any of its cinematic incarnations.

“I didn’t want people to think they had to know Star Trek to see the movie, ‘cause I didn’t really,” he said.

That could polarize some longtime fans, but one demo not polarized? The critics. Trek is sitting pretty at 96% approval at RottenTomatoes.com. That’s higher than last summer’s comic book blockbusters Iron Man and The Dark Knight. And I have to agree, Trekkie or not, this is a must-see film this summer. So, what is it about? Well, like any film that uses time travel as a plot point, this one can get a little confusing if you fret too much over the details. But then, Abrams is kind of a confusing guy. Ever watch Lost?

All you need to know is this: Nimoy’s old Ambassador Spock attempted to save the planet Romulus from being destroyed by a supernova, but was too late, and the exploding star enveloped the planet in a black hole and shot Spock’s ship and a Romulan mining vessel backwards into the past. And that’s where this story begins, detailing the youth of both Kirk and Spock and their first voyage on the Enterprise when they encounter both the elder Spock and Nero, the Romulan mining captain who vows to get revenge for the future destruction of his planet.

Nero not only wants to force Spock to witness the destruction of the planet Vulcan, but also use black holes to implode enough Federation worlds, Earth included, to ensure the safety and prosperity of Romulus for eons.

Whereas past Trek films have tended to feel esoteric at best and tediously minutia-filled at worst, Abrams and his co-writing team of Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman both ground the film and load it with a heart and spirit. Abrams also added the Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage,” and in such a perfect way. And there are plenty of themes here from Joseph Campbell’s classic “Hero’s Journey” philosophy, enough at least to draw close comparison’s to the more mythic threads of Star Wars. This Kirk is an errant farm boy who never knew his father and dreams of bigger things. He even gets into a fight in a bar just before jetting off on his big adventure, one that culminates in an Earth-saving showdown and what will likely be the clever and satisfying curtain call for Nimoy on film.

What Abrams has done amounts to a wholly satisfying Star Trek remix. Like most remixes, it is perfectly natural to be hesitant at first. But given time, the film stops feeling like a remix and starts growing on you as the real thing. Because you’re too busy grooving to the beat to notice the changes when you’re having this much fun.