Star Trek 2009, Deleted Scenes review

It arrived!

One day after I ordered it from Mightyape and 40 New Zealand dollars later, I ripped open the package to check out the deleted scenes from JJ Abrams 'Star Trek'.

My verdict. Good. Not great, but good.

I was kinda hoping for some really mean visual effects but the deleted scenes really only had examples of what might have been. I will say this, I can understand completely why they took these scenes out. The movie is much better without them.

Nero gets captured by Klingons is probably the most eagerly awaited scene for many a fan and it certainly fills in a few holes for the Nerada and crew. The set piece for the Rura Penthe scene is quite big. A large outdoors set with plenty of extras who probably are very pissed off that they never made it to the final cut. Nero is interrogated by a Klingon who has a rather 'soft' voice for a Klingon (I presume they would have Klingonified his voice in post) and soon breaks free after he beats the shit out of the guards and then runs to a cell where he releases 'Ayel' declaring that awesome line from the trailer 'The wait is over!'

I found it interesting that we never actually see the Klingons per se, they are always hidden behind a ridged helmet. I wonder why? Definitely another homage to Enterprise and the TOS.

We also see in more detail how Kirk was able to plant the subroutine into the Kobayashi Maru test by way of a little trick with Gaila, the Orion slave girl.

Winona Ryder gets much more screen time in the deleted scenes than the movie itself. She has a scene with her husband (Sarek) over the naming of their child 'Spock' and a very good confrontational scene with Sarek when young 'Spock' gets into the fight before Sarek talks to him about it.

There is a very funny scene where Kirk apologies to the green girl over using her. But realises after his speech that this is someone else. Its funny, but again I can see why they removed it.

Even after many many months, I still think that this re imagination of my favourite Sci Fi franchise has still been a massive success and I cannot thank JJ Abrams, the producers and writers enough for bringing it back to us.

By the way, am I the only one who noticed that Nero has part of his ear missing, a la 'Chopper Reid'...awesome.

Long live trek.

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Stargate Universe, Darkness and Light

Spoiler Alert: At the start of any new TV show, the chances that most of the characters are going to die off is a cataclysmic event are pretty slim.

But, having just watched the Stargate Universe episodes 4 and 5 (Episodes 'darkness' and 'light') I was actually thinking for a moment here and there 'will they? won't they!'

Often in sci fi you can see the solution to a crisis coming a mile away and that's OK, because it is scifi and we love it.
There is usually a somewhat predicable technological solution to almost every crisis.

Stargate Universe (so far) is different, they almost convince you that there is absolutely no hope for our characters this time.

The good ship 'Destiny' is still on its pre-programmed mission of...well...we don't know. But one thing is for sure, the 'Destiny' has an appetite for survival.

We spend most of episode 'Darkness' watching as our characters as the ship runs out of power and the ship slingshots itself around a planet to enter an area ripe with supplies, unfortunately Destiny has changed course after the slingshot and it is not heading toward any planet. It is heading toward the sun.

As the ship approaches the star, the only working shuttle is made ready to fly to the nearest habitable planet for only 17 people, 15 of which are drawn by lottery. The rest must remain aboard Destiny, where they will soon be killed as the ship enters the sun.

Plenty of time is taken for the characters to accept the inevitable and I kept waiting for Dr Rush to come running with a magical technical solution to the problem. But he never does, thereby holding the suspense for much longer.

Of course, a solution ultimately arrives, but not before they must retrieve the shuttle in a nice reversal of last minute danger before Destiny jumps back into FTL, leaving them stranded.

It usually takes me a few episodes to convince me of a shows worth. This one has had me hooked from the start.

I cannot wait for the next one!

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Stargate Universe, the Verdict

*Minor Spoiler Zone

What did you think?

I'll tell you what I think. So far I think this newest incarnation of the seemingly invincible and ever enduring Stargate franchise is bloody good. No doubt with its darker tones and more battlestar-ish feel that the writers and producers are aiming to gather a slightly more serious audience to the table.

Being Scottish I am ever so slightly bias toward the fact that one of my favourite actors, Robert Carlyle is playing one of the leads, if not the lead in the show and at first I thought he was just another clone of the smart doctor on board who everyone hates, but needs, I am already wondering if there is more to his character than that.

This, I think is the intention. More character development... already I am only 3 episodes in and I want to know more about what happens to these people who are stranded 'several billion light years from home'. In particular my immediate attention is drawn to Ronald Greer, Eli Wallace and Nicholas Rush (Robert Carlyle)

Interestingly this new Sci Fi Premiere seems to favour drama over action, since to be honest there really was hardly any action at all, except during some flashbacks to the attack on Icarus Base.

Stargate Universe (SG:U) is definitely trying to break new ground in the realm of Sci Fi and that just fine by me.

Things I love about it so far:

• Internal Conflict (always a good thing)
  
• Interesting Characters
  
• Great Music
• Great FX
• Emphasis on Survival over Adventure (Adventure seems incidental)
• and a Huge New (Ancient) ship to explore!
  

Things I don't really like about it so far:

• Those daft communications stones, that's it!
  

Sci Fi Stuff...

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Star Trek 2009, The Haters, Criticisms and Rebukes.

I simply cannot believe the sheer number of articles on the web which are completely hammering JJ Abrams reboot of Star Trek, actually scratch that, I can believe it. I guess I just forgot for a moment while I was wrapped up in the incredible resurgence of Star Trek that there is a size able, vocal minority out there in the Sci Fi fraternity which simply cannot help but be dour, joyless nerds who care about nothing but the minutiae.

Yes I know that all Star Trek fans are probably considered nerds anyway, but what I am talking about is 'NERDS!' not nerds, ok?

There is an absolutely staggering amount of haters out there who absolutely MUST find fault with a movie which lets just remind each other for a moment, is 'Sci Fi' as in 'Science Fiction' as in, 'lets face it it's a bunch of made up shit' which we love, of course.

So, even though sci fi is a bunch of made up shit and we love it, these guys (and gals) cannot help themselves. OK I know that this is a free world and I am not telling anyone not to criticise this film, but when that criticism blindly finds fault with the contents of a film which exist entirely in fiction, I cannot help but want to hit these people.

Here are a few of the main criticisms flying around the Internet at the moment.

1
:Janeway Pi Alpha 47
Cadet to Captain? What is this? Did someone submit a piece of fan fiction to the studio that got somehow got swapped with an actual movie script and no one noticed?...read the full post

OK, yes I admit, Kirks move from Cadet, to XO, to captain was remarkably quick. However if you take it in the context of the story and situation then I think it makes it more believable, bearing in mind that Sci Fi does rely upon its fans to 'believe' many things. Here is my rebuke:

• Primary fleet in the Laurentian system, leaving the remainder made up of mostly cadets and young officers with a few senior ones such as Captain Pike.
• We already know that Pike likes the idea of 'leaping without looking' and he thinks that this is something Starfleet has lost.
• Historically we also know that soldiers are promoted very very quickly during wartime and with the decimation of the 7 Federation ships this is effectively a war and the Enterprise is all that stands between Nero and Earth.
• So Kirk is promoted to XO, (probably also thinking that he could be dead at anytime during the crisis). Pike is taking a chance on him and he is right to do so. (leaps without looking)

So, bearing in mind that his command decisions as 'acting Captain' saved the goddam planet from dissolving into a black hole and ending up god knows where (It could have ended up in the Farscape Universe, what a bloody nightmare!), lets give the guy a break and make him Captain, no?

2
:Tiki's review
'The main bad guy apparently was lost in space for 25 years, but pshh, didn't age a day.'
read more

Here we bloody go again. Ok, listen up Tiki, this is Sci Fi. Lets just say that maybe, just maybe those pesky Romulans might not age as quick as we do, OK? lets just say that maybe they live much much longer!.... wait hang on a moment, this was already established in Trek, DECADES AGO!

3
:whytheysuck.com
This guy makes several very well written and thought out criticisms of the movies but throws a cheap shot about the 'fucking dog'.
With Star Trek’s medical science I can buy the idea of a 140 year old Jonathan Archer. I can not buy the idea of a 94 year old Porthos. Not even Phlox is that good a medic. read more

They never mentioned for one moment that this was Porthos. People often buy the same breed of dog to replace the one that dies, this could have been Porthos XI for all we bloody know... in fact, why am I even rebuking this comment? Jesus I have been dragged down by all the gloom....

SOMEONE HELP ME!

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JJ Abrams Speaks more about a Star Trek Sequel

Star Trek II (Star Trek XII) or Star Trek 12!

Last we heard from JJ Abrams was that Star Trek 2 needed to be an allegory to societal issues of today much like Rodenberry’s vision was so many years ago. “It needs to do what [the late 'Trek' creator Gene] Roddenberry did so well, which is allegory.

It needs to tell a story that has connection to what is familiar and what is relevant. It also needs to tell it in a spectacular way that hides the machinery and in a primarily entertaining and hopefully moving story.

There needs to be relevance, yes, and that doesn’t mean it should be pretentious. If there are simple truths — truths connected to what we live — that elevates any story — that’s true with any story.”

Read more from Fused Film >>

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