Well beam me up and call me Sally.
Star Trek Beyond warps into theaters July 22nd and the anticipation continues to grow. Last week the second trailer to the third installment of the Star Trek franchise dropped, and oh boy did it ever. With Justin Lin at the helm, the second trailer took the world by storm and answered our questions. It actually painted a great picture, and by the looks of it Beyond promises an action packed sci-fi epic for our eyes to feast upon. Throughout the trailer, over all the amazing stunts and action sequences, various conversations in the film play out over the score and when pieced together leave us with a great story.
The trailer begins with the familiar muted sounds of space, accompanied by the familiar hum of the USS Enterprise soaring into frame. Jame Tiberius Kirk’s, Chris Pine, voice plays over scenes of him walking to the bridge.
“My dad joined Star Fleet ’cause he believed in it..I joined on a dare..”
Kirk appears to be having a conversation about his daddy issues with his good friend Bones, Karl Urban.
“You joined to see if you could live up to him. You spent all this, time, trying to be your father, now you’re wondering just what it means to be you.”
Heavy stuff right off the bat. Kirk seems to be having an identity crisis, searching for his reason. Smell the internal conflict? Someone is in store for a good old-fashioned vision quest!
Images of the cast flash across the screen, numerous scenes are highlighted with Spock, Bones, and Uhura. The crew is ready on the bridge and The Enterprise releases from the space station. Note, I’m not sure what ship this exactly is. It could possibly be a new one, while the old one is being repaired.
The voice of The High Commander of the Federation, portrayed by Shohreh Aghdashloo, is heard over the score.
“It isn’t uncommon you know, it’s easy to get lost, in the vastness of space. It is only yourself, your ship, your crew..”
Those are some ominous words she has for our beloved Captain Kirk. It’s obvious now that Kirk is itching for some sweet deep space exploration. Maybe, he thinks it could answer the deep seeded questions he has about himself. The unknown threats of uncharted territory in deep space linger in the back of all their minds, Bone’s asks Kirk if he really wants to head back out there.
If you’re curious, they did and this is where the trailer takes off! The next frames are filled with The Enterprise under attack! It’s a massive assault of drone like ships, swarming around and through The Enterprise, tearing it apart! Uhura, Zoe Saldana, informs Kirk that they have been boarded and Kirk issues an abandon ship call over the comm. Hmm, I can’t help but feel like someone close to Kirk has been in a very similar situation. Members of the fleet rush for the escape pods, desperately trying to avoid the intruders that have boarded. The lucky crew that we able to make it to the pods take off in different directions. There is a great shot of Sulu, John Cho, breathing heavily in an escape pod, hurtling into space, suddenly his pod intercepted by a drone, as if he has been taken prisoner.
The crew, now separated, fend for themselves, in a wild new world. Without communication they have to figure out a way to reunite. A new character appears on-screen, Jaylah, Sofia Boutella, clearly alien, urges Scotty, Simon Pegg, that they are in grave danger.
“I know why you here, why we are all here.”
I can answer that! You’re prisoners of whatever just wrecked The Enterprise! This mysterious villain, Krall, portrayed by Idris Elba, finally makes a worthy debut. First, Uhura warns Krall about her captain.
“Our captain will come for us, mercy will be the last thing on his mind.”
Her statement is followed by an eerie close-up and personal view of Krall himself and informs her in a foreboding tone that he’s counting on Kirk coming for her and his crew. Uh oh, someone is up to no good!
Fantastic action sequences and stunts are shown, supporting the promise of a monster summer blockbuster. From the previous trailer we know Spock and Bones were stranded together, I’m not sure where, possibly on another part of the planet, but these two should serve up some great banter. Spock, Zachary Quinto, chimes in with his stoic philosophy.
“Fear of death is illogical..”
But Bone’s response gives us all hope.
“Fear of death is what keeps us alive..”
As that conversation ends, the crew is literally fighting for their lives. Fighting back at whatever the cost. Another conversation with Jaylah plays, including a little more information about the crews captors.
“Everyone who goes there HE kills.”
He kills. Krall must be one bad, bad, bad, alien. That six word statement had me reeling with all sorts of questions. How many ships has Krall taken over? How many people has he killed? How long has he been doing this for?
Scotty responds heroically.
“That’s our friends out there, we canna just leave ’em behind.”
That was my best translation of a Scottish accent. Krall appears one last time and cryptically reveals his plan.
“Unity is not your strength, it is a weakness.”
And boom goes the dynamite, Krall is using their camaraderie against them. This could easily be Kraals trap for countless crews in the past all around the universe. Destroy a ship, take them prisoner, count on a rescue mission and take them prisoner as well.
A statement like that Kirk never takes without a response. He politely informs him he is underestimating humanity. Spectacularly loud and pleasing shots crash onto screen. Finally we are left with a bit of humor the Star Trek films are known for.
At one point the crew seems to of made it back to the bridge of The Enterprise (new or old, unsure) and they seem to be preparing for launch. Jaylah unaware of the system that’s in place sits in the captain’s chair and each character on deck silently reacts while Kirk stands in shock.
To summarize the images I described and the dialogue I emphasized on here is a quick play-by-play in case anyone asks you what you thought.
The story is there and the stakes are high. Kirk has some questions, he feels the best way to “itch this scratch” is to head back out into space and make a name for himself. Unfortunately, the crew is attacked by an unknown threat and the USS Enterprise is destroyed. Some crew members are taken prisoner, while others are forced to fend for themselves in an unknown world. It is revealed that Krall is the villain and is up to no good. His plan has something to do with their unity being a weakness. Kirk and the rest of the crew are put to the ultimate test of survival against this mysterious threat.
Star Trek Beyond hits theaters July 22nd.
Did the second trailer sell you on the third film? Sound off in the comments or send us your thoughts on Twitter!
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