"Space, The Final Frontier."

As a child, I remember my parents watching Star Trek: The Next Generation. I was always fascinated with the series and found myself watching the reruns after the show ended in 1994. When I was nine or so I began to watch the Shatner crew. Up until that point in my life I thought the Next Generation crew was the only cast.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture was my introduction to the Original crew. This film blew me away! Within a few weeks, I became obsessed with the original Enterprise crew.

It has been ten years since my first introduction with Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Now I consider myself a true Trekkie. I have seen every episode of the original series many times and still enjoy viewing of the film series.

I have been looking forward to this new Star Trek for at least a year and a half. I have always been a fan of the film's director, J.J. Abrams, and his hit T.V. show "Lost". I had hoped that this film would re-launch the Star Trek franchise, the same way that "Casino Royale" did for James Bond, and "Batman Begins" did for Batman.

I planned to see this movie at Imax and went last Saturday. Not only did this film exceed my expectations, I left thinking that this was one of the best movies I have ever seen. I went and saw this film with my girlfriend. She is not at all interested in Sci-Fi films, so I hoped that it would be somewhat entertaining for her. The second the film ended, she told me that it was her new favorite movie. I was so proud of what J.J Abrams did to this film.

The casting was brilliant. Chris Pine takes over the role of James T. Kirk with great success. He brings his own touch and toughness to the role. William Shatner's Kirk ego still shows, but without being an imitation of him. The reason for Kirk's rebellion throughout the franchise is finally explained in this film. The role of Spock is played very convincingly by Zachary Quinto, well known for his role in the series "Heroes." He was also wonderful in the role that is world renown. He brings the level of seriousness and intensity needed for the character of Spock; a character who is dealing with the inner conflict of self discovery. Karl Urban portrays Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, the doctor who really hates space. Urban in my opinion deserves an Oscar Nomination for his role in this. He doesn't even seem to be acting. His passionate, sometimes difficult or irritating attitude is brilliant to watch. We learn how McCoy gets "Bones" as a nickname. Urban is a brilliant supporting actor, and steals every scene he is in. Another great performance to watch is Simon Pegg as Scotty. He brings the comical personality of the chief engineer. There are many other great performances in the movie, including a great cameo by Leonard Nimoy! This film balances intense action and hilarious dialogue.

The music of this film is amazing! Instead of using the Jerry Goldsmith theme, which was also the theme of The Next Generation, composer Michael Giacchino used the original series' extraordinary theme music. The music is a vital part of the emotional experience in this movie.

Overall this is one of the most exciting films released in years, with great performances to accompany it. The special effects are brilliant and the music is extraordinary. I did not want to give the plot away but let me just say that it is very satisfying. This film exceeded all expectations that I had for it. It is simply a sci-fi masterpiece.

Star Trek

4 Out of 4 stars