Summer Movie Musings: Star Trek Beyond

Greetings!

I wanted to write up some thoughts on my latest summer movie love of this year, Star Trek Beyond (I'll get around to Ghostbusters next week).

I checked out this movie this past week on Thursday night. I was looking forward to it after some good buzz in the weeks leading up to the film's release. I wasn't as hard as others were on the previous installment, Into Darkness, but Beyond is a much better movie. This film feels like the first time this rebooted series is breaking out on its own.

The plot finally gets the Enterprise crew off of Earth, and encountering strange, new worlds on its five year mission to explore the galaxy. We have some better character moments, a better message, and is just solidly fun. I look forward to what is to come next after this movie, but it does have to unfortunately move forward without cast member Anton Yelchin due to his recent tragic death.

This film also has the recent death of Leonard Nimoy hanging over it, as well as the 50th anniversary of the original series premiere. The future of Star Trek is being highly scrutinized right now, and with the premiere of Star Trek Discovery coming next year, we will see if the optimistic, thoughtful vibe of Star Trek is something people want right now. I will say that I hope it is.

Let me know what you thought of Star Trek Beyond if you saw it!

Thanks for stopping by!

Movie Review Monday: E.T. - The Extra Terrestrial

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

This week's film is the 1982 classic, E.T. - The Extra Terrestrial directed by Steven Spielberg.

I've been wanting to watch this movie for a while now, as it was another one on my sci-fi classics list to finally see. Unfortunately, when seeing these films (specifically ones like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Close Encounters of the Third Kind) some of them just didn't really connect with me. While some were enjoyable, I think they were all definitely films of their time that had an impact when they came out, but now, with other modern films capturing the minds of audiences, they more serve as historic benchmarks than anything else. I think sci-fi as a genre is heavily dependent on the era from which it is made, since when it is at its best, it provides a unique opportunity for powerful allegories.

Now, back to E.T. I thought this was a cute, simple, small movie. It wasn't worried about the world exploding or an alien invasion. It was just about a lost alien trying to get home. In that way, it was a refreshing story when compared to the big, loud, and/or dumb sci-fi we get currently with things like Transformers (and all the movies trying to copy its success). Otherwise, I didn't really enjoy this movie. A lot of it happened with no explanation and it was a bit clumsy as a result. I just found myself confused by it but it was still a fun movie for the most part. At under two hours, it still felt a little long and stretched out to be honest. Even with all that being said, and it being an older movie, it feels like it is made for a family to watch together and it was definitely made for kids. Something I noticed watching this movie was how most of the adult roles are either not focused on or are shrouded. The whole film feels like it is done from a child's perspective in that way. It's a neat touch.

I'm glad I got to see this movie and appreciate what it offers. While it wasn't my favorite, I get the appeal, especially for someone who was the right age when it came out originally.

You can watch E.T. right now on Netflix.

Thanks for stopping by!

Movie Review Monday: Star Trek - Generations

The film this week is the seventh iteration in the Star Trek film franchise; Star Trek: Generations (1994), starring two Enterprise captains, William Shatner as Captain Kirk and Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard. I'm going to just start off by saying I wasn't a huge fan of this film. I'm trying to watch, at least, all of the Star Trek films, having just wrapped up The Next Generation's (TNG) TV run recently. I've seen a few of The Original Series' (TOS) films also, having enjoyed Wrath of Khan especially. I had high hopes for this movie but it fell apart quickly for me. There were many sub-plot threads that seemed needless, the stakes weren't that high, the action was lackluster, and it just overall seemed like an overinflated episode of the show. If this movie was a typical episode of the show, shortened down and focused, it would be great, but with a roughly two-hour run time, it just was a bit of a bore.

Star Trek at its best is when it is able to have stories about ethics, morality, loyalty, values, friendship, and diversity. This movie had none of the above. It does seem that all of the Star Trek movies I've seen tend to just default to sci-fi action movies, which can be fun, but never really capture what makes the television show so special and beloved, and that's saying a lot from a diehard Star Wars fan.

This is a rare negative review so I recommend you pass on Star Trek: Generations. Just go watch Star Trek Into Darkness on Netflix if you want a better Trek flick that's streaming right now.

Thanks for stopping by!

Why Doctor Who is Awesome.

So I am currently watching some Classic Doctor Who for the first time, specifically the tenth anniversary episode The Three Doctors from 1972-73, in the spirit of the upcoming fiftieth anniversary of the series. Upon viewing these new adventures, I realized what it is I think I love about the show and science fiction at large. It showcases a person traveling throughout all space and time, encountering diverse species and treating them all with the utmost respect and understanding. The Doctor always tries to help and whenever a conflict occurs, never uses violence and always gives his enemies a chance to peacefully resolve their differences. As it relates to student affairs, I feel like this show and most science fiction can teach us a lot about acceptance and inclusivity. It comes easy to The Doctor and his actions can showcase how easy it should be for us to be respectful of difference in others, wherever we might find it.