Star Trek

Once thought to be as passé as Yeoman Rand's beehive, the world of Star Trek is now cool again, not that the true believers ever asked for your approval (well, maybe just that one time). To date, J.J. Abrams's blockbuster reboot has earned more than $150 million, allowing trekkers to laugh openly at jokes about redshirts and the Vulcan neck pinch. And despite all Abrams's statements about being on the wrong side of the Star Trek vs. Star Wars debate, the creator of Lost and Alias was the perfect man for the director's chair.

Like Abrams's TV shows, Star Trek is full of labyrinthine plots, insider references, and pretty people who can actually act. For this, Star Trek's eleventh voyage onto the big screen, Abrams went back to the beginning (not Enterprise!), for Kirk's (Chris Pine) first encounter with Spock (Zachary Quinto) and his first meeting with his true love, his ship. The plot revolves around a tattoed Romulan named Nero (Eric Bana), bent on revenge against the Federation, but that all seems secondary to the introduction of new versions of the iconic characters. Each actor seems perfectly cast, and though they seem to be aware of their predecessors, the performances never resort to caricature or impersonations. There's not a weak link here; even the pretty boy Pine plays Kirk like a badass I can enjoy. But I was most entertained by Simon Pegg as Scotty, Karl Urban as "Bones" McCoy, and Anton Yelchin as Chekov. They're largely there for comic relief (and a brief break from the special effects-driven action), but they aren't disposable characters.

Positioning Star Trek for an early summer release (rather than its initial December date) was a perfect move by Paramount. This is summer entertainment at its best: big action sequences are balanced by moments of humor, and though it's lighthearted, it's never mindless. The May weather maybe near perfect at times, but it's worth missing a few hours of sunshine for this. Your skin--and inner geek--will thank you.