Back Inside: To Boldy Go

Star Trek may just be the best popcorn movie ever made. No it's not a movie on the level of something like "The Godfather" or even last year's cultural phenomenon (a phrase reserved for by us in the industry of being pretentious jerks for movies that make more money than a maple syrup dealer in a lumberjack camp) "The Dark Knight." No, the movie won't make you cry (unless you're a Trekkie or Trekker). Nor will it cause you to think on a deep, philosophical level. No, this movie doesn't (and shouldn't) do any of the above. What "Star Trek" will make you do is high five everyone in the theater when the credits roll.

Everything about the film oozes charm and wit that it's impossible to hate the story for the mind-fuckery that is its time travel plot and the constant lens flare (J.J. Abrams, you owe me sunglasses. And new retinas). Chris Pine is Kirk, Zachary Quinto is Spock, Simon Pegg is Scotty and Karl Urban totally owns Leonard "Bones" McCoy. The CGI found in the film is awe-inspiring at times, not just because of their technical mastery but also because of its poetic beauty. Certain scenes stand out as being breathtaking: the female federation character getting blasted out of a compartment and into space. The harrowing space jump undertaken by Kirk, Sulu (John Cho) and Redshirt McHillbilly. The first moment we see the U.S.S. Enterprise in all her glory. And then there's the little details. The whining noise made when characters teleport back into the Enterprise. The beeping and noises caused by the various electronics operating within the ship.

The list of things the movie absolutely nails goes on and on. But what most people weren't expecting from a Star Trek adaptation was the phenomenal humor. Most of the audience was in pieces during the Kobayashi Maru test and the bloated hands sequence. Bones is easily the funniest character in the film, with Scotty coming in second. There's something inherently, almost disturbingly funny about watching a psychotic bipolar doctor spout out one liners on a ship. Or rather on a boat. In space. Motherfucker.

Recommended for: People who enjoy humor, wit and charm
Not recommended for: Hardcore Trekkies, people who laugh only once a millennia

Back Inside is a column written by The Raconteur and eatYourOats, discussing the quality of movies and television shows now in theaters or on your television.