Star Trek Beyond Retrospective/Review - Star Trek Retrospective, Part 18

star trek made its triumphant return to the big screen in 2009 but its sequel star trek into darkness while a box office hit met with a much more mixed reception not the dark knight level success many executives at paramount had hoped for nevertheless star trek was still a popular brand and thus a third film in the kelvin timeline was quickly underway however the legacy of the resulting movie may be even more difficult to discern than its predecessor [Music] [Applause] leading up to the release of star trek into darkness paramount pictures were anticipating another hit on their hands and so had already greenlit another star trek movie this time around paramount wanted to avoid the long development of into darkness and insisted on a 2016 release to coincide with star trek's 50th anniversary while jj abrams returned his producer with his bad robot production company he was unable to direct due to his commitments to star wars episode vii the force awakens the first pitch for the next movie came from zack stent and ashley edward miller details on their pitch are scarce but it involved a noble antagonist similar to the romulan commander in balance of terror as well as a dyson sphere containing some kind of ancient lovecraftian force which could threaten the galaxy while abrams and paramount fielded more pitches from various writers several directors were considered for the job including rise of the planet of the apes director rupert wyatt and attack the block director joe cornish wyatt was unavailable and cornish turned the job down by december 2013 roberto orsi patrick mckay and jd payne were the ones chosen to write the next star trek feature film the team's goal was to return to a sense of exploration with the enterprise some time into its famous five-year mission during the development of the screenplay roberto orsi also petitioned paramount to direct the film himself making it his directorial debut paramount was hesitant to give such a large project to a first-time director but eventually they approved however as work on the screenplay continued paramount grew dissatisfied with the script and demanded heavy rewrites due to these creative differences all three writers would end up leaving the project and orsi would also depart as director in early december 2014. the short list of replacement directors included scott pilgrim vs the world's edgar wright headhunter's director morton tildem and source code director duncan jones star trek veteran jonathan fricks also expressed interest but ultimately justin lin known for the crime drama better luck tomorrow and the blockbuster fast and furious movies landed the job justin lin was a fan of star trek since early childhood and was thrilled to help the movie this love for the franchise was also shared by simon pegg and the two quickly began developing the script for the movie lin wanted to create something totally new for the next movie saying the klingons romulans and other species are great but it's time to go further it has been fun to focus on creating whole new worlds and species simon pegg first coined the title of the film in recognizing that lin wanted to take star trek beyond joined by doug jung the trio of trekkies approached paramount to come up with a new script and paramount approved simon pegg said i felt like it was important to really deconstruct the idea of star trek the idea of the federation and why it's so special we'll really be poking at quite a lot of different ideas we're gathering a great community within the galaxy but to what end what does it all mean all of the regular cast would return however alice eve's carol marcus would not feature in the film pegg explained that they simply couldn't come up with anything worthwhile for the character to do and so she was dropped a new addition to the cast was sophia boutella as jayla jayla was largely inspired by the character rhee dolly from the drama winter's bone it was lead actress jennifer lawrence's nickname j-law which inspired the name jayla lutella was a trained dancer for most of her early career using these skills to break into film in street dance 2 and street dance 3d her first major acting role was as the deadly henchwomen gazelle in matthew vaughn's kingsman the secret service for the villain of the movie the writers came up with the character of krall on krall's creation justin lin said if we really want to deconstruct what the federation means we need to have an antagonist with a valid point of view it can't just be someone twirling their moustache for the audience when they hear krall's reasons they might not agree with them but they have to accept it's a valid point of view one side posed simon and doug that challenge and we were really trying to come up with ideas to deconstruct it i thought they did a great job of writing and creating kraal justin lin's top choice to play the character was idris elba as although krall would have very little screen time lin knew elba could command every scene he was in and leave a real impression on the audience lin met with alba to discuss the role and converse for hours about the character in the end albus signed up for the part despite some concern over the four hour long makeup process idris elba's first big break was in the hbo series the wire in which he portrayed stringer bell in his native england though his most famous role was as foul-tempered detective luther on the big screen elba was no stranger to science fiction having appeared in ridley scott's prometheus as well as guillermo del toro's pacific rim also joining the cast was indonesian action star joe taslim as manus and lydia wilson as calara much later during reshoots shuri aghadashlu most famous for portraying christian avasarala in the expanse also joined the cast as commodore paris although initially set to start filming in april 2015 this was pushed back to june 2015 but as prep was underway to start production the cast and crew were met with some deeply sad news [Music] after a long battle with chronic illness the legendary leonard nimoy passed away on the 27th of february 2015 at his home surrounded by his friends and family at the age of 83. following the news cast and crew who had worked alongside him gave personal tributes online william shatner wrote i loved him like a brother we will all miss his humor his talent and his capacity to love among many other cast tributes zachary quinto who had become a close friend to nimoy said my heart is broken i love you profoundly my dear friend and i will miss you every day beyond the star trek veterans and many other public figures paid tribute with us president barack obama saying he was a lifelong lover of the arts and humanities a supporter of the sciences generous with his talent and his time former nasa astronaut buzz aldrin called him a fellow space traveler because he helped make the journey into the final frontier accessible to us all nasa's jet propulsion laboratory paid tribute to the actor by renaming an asteroid discovered in 1988-4864 nimoy after him paramount during a promotional event named a street on their studio backlot outside the stage where the original series was filmed leonard nimoy way to really get a sense of the man's great legacy i'd highly recommend the truly touching documentary for the love of spock directed by leonard dimoy's own son adam neymar it's rather fitting that for a character often chastised for his cold logic spock and by extension leonard nimoy was seen by so many as the real heart of star trek we lost leonard during the writing process and immediately we thought we have to pay tribute and the most obvious way felt to have leonard spock join him and communicate our sadness at losing leonard through the sadness of losing the spock that we all know and love i think he would have been very proud and um grateful and probably a little bit embarrassed but uh but i think in the end it's a fitting tribute to him i know what it meant to him to be a part of this world and to have been part of that legacy is an honor for all of us live long and prosper [Music] filming began on the 25th of june 2015 rather than basing the production in california as had been done with all previous star trek movies star trek beyond was primarily filmed in vancouver british columbia canada additional photography also took place in dubai and seoul south korea this time around the enterprise sets were built on massive gimbals to tip and shake the sets for real rather than the usual shaky cam trick star trek usually used pretend there's so many weird noises sound like broke while the bridge and kirk's quarters were fully practical many of the other sets such as corridors and engineering were only partially built extended using visual effects many locations throughout british columbia were used for the planet's surface including the squamish boulders and pit river quarry which stood in for crawls base several massive outdoor sets were built at vancouver film studios backlot including the wrecked enterprise saucer section and outer hull of the uss franklin for the interior of starbase yorktown the production moved to dubai in the united arab emirates where the jumeriah lakes towers and maiden racecourse were used among other locations while inside yorktown the film would also showcase a number of new aliens to commemorate the 50th anniversary the art department and makeup team worked together to create 50 new alien designs for the movie alone because many films now move into the cg world it's a very hard responsibility to be able to pull this off right it's monumental the amount of work that you know this crew is generating the most complex is the character natalia you know in so many pieces there's so much exposed alien skin she's got this giant nautilus shaped head she's got a back piece you know a chest piece she's got shoulder pieces she's got full exposed arms you know and the size of this head i mean it's enormous we had different heads like his most alien like his transformation head the makeup changes but still keeping some of these signature physical traits in the face that the original crawl makeup had and you can see the relation i'd never done prosthetic works as deeply as that so i lent into the puppetry of it and just threw myself into that space with jayla there was a very conscious effort to make her distinct to make her iconic and the elegance of the lines on that makeup i think is really what makes it stand out that combined with the hairstyle i've never never done prosthetic before i like that second skin i like what it brought to me it's like as soon as i had it on you feel in character i wouldn't feel anywhere near it if i didn't have it on principal photography wrapped in october 2015 with some reshoots the following year in march for the visual effects of the film industrial light and magic were unavailable and so instead the work was split between double negative and atomic fiction with assistance from kelvin optical and rodeo fx this time around the enterprise underwent a slight redesign the overall style was kept the same but the ship was made a tad slimmer and the nacelle pylons were changed so they arched back rather than straight up however the enterprise would largely be upstaged in the film by starbase yorktown designed by sean hargreaves michael jacquino returned for his third star trek score as this film was commemorating star trek's 50th anniversary jaquino decided to include some more overt references to past star trek music while his own original themes from the previous installments return he also made sure to include deliberate homages to the work of alexander courage jerry goldsmith and james horner complementing jaquino's score was an original song to promote the film and close out the credits sledgehammer co-written and performed by rihanna who was a huge star trek fan from an early age the post-production process for star trek beyond was intensive involving a team of four editors and justin lin allegedly only sleeping in three hour bursts the finish line was in sight but only a month before the film's release the cast and crew were struck with another tragedy [Music] on the 19th of june actor anton yelchin was found dead at his los angeles home the victim of a freak car accident he was only 27. tributes from cast members friends family and colleagues soon emerged by all accounts yeltsin was a deeply intelligent and kind person whose talents promised a bright future ahead among the tributes the fan community of the mmorpg star trek online created a memorial plaque for yeltsin alongside late star trek figures leonard nimoy james dewan deforest kelly and gene roddenberry in october 2017 a bronze statue was erected at his grave it is a bittersweet morning because one we're here with anton we're here for antonin too he's not here with us but it really alleviates my heart to know that we're gonna keep him alive we're gonna keep all that he was um full of which was life we're gonna keep remembering that and in hopes that by practicing all the things that he believed in and remembering all the love that he gave us and all the joy that he gave us the short time that he was with us that we're able to just keep him here with us i'm grateful every day that i'm on set this is what i do and i love it very much and i'm always with my friends and it's been the loveliest thing i just i'm so grateful because they're such good people and there's so much fun to be around and they make me happy [Music] for the finished film justin lin and jj abrams dedicated star trek beyond to the memories of both leonard nimoy and anton yelchin the movie was released on the 22nd of july 2016. when it comes to ranking this era of star trek movies star trek 2009 and star trek beyond keep switching places as to which one is my favorite either way star trek beyond is easily one of the best big screen outings for the franchise a colorful action-packed adventure which successfully balances the pulpy fun with thematic exploration it's certainly as flashy as the previous two films but justin lin and steven f winden lend the movie their own unique visual style the handheld camera dutch angles and lens flares are all gone instead of the grittiness jj abrams gave his star trek films star trek beyond is sleek and vibrant i love how much more colorful this movie is especially the redesigned warp effect i love these big sweeping or twisting camera moves throughout the film the way the enterprise is shot is so different and innovative compared to the previous movies just like with star trek 2009 this is star trek viewed through a brand new lens and it's most welcome there's also lots to like when it comes to the art direction i think this version of the classic uniforms are far more successful than the preceding films the slightly slimmed down enterprise brings it closer to its original silhouette and starbase yorktown is simply spellbinding to look at michael jacquino's score is similarly exceptional all three of his star trek scores are great but this one might be my favorite i love the little references to previous composers and there's plenty of arresting new themes as well the arrival at yorktown track is just stunningly beautiful the main theme is also worked into many of the action sequences nicely especially during the destruction of the enterprise it's frankly difficult to come up with new things to say about this score which doesn't also apply to the previous two but aquino's work on star trek has comfortably resulted in three of the best soundtracks in the entire franchise as well as a visual revamp this time around the characters have gone through a change as well chris pine's kirk has moved past his juvenile arrogance and is now much closer to the seasoned captain of the original series this film essentially completes a larger arc this version of kirk has been going through since the first movie star trek 2009 saw kirk stepping up to the plate to live up to his potential into darkness saw him confront the realities of command and star trek beyond sees kirk truly commit to the ideals of starfleet and the federation on his own terms it's really satisfying to see pine portray a more matured captain kirk though his stint riding a dirt bike still shows as he has that rebellious spirit at heart in contrast to kirk i feel like krall is quite an underrated character among the pantheon of star trek villains idris elba does what he does best in presenting us with a character with a tough outer shell but a more sympathetic core the twist of kral in fact being a former mako turned starfleet captain is pretty damn effective and turns a generic alien brute into a tragic figure my only gripe with the character is that we don't get to see more of him there's a lot of dramatic material to exploit with balthazar edison but this movie only scratches the surface while some trek fans balked at the idea of a director known for the fast and furious films helming this movie beyond showcases his talents for revealing character through action while kirk may take center stage the whole ensemble is used well spock and mccoy get some of their best scenes together in this movie packed with plenty of laughs and heartfelt moments and while chekov uhuru sulu and scotty don't have as much to do dramatically they never feel idle they're always active in the plot discovering new clues as to krall's larger plan or providing invaluable help to the main trio jayla partly steals the show from the regulars though she's a terrific character with a breakout performance from sophia boutella her design is instantly iconic and she is resourceful courageous but also funny and endearing essentially a child who has been forced to grow up too fast with their own compelling character arc woven into the film the narrative themes aren't as clearly signposted as previous track films but they're just as rich this is a story which really examines the core ideals of the bright future star trek presents us with edison's greatest flaw is his inability to imagine the very future star trek depicts for him humanity is one set thing and changing that is truly terrifying to him and while this fear is acknowledged kirk himself unsure of the end goal of his five-year mission the events of beyond ultimately demonstrate the strengths of diversity of learning from one another and working together the miraculous star base yorktown serving as the symbol of federation peace and prosperity these ideas are explored primarily through the plotting and visuals rather than long moralizing speeches but it's just as effective it's also fitting to re-examine these ideas for star trek's 50th anniversary thankfully the other callbacks never spiral into shallow fan servers and instead exist in the film as touching tributes to star trek's larger legacy folding in leonard nimoy's passing into the in-universe death of spock and the parting gift of the original cast photograph is sincerely moving while i think beyond could have done with another editing pass to slow its breakneck pace for all its story beats to properly land overall this is a fantastic big screen outing for the franchise and a fitting commemoration of the 50th anniversary it's a bright and colorful outer space thrill ride boasting some incredible action set pieces and visual spectacle but it's also an earnest celebration of the star trek legacy driven by a great cast of characters both regular and newcomers this was really what i wanted out of a star trek movie for years for a franchise which is characterized by going boldly exploring strange new worlds and seeking out new life most star trek movies largely confine themselves to political plots taking place inside the federation star trek beyond is really the only film which actually charts brand new territory and gives us that blockbuster version of an original series episode we trackies have been clamoring for this is a large part of why star trek beyond is my go-to star trek movie while entries like the wrath of khan are arguably better written and directed for me beyond perfectly embodies that spirit of adventure which first captured my imagination as a child better than any other big screen outing which is why despite its flaws this is easily one of my favorites [Music] upon release star trek beyond was met with a positive reception from critics and audiences praise was given to the film's visuals action and characterization beyond was also well received by star trek fans in general with even some of the previous film's detractors being won over by its tos vibe unfortunately however this positive reception did not translate to box office success the marketing campaign for the movie was widely criticized the initial teaser trailer was far too fast paced and reliant on action rather than emphasizing the story the destruction of the enterprise is just thrown up on screen given no dramatic weight as it should have been the second trailer while much better was released only two months before the film's debut it felt more like a mad scramble to snag moviegoers than a coordinated campaign the fan event at paramount studios was well received but the my star trek story videos in which random celebrities talked about their love for star trek generated little interest and later tv spots even spoiled the twist of kral actually being human the release date was also extremely crowded placing the movie in direct competition with ghostbusters jason bourne and suicide squad a september release actually closer to the 50th anniversary date would have been much less crowded there was also a feeling of the film's thunder having been stolen somewhat in the previous video i mentioned how this series of star trek movies began at a time where author director-driven blockbuster trilogies were all the rage but by 2016 the movie landscape had transformed every major studio was now chasing the interconnected cinematic universe many moviegoers in 2016 were saving their money for the highly anticipated batman v superman dawn of justice and captain america civil war coupled with the overwhelming hype for star wars return to the big screen and star trek beyond was effectively left in the lurch on a 185 million dollar budget star trek beyond a grossed 343 million worldwide when marketing and other costs are factored in it's estimated the movie lost around 50 million dollars that being said star trek movies have been in this position before with much worse box office numbers and a far more negative critical and audience reception in fact positive word of mouth has led to strong home media sales for the movie since its initial release the possibility of a dedicated audience still being out there is a big reason why a fourth entry in the kelvin timeline movie series has been in development ever since beyond's release at the time of writing tentative plans for chris pine zachary quinto and the other cast members to return for a fourth film have only just been announced it's yet to be seen how all of this will pan out while various writers and directors have toiled over the next star trek movie since the release of star trek beyond the star trek franchise returned to the small screen with a slate of new shows at the time of writing all of these shows are still running and so it wouldn't make much sense to include them in this retrospective series however i've seen a few people asking about my thoughts on these shows so i thought i'd give a quick rundown here the first of these shows star trek discovery is one i've really come to like it definitely took some time to find its feet but seasons three and four have been fantastic much like the early seasons of the next generation i feel like discovery took a while to really figure out its characters and settle into being its own thing initially michael burnham was the focus of the show and while i really like the character and said nico martin green's performance i'm happy to see the recent seasons give some more focus to the rest of the cast i've been a big fan of doug jones for a long time and so for me suru is easily the breakout character of the series i'm looking forward to seeing how this season wraps up and where the show will go next the long-anticipated return of patrick stewart to the role of jean-luc picard has also been largely successful i think it was an excellent creative choice to really take this iconic character in a new direction we already had seven seasons and four movies of picard being a starship captain and so seeing him go off on some post starfleet adventures has been very refreshing i've also enjoyed seeing jerry ryan return as seven of nine and i find the new characters very compelling while i think season 1 had a very rushed climax the return of q and some timey why me shenanigans has me intrigued for season 2. star trek's second animated outing lower decks might just be my favorite out of the bunch it took me quite a few episodes to really get hooked but i think it's just brilliant it feels like a treat for die-hard trackies but based on what my non-trekkie friends tell me it's also a fun watch for people who aren't as familiar with the franchise while it's often bizarre and a little crude the emphasis on the characters and their relationships makes it a rewarding and strangely wholesome viewing experience star trek prodigy is still one i'm catching up on but i've enjoyed what i've seen thus far it's a show aimed at a younger audience and so not all of the humor gels with me but this is still a series adults can have a good time watching visually it might be the most impressive looking of the modern shows the animated medium is really utilized to its fullest to give us some eye candy i've heard the show just gets better and better with each episode and so i'm excited to catch up with everyone else until then i'm trying to steer clear of spoilers the latest series strange new worlds is yet to premiere but i'm very excited for that as well anson mount as captain pike was the true highlight of discovery season 2 so i'm keen to see more of this great character as well as ethan peck spock and rebecca romain's number one but for now we've reached the end of this star trek retrospective series i wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone who has watched these videos this series has been a bigger success than i ever imagined it's basically thanks to this video series i've been able to make this my full-time job and while this is my last star trek retrospective it's certainly not the last retrospective review series i'm going to make these videos have been a lot of work but i've also thoroughly enjoyed making them and considering i made these videos partly to improve on my older reviews it only makes sense to continue the trend therefore i'll be giving some other movies and tv shows the same treatment i've already announced babylon 5 as the subject of my next retrospective review but there's plenty more to come on battlestar galactica stargate mass effect red dwarf farscape galaxy quest the matrix dune and even superman alongside these retrospectives i'll also be checking out some older shows like blake 7 ufo and many more of my companion show hidden gems so make sure you're subscribed to stay up to date with all of that you can also follow me on twitter and discord using the links down below and if you'd like to support the channel more you can join my patreon or youtube members to see videos early until next time i thank you again and i'll say have a good one and as always live long and prosper [Music] you

Channel: Rowan J Coleman

Views: 117,439

Keywords: star trek, star trek beyond, star trek movie, star trek retrospective, star trek retrospective review, star trek beyond retrospective review, star trek beyond review, star trek the original series, star trek the next generation, star trek deep space nine, star trek voyager, star trek enterprise, star trek 2009, star trek into darkness, star trek discovery, star trek picard, star trek lower decks, star trek prodigy, star trek strange new worlds, rowan j coleman

Id: 9cKcXe2rGRI

Length: 28min 35sec (1715 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 13 2022