Star Trek Into Darkness 
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Benedict Cumberbatch, Anton Yelchin, Bruce Greenwood, Alice Eve
Directed by J.J. Abrams
Written By Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman & Damon Lindelof
Rated: PG-13
Run Time: 132 mins
Genre: Action/ Adventure/ Sci-Fi
Opens May 16th
By Lisa Minzey of The Reel Critic.com
Hey Phoenix Film Fans! Opening this week is the eagerly anticipated sequel to the 2009 Star Trek film, "Star Trek Into Darkness" directed by J.J. Abrams, starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Zaldana and Benedict Cumberbatch. How does it fare to the previous film? Read on to find out...
Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) can't seem to catch a break. Instead of a promotion to a newer, larger and better ship, Mr. Spock (Zachary Quinto) files a report that gets him demoted, resulting in Spock's reassignment to another ship. Yet, when an attack from within the Starfleet results in multiple casualties, Kirk, Spock and the rest of the enterprise crew is assigned to track down the ruthless criminal wherever he is hiding in the galaxy.
What makes J.J. Abrams' films so much fun to watch is that there is so much mystery surrounding the plot, the experience of the film is generally fresh, exciting and thrilling. With that being said, I will attempt to keep this review as spoiler free as possible. Helming the script are the brilliant screenwriters Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof, you know, the guys that brought us such intelligent and amazing shows such as "Fringe", "Alias" and "Lost". The story this time around delves more into the characters and Whoever thought of bringing on Benedict Cumberbatch (so much fun to say) as Khan was a brilliant casting move as his performance is hypnotic and chilling. The rest of the cast seems to have more chemistry and flows seamlessly this time around, and it was great to see that Simon Pegg's Scotty had more screen time. The cinematography is gorgeous, and the use of 3D technology is rather exciting as there were a few time that I found myself jumping and dodging in my seat to avoid what I saw in my 3D glasses. Overall this is a great follow up to the first film and another fantastic film to check out this summer blockbuster season. Check out "Star Trek Into Darkness" when it opens up in theaters nationwide starting Thursday May 16, 2013.
