KOOL TV REVIEW: 'STAR TREK - INTO DARKNESS' BLU-RAY

Harbinger of death! Superhuman, super-intellect Khan (Benedict Cumberbatch) sends STAR TREK: INTO DARKNESS. Images: PARAMOUNT.

Warping past the previous eleven films of the popular to become the all-round world box office planet smasher, the late Gene Roddenberry would proud to see his STAR TREK creation continue to make an impact with fans and audiences as it nears its fiftieth anniversary. J. J. Abrams is now the master of the space-faring U.S.S. Enterprise and the handling of all the iconic characters and shipmates under the command of Chris Pine's bold young hothead with a heart, Captain James T. Kirk, as they face the blunt force dangers and razor-sharp villainy of Earth's warrior past, in the form of biologically refined, intellectually primed terrorist Khan (played by the UK's rising star, SHERLOCK's Benedict Cumberbatch, at his coldest and fiercest yet-still proving to Hollywood that old idiom that Brits make for superior baddies) and go INTO DARKNESS, out today from PARAMOUNT on lavish 3D and 2D Blu-ray and digital copy, as well as reliable old DVD.

Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) face a unique threat to Starfleet.

▶ Star Trek Into Darkness BluRay Trailer HD - YouTube

Maintaining the re-imagined traditions of their earlier, previous 2008 critically acclaimed, let's make STAR TREK cool again smash hit, Abrams directs proceedings with confident vigour and ingenuity, with a full grasp of the narrative and bringing out the best in his actors- there's certainly never a dull moment- from the fiery opening as the ever evolving relationship, and eventual friendship of Kirk and Vulcan Science Officer Spock (a more settled in Zachary Quinto) sees them at their most emotional and emotionally restrained, having to save a primitive culture from volcanic extinction in the films fun opening, to a sterling high-speed, high-stakes aerial and rooftop chase through the 23rd century version of San Francisco- the heart and home to a battle ravaged Starfleet command- its peaceful and Utopian control of the galaxy now on very shaky turf after Khan's first revenge-fuelled, building shaking sneak attack. Nods to the TREK of old get some nice new time in the sun (especially some of the history made by the criminally under-rated DEEP SPACE NINE), with a little trip to the new-look Klingon Empire along the way, whilst new character additions include pretty Alice Eve as dedicated scientist, and likely long-term girlfriend of Jim Kirk, Dr. Carol Marcus, who generally fits well into proceedings. Disappointingly, though, with all the extra stars and characters (including an impressive Peter Weller as a Federation Admiral with a secret to protect), legendary old favourites Bones McCoy (Karl Urban), Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and Sulu (John Cho) have very little to do, especially the latter, which is a shame since John Cho made such an impressive entrance in the first re-imagined TREK. Here's hoping that the next TREK film isn't too far off to even the scales a bit more for them. Sexy Zoe Saldana continues to be a great, sassy Uhura, even though her character seems to spend a lot of the movie having a strop with Spock, though Simon Pegg's interpretation of venerable Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott continues to nauseate...

Time heals no wounds for the sinister Khan (Benedict Cumberbatch)

Writers/fans Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Damon Lindelof cleverly invert and re-invent certain characters, situations and sequences from the fans previous torch bearer STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, though INTO DARKNESS lacks the strong and heartstrings pulling edge that Nicholas Meyer and Harve Bennett earlier brought to the franchise with their now iconic and still seemingly hard to topple 1982 movie for William Shatner and co.. ILM's special effects innovations though, remain as superb as ever, especially in 3D with the aforementioned volcanic opening and a later tense Horatio Hornblower-esque battle between the Enterprise and a huge, technically superior dreadnought capable of outrunning them and devastating them with more powerful weaponry. And what happens after that....well, we'll not spoil it for you!

Battle stations for Kirk and Lt. Sulu (John Cho).

Alice Eve joins the crew as Dr. Carol Marcus.

Extras wise, there's not the heavy amount that made the 2008 TREK such a winner (obviously being saved for a bigger, future release), and Boo! to the lack of an audio commentary (only available online, and to pay separately for, in the US), but five varying length featurettes prove most welcome: Creating the Red Planet, Attack on Starfleet, The Klingon Home World, The Enemy of My Enemy, Ship to Ship, and Brawl by the Bay, all showing the dedicated, yet also fun-loving cast and crew ambitiously turning the scripted page to celluloid and wanting to provide a film as good and exciting as their previous one...

Little alien Keenser (Deep Roy) has fun with future STAR WARS director J.J. Abrams.

▶ 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Blu-ray Bonus: Brawl by the Bay - YouTube
▶ Star Trek Into Darkness - Behind The Scenes B-Roll 1 - YouTube

KOOL TV RATING: We're hoping for far more originality in story and character depth for our heroes with their next scripted adventure, as our heroes begin their first five year mission exploring and patrolling the universe, but INTO DARKNESS has all the necessary and often dazzling bells, whistles, bangs and crashes for your bucks to make it a worthy addition to your TREK library and overall movie collection. 

Making waves! The sea-faring U.S.S. Enterprise...

Previous KOOL TV review of INTO DARKNESS in its cinema release earlier in 2013: KOOL TV REVIEW: 'STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS'

Get hold of INTO DARKNESS here: Star Trek Into Darkness Blu-ray 3D + Blu-ray + Digital Copy Region Free: Amazon.co.uk: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoe Saldana, J.J. Abrams: Film & TV

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