"Star Trek," JJ Abrams and Wired.

By David Hudson on 04/21/2009

[Updated through 4/22]

JJ Abrams's "Star Trek," opening pretty much worldwide in two weeks, saw its premiere in London last night. It's "a hugely efficient, fast-paced reworking with a spry turn by Chris Pine as James T Kirk - reminiscent of cocky, pre-Angelina Brad Pitt - that has 24-carat star quality," finds the Guardian's Phil Hoad. In fact, overall, "What comes as the real surprise amid the multimillion-dollar storm are the gameness of the performances."

"Putting a much-loved but over-the-hill vehicle back in shape takes more than a new battery and a lick of paint," writes Ray Bennett in the Hollywood Reporter. "It demands a full-bore refit, and that's exactly what JJ Abrams has given 'Star Trek.' Paced at warp speed with spectacular action sequences rendered brilliantly and with a cast so expert that all the familiar characters are instantly identifiable, the film gives Paramount Pictures a new lease of life on its franchise."

"The past five decades have produced five television series and ten films - not all of them successful - so veteran Trekkers had no right to expect such a dazzling and beautiful rebirth," writes Debra Craine in the London Times. "Without sacrificing the majesty of Gene Roddenberry's humanitarian ideals or the humour that is Star Trek's salvation, Abrams's film is a rollicking space adventure that makes you fall in love with the original series all over again."

Yes, "it's a big, long, glossy film," writes Mark Monahan in the Telegraph. "But it's also playful, irreverent and light on its feet, and it knows exactly when to leaven the universe-rescuing with a nice nugget of humour."

"To be honest, the plot is secondary," writes Nick Curtis for the Evening Standard. "What's dazzling is the way the film-makers have taken ownership of a phenomenon."

Meantime, Abrams has edited the May issue of Wired, where he writes about the "Magic of Mystery": "People often ask me how 'Lost' is going to end. I usually tell them to ask Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, who run that series. But I always wonder, do they really want to know? And what if I did tell them? They might have an aha moment, but without context. Especially since the final episode is a year away. That is to say, the experience - the setup for a joke's punch line, the buildup to a magic trick's big flourish - is as much of a thrill as the result. There's discovery to be made and wonder to be had on the journey that not only enrich the ending but in many ways define it."

But back to "Star Trek." Wired's also featuring Paul Pope and K/O's comic "When Worlds Collide: Spock Confronts the Ultimate Challenge."

And Steven Bevacqua is the first reader of this issue to "solve an extensive hidden puzzle embedded throughout the magazine," reports Dave Itzkoff in the New York Times. Besides the games and gimmicks, "Wired wanted Mr Abrams's contributions and sensibility on every page, and devoted the entire magazine to the topic of mystery as a catalyst for imagination (inspired by a lecture given by Mr Abrams at the 2007 TED conference, an annual symposium on technology, entertainment and design): there are articles about a perplexing American landmark called the Georgia Guidestones, how stage magic affects our brain chemistry and how scientists use an online game called Foldit to help determine the structure of proteins."

That lecture's an online viewing tip, by the way.

Update, 4/22: "Blasting onto the screen at warp speed and remaining there for two hours, the new and improved 'Star Trek' will transport fans to sci-fi nirvana," writes Variety's Todd McCarthy. "Faithful enough to the spirit and key particulars of Gene Roddenberry's original conception to keep its torchbearers happy but, more crucially, exciting on its own terms in a way that makes familiarity with the franchise irrelevant, JJ Abrams's smart and breathless space adventure feels like a summer blockbuster that just couldn't stay in the box another month."

[Photo: "Star Trek," Paramount Pictures, 2009]

Tags: Chris Pine, JJ Abrams, Star Trek