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The Tribal Mind: Where everyone has gone before
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by David Dale
APOTHEOSIS is not a word that should be used in a column about popular culture, but there's no other way to say this: the new Star Trek movie is the apotheosis of 21st century storytelling. It exemplifies and exalts everything we love and hate about mass entertainment. It will be the focus of study by anthropologists for decades to come -- even those anthropologists who hate science fiction.
In the 1980s, producers developed The Theory Of The Three Ds to explain what every successful blockbuster needs: Destruction of property, Disrespect for authority, and Dirty jokes.
For Star Trek, the Ds are barely the beginning. There's self-referential irony; shameless product placement; a plot that scrupulously follows the "Hero's Journey" formula (reluctant protagonist called to adventure, mentor, funny friends encountered on the road, symbolic death and resurrection, etc); an Australian villain; inter-species intercourse; very loud explosions; fights in bars; girls in bras; surprise guest stars; hundreds of in-jokes; and special effects that look unfinished, as if the producers were rushing to a deadline determined by when US high school students start their summer break.
In short in matters cultural, creative and commercial, it is the very model of a modern major motion picture.
One reference alone made it worth the price of admission for me. I won't spoil the surprise, but I venture to predict it might join in public memory the most resonant line in 20th century sci-fi -- Darth Vader's revelation to Luke Skywalker towards the end of The Empire Strikes Back. It provoked yelps of delight in the cinema where I joined the half a million Australians who saw Star Trek last week.
Another reason to welcome the success of the new Star Trek is that it might encourage a reprint of one of the most insightful books of the early 90s. Back then there was a fad for little tomes that sought to encapsulate life lessons in brisk pronouncements. The fad started with a book called All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, which offered such comforts as "Don't Hit people"; "Share everything"; "Play fair"; and "Put things back where you found them". Then came All I Really Need To Know I Learned from My Cat (Get mad when you're stepped on; Be mysterious; Find the sunny places; When all else fails, take a nap).
I lent someone my copy of the next in the series, All I Really Need to Know I Learned From Watching Star Trek, by Dave Marinaccio, so I'm paraphrasing from memory: The unknown is not to be feared, it is to be understood; Always answer a distress signal; Don't interfere in other people's business, unless it's to stop them interfering in other people's business; If you mess something up, it's your responsibility to make it right again; Always question the pronouncements of authority figures, especially when they claim to be god; With a little understanding, enemies can turn into friends.
Marinaccio rates Captain James T. Kirk as an efficient manager (despite a certain impetuousness) because he has spelled out a clear mission statement for his staff (to boldly go, etc) and he always makes it clear who is in charge at any moment ("Mr Spock, you have the bridge").
Not all of this wisdom is displayed in the new Star Trek, but these are early days. By the seventh prequel, the media-savvy teenagers of today will be equipped with all the idealism, enthusiasm and ethical values they need to make the 2020s the greatest decade in human history. Not many movie franchises can make that claim.
What do you reckon?
David Dale is the author of Who We Are -- A snapshot of Australia today (Allen and Unwin). For daily updates on Australian attitudes, bookmark http://blogs.sunherald.com.au/whoweare.
COMMENTS
Wow, have you gone esoteric all of a sudden or what? Fantastic review. I think you've really hit the nail on the head. The film was really enjoyable, although more emotionally than intellectually. The kind of film where you walk out feeling good afterwards but 10 minutes later can't actually remember the plot.
As for your statement that, "Not all of this wisdom is displayed in the new Star Trek" I'd say that none of it is. Very little Trekkian morality was in the film, although I would argue this is necessary for a post-Guantanemo era. I think audiences don't want to see an example of how we should treat the "Other" when we all know we've just come out of a stage of torturing and killing people just because they're different. I think we'll have the guts to go back down this path when the Obama years are more advanced. Maybe in the next film?
Oh and yeah, Spock is hot. How could I forget that more important point? Yowsa!
- by genfie on May 16, 2009 at 08:54 AM
I loved the clever twist that enabled the re-imagining (re-imaging??) of Trek. The whole series of Enterprise is sitting on the shelf and we just can't bring ourselves to watch it, it seems like hard work. But this film was fun, fun, fun. I was not bored for a single moment, even on the second viewing. I think it parallels the 'new' Doctor Who, offering tiny morsels of remembered series to loyal fans and lots of sexy plot and characters for the new fans.
- by 2paw on May 16, 2009 at 01:23 PM
Warning - heavy spoilers:
Many reviewers complain that the plot twist in the latest movie is based on implausible coincidences. But we know Abrams is a smart guy. We know he's planning a lot of movies based on this thing. So no way does Nero "wait around for 25 years". No way does Nero beam Spock-Prime (SP) down to the ice-world to watch Vulcan die far away from where Nero can watch SP suffer. And no way does SP meet Kirk-Pine by "accident" in that ice cave.
Conclusion: SP lies.
Think about it. SP knows about 15 different ways to travel through time. Heck they did that just for shits and grins back in TOS. He knows where the city on the edge of forever is. Not to mention slingshotting around the sun in the fourth movie and about a dozen "temporal anomaly" shticks from TNG.
But SP also knows that time travel just killed Vulcan. Even ignoring the "red matter", SP knows that when madmen from alternate universes can just come zipping back through time any moment, no warning, and blow up half the federation, that's not a good thing.
SP doesn't want to promote time travel technology to the TOS federation. He wants to make it didn't happen ever again. So he lies. So what's the truth?
Obviously Nero did not hang around 25 years carefully shaving his stubble to the same length over and over. Nero did some math to figure out when/where SP was coming and time-travelled to meet him. Then he forced SP to watch Vulcan implode all the while doing the usual self-righteous-Romulan thing SP has seen only too many times.
Leaving an apparently emotionally devastated SP to stew, Nero sets about unsuccessfully plagiarizing Khan on Captain Pike, but can't figure out where to put the mind-slug. SP nerve-pinches his guards and runs for the transporters. Can't beam to Vulcan ... but there's an ice-world in the system that SP knows only too well from growing up next door. He scans for a place to hide from Nero and while he's at it he detects a set of very familiar life-signs.
Realizing Kirk-Pine is about to become something's breakfast SP beams down just about 1 second before we actually see him. ...
No coincidences. Just a cutesy set-up for the next flick in which, I guess, the Borg turn up demanding the red-matter technology. And maybe get fought off using genesis-bombs or something ...
Fun!
- by Peter Merel on May 17, 2009 at 10:41 AM
hey i just want to know what reviewer thought was "One reference alone made it worth the price of admission for me"..so which was it? there were many fabulous one-liners. it was a great movie, I laughed..many times . which i wasn't expecting to do..but i still want to know what the reviewer thought that one reference was...it was all good
Tribal Mind replies: It was the twist on the Darth Vader line.
- by Suzi on May 17, 2009 at 07:52 PM
I agree - I was not a trek fan untilI saw this movie and loved it and eagerly await any further movies
P.S Genfie I am with you on the hot-spock thing! Wasn't expecting that one.
- by Louise on May 17, 2009 at 10:18 PM
"The whole series of Enterprise is sitting on the shelf and we just can't bring ourselves to watch it, it seems like hard work."
It is hard work, 2paw. I only got through two seasons. It's the characters; they're really blokey and unlikeable. The only decent female character walks around in a skin-tight suit and writhes sometimes. I'd prefer to sit down with some Next Gen or Voyager.
- by genfie on May 18, 2009 at 07:01 AM
Saw the movie on Fri night. Loved it! Thought there was just enough old ST lore to keep the old fans happy, whilst not boring the new ones or making them sratch their heads.
Abrams was very smart in having the whole time travel theme happening cause in this way he can reinvent the whole story as Nero changed the past thus changing the characters future. Also opening the way for a whole bunch of new films. Anyone think that eventually they will find a way to stop go forward in time or back or something and stop Nero blowing up Vulcan? (the whole planet blowing up thing was so Star Wars!)
And I must admit to a few tears in the eyes when Spock said the line you mentioned. Just classic Trek and should be part of popular culture.
I have always loved Trek. I think the thing that always got me in was the whole positive thing that no matter what happens to us now, the human race has a wonderful future. Gene Roddenberry had this positive view of the future and I think that is what captured the imagination of so many people.
Sure the new film sticks to the tried and true forumla of most movies but that is ok. We all love the heroes journey and what better heroes are there than that magical crew of the Enterprise?
And loved Zachary as the new Spock. He was born for that role. Are we sure he's not Leonard Nimoy's love child? He is so perfect, looks so much like him it is almost uncanny. And boy , is he sexy! Kirk the ladies man? Give me those pointed ears anytime!
Tribal Mind asks: But what was changed about the ST universe, compared with the original? Certain matters re Spock's mother and planet, yes. Anything else noticed by anyone?
- by em on May 18, 2009 at 08:14 AM
TM, there are a lot of inconsistentcies that I could mention but it would take too long. The main thing that I found a bit hard to take was really the whole romance with Spock and Uhura. On the old series they hardly ever spoke let alone had a romance. Anyway, according to the ST universe, Vulcans are only interested in sex every 7 years when they go through a thing called the Pon Farr.
During this time the urge to mate is so overwhelming they have to return to Vulcan immediately and they can even die if they can't get to their mate. They are usually bonded in childhood with a mate. Talk about your arranged marriage!
There was an ep in the old series when Spock went through the Pon Farr and Kirk and McCoy got him back to Vulcan only to find Spock's intended didn't want him.Under Vulcan law she had the right to pick her champion to fight on her behalf, if her champion won she didnt have to stay bonded to him. She picked Kirk to fight for her and Spock had to fight Kirk and nearly killed him. After the fight Spock became normal again after the blood lust was satisfied by the fight. He left Vulcan with Kirk and Mccoy and as far as Trek lore goes, never married or had another Vulcan mate. What he did at subsequent Pon Farr time I don't know as it never came up in any of the movies.
So the whole romance angle in the new film is bit annoying really and I can't quite understand why they thought it necessary to put that in the film. It would have been just as good without it and really had nothing to do with the story.
And now that I have confirmed my status as a Trekkie nerd I shall shut up!
Tribal Mind asks: Are you sure you're not confusing ST with Futurama?
- by em on May 18, 2009 at 01:11 PM
TM, More like Futurama stole ideas from ST. Or sent it up . Reading my last entry back I see how silly it sounds. But that's what I love about sci fi. The silly and ridiculous sometimes sounds plausible. Or I'm just gullible. Whatever.
- by em on May 19, 2009 at 07:44 AM
They actually did that story in Voyager as well where a Vulcan crew member went into Pon Farr and tried to mate with a Klingon who beat the crap out of him. The "trial by conduct" purged the Pon Farr.
- by genfie on May 19, 2009 at 09:23 AM
...a Vulcan crew member went into Pon Farr and tried to mate with a Klingon who beat the crap out of him. The "trial by conduct" purged the Pon Farr." (wrote genfie)
Who wouldn't want to mate with a Klingon chick?!
In every series where they've appeared, the Klingon women have had awesome bods! A Star Fleet issue bag over any Klingon sheila's head would make interspecies mating not only possible, but as enjoyable as it would be if the same thing was generally acceptable amongst the humans of today...
Not sure I'm appreciating the news that Abrams has pulled out the old "time travel" chestnut that became the 'saviour' for the writers of the Star Trek franchises later series - especially "Enterprise", where the time travel theme became an Achilles Heel. Still; the flick sounds like it is a bit of rollicking good fun, as long as all logic is suspended whilst viewing it!
- by Steve C on May 20, 2009 at 01:29 PM
Star Trek for me will always be the projection of the American psychosis in the age of Pax Americana...
The US is a country that hurtles through dark historic space. Along the way US meets freaky creatures from other planets (Europe, Venezuela, Iraq). These creatures may try to harm us or they may be our friends. We are the good guys. Anybody who opposes us is evil (and ugly). We have no sex on our spaceship and everyone is equal, a reflection of the Puritanism, sexual inhibition and hypocrisy of the US psychosis.
- by SalivatorX on May 23, 2009 at 11:55 AM
by SalivatorX: You raise some valid points.
I'd be more inclined to apply the observation you've made to every human, if they're given the opportunity.
It takes individuals after all to make up the collective - unless we really are "The Borg"...
Went to see the latest Trek flick last night. I didn't pick up on the "blatant" product endorsement that some earlier posters mentioned... I was expecting to see something like a "Rip-Curl" logo on the parachutes Kirk, Sulu and the soon to be dead guy with the charges used to break their fall onto the "drill face" given the mentions that were made.
Maybe it'd be comforting to know that some brands will be around in an age where intergallactic travel is the norm, so if there was a few current brands being touted, like the Nokia in the car young Kirk knicks or softdrink brands or spirits in the bar scene - it's OK by me. If it's annoying to other people that's fine. Big whoop - it's entertainment after all!
Not sure about seeing Sylar... ah; I mean Mr Quinto fail to extend his acting range beyond Sylar-esque facial expressions and vacant yet meaningful stares into space.
And why was Spock - the one from the original movie series that is; carrying enough "red matter" to suck the Universe into oblivion, when he only needed a single drop to do the job intended?
Niggly points. It was good fun. Shame on me for having fun...
- by Steve C on May 27, 2009 at 04:23 PM
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Hey, I've got a copy of "All I Really Needed to Know I Learned From Watching Star Trek". Not that I've read it (I obviously think I know everything I need to know already ;).
And I really enjoyed the movie. It was just big fun, and it was nice seeing a Trek movie that wasn't completely earnest and serious. I wasn't looking to get anything more than some entertainment value for the session, and I was pleasantly entertained.