Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Live long and prosper

A few weeks ago I declined an invitation to a rare Chicago preview of J.J. Abrams' new "reboot" of the Star Trek franchise. I passed because (i) I've never been into Star Trek, (ii) it was a weeknight, (iii) I was overtired as usual, and (iv) I've been burned too many times devoting an evening to an overbooked screening (translation: you have to get there an hour early) in an inconvenient-to-me downtown theater, only to have a "meh" reaction and wish in hindsight I could get those five hours back.

Apparently I picked the wrong movie to skip, because all I've heard since is how excellent it was. Friends who've seen it are raving about it, early press reports are enthusiastic, and this morning the entire Howard Stern Show crew gushed about loving their screening yesterday, Trekkies and Muggles alike.

I had the chance to meet J.J. Abrams last fall and really enjoyed talking to the guy, so this time my hindsight is passer's remorse. I wish I'd supported J.J. by attending his screening, not that he would have made any money off me, or for that matter needs my help getting the word out.

I'm happy he's got another winner on his hands; he's easy to get behind with all the high-quality TV and movies he's brought us. Plus, on a personal level, he always represents with smart, funny, self-effacing appearances like his impromptu visit to the Stern show today. What's not to like?

I recommend a lot of pop culture around here, but usually it's something I've seen and/or previewed for Flavorpill. In this case, I've done neither, but there's a critical mass of opinion building. So take it not from me, but everyone else: apparently the new Star Trek is the movie to see.

1 comment:

Jenny Blair said...

"Trekkies and Muggles" -- heheh!