Christian Teens Movie Review: Star Trek (2009)

While not always a perfect movie from a morality standpoint, it is fun and shows the struggle to do the right thing.

Star Trek never looked so good. A fresh new look to the series, J.J. Abrams takes moviegoers where no Star Trek fan has gone before...to the beginning. This is not your parent's Star Trek, and that is actually a good thing.

In this telling, Abrams takes the fan back to the beginning for the original Star Trek characters. We learn about James T. Kirk's and Spock's upbringings. We see them as youngsters struggling to find their place in the world. And these aren't your average teens and young adults. This is no story about how the average guy rises above his abilities. These are smart, young, and motivated young people who not only want to make a difference, but want to make names for themselves.

The action and adventure, while fun, are just an enhancement to a character driven movie. Sure, the scenes in space are like a roller coaster ride, but it is the relationships being developed between characters that pushes the movie forward. It is Spock's young struggle between his logical Vulcan side and his emotional human side that keep you intrigued. It is Kirk's desire to overcome his father's shadow and meet a large challenge that has you sitting on the edge of your seat.

Still, the movie is not without some moral flaws. There is a reason it is PG-13. It does have some sexual content and there are double entendres in more than a few spots. There is also some physical violence with hand-to-hand fighting as well as space age firepower. Plus there is the concept that the Romulans would like to destroy entire planets full of living beings, which they do. There is also some foul language and alcohol use is prominent.

In the end, though, Star Trek is a fun ride. Despite a few moral questions for Christian teens, it is a movie that promotes positive attributes like courage and compassion over everything else.