Growing up my friends would ask, “Are you a Star Wars fan or are you a Star Trek fan?” This question was always hard for me to answer, because in essence I was both. The original Star Wars movies were thoroughly enjoyable and I have come to like most of the newer franchise offerings. I also enjoyed the Star Trek TV series, and only liked the Star Trek movies. It was a case of Star Trek offered more for my imagination as a TV series, and Star Wars offered more as feature films.

Not much has changed in my opinion. Star Trek needs time for you to become invested in its characters. To the point where you want to be a part of the Enterprise crew, to understand them. Whereas with Star Wars you want action, and predictable characters, you know who the good guys are and who the bad guys are. When Paramount Pictures released the next instalment of the Star Trek franchise, I was excited but a bit apprehensive, about the portrayal of these well-known characters.

Star Trek Beyond continues the story of Captain Kirk (Chris Pine, Horrible Bosses 2) and his crew aboard the iconic USS Enterprise. After many adventures the Starship Enterprise finally has some downtime. The crew earns some rest and relaxation at the Federation Star Base of Yorktown. Sometime during their stay, Yorktown receives a distress call from a lone spaceship requesting immediate assistance to recover crew which crashed on a planet in an uncharted Nebula. Captain Kirk and his crew are once again called to duty to rescue the missing crew, because of the Enterprise’s capabilities.

Whilst charting their course through the Nebula, the USS Enterprise is attacked and boarded by a large alien force led by the formidable Krall (Idris Elba, Mandella: Long Walk to Freedom). Unable to stop the invasion, Captain Kirk sounds the call to abandon ship. The crew eject in the escape pods to make their way to the planet’s surface. Before they make it to land, Krall’s ships start capturing the pods to enslave the Enterprise crew.

Only three pod groups escape. Scotty, Enterprise’s Chief Engineer (Simon Pegg, Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation) finds himself alone before encountering Jaylah (Sofia Boutella, Kingmen: The Secret Service) a previous alien victim of Krall’s aggression and ambition. Jaylah and Scotty agree to help each other, by recovering Scotty’s crew of the Enterprise in return of fixing Jaylah’s ship. The second group of 1st Officer Spock (Zachary Quinto, Heroes) and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Bones (Karl Urban, The Bourne Supremacy) try to work together to find Captain Kirk and the others. Finally of course there is Captain Kirk himself and Chekov. (Played by the late actor Anton Yelchin who tragically died in a motor vehicle accident in June 2016).

Star Trek Beyond, directed by Justin Lin, is a good but not an outstanding film. It offers Star Trek fans another instalment into the lives of Captain T Kirk and his ever reliable crew. Watch out for the dedication to Leonard Nimoy, the original Spock in the TV series. It will honour his memory indefinitely. The cinematography is well done and the combination of animated action sequences with live motion is seamless.

Justin Lin’s direction, and telling of this story is okay. There is clearly a beginning, middle and end to the story. If you’ve seen many of the series episodes it is a well recycled storyline in regards to Star Trek, as it is their tried and true formula.

It might be me, but I do struggle with the rehash of the classic characters. My life has been so ingrained with the original series cast. So when you see reference to the older characters, I seem to struggle to work through it. If you are new to the Star Trek franchise then I am sure you will learn to enjoy these characters and I hope you will love them like so many other Star Trek fans have done before you.

Rating 1-10 ( 1 = very poor, 10 = excellent)

Cinematography/Animation = 7
Storyline = 6
Characters & Acting = 6

Overall = 6.5

When I received these tickets in the mail, I knew straight away who in my family would want to come along to see this film with me, my youngest teenage daughter MacKenzie. Like me, MacKenzie loves to go to the movies and see as many new release films as she can fit into her hectic schedule. So when I asked her if she wanted to go to see the film she jumped at the chance.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, is the second installment of this film franchise, with the usual characters returning, the four turtles, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo, led by their rat sensei Splinter, Again these crime fighting superheroes are pitted against the evil Foot clan led by their infamous leader, the deadly Shredder (Brian Tee, The Wolverine).

In this story, the Foot clan break Shredder out of gaol during a prison transfer, in doing this they also release two other prisoners, Bebop (Gary Anthony Williams, The Internship) and Rocksteady (Stephen Farrelly, better known as WWF wrestler Seamus O’Shaunessy)  who end up joining as Shredder’s henchmen. Whilst this is occurring investigative reporter April O’Neil played by Megan Fox (Transformers), is trying to unravel what the evil scientific genius Baxter Stockman (Tyler Perry) is up to. During an altercation at Baxter Stockman’s laboratory O’Neil steals a serum and during her escape runs into Stephen Amell (Arrow) who plays prison guard Casey Jones, who also happened to be the driver of the prison transport vehicle that Shredder, Bebop and Rocksteady escaped from. Casey Jones helps April and the teen-aged turtles to bring the Foot clan down once again.

Full of action with well composed animated sequences, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, is a  visual treat. My daughter loved it, especially the well-timed comedic lines that super cool Michelangelo delivers. In my opinion, I believe that this film can be reviewed from two aspects, a teenagers point of view and an adults point of view. After speaking with my daughter, she loved how the movie’s action sequences flowed well.  Therefore, children and teenagers won’t become bored with the rehashed story line. Yet, it’s not about that for children, it’s about the fact that teenagers can do anything if they put their minds to it….they can save the world from evil doers. They don’t have to be teenage mutant ninja turtles to do it, so that is a good message that these characters gives to our children.

From my point of view, there is a lot to like about the special effects, animated constructed scenes and development of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles concept, as these turtles have been around since 1984. The addition of Bebop and Rocksteady was also an additional walk down memory lane, but the story line is the same! The turtles, trying to beat the Foot clan without the rest of the world knowing about them, and still being cool teenagers in the process.   The characters and the background stories are pretty shallow, there is some push back between the turtle brothers, showing that character relationships and brotherly competitiveness, but the rest of the characters stories are really just peripheral to their involvement in this film.

So, if you are contemplating going to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, and are teenagers yourselves, go your hardest, you’ll really enjoy it. Same goes if you have a young family, the wide-eyed looks from your children, will make the movie worthwhile, because they will watch it with an open mind and fall in love with the turtles. Unfortunately, as an adult you will not be too fussed, if you see it or not. Don’t get me wrong, you will enjoy it, but you won’t be bragging to your friend’s and colleagues the next day.

Rating 1-10 ( 1 = very poor, 10 = excellent)

Cinematography & Animation = 8
Storyline = 4
Characters & Acting = 5
Setting & Costume Design = 8

Overall = 6