4. The Film's Opening Sequence
All I could think of when seeing the opening sequence, set on the planet Niburu, was how Original Series laden it looked and felt to me. It was as if for the first time we all got to see these characters we loved in the old show, running for their lives on a planet that paid homage to the colors, set design and plant life the original series showcased on a lower budget, but yet on a grand scale for once. Overall, it was a feast for the eyes to see a Star Trek film that opens with the original crew actually in the middle of a mission, versus some story about them either getting too old and retiring, or getting assembled at the last minute. You get to see your heroes in their prime, and attempting to save a doomed planet in the process. If nothing else, the shot of the Enterprise blasting off into the sky as the natives looked on was very reminiscent of the original series episode, Tomorrow is Yesterday. I'm not sure the film could pay better homage than that, along with Michael Giacchino's rousing theme capping the end of this sequence. Now let's take a look at another key reason this Trek film was one of the greats....