8 Most Underrated Movies From Summer 2016
6. Star Trek Beyond
This one goes a little close to underseen/underapprciated - Beyond got an 83% on RottenTomatoes, but couldn't transfer that into box office success to rival either of J.J. Abrams movies - but I still get a general sense that Justin Lin's Star Trek re-energising hasn't got quite the full appreciation it deserves. In a summer that was dominated by eye-rolling updates of legacy properties, this fifty-year-old franchise delivered a fresh, exciting barnstormer. It wasn't an epic, but neither was it trying to be; it was just a fun adventure movie of the kind summers should be made of.
Perhaps people were influenced by the shoddy marketing or the fact Lin's best known for The Fast And The Furious, but contrary to popular opinion this was probably the best movie of the reboot; thanks to writer Simon Pegg this felt most like an episode of The Original Series and there was a deft balancing of the crew as an ensemble (not just background to Kirk and Spock's love-hate friendship).
One of the most underrated elements was Idris Elba's villain. Yes, he wasn't in the movie much, but thanks to his arc tying into the wider themes of legacy and a knockout twist that was guessable in part yet still effective, had a major impact. Not a bad 50th Anniversary celebration at all.