I enjoyed not to have to spend the entire time evaluating all the changes made for reboot's sake and just being able to sit back and enjoy the explosive entertainment. The visuals are stunning. The cast, about which I had no complaints the last time around, seem to have settled into their respective roles.
The quippy dialogue features some real hilarious bits, and the overall pacing is good (if relentless), right up until the last twenty minutes or so, where the structure kind of falls apart -- the closing feels simultaneously rushed and yet like it runs on too long.
A "jam-packed roller-coaster thrill ride," I found myself rather exhausted by the end, what with all the running around and fighting and special effects (pew, pew!) and everything. I must be getting old, I can't stomach too much action anymore. Or maybe I've outgrown the need to be hard-sold on a movie's high stakes by some kind of devastating global catastrophe.
And what's with the sub-title -- Into Darkness? That's gotta be the most boring, vague, generic Hollywood-cliché post-nominal imaginable. I understand the prevailing aversion to numerals in sequels these days, but given how heavily this movie borrows from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, something like Star Trek: The Vexation of Spock would've been more appropriate.
Overall, I'd say if you're in the mood for a summer action flick, it's worth seeing, and if you liked the previous one, you'll probably like this one too.
4 out of 5 stars
