Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

April 23, 2013 (Sydney)May 17, 2013 (United States)

April 23, 2013 (Sydney)
May 17, 2013 (United States)

Star Trek Into Darkness is a 2013 American science fiction action film directed by J. J. Abrams, and written by Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, and Damon Lindelof. It is the 12th installment in the Star Trek franchise and the sequel to the 2009 film Star Trek, as the second in a rebooted film series. It features Chris Pine reprising his role as Captain James T. Kirk, with Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldaña, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Bruce Greenwood, and Leonard Nimoy reprising their roles from the previous film. Benedict Cumberbatch, Alice Eve, and Peter Weller are also in the film's principal cast. It was Nimoy's last film appearance before his death in 2015. Set in the 23rd century, the film follows Kirk and the crew of USS Enterprise as they are sent to the Klingon homeworld seeking the terrorist John Harrison.

After the release of Star Trek, Abrams, Burk, Lindelof, Kurtzman, and Orci agreed to produce its sequel. Filming began in January 2012. Into Darkness's visual effects were created by Lucasfilm's Industrial Light & Magic. The film was converted to 3D during its post-production stage.

It premiered at Event Cinemas in Sydney, Australia, on April 23, 2013, and was released in IMAX theaters in the U.S. on May 15, 2013, with release in standard-format theaters the next day. Into Darkness was a financial success and received positive reviews from critics. Its gross earnings of over $467 million worldwide have made it the highest-grossing entry in the Star Trek franchise. It was nominated for Best Visual Effects at the 86th Academy Awards. It was followed by Star Trek Beyond in 2016.

Storyline

In 2259, Captain James T. Kirk is removed from command of the starship USS Enterprise for violating the Prime Directive by revealing the ship to the primitive inhabitants of the planet Nibiru to save them, and Spock, from a cataclysmic volcanic eruption. Admiral Christopher Pike is reinstated as commanding officer, and Kirk is demoted to first officer. Spock is transferred to another ship. Shortly after, Starfleet officer Thomas Harewood, sent by Commander John Harrison, bombs a Section 31 installation in London. During an emergency meeting on the situation, Harrison uses a ship to ambush and kill Pike and other senior officers, before transporting to Kronos, the homeworld of the hostile Klingons.

Admiral Alexander Marcus reinstates Kirk and Spock to the Enterprise with orders to kill Harrison using a new long-range stealth torpedo. Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott objects to allowing untested torpedoes on board without knowing their specifications; when he is overruled, he resigns. Kirk assigns Pavel Chekov to replace Scotty. En route to Kronos, Enterprise's warp capabilities become disabled. Kirk leads a team with Spock and Uhura to the planet, where Klingon patrols ambush them. Harrison appears and kills the Klingons. Harrison surrenders when he learns the precise number of torpedoes on board Enterprise.

Dr. Leonard McCoy and Marcus's daughter, Dr. Carol Marcus, open a torpedo at Harrison's urging, revealing the torpedoes contain cryonically frozen humans. Harrison is taken to Enterprise's brig, where he reveals his true identity as Khan Noonien Singh, a genetically engineered superhuman who was awoken by Admiral Marcus from centuries of sleep and forced to develop advanced weapons after threatening to kill his crew, whom he smuggled into the torpedoes. Khan reveals that Marcus sabotaged Enterprise's warp drive, intending for the Klingons to destroy the ship after it fired on Kronos, sparking a war with the Klingon Empire. Khan also gives Kirk a set of coordinates, which Kirk asks Scott to investigate. Scott discovers the coordinates lead to a covert Starfleet facility.

Enterprise is intercepted by a much larger Starfleet warship, USS Vengeance, commanded by Admiral Marcus. Marcus demands that Kirk deliver Khan, but Enterprise flees to Earth to expose him. After Vengeance disables Enterprise near the Moon, Carol reveals her presence aboard Enterprise to stop the attack. Marcus forcibly transports Carol to Vengeance before ordering Enterprise's destruction. Vengeance loses power after being sabotaged by Scott, who infiltrated the ship. With transporters down, Kirk and Khan, with the latter's knowledge of the warship's design, space-jump to Vengeance. Meanwhile, Spock contacts his future self on New Vulcan, who tells him of his own encounter with Khan and warns that he cannot be trusted. After fighting their way to the bridge, Khan overpowers Kirk, Scott, and Carol, kills Marcus, and takes control of Vengeance.

Khan demands Spock return his frozen crew in exchange for the Enterprise officers, to which Spock complies. When Khan starts shooting at Enterprise, Spock detonates the warheads, crippling the ship but having had McCoy surreptitiously remove Khan's frozen crew from the torpedoes beforehand. Both starships are caught in Earth's gravity and plummet toward the surface. Kirk enters Enterprise's radioactive reactor chamber to realign the warp core, sacrificing himself to save the ship.

Khan crashes Vengeance into San Francisco in an attempt to destroy Starfleet headquarters, while McCoy discovers that Khan's blood has regenerative properties that may save Kirk. A vengeful Spock pursues Khan through the city, and the two engage in hand-to-hand combat. As Spock prepares to kill Khan, Uhura beams down and stops him, revealing that he is their only chance to save Kirk. Khan's blood revives Kirk, and Khan is sealed in his cryogenic pod and stored with his compatriots. One year later, Kirk speaks at Enterprise's re-dedication ceremony. The Enterprise crew embarks on a five-year-long exploratory mission.

Also See

Movie Trailer

  • Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) (Trailers)

Sound Effects Used

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