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Avg. Critic Score: 83 out of 100 Universal acclaim Metascore^® based on all critic reviews

Information for Parents:

OK for kids 12+

Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

100

Washington Post | Ann Hornaday
This installment has achieved a nearly impossible hat trick. It's a movie that is exegetically correct enough to appease the most hard-core buffs, while opening up the final frontier to a whole new generation of fans who have yet to appreciate Star Trek's ineffable combination of sci-fi action, campy humor and yin-yang philosophical tussle between logic and emotion. Read full review
100

The Hollywood Reporter | Ray Bennett
Paced at warp speed with spectacular action sequences rendered brilliantly and with a cast so expert that all the familiar characters are instantly identifiable. Read full review
100

Variety | Todd McCarthy
Blasting onto the screen at warp speed and remaining there for two hours, the new and improved Star Trek will transport fans to sci-fi nirvana. Read full review
91

Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman
The clever and infectious reboot of the amazingly enduring sci-fi classic, director J.J. Abrams crafts an origin myth that avoids any hint of the origin doldrums. That's because he rewires us back into the original Star Trek's primal appeal. Read full review
90

The New York Times | Manohla Dargis
Isn't just a pleasurable rethink of your geek uncle's favorite science-fiction series. It's also a testament to television's power as mythmaker, as a source for some of the fundamental stories we tell about ourselves, who we are and where we came from. Read full review
88

Rolling Stone | Peter Travers
A burst of pure filmmaking exhilaration that manages to pay homage to the classic 1960s TV series and still boldly go where no man, William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy included, has gone before. Read full review
80

Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan
Though it has its over-caffeinated aspects and its missteps, this Star Trek has in general bridged the gap between the old and the new with alacrity and purpose. Read full review
75

San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle
At its best, the effect is like seeing life panoramically, past and future, simultaneous and magnificent. Read full review
75

USA Today | Claudia Puig
When it comes to sheer spectacle, Star Trek, as re-imagined by J.J. Abrams, delivers. Read full review
63

Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert
The movie deals with narrative housekeeping. Perhaps the next one will engage these characters in a more challenging and devious story, one more about testing their personalities than re-establishing them. In the meantime, you want space opera, you got it. Read full review

Metacritic link View more reviews for Star Trek on Metacritic

Information for Parents

Common Sense Media says OK for kids 12+ Classic franchise gets new life; OK for older kids.

What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that although this slick, upbeat sci-fi adventure isn't much more violent than the earlier Star Trek movies, there's a heightened feel that gives it a little bit more edge. While the action is (mostly) bloodless, it's also intense; expect lots of fights, battles, and hand-to-hand combat. At one point, the villains destroy an entire planet of humanoid aliens. Some of the comic relief scenes have a flirty, playful sense of sexuality (Kirk has always been a ladies' man), but that's balanced by the mature depiction of a relationship. There's also a bit of language ("bulls--t," etc.) and some drinking.

Families can talk about the enduring appeal of Star Trek -- what makes people become such faithful fans? Why do you think the studio decided to make a new version? How does it compare to the older movies and TV shows?
Talk about revenge, which is a major theme in the film. Ask kids whether it's ever justified to hurt others in the name of revenge. How much of the movie's violence can be traced back to that motivation? How much impact does it have compared to the violence in other action movies? Why?

The good stuff

Positive messages: Even with its sci-fi action and occasional flirty sexuality, the movie has positive, welcome messages about individual responsibility, collective accomplishment, institutional tradition, and working for the greater good.
Positive role models: Almost every character in the film puts aside something -- regret, pain, selfishness -- for the ultimate mission, with good work as its own reward. Zoe Saldana's Uhura is a strong female role model. Good cast diversity.

What to watch for

Violence: The sci-fi military-style action violence is plentiful but not especially bloody. At one point, an entire planet (with a population in the billions) is destroyed. The crews of various starships are pummeled by explosions, struck with torpedoes, sucked out of hull breaches into space, and generally assaulted. A character is impaled with a sharp-ended staff; another falls to her death; another receives several harsh pummelings. Some fistfights. Humanoid aliens are shot close-up; a monstrous beast threatens a character.
Sex: Some suggestive talk and kissing; two female characters are seen in their underwear. An underwear-clad couple makes out on a bed. There's a joke about "farm boys having sex with animals."
Language: Relatively mild, including "arse" (in the context of kicking), "damn," "ass," "hell," "oh my God," "bulls--t," "goddamn," and "whore." One clear (though not particularly noticeable) use of "f--king" in the lyrics of a Beastie Boys song played during a scene.
Consumerism: The movie is set in the 24th century, but somehow Nokia and Budweiser manage to make appearances.
Drinking, drugs and smoking: Characters drink beer, wine, and hard liquor, sometimes to excess.

Common Sense Media An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.