Star Trek Into Darkness
Short description
Star Trek Into Darkness is a science fiction adventure in which the crew of the Enterprise returns to Earth to find Starfleet reeling from a devastating attack carried out from within its own ranks. With the fleet in crisis, Captain James T. Kirk takes command of a mission to hunt down the man responsible, a fugitive who is himself a weapon of mass destruction. The pursuit leads Kirk and his crew into a conflict zone and forces them to confront questions of loyalty, revenge and sacrifice, with the bonds among them put to the test.
The film is the fourth feature directed by J.J. Abrams, following Mission: Impossible III, Star Trek and Super 8, and it continues the rebooted Star Trek series he launched in 2009. Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Damon Lindelof wrote the screenplay, with Abrams, Kurtzman and Orci producing. Chris Pine returns as Kirk, alongside Zachary Quinto as Spock, Zoe Saldaña as Uhura, Karl Urban as McCoy and Simon Pegg as Scotty, with Benedict Cumberbatch joining the cast. Around a hundred credited cast members and more than a hundred credited crew worked on the production.
Released in 2013, the film had a budget of 190 million US dollars and took about 467 million US dollars worldwide, a solid commercial result though not a large multiple of its cost. On IMDb it holds 7.7 out of 10 from roughly 509,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.3 out of 10 from a much smaller base of around 9,900 votes. A critics' rating of 7.5 out of 10 from 295 reviews places professional opinion close to the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- This is Peter Weller's second appearance in the «Star Trek» film series. He previously appeared as a guest star in the «Star Trek: Enterprise» (2001-2005) television series.
- Marcus's damaged ship demolished the famous Alcatraz prison on its path. Interestingly, J.J. Abrams was an executive producer of the series "Alcatraz" (2011).
- When a clerk from Los Angeles delivered the script to Benedict Cumberbatch, the briefcase with the manuscript was handcuffed to his wrist.
- This is the first time a film in the Star Trek series has been filmed outside of the United States. Scenes with special effects were shot in Iceland.
- Benedict Cumberbatch recorded an audition video in his best friend’s kitchen using an iPhone.
- In the film, John Harrison gives James T. Kirk the spatial coordinates 23174611. These are the coordinates of the orbit of one of Jupiter's moons.
- Christopher Duane, son of the series "veteran" James Doohan, played the episodic role of a transport employee in the film.
- When Kirk lies dying by the door with the window, Spock places his hand against the window and performs a gesture – the Vulcan salute. In the next shot, his hand is no longer showing the gesture.
- Michael Dorn, who previously played Klingon Lieutenant Worf, was considered for the role of an officer at the start of filming. However, the filmmakers ultimately decided not to mix the old and new cast from the Star Trek film series.
- Peter Weller previously appeared in «The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension» (1984) with former «Star Trek» villain Christopher Lloyd, and in «RoboCop» (1987) alongside other «veterans» of the series – Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith, and Miguel Ferrer.
- The screenwriters studied science fiction novels by Arthur C. Clarke and Larry Niven for inspiration.
- In the film at 57 minutes, when Spock kisses Uhura, the position of her face changes. First her head is to her right shoulder, then in the next shot her head is already to her left shoulder.
- The collection of models on Admiral Marcus's table resembles a gallery of old Enterprise ships from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (1979). Both collections include a NASA shuttle and the "XCV 330 USS Enterprise" (the ship with rings around its hull). Also among the models is the "NX-01 Enterprise" from the series "Star Trek: Enterprise" (2001-2005).
- According to J.J. Abrams, the concept of time travel that was in the previous film was used deliberately to have more freedom to work on new films: “The fact that we are no longer bound by a specific time period allows us to use any moments from the past, or even invent completely new ones, to create a plot.”
- Sulu's seatbelt appears and disappears during the final battle scene.
- Benicio del Toro was offered the role of John Harrison, but the actor ultimately declined due to financial issues. Afterwards, Demian Bichir, Edgar Ramirez, and Jordi Mollà were considered for the role, but it eventually went to Benedict Cumberbatch.
- Screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman explained that the dilemma for the sequel was whether to pit the crew against a new villain or to create a “research-based science fiction plot,” as in the series “Star Trek” (1966-1969).
- Benedict Cumberbatch was recommended to J.J. Abrams by his co-producer on the film “Super 8” (2011) – Steven Spielberg, who had worked with Cumberbatch on the film “War Horse” (2011).
- When Old Spock appears on the Enterprise's screen, the image is mirrored. This is noticeable because actor Nimoy's right earlobe is elongated, not his left.
- Bruce Greenwood and Peter Weller voiced the characters of DC Comics — Bruce Wayne / Batman: Greenwood in the animated film "Batman: Under the Red Hood" (2010) and the series "Young Justice" (2010), and Weller in "The Dark Knight Rises. Part 1" (2012).
- Hayley Atwell and Teresa Palmer auditioned for the role of Carol Marcus.
- Paramount Pictures asked director J. J. Abrams to shoot the film in 3D. However, Abrams wanted to shoot in 2D on film, using IMAX cameras. They eventually reached a compromise, resulting in this film being the first in cinematic history to be shot in IMAX format and then converted to 3D during post-production.
- Of all the proposed titles for the film, including the humorous ones, screenwriter Damon Lindelof liked "Star Trek: Transformers 4" the most. He said: "Technically, we could pull that off without any problems."
- Benedict Cumberbatch became widely known for his role in the «Sherlock» (2010) television series. Leonard Nimoy played Sherlock Holmes in stage productions in the 1970s, and even mentions this fact in «Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country» (1991), referencing Holmes's logic by saying: «When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.» Christopher Plummer also played Holmes and delivered his signature line: «The game's afoot.» Nimoy also recorded a song in the 1970s – «The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins,» and Cumberbatch voiced the dragon Smaug in «The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug» (2013), in which his «Sherlock» (2010) co-star Martin Freeman played Bilbo Baggins.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
