'Star Trek Into Darkness' Eclipses 2009 Predecessor

See the new movie, 'Star Trek Into Darkness' playing at Carmike Cinemas. For more theater information, show times and pricing, click here.

The premise, courtesy of the film's official website:

When the crew of the Enterprise is called back home, they find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization has detonated the fleet and everything it stands for, leaving our world in a state of crisis. With a personal score to settle, Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction. As our heroes are propelled into an epic chess game of life and death, love will be challenged, friendships will be torn apart, and sacrifices must be made for the only family Kirk has left: his crew.

Here's what critics are saying:

'Star Trek Into Darkness,' bursting at the seams with enemies, wears its politics, its mettle, its moxie and its heart on its ginormous 3-D sleeve. Director J.J. Abrams and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise try to build a better sequel with action spectacles to get lost in, clever asides to amuse, emotional waves to ride and allusions to terrorism in general and 9/11 specifically. — Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times

If the 2009 film reintroduced audiences to a crew in the making, this outing plunges them — and us — into the greatly amped action. Amid terrible explosions and fierce fire fights, friendship, loyalty, personal ethics and Starfleet protocol will be tested. There continues to be something touching in the ideal of divergent personalities uniting in — and quibbling throughout — adventures in discovery, of new worlds but also of self. — Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post

The plotting is clunky, and the action more relentless and violent than I'd like; there are no pauses for ideas. There are too many self-deflating quips. The movie doesn't hold up to post-viewing scrutiny — which matters if you want to see it again. — David Edelstein, NPR

'Into Darkness' eclipses the first film in a rare occurrence of a sequel one upping its predecessor, though missing are those sensations of grandeur and stargazing as Kirk, Bones and Spock experience space and the Starfleet for the first time. Having all of that already established, Abrams instead fashions a hardboiled action-thriller, putting the film in full-throttle from the get go, grabbing the audience by the jugular and refusing to let go until the end credits roll. — Justin Craig, Fox News

At its best, the second entry in J.J. Abrams' 'Star Trek 2.0' series plunges moviegoers into a visually stunning 23rd century and spends ample time on bro bonding between the brash James T. Kirk and the reticent half-Vulcan known as Spock. — Sharon Eberson, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"Star Trek Into Darkness" is rated PG-13 for PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence. The movie runs 2 hours and 12 minutes.

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