Interestingly, Star Trek contains a healthy dose of science fiction: not so much in Nero's plans (anyone knows "red matter" and "black holes" are not good things), but in the introduction of time travel; first, as a way to get Leonard Nimoy's Spock to interact with the (new) crew of the Enterprise, but secondly, also to free the (new) crew of the Enterprise from the constraints of canon and let them boldly go etcetera, etcetera. It's a bold move, presenting ontological paradoxes to an audience that may be unfamiliar with time travel in a science fiction context (or indeed, any context), but it works well - time travel is an unbreached frontier in the timeline of the (new) Enterprise crew, and casual audiences will relate to Kirk's skepticism and goggle-eyed wonder. Those used to Star Trek and science fiction concepts will observe with a smile on their face and a twinkle in their eye.

While previous Star Trek movies were extended morality plays, Abram's movie steers clear of any message. Nero shares similarities with Shinzon from Nemesis, Khan from The Wrath of Khan (and, to a lesser extent, Dr. Soran from Generations) - all well-developed villains in their own right, which gave the writers a chance to introduce some philosophical gravitas. But when it comes to Nero, there isn't much to his story - he's been wronged, and he seeks his vengeance. As I said earlier, this isn't a film about Nero; since all we're looking at is the crew of the Enterprise, the heavy-handed life lessons of the previous films are absent. It was a good idea to rest that particular theme, but I wonder if Abrams and future writers will be able to resist the temptation of making their Star Trek sequels Michael Bay movies.

Where the movie lacks in ethics and humanities lessons, it makes up for in gorgeous CGI and visuals, even improving on the impressive effects that (barely) redeemed Nemesis. The (new old) Enterprise is sleek and shiny - much sleeker and shinier than its 1966 counterpart, in fact, but this is a sleek and shiny movie. It's a sleek and shiny Star Trek, a concept I would have thought impossible if not for J.J. Abrams. He's done far more than make Star Trek cool again, he's made it exciting again.

There was a time when Paramount Pictures refused to have anything to do with Star Trek, and even fans were embarrassed by a franchise that had grown old, stale and tired. Thanks to Abrams, Pine, Quinto, Orci, Kurtzman and the rest of the cast and crew, those days are a long time ago. Believe it or not, Star Trek is back.