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VH1 wrote:'Star Trek' Earns Positive Reviews After Surprise Screening
Fans and media treated to the sneak peek in Austin praise the 'young and hip' reboot.

Monday evening was a big night in the geek community, as fans and media assembled at the legendary Alamo Drafthouse theater in Austin, Texas, to watch the most acclaimed "Star Trek" movie of all time: 1982's "The Wrath of Khan." Attendees were told that they'd also be rewarded with 10 minutes of footage from the top-secret "Star Trek" relaunch (which opens May 8). Instead, they were the first audience ever to see the completed film.

"I can't believe how great the new 'Star Trek' movie is," marvels one audience-member review written by "GAH!" on Ain't It Cool News. "With this movie, the Trekkies have won the argument. Right now, 'Star Trek' is the most exciting science fiction franchise. And I never thought I'd say that."

As reviews of the film have flooded in, the acclaim has been shared by journalists and mere moviegoers alike. "[Director J.J.] Abrams and his crew pull it off," writes Colin Kennedy at Empire, addressing early concerns that the newly envisioned young Enterprise crew would make the movie too trendy. "The film is sassy, young and hip in a way the franchise has not been since the '60s. It's neither 'The Hills' in space nor fan fiction with a $150 million budget. Kudos is due."

Neil Miller at FilmSchoolRejects.com agrees, saying: "Let's talk about some of the CGI. There are a few Trek fans who were worried that Abrams would turn this film into a big, glossy CGI spectacle that completely disregards the very intelligent roots of the series. ... This movie has that same commitment, but it is muted by an intense sensory experience. This may be a small problem for some fans, but I can assure you that when you get that first gorgeous shot of the USS Enterprise, or you are thrust into the midst of a wild space battle, you won't mind one bit."

Some online reviewers, however, have been careful to not let the excitement of the evening (featuring surprise appearances by Leonard Nimoy and the new "Trek" crew) sweep them into hyperbole. "Anyone who says it's better than 'Wrath of Khan' is talking out of their hyperbolic ass," writes Greg Clark at C.H.U.D. "This one doesn't nearly have as clear a thought-out script as that one, easily one of the tightestly plotted films in any genre, and suffers from the same problem as that other Orci and Kurtzman [writing] collaboration, 'Transformers': It wants to be all things for all people at all times."

Film School Reject's self-professed "Star Trek virgin" Cole Abaius feels differently, however. Reviewing the new movie from a rookie's perspective, he praises the new series stars: "As far as performances go, Chris Pine is outstanding. ... Zachary Quinto is brilliant — creating an emotionless man without being robotic. ... Bruce Greenwood, Eric Bana and Karl Urban are all explosive and command the screen when they're on. ... Simon Pegg as Scotty provides a very strong comic presence that goes beyond the easy jokes."

In just over a month, "Trek" fans all over the world can finally see the new movie and form their own opinions. In the meantime, however, they can take solace in the glowing review of AICN head geek Harry Knowles: "God Bless JJ Abrams," he writes. "This film is the first full-fledged A-level Star Trek movie since 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture,' and the first truly successful one. The film works on emotional levels, time-travel logic levels, hard science levels, action levels and at tackling the very godd--- tricky notion of recasting icons of a beloved series."

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ATTENTION HOLLYWOOD: now THIS is how to reboot a franchise!!! this movie was just AWESOME. all at once completely true to the spirit of the original AND fresh. casting was spot-on, i was laughing my ass off many times, the ties to the original were perfect *no spoilers*, the action was great... ARGH! i can't say enough. i want to go see this again immediately, but in IMAX.

yes, it was missing klingons, but... so what? there are other species of interest in the Trek universe.

mr. abrams, hats off to you for a flawless Trek film. i hope you get to make many, many more.

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so i wore my favorite trek shirt today. on the way out, a guy turns to me and says, "So, you got the charges, right?" (if you've seen this, you'll get the reference). it was classic.

amazing to see on IMAX. almost overwhelming. glad i got to see it on a little smaller scale first, as some things got lost on the big screen for me. but it was sonically incredible and visually stunning. probably the perfect format on which to see this film.

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I would kind of disagree; JJ's pretty aggressive (not Greengrass aggressive, he's much better at it than that headache-inducing filmmaker) with the handheld style during action scenes and can barely keep the camera still elsewhere, so I thought the IMAX treatment was a bit much. Certainly let you ponder the cracks and crevices of each actor's face a bit much too. That said, really fun movie. It took a while for the "this is a Star Trek" feeling to land with me, but a few hours later it's definitely sunk in. Oh, and JJ owes no small debt to Joss Whedon and Serenity for the Romulan/Reaver ship design, not to mention the handheld style in space battles which was first evident in the Firefly series itself (TC, you watched any of that yet? If not I think I'm sending you a copy of the series for your next birthday, you'll enjoy it thoroughly).
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."

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nope, never did watch that.

yeah, i noticed the handheld COPS style overload - like during the "your father was captain for 12 minutes..." talk at the bar. seemed really unnecessary. i really wanted to buy him a tripod. i only noticed it in IMAX. so yeah, you're probably right.

as for the romulan ship, looked kind of like the things from the matrix to me.

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If you see Serenity you'll see what I mean with the colony of ships towards the end; Nero's line "FIRE EVERYTHING!" is actually a direct reference/lift to the space battle (which, in buildup and execution, I like better in the Whedon film) from Serenity too.
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."

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VH1 wrote:Five Things You May Have Missed While Watching 'Star Trek'
Captain Kirk's 'American Idol' connection, J.J. Abrams' favorite beverage and more behind-the-scenes tidbits.

This weekend, "Star Trek" rebooted itself and rocked the worlds of you and a few million of your closest friends. But did you really see the whole movie? Below are five fun "Trek" facts that reveal even more minutiae about J.J. Abrams' soaring enterprise.

1. Slush-O: The Drink of the Future?
As Abrams' loyal fans know, the "Star Trek" director loves to link his worlds together via in-jokes and shared references — and even though "Trek" takes place many years away from "Lost," "Alias" and "Cloverfield," he doesn't disappoint. "There are inside jokes that banter about our company [Bad Robot Productions], movies that we have been a part of, and other things," Abrams said, telling his fans to keep a sharp eye out for things like Uhura ordering a Slush-O, the mysterious drink that helped fuel the "Cloverfield" story line. "The USS Calvin is based on my grandfather's name — which was Harry Calvin. A lot of people [who worked on the film] have names of ships and things that were nods to friends and family."

2. Spock and Kirk Are Workout Pals
While it's pretty near impossible to imagine William Shatner spotting Leonard Nimoy on the bench, new castmembers Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto have pumped iron together for years. "Well, let's clarify this: We actually worked out in our trainer's kitchen," Pine laughed recently, revealing that they had met pre-"Trek" through a shared workout guru. "I think Kirk benches a little bit more," Quinto said with a laugh. "Spock is much more of a yoga acolyte."

3. Trouble Finding the Tribble?
"Oh, really?" Anton Yelchin asked when we spoke to him about the cuddly, classic "Trek" creature who makes a cameo in the film. "I didn't know there was a Tribble." The same goes for John Cho, who said the shot is such a secret that even the cast wasn't made aware: "I didn't know that." When we went straight to the source, Abrams would only confirm that the fuzzy, rapidly multiplying little monsters do appear. "There is a Tribble," Abrams teased. "But I'm not gonna tell you [where]." If you found it, congratulations — if not, you might want to see the film again and look a bit more closely at the scene where Kirk and old Spock encounter Scotty for the first time.

4. Can We Get a Nurse?
Among the many references to the classic TV show that Abrams squeezed in, two of the most meaningful revolve around Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, the "First Lady of Star Trek," who passed away in December. "There's a reference to Nurse Chapel," Quinto grinned, referring to the character Roddenberry played in the original series and a handful of the films. "Bones actually calls to Nurse Chapel at one point." Majel, who was married to "Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry, also provided the voice of the Federation starships and recorded her lines for the new film shortly before she died of cancer at age 76. The credits for the new "Trek" also dedicate the film to Majel and Gene.

5. Is Kirk Randy Jackson's Dawg?
For decades, William Shatner delivered the line "Kirk, out!" to indicate that he was ending his communications. But Chris Pine was surprised when he heard that his dramatic delivery of the line was being met with laughter at advance screenings. "Is it because of Ryan Seacrest?" Quinto asked, cluing in the new Kirk. "Oh, is that why?" Pine said, remembering that the "American Idol" host delivers a decidedly less cool "Seacrest, out!" as his signature line. "That's hysterical." Now, Pine is considering challenging Seacrest to a duel, with the winner getting the catchphrase once and for all. "Seacrest and I should get in a ring and punch it out," Pine laughed. "That would be a complete pop-culture black hole." Added Quinto: "I would pay to see that fight, on the stage of 'American Idol,' while the contestants do a medley around you."
G4 wrote: What NOW For 'Star Trek?'
Okay folks, let's forget the fact that Star Trek has left us with a newly-defined universe where Spock's mother, Amanda is dead (Sorry "Journey to Babel" fans,) and the entire planet of Vulcan went the way of Alderaan, being completely destroyed (the Death Star is innocent here, folks.) We can also forget the fact that the Enterprise's command crew consists of cadets who seemingly didn't even go through the full 4 years of the Academy. And finally, we can forget the fact that a cadet (Kirk) who was ready to face a disciplinary board for cheating on a test, can stow-away on a mission on the fleet's flagship, and soon find himself CAPTAIN OF THE SHIP, without even (as far as we know) graduating from the f***ing Academy. (If that's the way the world worked, then I should have enlisted in the Navy 4 years ago. By now, I'd be "Super-Grand-Moff-Admiral Baxter: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.")

However, I'm willing to overlook ALL of these inconsistencies (which is not just canonical "Trekkie" nitpicking, but real-life inconsistencies.) Why? Because the movie kicked ass. Pure and simple. It delivered plenty of spectacular action that was well-paced, and worked well with the dramatic aspects of the film.

I'm not here to review the movie, though. I'm pretty sure most of us have seen it, so there is not much more that needs to be said. I'm here to jump the gun and talk about a new Star Trek II. Because, let's face it, seeing how this weekend is shaping up, we know it's coming. I'm going to indulge myself and lay down some expectations that I have for the inevitable next installment of this rejuvenated Star Trek franchise.

One word, one syllable, held for for a long time: Khaaaaaaan!

You might be asking yourself, "uh...Khan was in 1982's Star Trek II, which takes place way later in history, right?" And you would be correct in that observation. However, let's set the scenario, here. Star Trek is now (roughly) at a point in time where the original television show took place. What that means, is that the director and producers have a treasure-trove of three seasons full of iconic episodes to pick up and adapt into a big-screen epic. An episode that especially comes to mind, is "Space Seed." Of course, as hardcore fans know, "Space Seed" is the episode of the original series where the Enterprise crew actually find the iconic Star Trek badass, Khan Noonien Singh and his crew of genetically-altered acolytes, who have been hibernating, floating in space in some ancient "20th Century Spacecraft." Well, they manage to wake Khan up, and greet him with hospitality, only to have that met with a hijacking attempt. A female Enterprise crew member goes all Stockholm, becomes Khan's lover, and all hell breaks loose. Of course Kirk, Spock, and the gang weren't going to stand for that s**t, and they fight back (amid a slew of Vulcan neck pinches, and painfully obvious stunt double fights, galore.) Kirk eventually regains control, and chooses to be merciful, marooning Khan, his people, and the traitorous hussy on the Planet Ceti Alpha V. (Of course, anyone who has seen Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan knows what happened after that.)

Essentially, my proposal, is NOT to do "Wrath of Khan," but rather, the original series episode, "Space Seed." While there is so much that can be utilized here, the primary goal should be to make the implications of the events of the episode, much bigger.

* Besides continuing the chemistry-building between the Enterprise crew (Something I doubt they would forget), they need to make the finding of Khan to be an event that people back on Earth hear about, and something that raises some moral questions. The entire Starfleet circle needs to be in-the-know of this discovery of ancient, genetically-enhanced people from Earth. (Who obviously should be revamped as to come from a date LATER than the "1990's.")

* Whoever they get to play Khan, besides being able to pull off a cool Latin accent, needs to be a bit older. (And Antonio Banderas is too old, btw.) I know that Khan is actually supposed to be of Indian descent, but come on, how can you see Khan any other way? He needs to have that on-screen presence that Ricardo Montalbán possesed, that made him seem not only larger-than-life, but also as someone who presents a civil smile, while knowing he could snap your neck in half of a second. He also absolutely must be able play off Kirk well. In fact, in some way, he needs to parallel Kirk, perhaps forcing him to look inside himself, to see something he may not like. (The whole "dead father" thing would also be a nice nerve Khan could play.)

* They shouldn't be afraid to integrate elements of Wrath of Khan, to better suit this movie. We could have him hijacking other Federation ships, attacking Klingons and Romulans, creating an inter-stellar diplomatic incident. Basically, I want to see Khan start to actually carry-out his plan to conquer the universe with his "superior ambition." For the sake of the dramatics of the film, he should come pretty damn close to actually closing that deal. Because, again, they need to take the elements "Space Seed" and spread the implications to the "entire universe."

* Help us understand the motives of "Ship Historian" Marla McGivers (aka "Traitorous Hussy.") Her attraction to Khan could become a metaphor for the overall ambitions of man to better him/herself. In essence, it would mean that Khan and his people are an unfortunate glimpse into the depth of the human will and its desire to dominate all that it finds. (Calling Nietzsche.)

* Lastly, throw the fanboys some bones and give us some other recurring Star Trek characters and integrate them into the inter-personal play between the characters. (Don't you want to see a new Yeoman Rand running around in that mini-skirt? Maybe a new Nurse Chapel could start making Uhura jealous with her usually unsubtle advances toward Spock?)

Weird concepts and inconsistencies aside, we have been given a brand new Star Trek franchise that has put aside the "morality play" soapbox and chooses to focus on action and the story at hand. In other words, it's actually exciting! Star Trek is no longer pretentious, and is actually accessible. (Who would have thought it possible?!) Also, no real offense to the spectacular originals, but putting the words "Star Trek" and "movie" together no longer has to be synonymous with Geritol in space. We are now left with an Enterprise crew in their prime, ready to raise hell. There are so many possibilities, and all the time in the world. JJ Abrams, get to work! ;)

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VH1 wrote:'Star Trek' Writers Reveal The William Shatner Scene That Never Was
'We wanted to really bring him back in the right way,' Roberto Orci says of why the idea never materialized.

This past weekend, $76.5 million worth of people saw Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto and Leonard Nimoy onscreen in J.J. Abrams' blockbuster "Star Trek" reboot. The one person they didn't see, however, is larger-than-life "Trek" icon William Shatner.

During the course of the film's production, a bizarre battle of words erupted between Abrams and the 78-year-old original Captain Kirk over a never-filmed, top-secret scene. Recently, we got the spoiler-heavy details on the very different ending once intended to be Nimoy and Shatner's final time together onscreen.

"We did write a Shatner scene," Roberto Orci, one of the film's writers and producers, explained. "And we were ultimately split internally. We didn't want it to be a gimmick; we wanted to really bring him back in the right way."

If you've seen the new "Trek," you know that Nimoy portrays the original Spock in a series of scenes that has the character traveling to an alternate dimension and making contact with younger versions of the Enterprise crew. In one heart-tugging moment, "old" Spock addresses "young" Spock and explains their eventual friendship with Kirk; in the Shatner version, however, young Spock was to be more skeptical.

"Elder Spock tells young Spock, 'I couldn't tell you the truth about what's happening, because if I had, I would have robbed you of the benefit of realizing the greatness that you and Kirk will achieve together — and the amazing friendship that you'll have. You had to discover that for yourself, and I couldn't get in the way of that,' " Orci's writing partner, Alex Kurtzman, revealed. "And in our original version, younger Spock says, 'I'm still not sold.'

"Elder Spock said, 'Well, don't take my word for it,' and he handed him a little disc — a DVD, really — that projected a hologram, and then he walked away. And the hologram was of Kirk," Kurtzman continued. "It would've been Shatner."

The scene was an attempt by the writers to adhere to "Trek" canon — which depicted Shatner's Kirk as being killed in 1994's "Star Trek: Generations" — yet still give him a presence in the film via a final recording he had taped before his death.

"If you follow 'The Next Generation' [TV show], elder Spock went off to Romulus to be an ambassador in two episodes called 'Unification 1' and '2', and [our] idea was that it was a long, long mission, and Kirk would have died by the time he returned to Earth [because they] just wouldn't have the same lifespan," Kurtzman explained of the Vulcan. "And so [this DVD] was essentially Kirk sending Spock a goodbye."

"His final message," Orci interrupted.

"It was a 'happy birthday' message [with Kirk saying], 'This is the last time I'm going to be able to wish you happy birthday, so I want to tell you how much you've meant to me and how amazing it was that we had all these adventures together,' " Kurtzman said of the alternate ending, which would have provided the last act with a powerful voice over the film's final scenes.

"That narrative, that voice-over," Kurtzman said, "became a link [to be heard] over [scenes of] this new crew coming in ... a young Kirk accepting the medal and becoming captain of the Enterprise."

"The entire ending of the movie, where you're seeing young Kirk being promoted," Orci added, "all that was going to be [played out with Shatner's] voice-over."

Ultimately, the Shatner ending of "Star Trek" was abandoned for a whole variety of reasons. "Whereas our elder Spock had a very organic reason to be there, we didn't have that same benefit with Kirk," Kurtzman explained. "Because Kirk died in the movies — he died in canon — it was very hard to come up with a way to bring him back in the movie that didn't feel contrived."

"Ultimately, we decided internally that we were split," Orci remembered of the decision to abandon the Shatner ending. "The decision was that it wasn't quite enough to justify wasting his time."

Still, it's pretty obvious where Orci fell in the internal debate. "It was a nice voice-over. It was more than a scene," he explained. "I think it could have worked, personally."
VH1 wrote:'Star Trek' Sequel Will Deal With 'Unpredictable Future'
J.J. Abrams and company are ready to continue in the 'alternate reality' the reboot created.

When J.J. Abrams and his team first signed on to resurrect "Star Trek," Hollywood insiders questioned whether sci-fi fans still cared about the franchise. After a $76.5 million opening this past weekend the previous franchise record-holder was "First Contact" with a mere $30 million — you can consider "Trek" successfully rebooted. And as you read this, a whole new series of sequels are being planned for this new alternate reality.

"One of the obstacles that we found ourselves butting up against [when we took on the job] was this idea that we already knew the fate of the characters," writer/producer Alex Kurtzman told us of the newly established parallel "Trek" dimension, forever altered by the reckless actions of time-travelling villain Nero (Eric Bana). "If you're going to bring a whole new iteration of 'Trek' to life, you could never put them in any real danger — because you already know how they either died or lived. So, we felt like, all right, we have to find a way to make the future unpredictable, so whenever they're in these difficult, treacherous situations there truly is the risk of death."

Word already leaked more than a month ago that at least one "Trek" sequel is in the works, and the series' gatekeepers confirmed to us that such memorable characters as Khan Noonien Singh and Dr. Tolian Soran are among the many characters whose life courses may have been altered by the events of the new film.

"All the characters who existed in the universe or canon we grew up with are essentially still around in some capacity," Kurtzman explained. "But their lives have been altered, so they may again intersect with our crew."

"There's a deal in place with the writers and the actors," Abrams said recently of "Trek" sequel plans, explaining that all the key actors are under contract to return. "If people like this movie, and there's a demand for another one, we would be happy to work on it."

Well, they certainly did — and Kurtzman and his writing partner Roberto Orci (who also collaborated on the upcoming "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen") told us that their minds are already swimming with sequel possibilities.

"I don't think we ever need to talk about time travel again," Orci explained, saying that Leonard Nimoy and other "original universe" cast members will likely be unnecessary from here on out. "In fact, in the end of the movie, the device that allows time travel is destroyed. So we're stuck with this universe we're in now."

"Now we're in this new world," Kurtzman agreed. "And we're just gonna have to live through the unpredictable future."

As for ideas in that universe, Orci explained: "We've had a couple of really preliminary conversations, but we really didn't want to [get ahead of ourselves], because this isn't something we invented. We wanted to see what fans think of the first one; let's see what works, and what people think is the best in what we've done. And then we can take that into account when we think about the next movie."

Asked how soon they'd start writing the "Trek" sequel if the first one is announced as a hit the Monday after opening weekend, Orci said: "That day."

"I'm already going back and reading some of the books I've missed," he said of "Trek" tales and fan-fiction that have been written in past years, which could be reinterpreted for their new universe. "I'm trying to read every 'Star Trek' book I can get my hands on. We did that a lot for the first movie. ... I'm starting to re-immerse myself again in what's come before."

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Khan is a horrible idea. Everyone will be comparing it to Wrath of Khan for one thing, and honestly I just don't see them topping that one. They need to learn a lesson from the failure of Voyager and get strong enough writers to do new things. Voyager was the perfect chance for a Trek reboot of sorts because they had a whole new part of the galaxy to play in. But they writers were piss poor and they ended up just finding excuses to drag existing aliens and races to the new part of space. I hope they don't make that mistake and instead try to do something new and original.

I watched a bit of the film this morning. It struck me a lot like Star Trek IV. A bit silly, and the characters don't quite seem like themselves. But it was watchable. Certainly not the holy grail of Trek films though.
Just cut them up like regular chickens

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tim's favorite geek loved it:
VH1 wrote:Kevin Smith Raves About Chris Pine's 'Electric' Work In 'Star Trek'
'That dude is an instant movie star,' filmmaker says of new Captain Kirk.

Until this weekend, not many among the moviegoing public knew the name Chris Pine, unless you happened to be a fan of films like "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement" or the Lindsay Lohan rom-com clunker "Just My Luck." But his turn as young James T. Kirk in J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek" reboot looks to be a star-making move.

And it's not just audiences and critics who are raving about Pine's Kirk and favorably comparing his portrayal to that of original Kirk William Shatner; Hollywood is taking notice too. Count director Kevin Smith among Pine's growing legion of fans.

"I think what makes that movie work chiefly — aside from, of course, the talents who all came together behind it — is Chris Pine," Smith said when he stopped by the MTV News offices. "That dude is astounding. To be able to invoke Kirk without doing a Shatner impression? That performance was so electric and so wonderful to watch.

"That dude is an instant movie star," Smith added. "That dude is gonna work forever. He's so good and effortless in his delivery."

Smith is no stranger to breakout stars, having worked with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck in early films like "Chasing Amy" and "Dogma," and Pine reminds Smith of both actors: "He's kind of a combination between Ben and Matt. You had Ben and Matt in the '90s, and now you have Chris Pine, who is the combination of those dudes."

Smith is so enamored of Pine, he's willing to do almost anything to take in another of the actor's performances. "I'd watch that dude do anything," Smith said with a laugh. "I'd watch that dude have sex with my wife at this point. He's such a good actor."

But it wasn't just Pine that had Smith raving about "Trek." "The opening 10 minutes of that movie are astounding," he said. "It's, like, everything could go downhill after that, and you would still leave that movie going, 'That movie rocked.' But, luckily, it doesn't really go downhill. It maintains that energy throughout."

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VH1 wrote:'Star Trek' Stars And Writers Spill More Secrets
We have six more secrets about the movie that might surprise even the most hard-core of Trekkies.

It seems like everybody's a Trekkie these days, as the new film is celebrating a huge opening and sequel plans are already under way. But, as any good geek knows, devotion to "Star Trek" is best measured by which fan knows the most.

And so, as a public service to our readers, we've rolled out top-secret info on the Captain Kirk scene that was never shot, answers to the film's burning questions, and five things you may have missed while watching the movie. Now, for those who crave even more, we present six "Trek" secrets that might surprise even the most pointy-eared Vulcan:

One Man's Trash is Another Man's Treasure - Writer/producer Alex Kurtzman revealed that his favorite "Trek" secret is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment from the scene where the Enterprise comes out of warp speed and into a battle above Vulcan. "When they arrive and all the debris is flying at the Enterprise, take a very close look at the debris," he explained, saying a cool Easter egg is in there. "You'll have to watch it on DVD, because it goes by very fast. But take a close look at what's floating in the debris."

It Ain't Easy Being Green - In the flick, "Alias" actress Rachel Nichols is one of several green girls — beautiful, mysterious aliens from the planet Orion who've populated "Trek" story lines from the very beginning. While filming, Nichols' participation was just as secretive as her character. "They were trying to keep my role really, really secret and undercover — they didn't want anyone to know," she told us. "When [the green girls] traveled around [the Paramount lot], we had to wear full, top-to-bottom ski jackets — and it was summer, mind you — with hoods, umbrellas and boots. Then we'd have to get into a golf cart covered with a big black tent — we called it the Popemobile."

Forget Oscar, Maybe He'll Win a Webby - Chameleon-esque "Capote" actor Clifton Collins steals several scenes as Nero's second-in-command Ayel — but his alien costume had to be tweaked due to a real-life abnormality. "We had to make some modifications to my wardrobe that people may not know," he revealed. "[The Romulans] have feet that are broken up at the big toe. But I've got webbed toes on my left foot. So I couldn't wear the Romulan shoes. They had to fake it, and put in a little toe insert."

Getting Geeky - According to writer/producer Roberto Orci, the film is filled with references to classic "Trek" — even in the contemporary-feeling scene where Kirk hits on Uhura. "[Keep a close eye on] the shapes of some of the glassware in the bar," he explained. "And [there are] signs that honor various names in Trek history, throughout the Academy and throughout some of the sets ... the computer screens also have Easter eggs buried in them; in some of the display screens, you'll see tidbits and nods to the past."

Set Phasers To: Stunning! - In one sexy "Trek" scene, Chris Pine wears nothing but his undies while gyrating around on top of a Green Girl. According to his co-star, the new Kirk was puffing up those pecs just moments before cameras rolled. "Chris Pine did push-ups before every take of our make-out scene," grinned Nichols.

Cheer Up, Sleepy Jean — As Trekkies know, original Chekov Walter Koenig was selected for the role because he resembled a certain '60s heartthrob pop singer. "Because he looked like Davy Jones, right?" laughed new Chekov Anton Yelchin, insisting he does not share the character's former resemblance to the Monkees lead singer. "Not quite, no. I feel like I'm more of a John Lennon, if I may."

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This probably belongs in a new thread, but I just read that the guy who plays Kirk's dad at the beginning of the movie has been cast as none other than Thor in Kenneth Branagh's upcoming Marvel adaptation.
"I'm like a dog chasing cars, I wouldn't know what to do if I caught one. . . . I'm not a schemer. I just do things."