Okay, so you know how “Star Trek” usually has that whole optimistic, exploring-the-galaxy, boldly-going vibe? Well, imagine you took all that, locked it in the storage closet, and instead whipped out a gritty, leather-jacket-wearing espionage team that does a lot of head bashing in shady clubs. That’s more or less what “Star Trek: Section 31” is dishing out, and it’s… well, it’s definitely a Star Trek movie, but it’s also trying hard to be something else.
First off, we get Michelle Yeoh back in action as Philippa Georgiou, fresh from her Mirror Universe days, and if you’ve never watched “Discovery,” prepare to do some Wikipedia diving to catch up on that time-hopping timeline. She’s the best part of the whole thing, rocking that “I’m a reformed tyrant but still low-key terrifying” energy. If anyone can carry an entire movie about a shadowy, under-the-table branch of Starfleet, it’s Yeoh.
The premise is basically a one-off heist/spy mission where Georgiou teams up with an odd bunch of scoundrels and Starfleet misfits, think “Suicide Squad” meets “Fifth Element,” but with phasers, to track down a doomsday weapon she herself created back when she was an evil empress. Cue a roster of weird characters with questionable moral alignments. There’s a brainy strategist with issues, a shape-shifter who’s over the whole utopia shtick, a Deltan who uses her pheromone “charms” for the cause, and so on. It’s fun in a pulpy, “popcorn entertainment” kind of way, though it doesn’t scream “Star Trek” in the classic sense of starships, mind-numbing bureaucracy, moral dilemmas, and ethical conundrums solved with big idealistic speeches. Instead, you get cloak-and-dagger showdowns and “Let’s blow this joint” escapes.
From a production angle, it feels a bit like they took a shelved TV series pitch and compressed it into a movie-length story. The pace sprints through set pieces like it’s checking boxes, and the script peppers in enough science talk to remind you you’re in the Trek universe, even if it’s overshadowed by bar brawls and slightly cheap-looking effects. Sometimes the banter is fun, sometimes it’s downright bad, and the vibe is definitely more “grimy underbelly of space” than “Federation’s shining corridors.”
Michelle Yeoh manages to keep everything afloat just by being her badass self. She slides smoothly between the repentant villain angle and the lovable rogue you root for. Still, you can sense the film tiptoeing around whether Georgiou should be a cackling ex-Empress or a tough-love hero, ultimately landing somewhere in the middle. It’s a bit of a missed opportunity if you enjoyed her full-blown evil self in “Discovery,” but hey, growth is growth.
The rest of the team is… well, they’re there. Some of them are entertaining enough. Sam Richardson brings some humor to his shapeshifting role, but don’t expect the kind of ensemble chemistry that typically anchors a “Star Trek” crew. There’s a feeling of “Wait, who’s that again?” that never quite goes away, especially in the middle act.
All in all, “Star Trek: Section 31” is a strange one. If you’re hoping for that classic Federation idealism, you’re gonna be disappointed. If you’re a Yeoh superfan or you’re down for a trek into Star Trek’s shadowy corners with more fists than phasers, you might have a pretty good time. It’s a breezy, sometimes clumsy attempt to prove that “Trek” can get its hands dirty. Whether or not that’s what you want from your starry franchise is up to you.
Personally, I appreciate the bold move away from the usual Starfleet politicking. Though, it does feel like the film is rummaging through random sci-fi tropes, fake Borg, super-augment eugenics dude, Odo-inspired shapeshifters, just because it can. It’s not exactly original, but it’s entertaining in a Saturday-night-with-popcorn sort of way. If you keep your expectations in check, you’ll find at least a few things to love, mostly thanks to Michelle Yeoh. If nothing else, it’s proof that there’s a lot more to the Star Trek universe than the typical shiny Starfleet facade… even if sometimes it tries a bit too hard to be “Star Wars with spies” instead of “Star Trek with secrets.”
In short: It’s different. It’s got some real “was-this-a-TV-pilot?” vibes, and Michelle Yeoh absolutely shines, as always. It might not go down as anyone’s favorite “Star Trek” entry, but if you’re curious to see space espionage in the Federation and you like your Trek with a side of smuggled chaos, give “Section 31” a watch. Just be prepared for something that’s less ‘Final Frontier’ and more ‘Final Underworld.’
Screen Rated 