 Benedict Cumberbatch 's performance in Star Trek Into Darkness drew praise from critics with Peter Travers of Rolling Stone magazine calling it a " tour @-@ de @-@ force to be reckoned with " and his character " a villain for the ages " . Joe Neumaier of New York 's Daily News wrote that Cumberbatch delivered " one of the best blockbuster villains in recent memory . " Jonathan Romney of The Independent specifically noted Cumberbatch 's voice saying it was " So <unk> resonant that it could have been synthesised from the combined timbres of Ian McKellen , Patrick Stewart and Alan Rickman holding an elocution contest down a well . " The New York Times on the other hand praised his screen presence saying " He fuses Byronic charisma with an impatient , imperious intelligence that seems to raise the ambient I.Q. whenever he ’ s on screen . " 
