While there are many things wrong with this (excessive camera flare, excessive camera shake, questionable acting), one must remember it is a fan film. I actually enjoyed this more than the Abram abortions.
While there are many things wrong with this (excessive camera flare, excessive camera shake, questionable acting), one must remember it is a fan film. I actually enjoyed this more than the Abram abortions.
AKA-Dean
"I will never make excuses for who I am. It is the way I was born. I am a HUNTER. a BONE COLLECTOR."
Wave Man, the term "wave man" is the English translation of 'Ronin' (Japanese word) and literately translates to "wandering person" and in a modern context a WaveMan is one who is socially adrift or a SalaryMan who is between employers.
The visuals were too "JJ Abrams meets nuGalactica" for my taste. Story was serviceable.
Try Brannnon Briges' "Time Travel Trilogy". (Star Trek: Spectre, Retribution, and Redemption). Astonishing recreation of TNG-style, right down to camera positioning, lighting, etc. Interesting characters and a decent story. The last film (Redemption) is the best, IMO.
remember it is a fan film with a limited budget. I did find the 'Iconians' laughable, from my research they looked nothing like that. As far as being unwatchable, I would only say that if I had produced a film that was better.
AKA-Dean
"I will never make excuses for who I am. It is the way I was born. I am a HUNTER. a BONE COLLECTOR."
Wave Man, the term "wave man" is the English translation of 'Ronin' (Japanese word) and literately translates to "wandering person" and in a modern context a WaveMan is one who is socially adrift or a SalaryMan who is between employers.
Waveman, he was referring to my suggested viewing.
Owen, I think he did a very good job considering he was basically one man working on it all on his own. Yes, his tools had limits, and it's unfortunate that the voice casting fell apart so he had to use the temp track with only two voices, but the "cinematography" is first rate. Shot construction, lighting, and very faithful set reconstructions make it look and feel just like TNG.
More important and compelling though is his writing. He's really good at drawing out the nuances of his characters and handles their dialogue with a pretty deft touch. He even does something I didn't think it was possible for Trek to do: include openly gay characters in such a way that the viewers aren't hammered over the head with an Aesop every time they show up on screen.
Captain (later Admiral) Rayfe is the best parts of the great Starfleet Captains that have come before: as decisive as Kirk or Janeway, as personable as Archer or Sisko and as morally wise as Picard's better moments.
Commander (later Captain, later Admiral) Prentis is a better-rounded, more tempered incarnation of Riker.
The real jewel though is Kendra Erikson (later Ronston). She's everything Janeway ever was as Captain in film 3 but with none of Janeway's irritating self-righteousness or autocratic arrogance. The degree to which she goes out of her way to look after her crew shows the depth of her commitment to them as people more than as Starfleet officers under her command.
I'll even go so far as to proclaim the crew of the Fitzgerald the finest, most polished ensemble cast since TOS. They're simply marvelous to watch.
I actually enjoyed Horizons. I found the story interesting and believable. If I had to nitpick such an obviously low budget creation, it would not be to talk about effects, it was that the plot was slow in places. Given the choice between this, and nuTrek, I'm all in on Horizon.
"For to win 100 victories in 100 battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill." Sun Tzu - The Art of War
Well, that's fair. I wasn't a huge fan of the TCW either. However, you can stretch Canon to fit that she was modified and you never saw Dikon's ears, so you never really knew that Romulans looked like Vulcans. I had a bigger problem with the bad guy's name as I kept thinking of the Japanese radish.
"For to win 100 victories in 100 battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill." Sun Tzu - The Art of War
Wouldn't she have TOLD them? I mean if she really was defecting. You'd think she would have said "Oh, by the way, any Vulcans you might see? They could be Romulans, cause they're our cousins and all..."
Eh.
Honestly, I also wanted a bit more about the Iconians. I thought they'd play a bigger part somehow. I got a very Stargate/Ancients vibe off of them.
Bonus points for the shout-out to the Rihannsu books with the Irrruhue mention.
yeah me too, but I suppose that would detract from the main story and extend the movie (costing more money). The real disappointment for me was the Iconians themselves (as I mentioned in the OP) Here's what they should have looked like (non canon but there is no canon portrayals of them AFAIK)
I would love to see their technology explored and explained in more detail, and you are right about the parallels with StarGate and the similarities between the Iconian gateways and Alteran's stargates.
AKA-Dean
"I will never make excuses for who I am. It is the way I was born. I am a HUNTER. a BONE COLLECTOR."
Wave Man, the term "wave man" is the English translation of 'Ronin' (Japanese word) and literately translates to "wandering person" and in a modern context a WaveMan is one who is socially adrift or a SalaryMan who is between employers.
I thought STO was at least semi-canon?