Of God's and Men ??

[Captain Randy Hall]

For obvious reasons, I've always referred to "Of Gods and Men" as "It's a Wonderful Trek." I mostly enjoyed it, but I agree that some parts went too long and the universe being saved by Uhura singing to Charlie X was over the top!

Even though I'm a big fan of space battles, I thought the slug-out sequence at the end could have been cut in half and then been more dramatic.

However, I enjoyed seeing folks from all the Treks in different roles or different versions of their characters.

I've watched it several times, and I still like it. Sure, we could have cut this or changed that, but overall, it's a love letter for Classic Trek, and that's OK by me!

 

[bbailey861]

Like KingDaniel, I went in not having any expectations. For a fanfic film, I thought it was okay.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

I didn't like it.

 

[Kemaiku]

I watched it a couple of years ago, it was fun to the extent of seeing a fanfic brought to life with some Trek actors and interesting visual pieces, but as with all fanfics, ultimately just 'meh'.

 

[Barbreader]

I don't agree that all fanfics are "meh"... whatever that means. The best fan films are better than at least the bottom 1/3 of pro Trek... and possibly the bottom 2/3.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

I've yet to see a fan film that I thought as good across the board as any professional production - and I like a lot of fan films.

 

[Maurice]

Re: Of Gods and Men ??

I tried to watch OGAM, but it was so badly written and edited that I couldn't stomach it. The "pro" actors were let down by bad direction and editorial that hurt rather than helped their performances. The plot was utter fanwank rubbish. The whole thing is doubly wretched because it should have been better given the actors involved, but actors, even good actors, don't necessarily know a good script or have the knack to direct a film well.

And Cawley isn't even a B-lister outside of the fishbowl that is fan productions.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I downloaded it, watched it, and deleted it. I still have copies of other fan films that I've rewatched many times, and plenty of free space on my disks. Draw your own conclusions.

 

[cblmc1296]

This might be a stretch but, the performances of the TOS regulars and Alan Ruck as Harriman all felt rather forced. I have to wonder if it has to do with the absence of the A-listers they would normally have played off of. Although I suppose the direction could have a bearing as well.

All in all, it was worth watching just to be able to say I've seen it but I wouldn't rush to watch it again.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

I agree with several others that poor editing is a major contributor to making the actors look bad in OGAM. Actors, gods bless 'em, have to place a lot of faith in the professionals they work with to at least not actively hurt them.

 

[FredCFO]

The story was highly derivative. Plot devices were lifted from Where No Man Has Gone Before (Gary Mitchell), Charlie X (Charlie Evans), the Alternate Universe of Mirror, Mirror, and The City on the Edge of Forever (specifically the Guardian itself). They had a big chance here to really do something and instead a hackneyed fanfilm was made. It was the Star Wars saga redux —an Empire that believes that peace will only be attained when its enemies are completely destroyed, a planet destroyed by a superweapon to rule by terror, a determined resistance bent on toppling the Evil Regime, evil men possessing vast supernatural powers.... We have seen it all before.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Not "derivative", but "nostalgic". That was the whole point! A fun little TOS-themed reunion.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Not "derivative", but "nostalgic". That was the whole point! A fun little TOS-themed reunion.

No, and no.

 

[MikeH92467]

I'm sorry to say that I found it such a mess in terms of overall production values and script that even the presence of so many very capable performers made it impossible for me to finish. I give fan productions a very long rope, simply because I appreciate just how difficult they are, but this one billed itself as something more and after the opening sequence with Ethan Phillips, which I thought was excellent, the trip downhill was fast and steep.

 

[Therin of Andor]

I was unfortunately underwhelmed, and the Stonn/Uhura bit at the end was extremely fanwanky. Certainly the main story needed to be tighter.

 

[Barbreader]

It's not my favorite fan film... it's not one of my ten favorite fan films. That said, I do like the best of the fan films a lot.

 

[CaptainSerek]

I enjoyed it for what it was. It was not the best and there were wasted opportunities with the actors and settings, but it had a good idea. I concur it was fan-wanky in many places in an effort to appease the fans in some way. I also have to agree, not my favorite of the current crop but decent.

 

[USS Excelsior]

They even included retro Cardassians in it!

 

[gastrof]

The Vulcan ears were inconsistent and some of them looked so bad it looked like they'd been made from cardboard or paper mache'. This alone wrecked it for me.

I wanted it to be so much better. It wasn't.

As for why the "real" Gary and Charlie weren't used is simple-

I believe one of them is DEAD, and the other seems to want to distance himself from Trek, not having the affection for it the mains had, or even the (possibly feigned) respect guest stars have shown in later years. Maybe having DIED in his one appearance could be part of the reason? He never invested any time or heart, thought of it as a one off job he did years ago, and never really looked back.

As for Uhura and Stonn, Stonn's appearance alone ruined things. He was a young full-blooded Vulcan when we first met him. There's no way he should have looked that along in years.

 

[Kelso]

^ gastrof! I haven't crossed paths with you in forever! How've you been?