What I liked
The weaponry (and “blood”).
The costumes!
The campiness.
The ship combat!
The music… OMG the music.
And that final combat scene. omg OMG *O*M*G*!
… I’m speechless!
What I didn't like
The ship combat, while AMAZING!!!, is sort of under-lit.
My overall impression
I was prepared…
If this turned out to be a bunch of Trekkies wearing bad headpieces and doing bad Marlowe, I was prepared to ask Scotty to “beam me up”.
But OMG it was amazing. Amazing, I tell you! Congratulations on this directorial tour-de-force, Christopher Johnson!
As for the source material, Kit Marlowe’s words fit the patriarchal, pride-fueled, warlike Klingon worldview perfectly! The writing (or updating to the Trek world) is spot-on. The acting is full bodied and intense (Matt Harding as Tamburlaine especially so). The hand-to-hand combat is well-choreographed and a pleasure to watch. And then there’s the ship combat, which is… I hate to give anything away… it’s just damn bloody brilliant.
And for the fans: The Trek references are sprinkled throughout with a keen sense of timing. There are tons of them, yes, but it doesn’t feel like it’s overdone. Same with the audio cues and a few other surprises… it’s classic Trek, baby, with just the right amount of winking at the audience.
Finally, let me say something about the music. Not only is the choice of using Kabuki percussion an amazing one, it heightens the actors’ lines in a manner I’ve never seen. It’s totally out of left field, but it totally works. Are those authentic Hyoshigi wood clappers? (I had to look that up!) Hats off to percussionist Wendy Heimann-Nunes! That’s not an easy job and she nails it.
And kudos to all! Qapla!
