Farragut Forward : Movie Review

Now playing on YouTube.

The prospect of watching fan-made media can be a double-edged sword. You never know what the story, script, production values, or acting are going to be like, as a lot of fan films are cobbled together with little more than a lot of love – and nonexistent budgets – for whatever property it is they’re paying homage to. Their makers do the best they can to varying degrees; searching for “fan film” on YouTube will lead you down some scary rabbit holes that might require eye bleach. However, in the last few years, I’ve been exposed to two fan works that have been absolutely fantastic: the Friday the 13^th-based Never Hike Alone series (full disclosure: I helped crowdfund NHA 2 because I liked the first one) and, now, Farragut Forward.

Based on Star Trek lore and minutiae, Farragut Forward is a surprisingly terrific film that continues the critically acclaimed, 8-episode “Starship Farragut” live-action web series. Don’t worry about not having seen it prior to watching this movie, as the script by stars John Broughton and Paul Sieber and director Johnny K. extends a hand to you early and often to bring the viewer into the world of the U.S.S. Farragut. The “Starship Farragut” team has covered the 1960s “TOS” (The Original Series) era, and they’ve even done an animated series. Now, they’re making the jump into the 1980s film canon with this Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan-inspired tale of a former villain coming back to terrorize the Farragut crew.

This short film’s visuals and story are good enough to stand alongside any official Star Trek property, with big-screen ambitions successfully and imaginatively realized with excellent visual effects, superb photography, careful attention to detail, and a committed cast and crew of volunteers all working out of sheer love for the project. Filmed on weekends and assembled over two years, it’s immediately evident that this movie operates on such a different level than most fan films out there. We see screen-accurate costuming pegging the film’s time period to be analogous to that of Star Trek II and IV: The Voyage Home; the displays and props don’t look like they were merely kitbashed or last-second afterthoughts; the lighting and photography are professional and practiced, not just “point the camera at the thing and hit the Go button”; everything, from the masks and makeup to the real sets (no greenscreens were used at any point in filming), has a striking, tangible quality that affords Farragut Forward a well-lived-in feel.

We’re catapulted quickly into Captains Smithfield (Holly Bednar) and Tia Logan’s (Gina Hernandez) search for Captain John Carter (Broughton) and Executive Officer/Science Officer (also Smithfield’s husband) Bob Tacket (Michael Bednar), who’ve gone missing under mysterious circumstances. Using a tactic from S’chn T’gai Spock, Smithfield has planted a viridium patch on Carter’s uniform to help track his location, but waiting for them to come for their lost crewmembers is the vengeful mirror universe rogue Henry Prescott (Sieber). A former Starfleet officer who assassinated the mirror universe Carter, Prescott now commands a legion of Klingons and former prisoners, united to achieve the same goal: the elimination of the Farragut and everyone inside it. On Prescott’s side is the battle-hardened Valal (Wes Johnson), whose notions of vengeance and honor clash wildly with Prescott’s. This isn’t Khan Noonien Singh leaving Captain Kirk “buried alive” on a planetoid; this is Prescott torturing Carter and Tacket, making them watch as their loved ones are attacked. Prescott’s on a mission of pain, contrary to Valal and his subordinates’ ways, piling another layer of conflict upon an already fraught situation.

Johnny K.’s vision for this movie is best represented on the largest screens you can find. Having seen this projected theatrically, I can say without hesitation that Farragut Forward fulfills every one of its high aspirations. It doesn’t just attempt to run alongside official canon; instead, this movie is vaulted into being part of it. The story is gripping while retaining a true Starfleet feel, and the script has the wonderful combination of dead seriousness and familial camaraderie requisite of what you’d expect from Star Trek. Best yet, it has life; while there are experienced actors who know how to carve out their spaces and do their jobs well, there are others who provide an indefinable humanity and relatability in every scene. There’s something lovely about the parental presence Holly Bednar brings to Smithfield, full of worry and doubt as she searches for her husband but confident and bold when she needs to be.

Furthermore, it’s a nice thing to be welcomed by a cast that doesn’t mind playing to both “Starship Farragut” fans and newcomers alike. Introducing us straightaway to the central conflict by way of seeing Carter and Tacket bloodied and bruised in a ship’s brig sets us up easily, with Michael Bednar efforting his injuries and exhaustion with dire urgency while John Broughton makes Carter call upon his remaining strength to maintain what little control he can exert on the situation. Gina Hernandez is magnetic as the stalwart Logan, substituting in the Captain’s chair with a subtle and calculating poise. So, too, does Wes Johnson commit a nuanced performance under heavy prosthetics; there’s something else going on with Valal, and Johnson takes a terrific opportunity to shade his character with strokes of valor and honor.

This isn’t your ordinary fan film; this is something special. It’s an epic in the making, as this is the first of a planned trilogy from Farragut Films and Kaotica Studios. Farragut Forward is aptly named, helping us look to the future with anticipation and setting us up for what is, hopefully, a new set of journeys with the Farragut cast; in theme and in reality, this is a “getting the gang back together” adventure that you don’t want to miss out on. Johnny K. and company have raised the bar for these kinds of productions, packing their movie full of genuine heart and suspense while striving for a level of quality that makes them stand out from the rest. A low budget doesn’t give you a license to not care about the little things; instead, it makes you focus on them all the more so you can make ten dollars look like ten million. And that’s what they’ve done with Farragut Forward, an impressive cinematic outing that outclasses even some of the best official Star Trek offerings.

Some photos by Britt Dvorak.