Star Trek: The Art of the Film

[DrCorby]

I just picked up this book, a hardback coffee table-type volume from Titan. It is chock-full of gorgeous photos and sketches from the 2009 movie, broken down into logical sections. There is some text describing the creation of many sets, characters, props, and ships, but I found myself wishing for more detailed accounts of the design and execution process.

Interestingly, there were a few instances of director Abrams describing something he wanted, then leaving the various artists to try to realize his vision. One that comes to mind was his fascination with his new iPhone, and wanting some of that look reflected in the displays and control surfaces of the Enterprise.

Has anyone else bought this book? What was your opinion? I'm sure it's one that I will pull off the shelf & thumb through periodically.

 

[Admiral_Young]

I just got it as a belayed Christmas present (there's actually a thread on the book in the Star Trek IX thread). I agree the book has a great deal of beautiful photos and concept art, I wish there was more and I had hoped for more of a behind the scenes production book though.

 

[Stevil2001]

I've got it, but I haven't read it yet. Looked pretty cool from flipping through it, though.

 

[Admiral_Young]

The Kelvin interior bridge shots are maybe my favorite photos in the entire book...along with the unused poster section at the back.

 

[JoeP]

I got it as well and LOVE it. I haven't had a chance to read it cover to cover yet, just basically flipping thru and looking at the sketches and photos.

Looking forward to going thru it more in depth perhaps this weekend...

 

[Dayton Ward]

I wish some of the art that spans two pages could've been done in a gatefold style. That early design painting of the revamped Enterprise is pretty sweet.

 

[DEWLine]

I'd have liked to see more on the rest of the Starfleet designs, and more on the set details...but that could be worked into a second volume. What was there was good stuff.

 

[Arpy]

I wanted to see more images and read more interpretations as well. Coffee table books are a hard sell nowadays so it'd have been better if they made this one even richer than previous ones - of which I have many. They're not gonna make another and I wanted to see more possibilities of what the Enterprise might have looked like - you know there were probably dozens more.

I LOVED the other possibilities for the Academy, and the bridge too. They went too retro. Same with Superman Returns. They play it safe too often in this postmodern world. Old is retro, kitsch, camp, familiar, fun. It's also boring, done, decayed, and obsolete.

 

[Christopher]

How is the bridge design in the new movie too retro? It's a far more radical departure from the original than any other bridge, and if anything, its styling is too current, too rooted in present-day designs and technology (its look was influenced by Apple Store designs and its interfaces were influenced by the iPhone).

 

[Arpy]

You're right, of course, it is Apple Store. But compared to at least one design that really caught my eye (long sweeping lines, larger viewer, console hovering over a window/viewer) that was more forward looking, it basically took the old bridge concepts and just Appled them.

 

[Captain Robert April]

Flipped through the thing at Borders. Saw the bit about how they thought the Bussards on the nacelles were for sucking in interstellar antimatter to burn in the nacelles, thus confirming they were a pack of morons who didn't have a clue what they were doing.

 

[Dukhat]

Flipped through the thing at Borders. Saw the bit about how they thought the Bussards on the nacelles were for sucking in interstellar antimatter to burn in the nacelles, thus confirming they were a pack of morons who didn't have a clue what they were doing.

 

[Steve Roby]

Yeah, at the theatre, when the scene in the movie in which everything depended on the Bussards being used to draw in antimatter appeared, the audience erupted in jeers and boos and ripped the seats out and burned down the theatre, chanting "Death to false Star Trek!"

 

[Deranged Nasat]

Yeah, at the theatre, when the scene in the movie in which everything depended on the Bussards being used to draw in antimatter appeared, the audience erupted in jeers and boos and ripped the seats out and burned down the theatre, chanting "Death to false Star Trek!"

 

[JarodRussell]

Flipped through the thing at Borders. Saw the bit about how they thought the Bussards on the nacelles were for sucking in interstellar antimatter to burn in the nacelles, thus confirming they were a pack of morons who didn't have a clue what they were doing.

Now if the film didn't already convince you of that...

 

[JoeP]

Flipped through the thing at Borders. Saw the bit about how they thought the Bussards on the nacelles were for sucking in interstellar antimatter to burn in the nacelles, thus confirming they were a pack of morons who didn't have a clue what they were doing.

This.

 

[Steve Roby]

Saw the bit about how they thought the Bussards on the nacelles were for sucking in interstellar antimatter to burn in the nacelles, thus confirming they were a pack of morons who didn't have a clue what they were doing.

This.

Except for the fact that virtually no one actually gives a fuck what the nacelles do.

 

[seigezunt]

Flipped through the thing at Borders. Saw the bit about how they thought the Bussards on the nacelles were for sucking in interstellar antimatter to burn in the nacelles, thus confirming they were a pack of morons who didn't have a clue what they were doing.

Not this again. Always entertaining.

 

[Stevil2001]

This.

Except for the fact that virtually no one actually gives a fuck what the nacelles do.

Steve, he's agreeing with you-- he's "thissing" the roll-eyes.

 

[JD]

Flipped through the thing at Borders. Saw the bit about how they thought the Bussards on the nacelles were for sucking in interstellar antimatter to burn in the nacelles, thus confirming they were a pack of morons who didn't have a clue what they were doing.

I didn't know that either, so does that mean I'm a moron too?