Improve Star Trek: The Motion Picture

[Warped9]

I don't know all the ins-and-outs of what was going on. But when I look at the film I think I see what it needs--really just a few more scenes of good dramatic interplay. But the road to the TMP we got was a rocky one where they couldn't seem to decide whether they wanted a pilot for a new series or a feature film. By the time they decided on a film they had already spent a good chunk of money and time developing a story. Maybe no one had the stomach to say, "Hey! Rewrite needed here!"

 

[xortex]

I don't know all the ins-and-outs of what was going on. But when I look at the film I think I see what it needs--really just a few more scenes of good dramatic interplay. But the road to the TMP we got was a rocky one where they couldn't seem to decide whether they wanted a pilot for a new series or a feature film. By the time they decided on a film they had already spent a good chunk of money and time developing a story. Maybe no one had the stomach to say, "Hey! Rewrite needed here!"

Actually, funny enough, Shatner did.

 

[Maurice]

This has been said many times but it bears repeating:

Paramount block-booked the film into theaters for Dec. 7, 1979. There was no way to move the date without being sued by the theater chains they'd made the deals with. Ergo, the film had to go out on that date, no matter what shape it was in.

The film's script just wasn't where they wanted it at the start of production. But the studio had actors and crew contracted and they had to start shooting, even if the script needed work. The logistics of mounting a major motion picture are very complicated, and there was no way to push the start date without risking having to renegotiate contracts and risk the aforementioned release date.

I'm sure everyone associated with the film wanted a locked script before they started shooting, but once the aforementioned release date was locked in the luxury of waiting until the script was right evaporated. Sad, but true. And, yes, it's easy to say they shouldn't have made that deal, but it was a business decision that was likely influenced by things we'll never know. It may not have yielded the best possible film, but did turn out profitable, so from Paramount's perspective it ultimately worked out fine.

 

[Pauln6]

Debate is fun as long as the crew accept the captain's decision publicly. One of the things I disliked about Enterprise was how Trip abused his friendship with Archer to behave unprofessionally while on duty. At least McCoy knew when to shut up but then Kelley was a master at conveying his disapproval with his facial expressions.

 

[Gagarin]

While the start date for principal photography, and the start date for the VFX were set because of the release date... art thrives on limitations, right?

TWOK was up against similar restrictions. They fuddie-duddied around with scripts too, which were bad, and Nick took what was good and found the thread. What, in a week?

This Star Trek story was kicked around for a long time before Paramount booked the theatres. I don't think it would have been a good TV pilot, either. "Where's the drama, the conflict, what is this movie ABOUT?" needed to be asked whether or not it was going to be a feature film. It's a mediocre story, and it had a bad script. And it was too attatched to the TV pilot backstory. Why an Illia? Why a Will? Why? Who cares about them. We want to see Kirk, Spock, Bones, Scotty...

Someone OTHER than GR should have rewritten the thing, under pressure.

 

[Kinggodzillak]

Improve TMP? Two words:





Lieutenant Leslie.

 

[Pauln6]

Rand mincing onto the bridge to serve hot coffee just like the good old days would have improved it for me!

 

[Maurice]

While the start date for principal photography, and the start date for the VFX were set because of the release date... art thrives on limitations, right?

TWOK was up against similar restrictions. They fuddie-duddied around with scripts too, which were bad, and Nick took what was good and found the thread. What, in a week?

This Star Trek story was kicked around for a long time before Paramount booked the theatres. I don't think it would have been a good TV pilot, either. "Where's the drama, the conflict, what is this movie ABOUT?" needed to be asked whether or not it was going to be a feature film. It's a mediocre story, and it had a bad script. And it was too attatched to the TV pilot backstory. Why an Illia? Why a Will? Why? Who cares about them. We want to see Kirk, Spock, Bones, Scotty...

Someone OTHER than GR should have rewritten the thing, under pressure.

At root, that's the problem.

Livingston wrote "In Thy Image" in a rush because they couldn't find anyone acceptable to do it in time that they were sure could deliver.

Eisner decided that THAT hurried script would be the movie. My suspicion is they'd pored all this money into making a TV show and they had to recoup it, so they decided to make the pilot into a feature to fix that. I don't think it was because of the merits of the script at all.

Even that might've been salvageable, but part of the problem was that Roddenberry was messing with the script and having fights with Harold Livingston about it. They'd have had to remove Roddenberry as Executive Producer to stop that, and that would have been baaaad publicity.

 

[Anji]

Personally, I never really saw much wrong with the movie.

Except I do wish the actors would've been a little more relaxed. It looked like there was a lot of tension on that set.

 

[comsol]

Personally, I never really saw much wrong with the movie.

Except I do wish the actors would've been a little more relaxed. It looked like there was a lot of tension on that set.

But was it the actors who were tense and unrelaxed or was it the characters who were tense. Considering the situation that the ship and crew were in, I thought that the level of tension was appropriate. I also don't think that more interpersonal conflict would have felt right under the circumstances - after all, what would work on a television episode might not translate as well on the big screen - also, whatever their differences, these characters are supposed to be - and act like - trained professionals.

 

[Warped9]

The characters were trained professionals in Run Silent Run Deep and it worked superbly there. It's all in the execution.

 

[RobertScorpio]

Personally, I never really saw much wrong with the movie.

Except I do wish the actors would've been a little more relaxed. It looked like there was a lot of tension on that set.

I look at that movie as I do TOS. I set it aside in its own area because its just so hard to compare it with any other movie due to the politics of what was going on..

TOS is the same for me. i can't compare it to TNG/DS9 and the others because its so far removed from them in production and feel.

Rob

 

[Warped9]

Hmm... A lot of folks compare TOS-TMP by the standards of TNG-DS9-VOY and ENT. I compare contemporary Trek by the standards of TOS.

 

[RobertScorpio]

Yep...you and I think the same. TOS was made nearly 50 years ago, with totally different actors, and in most cases, totally different production and budgets. In fact, although I liked Generations better than all the other TNG movies, I think it was uncomfortable watching Kirk/Scotty/Chekov trying to be 'fit' into that movie with those lines.

When Scotty was saying "I'm losing their pattern..some kind of temporal flux" or somthing like that, I cringed. And when he comes up with that way to shoot the shield beam, the dialog was too, how do I say, technobabblish...

I'm glad that Kirk died. I wasn't before, but now I am. He would have been so out of place in modern Trek...

Rob

 

[plynch]

Quicker pacing.

Some sort of dilemma/decision.

 

[TEH BABA]

Why the fuck did kirk need a demotion to command the enterprise to begin with?

 

[BillJ]

Why the fuck did kirk need a demotion to command the enterprise to begin with?

So they could call him Captain Kirk!

 

[Armus]

No one usually says that the best things about TWOK are what it took from TMP. For example, the excitement and energy felt by the crew as the Enterprise left spacedock. Both films have a similar scene a quarter into the picture. The shots of the ship turning on its lights, the crew getting ready, the music swelling and building up to a satisfying climax as the ship left spacedock and went into warp. There's a certain feeling there in both movies.

 

[Armus]

It was great Trek but it could have been a lot better. If they could mix the best elements of TWoK with the best elements of TMP we'd have perfect Trek. Of course no two fans would agree what was best from either movie.

No one usually says this but I think the best things about TWOK are what it took from TMP. For example, the excitement and energy felt by the crew as the Enterprise left spacedock. Both films have a similar scene a quarter into the picture. The shots of the ship turning on its lights, the crew getting ready, the music swelling and building up to a satisfying climax as the ship left spacedock and went into warp. There's a certain feeling there in both movies.

 

[Mr Silver]

I thought about how to improve TMP over the weekend, after a rewatch (finally got the TOS films on DVD!)

Could TMP be regarded as a "Classic Film" alongside the likes of "Assault On Precinct 13" and "The Day Of The Jackal"? Because both these films were remade in the last decade and in some ways were improvements on the originals (although I regard the originals the superior efforts)

If TMP was remade, i'd like it to be considerably longer, with a bit more story going on, for instance we could have more battle scenes, where the Enterprise meets a Klingon ship on its way to find out what happened to the IKS Amar and Co, resulting in a battle where the refitted Enterprise puts its new systems to good use, it would also serve to show us the boiling tensions between the Klingons and the Federation, leading to them running the Kobayashi Maru against Klingon Ships, The Klingons involvement in TSFS and the eventual peace talks in TUC

I'd like to see more backstory, perhaps a prelude where Kirk is promoted and he recommends Decker to command the refitted Enterprise, slowly regretting this decision throughout his tenure as Starfleets Ops Chief, thus lending more credibility to the love/hate (albeit, rubbish) storyline in the original TMP

I'd like to see someone Direct the film who doesn't believe that the future is all about Lens-Flare (JJ's good, I really enjoyed XI, but for remaking the TOS films, its gotta be someone with a classical feel in mind)

I think they should also include the "Memory Wall" scene and indeed the whole Spacewalk with both Kirk and Spock, adding a bit more detail into their friendship and Spock explaining alone to Kirk why finding out about V'Ger is so personally important to him

All in all, I dunno if they'd remake TMP, but if they did and with some of the ideas I expressed in mind, it would certainly put seats in the Cinema