Star Trek V - The movie that could have been

[sonak]

IIRC, Shatner originally considered a 'planet of eternal youth' story, long before Insurrection did the same thing. He would later re-visit it for his Ashes of Eden novel.

The Shat was somewhat hamstrung by the studio cutting the budget for the movie and their insistence that it contain more comedy, in light of TVH's success. He had a much bigger and more dramatic vision for the movie than the studio was willing to allow. Had they allowed for the SFX and action sequences he wanted and cut down on the hokey comedy, it could have been a much different and more successful movie.

dealing with a budget is a reality of making a movie, and shouldn't excuse Shatner for TFF. The very successful and well-regarded TWOK was made on a small budget.

 

[Balrog]

^To be fair, most of the sets and some of the FX shot were already done.

 

[Tomalak]

After Star Trek IV made a ton of cash for Paramount, you'd have thought they'd invest in a good sequel instead of cutting the budget. Hollywood doesn't work like that I suppose.

 

[Ultramann]

And this is why a lot of good stories don't make it to celluloid or are lost in the translation. Basic tenet of business. To make money you must spend money! Not waste it but spend it wisely.

 

[sonak]

I don't think that better special effects would make the difference in how TFF is regarded, no matter how many cool-looking rock monsters were added.

Effects don't make the movie as TMP and the SW prequels showed.

 

[Maurice]

Studio Approved Budget — Plus or Minus Previous Movie — Final Cost — Dates
ST2
$11 million — minus 400% — $13 million — 1980-82

ST3
$16 million — plus 45% — on budget — 1982-84

ST4
$23 million — plus 43% — $1 million under budget — 1984-86

ST5
$31.25 million — plus 42% — $.75 million over budget — 1986-89

SOURCE: June 11, 1990 memo from Ralph Winter to T. Zee on the subject of the ST-6 Budget

Just FYI.

 

[Maurice]

After Star Trek IV made a ton of cash for Paramount, you'd have thought they'd invest in a good sequel instead of cutting the budget. Hollywood doesn't work like that I suppose.

See the post above. ST5 did not in fact cost less than its predecessor. Paramount just trimmed the budget back from what was initially approved.

 

[Ryan Thomas Riddle]

IIRC, Shatner originally considered a 'planet of eternal youth' story, long before Insurrection did the same thing. He would later re-visit it for his Ashes of Eden novel.

The "plante of eternal youth" story, which morphed into THE ASHES OF EDEN, was Shatner's pitch for VI, according to George Takei at a San Diego "Star Trek" convention shortly after V was released. Takei said he heard Shatner pitched a movie where Kirk had to defend, almost single-handedly, a planet that held the key to eternal youth. [Disclaimer: This is from my memory, which has been known to be faulty.]

The "Enterprise finds God" plot, as Harve Bennett liked to call it, was always Shatner's story for V, as chronicled in the "making of ... " book written by Lisabeth Shatner. [Disclaimer: This is not from memory, but from a primary source, Lisabeth's book.]

 

[CaptainMatt]

Sounds like Shatner's much acclaimed ego was at work for the planet of youth storyline doesnt it? No wonder it never got made into a motion picture!

 

[Tomalak]

After Star Trek IV made a ton of cash for Paramount, you'd have thought they'd invest in a good sequel instead of cutting the budget. Hollywood doesn't work like that I suppose.

See the post above. ST5 did not in fact cost less than its predecessor. Paramount just trimmed the budget back from what was initially approved.

Yes I saw. Where the hell did they spend the money? Reused sets, crap special effects... must have been all the location shooting I guess.

 

[Satyrquaze]

^ Nimbus III, Paradise City, the "pool table", three breasted cat-girl.

from Memory Alpha

The exterior set for Paradise City was constructed at full-scale on the Owens dry lake bed in California. It remains one of the largest sets ever constructed for a Star Trek movie. Interiors were built on Stage 5 at Paramount Pictures.

 

[Maurice]

After Star Trek IV made a ton of cash for Paramount, you'd have thought they'd invest in a good sequel instead of cutting the budget. Hollywood doesn't work like that I suppose.

See the post above. ST5 did not in fact cost less than its predecessor. Paramount just trimmed the budget back from what was initially approved.

Yes I saw. Where the hell did they spend the money? Reused sets, crap special effects... must have been all the location shooting I guess.

^ Nimbus III, Paradise City, the "pool table", three breasted cat-girl.

from Memory Alpha

The exterior set for Paradise City was constructed at full-scale on the Owens dry lake bed in California. It remains one of the largest sets ever constructed for a Star Trek movie. Interiors were built on Stage 5 at Paramount Pictures.

I'm sure a chunk of it was "Above the Line" costs (like Shatner and Nimoy's star salaries, etc.). Furthermore, there was the large Paradise City set, all the costumes and props made for the planet, the bar interior set, the new observation lounge, the hangar deck set (revamped from a set originally built for Coming to America), the full-sized shuttles, the scrapped Rockman suit, etc.