Leonard Nimoy on Directing Star Trek - Cinefantastique 1987

I have put up some scans from this double issue before - Cinefantastique 1987, with a focus on "Star Trek: The Movie Trilogy" (referring to The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock, and The Voyage Home). I love this issue, as it is practically taken over by interviews and articles on my favorite subject.

After directing "The Search for Spock", Leonard Nimoy was fortunate (and talented) enough to direct his second Star Trek movie - this time being one of the stars, as well.

This article also has fantastic pictures of the cast and directors behind the scenes. (Right click and open in new tab or window to see full size)

After the seriousness of the first movie and the deaths in the second and third, they wanted this "new" movie to be  "lighter in tone". Bring back time travel seemed like a must, and they had even considered having the crew go back to prehistoric times or the 1890s. Nimoy finally decided on 1986, because it "seemed to provide the greatest opportunities for fun".

Nimoy's plan: not a chase or malfunction, but "what if there's a problem in the 23rd century and the solution lies in the twentieth century?" After considering ideas such as medical problems that could only be cured by an extinct plant from the twentieth century (ideas that were filled with death and disease), the right one came almost be accident.

"I was talking to a friend of mine about endangered species and up came the subject of the hump back whales and the mysterious songs they sing. We don't know exactly what it is or what it means. I thought, 'that's it!' If we can pull that off, sending humpback whales 300 years through space, that would be exciting. And that's how the story evolved."

The Voyage Home is different in many ways - it is more comedic, and the most violent acts in the entire movie are a Vulcan nerve pinch on the bus and a slap in the face. There is just so much that makes it great - for any age.

"Our show is enduring because the kids can watch the show for the action and adventure and the fun and the aliens and the spaceships. Then you can revisit out shows six to eighteen years later and discern something that you were not aware of." This is true of every Star Trek episode and movie.

The Voyage Home (or "The One With the Whales" as many know it) has a very strong ecological message, Which reflects Nimoy's concerns (as a contributor to Greenpeace) but was not entirely intentional:

"I'm not a heavy contributor, but I get their newsletters and things. The idea of putting the spaceship between the whaling ship and the whale and being hit by the harpoon obviously has Greenpeace origins because that's what Greenpeace used to do to attract attention to the Save the Whale Campaign. They went out on rubber rafts in front of Russian ships to prevent them from firing their harpoons. That has always remained in my mind and that's where the idea came from. I didn't set out to do a film about ecology. You can say I'm concerned. But the idea of the Whales came because it seemed like a useful and romantic device. If we're helping the whales to get along better in the world, that's great."

To anyone who has never seen this movie, or even if it has been more than a year since you last saw it, I strongly recommend that you watch it again. It is, by far, my favorite Star Trek movie.

Dif-tor heh smusma!

William Shatner - Star Trek V

It has been a very long time since I have undated this blog - something that makes me very sad and fills me with shame - I have so much to post and so much to say. I haven't had access to a scanner, so I am posting the last scan I have off my computer: an article from Cinefantastique, June 1987 - "Shatner Directs Trek V?"

Now this article is obviously from before the movie was even in production - Walter Koenig leaked the possibility of Shatner's directing in a radio interview while The Voyage Home was still in filming.

Now everybody knows that my favorite two Star Trek movies were directed by Leonard Nimoy. The effects were great, the story was great, the drama was great. In conclusion, it was great.

And then we have Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. It was also "great" but the effects at times were so bad that I couldn't help but laugh - intentional? Perhaps, it doesn't matter. Why, you ask? Because of these scenes:

First we have Sybok in the desert - crazy exiled Vulcan Jesus style!

Then we have Kirk, who (after being distracted by hovering Spock watching him climb mountains) falls to what would be his death, had Spock not been wearing rocket boots and saved him in just the nick of time. This is the first scene that really made me laugh, because of the effects - starting when Spock turns upside down, and ending when Kirk is caught only inches from the ground. And then there is McCoy - standing and watching in utter horror with his "I told you so - damn it, Jim -You're a captain, not a circus act!" face (you know the one).

Uhura and Scotty start flirting on the bridge, and Uhura pulls out a bag of chips - the way to a fat man's heart, and she knows it.

Back at the campsite, Spock eats some of McCoy's "special" beans. Could there be anything cooler? I am I the only one fascinated by watching Spock eat beans? But it gets better...

Spock makes a marshmallow to roast, and we get this delightful quote:

SPOCK: I am preparing to toast a 'marsh melon'.
McCOY: Well, I'll be damned. A marsh melon. Where did you learn to do that?
SPOCK: Before leaving the ship I consulted the computer library to familiarise myself with the customs associated with 'camping out.'
McCOY: Tell me, Spock. What do we do after we toast the marsh, ...er, melons?
SPOCK: We consume them.
McCOY: I know we consume them. I mean after that.
SPOCK: I believe we are required to engage in a ritual known as the sing-a-long.

Back to the enterprise early, and Kirk's shirt. He has a cool shirt. That is all.

I could never figure out whether it was Uhura or that cat-lady dancing here until I actually watched it frame by frame. It's Uhura.

Spock is finally reunited with his half-brother, and not under the best of circumstances. Silly illogical Sybok. Later on in the movie, Spock has the chance to kill Sybok, but cannot, and we get this quote:

KIRK: You stay out of this! ...Why, Spock? Why? All you had to do was pull the trigger.
SPOCK: If I had pulled the trigger, Sybok would be dead.
KIRK: I ordered you to defend your ship.
SPOCK: You ordered me to kill my brother.
KIRK: The man may be a fellow Vulcan, but that doesn't...
SPOCK: You do not understand me, Captain. Sybok, also, is a son of Sarek.
KIRK: He's your brother brother? You made that up.
SPOCK: I did not.
KIRK: You did too. Sybok couldn't possibly be your brother because I happen to know for a fact that you don't have a brother.
SPOCK: Technically, you are correct. I do not have a brother.
KIRK: You see?
SPOCK: I have a half-brother.
KIRK: I've got to sit down.
McCOY: Let me get this straight. You and Sybok have the same father but different mothers.
SPOCK: Exactly. That is correct. Sybok's mother was a Vulcan princess. After her death, Sybok and I were raised as brothers.

Kirk gets on Spock's shoulders. Spock is not impressed - he has put on quite a bit of weight. Luckily, Vulcans are stronger than humans. Can you imagine McCoy holding him up? He gets frailer looking every movie.

Spock gets his rocket/levitation boots, and Kirk climbs right onto his right side. McCoy, however (and as usual) needs a bit more coaxing... just look at his face in the second cap. They initially start sinking to the ground:

SPOCK: It would appear we are too heavy.
KIRK: It's all those marsh melons.

Syboks attempts to control their minds the way he did the others: by showing them, and then ridding them of their pain. McCoy relives "killing" his father...

And Spock watched his father hold him for the first time.

SAREK: So human. (AKA Son, I am disappoint.)

Luckily, it doesn't quite work out the way Sybok planned.

Sybok finds what he was after, and they all beam down to:

SYBOK: Sha Ka Ree.
KORRD: Qui'Tu.
CAITHLIN: Vorta Vor.
TALBOT: Eden.

and move on to try and find "God". Sybok looks pregnant for a while because of the wind.

Umm... God? Hello? You might want to stop being so creepy, it looks like we're in the Lion King...

They find "God", and shoot it with phasers. (Please excuse the page-long quote)

GOD: And how did you breach the Barrier?
SYBOK: With a starship!
GOD: This starship. ...Could it carry my wisdom beyond the Barrier?
SYBOK: It could. Yes!
GOD: Then I shall make use of this starship.
SYBOK: It will be your chariot!
KIRK: Excuse me.
GOD: It will carry my power to every corner of creation.
KIRK: Excuse me. ...I'd just like to ask a question. ...What does God need with a starship?
GOD: Bring the ship closer.
KIRK: I said ...'What does God need with a starship?'
McCOY: Jim, what are you doing?
KIRK: I'm asking a question.
GOD: Who is this creature?
KIRK: Who am I? Don't you know? Aren't you God?
SYBOK: He ...has his doubts.
GOD: You doubt me?
KIRK: I seek proof.
McCOY: Jim, you don't ask the Almighty for his I.D.
GOD: Then here is the proof you seek.
(blue light rays shoot from God's eyes knocking Kirk backwards)
KIRK: Why is God angry?
SYBOK: Why? Why have you done this to my friend?
GOD: He doubts me.
SPOCK: You have not answered his question. What does God need with a starship?
(blue light rays shoot from God's eyes again knocking Spock backwards)
GOD: Do you doubt me?
McCOY: I doubt any God who inflicts pain for his own pleasure.
SYBOK: Stop! The God of Sha Ka Ree would not do this!
GOD: Sha Ka Ree? A vision you created. An eternity I've been imprisoned in this place! The ship! I must have the ship! Now ...give me what I want!
SPOCK: Sybok, ...this is not the God of Sha Ka Ree, ...or any other God!
SYBOK: I don't understand... Reveal yourself to me!
(an image of Sybok strides out of one of God's eyes)
SYBOK/GOD: What's wrong? Don't you like this face? I have so many but this one suits you best.
SYBOK: No! No, ...it's not possible.
GOD: Bring me the ship or I will destroy you!
SYBOK: The ship.
GOD: Bring it closer so that I might join with it. Do it or watch these puny beings ...die horribly.
SYBOK: What have I done?
KIRK: Kirk to Enterprise. Listen carefully.
SPOCK: Sybok.
SYBOK: This is my doing! This is my arrogance, ... my vanity...
SPOCK: Sybok, we must find a way...
SYBOK: No! Save yourselves! ...Forgive me, brother. Forgive me.
...I couldn't help but notice your pain.
GOD: My pain?
SYBOK: It runs deep. Share it with me.
(Sybok boldly enters the shaft and embraces his evil twin)

Only two people can beam up at a time because the transporter is low on power. Spock and McCot are beamed up, leaving Kirk to fight for his life. Suddenly a Klingon Ship comes (the one that has been chasing and trying to kill Kirk), and he is beamed onto that one to find...

Spock, the "new gunner" of a Klingon ship, swivels around in his bad-ass chair. Kirk goes up to hugs him:

KIRK: I ...thought I was going to die.
SPOCK: Not possible. You were never alone... Please, Captain. Not in front of the Klingons.

All is well - Kirk, McCoy, and Spock are back around the campfire, and instead of pondering the meaning of "Row Row Row Your Boat" and life being "but a dream" he plays it on his Vulcan Lyre while they all sing it in a round.

Shed a happy tear, roll credits, praise William Shatner.

What's Wrong With Star Trek?

Scanned from Cinefantastique June 1987 is a two-page article on "what's wrong with Star Trek". Do I agree with the views expressed in this article? Somewhat - Let us begin:

"Like all cultists, the Trekers prefer their rituals predictable and reverently performed. Paramount must genuflect to the generic expectations."
(Trekers? Why does this man keep spelling it Trekers? And why does this bother me so much?)

But this quote basically sums everything up - As an obsessive Star Trek fan, I want to see what I already knew backed up, with a few new, consistent facts thrown in. This is precisely the reason a lot of trekkies like myself found the new movie (2009) so unnerving - it is not what we knew.

Humpbacks to the Future!

The article goes on to give a short critique of each Trek movie (existing at the time) and the thickly laid Greenpeace/ecological message of the Voyage Home.

So far, I agree with everything I have read. Moving onto the second page...

This is where I start to disagree. Thomas Doherty states that while the reunion of the original cast was necessary for the Motion Picture, to continue with the same actors in the same roles is "bordering on ridiculous". While he may be correct in stating that these roles may/have become a straightjacket for the actors, I do not believe that fans would mind the continuing story, using the same actors in the same roles. I would be delighted - they are the characters, nobody else could reproduce them. I want to piece together every second of their lives. Luckily, that is where the novels come in.

"By Trek V,  Scotty may be taking up more space than the transporter room"

It also mentions Saavik - and I do agree full-heartedly that we should have seen more of her. The need for even more new characters? I don't think so, personally. I have always been comfortable with the same, safe characters with the few temporary characters that we got - but maybe that is just me.

He does make a point about the "hot blood" though - were are all those sexy, scantily clad women/aliens we saw in TOS? The short skirts? The plunging necklines? The bare backs? Come to think of it, where are the flying kicks? The double-fisted punches to the back of the neck? I could go on.

The answer: Age and maturity. The movies grow with the actors - could William Shatner still do leaps and kicks? Would we really be comfortable seeing old men oogling at young girls in skimpy clothing? Would that really go over well, and preserve the respect we have for these characters? Maybe. Maybe not. It depends on the audience.

Charles Correll on Leonard Nimoy as a Director

It's no coincidence that my favorite Star Trek movies of all time are The Search for Spock and The Voyage Home - Leonard Nimoy is a great director with superior insight into what Star Trek should be.

Below is an article I scanned from "Cinefantastique" June 1987 - Charles Correll on Leonard Nimoy as the director for Star Trek III, The Search for Spock. In the article he elaborates on Nimoy's casual and confidant approach to directing - so read it! Do it now, and click to enlarge:

This quote really stood out to me, and leads into my next post quite nicely (oh, you will see): "Trek is a victim of it's own history. You can't get too different. The audience doesn't want it. The formula works. It's a legend if not a religion."

Oh, isn't that the truth.

Zombies of the Stratosphere - A Role He'd Rather Forget

The following scans are from the Crew Files Magazine Spotlight on Spock, 1987. Click to enlarge.

Before Paris, Tom Kovack, or Spock, Leonard Nimoy had a role as Narab - a Martian in "Zombies of the Stratosphere" in 1952 (his third role).

The twelve-chapter serial was filmed and aired in 1952 and featured Judd Holdren as Larry Martin, or as I saw him - Powdered Toast Man with a cardboard mask. Larry would leap into flight dramatically, laying out in the sky, and all I could think of was epileptic-fit-causing lights and the powerfully said phrase, "Poooowwwderrred Tooooast MAAAAAAAAAAAN!"

Anyways, the film is about Martians coming to earth because their planet is too far from the sun. They want to use an H-bomb to blow Earth away from the sun, so that Mars can take it's place. Larry Martin has an experimental rocket suit that allows him to fly. It is up to him to stop these people from Mars.

By the way, the show has nothing to do with Zombies.

So what was Nimoy's role all about? Well, his charecter (Narab) and Marex go around stealing supplies for the bomb and looking utterly ridiculous. Narab eventually turns against the others and reveals the location of the bomb. Not really much of a pride-inducing role - but it's too bad Nimoy couldn't have more fun with it.

Still - I am a sucker for old films and serials, and had watched it a while ago on the internet. Unfortunately I can no longer find it, but if you ever get a chance to see it, take it! The low-budget effects and story are actually strangely compelling...

Crew Files Magazine Spotlight on Spock 1987

I love my Files Magazines... I got a whole bunch of them a month or so ago when I was going through boxes of old books in a privately run antique shop. The lady who owns the shop is very nice, and knows me well - I am there scrounging around the disorganized shelves quite often.

Another one of my favorites is the Spotlight on Spock, by John Peel.

Captain Spock

I have always loved Spock, and I loved watching him grow - his humanity, his understanding... finding some kind of peace with who he is. I feel there is a huge difference between the confidence in Lt. Commander Spock and Captain Spock; The older, wiser Spock is just so composed and powerful, without trying as hard as he did. I love that they chose this picture for the cover of the magazine.

A younger Spock - a Spock still trying to find his place and himself - graces the inside cover in black and white.

Science Officer Extraordinaire...

The dedication in this book is "to Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combination".

There are tons of great photos in all of the Files Magazines - from shows and movies that Nimoy has been in, and from Star Trek itself. It also goes on to analyze Spock and his character/personality.

Back cover - a beautiful family.

I had been checking around the internet for this specific spotlight in case anybody wanted a copy, but I cannot find another anywhere - only the Search for Spock spotlight (which I am also the proud owner of).

Dif-tor heh smusma.