Customer Reviews

Star Trek Movie Memories

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

I saw this book in the bargain bin at the local Borders bookstore and being a fan of the original Star Trek movies, I couldn't resist it. Would this be a huge ego-trip recounting (and inventing) all of William Shatner's triumphs at the expense of his cast-mates? Would he spend too much time talking about his own brilliance instead of the input of the writers and directors? Would I hurl the book against the wall in disgust, vowing never to read another Star Trek autobiography again? Surprisingly, the answer to all of these questions was "no".

From his reputation I never thought I would say this, but Shatner really does not talk about himself enough in this book. I'll wait a moment while you digest this fact. The bulk of the book is spent describing the relationship between the writers and the directors, the producers and the writers, the producers and the directors, the producers and the studio, the writers and the studio, and everyone and Gene Roddenberry. Since Shatner was never involved in any of these early negotiations (with the exception of Star Trek 5) quite a lot of the story is told by large quotations of the people involved. This leads to a somewhat balanced, though occasionally dry, representation of all that goes on behind the scenes of a multi-million dollar movie franchise. Fortunately the stories of the back-stabbing and double-dealing are wildly entertaining in their own right, so the book doesn't suffer much as a result of this.

There aren't a lot of amusing or entertaining anecdotes here nor is there much of anything resembling personal remembrances. At times, one has to stop and remember that this was actually written by someone who was part of the cast and not some random Trek fan doing research and interviews. There are some nice touches here and there, such as his description of trying to patch things up with James Doohan and Walter Koenig on the set of the Generations film, and discussing the patch of unemployment that he went through immediately after the cancellation of the Star Trek TV series. The book would have been far better with more of these stories; however, it is an ultimately enjoyable read as it is.

After seeing the movies, avid fans wish to know what happened behind the scenes during the making of the movie. Questions like who yelled at who often arise. However, as in the Star Trek Memories book before it, Bill Shatner does not dish out a lot of gossip or dirt on anyone. Here, he discusses what went into getting the various projects to begin with. Although this may not sound as exciting, I found myself turning pages, amazed that the films were actually made. Roddenberry was not happy with his treatment, and the studio did not appear to want to work with anyone.

For the personal touch, Shatner begins by telling the readers what he was doing before he received the call for the first Star Trek motion picture. From there, the stories tend to cover the people involved in writing the scripts, producing and directing the films, and getting the financing and actors. For this, Shatner provides ample quotes from interviews and letters from the members involved. As with the last book, he does interview Nimoy and Takei, but where are the comments from others?

A bit more personal is the information on Shatner's directing as well as his death scene in the crossover movie. Although sentimental, he does not overdo it.

I would highly recommend this book to Star Trek fans.

Star Trek Memories was one of the most pleasant surprises of my reading career. William Shatner is a surprisingly good writer - the book was entertaining, fast flowing, fun, and occasionally very funny.

Thus, I was really looking forward to reading this book, Star Trek Movie Memories. While not as good as the original, it's still very enjoyable. Who cares if parts may be slightly exaggerated? Who cares if some cast members remember some events differently? Personal memoirs are fraught with inconsistencies, even when all the people involved really are telling the truth (as they remember it). This book relies mostly on these personal rememberances and is all the stronger for it. It's an personal and inside look at what the people involved think of Star Trek, rather than a definitive history.

The main problem is the narrow focus of the people participating. There is much less from the actors and much more from the business people. Shatner's main sources (other than his own memory) are Leonard Nimoy, Have Bennet, and Nick Meyers. All three of these people are producers/directors, not actors (except Nimoy, but most of his contributions are from the production side as well). Only George Takai of the "Other 4" cast members is interviewed, and only for the ST III chapter. Ricardo Montalban is the only "guest star" of note to be extensively quoted. Koenig and Doohan are not consulted, which is not surprising, considering their disdain for Shatner, but neither is Nichols, whose interview figured prominently in the first memoir, nor Kelley.

Within the confines of this limitation, however, it's a pretty good book. It's fascinating to hear stories about script and budgetary confrontations, ego battles between top men, and clashes between Roddenberry and the studio. Unfortunately, Roddenberry comes out short in this memoir, probably because he had passed away and could not give his side of the story. Shatner pulls no punches (how many defamation suits were considered, I wonder?), and even criticises himself at times. While it's true he defends the dreadful fifth movie (i.e. the one he directed), he admits it's not as good as the others. I think anyone interested in Star Trek will thoroughly enjoy this book, even if you're more willing to believe someone else's side of the stories presented herein. It's fun, entertaining, and very interesting.

Mr. Shatner's book opens with a tale that begins on July 16, 1968 - coincidentally, the day my father died, so it was also a very notable date for me. Although not a head-over-heels fan of W. Shatner, I bought and read this book, which - surprise! - held my interest from start to finish. I came away with an admiration for this man, whom, at the same time, I'd like to shake, with the admonition(and perhaps a smirk) "stop being so arrogant!". His tales of the movie-making trials of Star Trek are more interesting than the actual movies, themselves. I recommend this book for some laughs, some poignant insights, and a welcomed addition to any Star Trek library. It's like reading a most excellent school essay from a very bad, little boy from a broken home, who went on to charm his way into high society. Give it a try, and try not to smile.

I picked this up at the library because I enjoy reading the behind-the-scenes of movies & TV shows. Star Trek Movie Memories takes us into the offices and minds of those involved with Paramount and the Star Trek movie franchise.

After reading this book, I can only say, What a bunch of whiny cry babies. If it isn't some studio exec, it's Leonard Nimoy wanting more power or money.

William Shatner and his co-author did a good job bringing in all the minds and ideas behind the controversies and little-known facts of Star Trek movies.

After writing "Star Trek Memories" with Chris Kreski in 1993, William Shatner came back a year later with "Star Trek Movie Memories." Whereas Shatner was uncertain as to the fate of Captain James T. Kirk of the Starship "Enterprise" at the end of the first book, by the time he wrote the second the character had officially died in "Star Trek: Generations." This provided an obvious stopping point for Shatner's memoirs and gives this book more of a sense of finality than the first one, especially since the book's epilogue is about shooting the death scene. There are less "Star Trek" movies to have memories about than there were television episodes and all of the films were made more recently so that the memories are fresher. Shatner also becomes more than just an actor when he directs "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" and is one of three writers who came up with the story.

The format is the same, so that "Star Trek Movie Memories" combines his own reminiscences with in-depth interviews with other actors and various people associated in one way or another with making the movies. As was the case last time, Leonard Nimoy is always thoughtful and insightful, and he shares his feelings on having to shoot Spock's death scene in "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" and his anger at the machinations of studios and guilds (it is dangerous to let Nimoy speak for himself because he is always captivating, but clearly Shatner does not mind letting his co-star take the stage to talk about things in his own words). Perhaps the most interesting stories come from David Gautreau, the actor who never really got to play Xon, the Vulcan science officer in the first film (it is a long story and a classical example of the sort of sick joke that happens in the wacky world of Hollywood). The narrative actually picks up after the original "Star Trek" is cancelled in 1969 as Armstrong and Aldrin are walking on the moon. Shatner covers the highlights and lowlights of his career and persona life, played against the undercurrent of fans support for the show that ultimately manifests itself as the space shuttle "Enterprise" and the first "Star Trek" movie.

If you know anything about Shatner it is that he has an omnipresent sense of humor, which is clear from the titles given each chapter devoted to a "Star Trek" movie. The seven films become, in order, "Star Trek: The Emotional Picture," "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Bennett...and Meyer, and Montalban, and Diller, and Eisner, and Katzenberg, and....," "Star Trek III: The Perch for Spock," "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Roams," "Star Trek V: The Frantic Frontier," "Star Trek VI: Discovered Country," and "Star Trek VII: Regenerations." Shatner does devote due consideration to what it was like to be a movie director, but clearly he is much happier talking about his ploy to get Nicholas Meyer to stop smoking his stinking cigars. The book is filled with dozens of black & white photographs throughout and eight pages of color photographs in the middle. However, the attraction here for fans of "Star Trek," whatever nomenclature you feel best describes the group, are the behind the scenes stories, like when Nimoy and Shatner talk about Kirk's finest moment on celluloid in "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" when he learns his son David has been killed. I always find it interesting to see how happenstance plays a role in memorable movie moments. So while this book is not definitive, it is an enjoyable read and you should learn enough after the making of these movies to feel it was worth the time.

The ongoing adventures of Captain James Tiberius Kirk as Shatner describes his life from the depressing post-Star Trek TV series days up to the making of the 6th in the series of movies. The recounting of each movie gets a little monotonous but does leave the reader in awe that the bean-counter and the creative egos managed to get it done!

Having recently watched all seven of the Star Trek movies which still feature the original cast (all over again), I was very grateful for this very candid and thoroughly entertaining book about their making. It is full of great anecdotes and one or two stories which made me laugh so hard, I had a hard time trying to breathe. A great sequel to Star Trek Memories and an absolute must for all fans of the original series and the movies.

Where do I begin? Before reading this book I merely thought of Shatner as an arrogant, ungrateful upstart who did not appreciate the full impact of his wonderful role on Star Trek. After reading this book I have come to realise that Shatner is Kirk, just as all the other characters on the Enterprise are exaggerated reflections of the actors which played them.

One thing that always baffled me was how Shatner could so easily give up the greatest, most popular and televised role in history, spanning over thirty years. This book explains his struggle to control the character and at the same time his sense of loss at finally killing him off.

Perhaps it was Shatner himself that made Star Trek what it is today.

Forever emblazoned in popular culture as the captain of TV's original "Star Trek", William Shatner, along with co-author Chris Kreski, takes the reader on a journey where "no man has gone before": that is, the soundstages of each of the seven films in which he was featured as the stalwart captain. From the first, "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", to the transitional "Star Trek: Generations", Shatner reveals the backstage drama of film production. He debunks some misconceptions about his "arrogance" and makes apologies to those that may have been offended. The author also chronicles how the "suits" in the offices of Paramount made some budget changes that, no doubt, played an integral part in the failure of the Shatner-directed "Star Trek: The Final Frontier".

All in all, the book is a decent read for the true Trek fan; it's not one, however, that bodes well with the uninitiated.