Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, The Making of the Classic Film by John Tenuto & Maria Jose Tenuto - Book Review

 

'Go behind the scenes of one of the most beloved entries in the Star Trek saga with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home – The Making of the Classic Film. This definitive companion takes fans deep into the heart of the 1986 production that brought humor, heart, and humpback whales to the final frontier.

'Packed with exclusive interviews, rare photographs, and untold stories from cast and crew, this book reveals how director Leonard Nimoy and the creative team crafted a legendary time-travel adventure. From the challenges of shooting on location in San Francisco, to ground-breaking special effects needed to create the animatronic whales, to the environmental message that still resonates today, this insider account celebrates the risks and rewards of boldly going in a new direction. Whether you’re a lifelong Trek fan or a film history enthusiast, discover the artistry and camaraderie behind a film that helped redefine what a Star Trek movie could be.'

I've enjoyed Star Trek for most of my life, having grown up watching several of the season air on BBC in the evenings and trying my best to follow along week to week at a time when if you missed an episode it would be years before you could see it again. Despite my love of the franchise I have to admit I never really cared for the Original Series as much. The bright colours, the campiness, and the stories never really grabbed me as much as the 90's shows; especially Deep Space Nine. That being said, I did enjoy the films that came out of the crew of the original Enterprise, and despite everyone saying The Wrath of Khan is the best one I've always preferred The Voyage Home. And now as the film reaches it's 40th anniversary I'm more than happy to get the chance to dive into Titan Book's gorgeous new making of book, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home - The Making of the Classic Film.

Perhaps the most fun of the Original Series films, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is the one that people will immediately remember because of the whales. The simple concept of 'Earth needs whales' that then sees a rogue Enterprise crew taking their stolen Klingon Bird of Prey back in time to 1980's San Francisco to steal a couple of whales, is a large part of the success of this film compared to the three that came before it. The first was incredibly dull, the second was great but left some viewers feeling a bit left behind as it was a sequel to a specific episode, and the third was dealing with the fallout of the second. Then along some the fourth film, one that asked a very simple but important question, 'what if we just had fun?'. That sense of joy, those memorable moments of the crew interacting with a new time period, and the jokes throughout the movie helped cement The Voyage Home as one of the best films the franchise had to offer.

Taking a look back at a film made forty years ago, however, presents a few problems; especially as so many of the original cast, and even the behind-the-scenes crew, are sadly no longer with us. With so many important figures in the creation of the film gone the Tenuto duo make the choice to focus on one person in particular, Kirk Thatcher, who worked as associate producer off-screen, and was the iconic bus punk Spock knocks unconscious on-screen. Having worked so closely with Leonard Nimoy during the production, Thatcher is able to give an astonishing amount of insight into the movie, providing details and stories that would otherwise be lost to time. A few of the surviving cast and crew do add their voices to the book, including actors George Takei and Robin Curtis, and effects artists and graphic designers Ken Ralston and Michael Okuda.

The opening chapter for the book deals with the pre-production aspects of the film, discussing the various drafts, scripting issues, and even casting changes that the film went through. I'd heard that Eddie Murphy had been intended to be in the movie, and would have filled the role that Catherine Hicks would go on to play; however, it's not until reading through this book that I found out that whilst Murphy was indeed intended to be involved, it was in a very different version of the film. The early versions of The Voyage Home are quite different, and the more I learned about it here the more glad I was that Murphy did eventually drop out and the script went in a different direction as what we ended up with definitely1 sounds like a more coherent and cohesive idea. 

After we learn about the genesis of the film we move onto characters, though not the main cast. This chapter opens with the more important characters, introducing us to new character Gillian Taylor, who would play a pivotal role in the saving of Earth, before focusing a little bit on some returning characters such as Saavik, Janice Rand, Nurse Chapel, and Sarek. From here we get a whole host of supporting characters, and a look at some of the special make-up effects, and puppets, that would be used to flesh out the world of Federation HQ. As someone who loves being able to take a proper look at what is essentially background elements in the movie this part of the book was absolutely fantastic, and I adored getting to actually take the time to appreciate the hard work the effects team put into bringing these various alien species to life. 

The rest of the book covers what you'd expect from a making of, dealing with concept art, the creation of sets and props, location shooting and the issues that would arise from doing so, and costuming. There's a significant part of the book given over to the whales, two of the most important characters in the film. I never knew that the footage of the whales used during the majority of the film were not of actual animals, but creations of ILM, and seeing how these puppets were created, and the effort that went into filming them underwater in such a way that they apparently even fooled whale experts, is honestly quite astonishing to see and will change how I look at these scenes in future re-watches of the film. 

My favourite parts of the book are the small asides that are included. These small snippets, often presented in their own box to show that they're an additional insight rather than part of the main text, tend to give us tiny stories that make the film feel a little bit more personal, or give us a view of things that could have been. A couple of my favourites are Thatcher reminiscing on how Nimoy loved both acting in and directing the film, but how much of a toll it took on him, as well as talk about a scene that would have had Sulu briefly meet one of his ancestors in the form of a small boy, but the scene fell apart due to the child actor being unable to perform on the day. These are the kind of insights that give the whole project more depth and charm, and I loved them for that.

One of the things that is reiterated throughout the book is how much that Nimoy wanted the film to matter. He didn't want just another Star Trek adventure, but something that discussed important things in the world. The environmental message of The Voyage Home was what he landed on, and is one that was not only important at the time, but is oh so much more vital today. It's sad that the simple message of 'protect the Earth now to save it for the future' that this film wrapped up in it's packaging of sci-fi adventure and humour was so lost on people that it didn't make much of a difference; but despite that it still makes the movie feel relevant now, and because of that I can't help but feel that The Voyage Home will continue to connect with audiences in ways that the other Original Series films don't.

Whether or not The Voyage Home is your favourite of the series or not, and if not odds are that it'd be your second favourite behind The Wrath of Khan (unless you've a real outlier), this behind the scenes book offers a ton of reasons to give it a read. The deeper look at the production of the film, and the personal stories provided by cast and crew make this an engaging and entertaining read, and the print quality of the book makes this a fantastic coffee table tome that would look great on anyone's shelf.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, The Making of the Classic Film is out now from Titan Books for £39.99.

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Giger's Alien by H.R. Giger - Book Review

 

'Originally published in 1979, Giger’s Alien is the ultimate illustrated diary on Giger’s involvement in the making of the movie Alien and its titular monster, the Xenomorph. The classic status of Alien, the movie, is in large part due to Academy-Award winning artist and designer H. R. Giger. This book provides a complete illustrated record of the months of painstaking work that went into designing the most frightening movie monster of them all.

'This perennial bestseller takes the form of a high-quality illustrated diary, featuring sketches, original paintings, on-set photographs and stills from the finished movie; this is an exquisite blend of words and pictures. A must-buy for fans of H.R. Giger, Alien and science fiction films in general.'

I grew up watching the Alien franchise, thanks in large part to some uncles who probably should have known better letting me see things I shouldn't have, and parents who had a more relaxed view on allowing me to be exposed to certain media that I knew wasn't real. Because of this, not only did I end up becoming quite a weird child, but I became fascinated with the titular Xenomorph from an early age, recognising that even in the decades that followed the release of the original 1979 film there were very few movie monsters that came close to it. 

The Xenomorph wasn't just a frightening monstrosity, one that would be an damn near guaranteed death sentence if you ever found yourself around one, but it was also one of the most beautiful. It's mixture of human, insect, and biomechanical traits, some of which that evoked bizarre sexual elements, made it feel like a creature from some dark, sexual nightmare. The Xenomorph managed to be so incredibly alien, so different from what pop culture had prepared audiences for, that the first time it appeared on screen it changed things forever.

Spawning from the brain of now renowned Swiss artist H.R. Giger, the creature was a testament to creativity. Where other sci-fi artists were creating bug-eyed monsters, Giger was tapping into something truly unique; and that uniqueness was exactly what Ridley Scott, Director of Alien was looking for to make sure that his upcoming science fiction movie wasn't lost in the slew of Star Wars clones and cash-ins. Giger's Alien, which was originally published in 1979, is made up from diary entries and notes made by Giger himself, beginning with a sudden call from Dan O'Bannon, who knew from the failed attempt to adapt Dune, who asked him to contribute to his latest sci-fi film.

Over the course of Giger's Alien was get to see Giger going from someone unsure of the process of filmmaking, to being on the set of the movie in Pinewood Studios, frantically decorating the the space jockey so that it's ready for filming, or locking himself away to hastily create a practical Facehugger that could be used to impregnate actor John Hurt. We get to see through Giger's own words how much of that nervousness fell away, often being replaced by frustration as a man used to marching to the beat of his own drum found himself having to operate under the studio's mandate, creating to their specifications and timetable.

There's often a sense of frustration that seems to come through in Giger's writing, especially once production actually enters full swing and he's having to stay in England throughout. He's someone who comes across as not being used to being asked for changes, where his artistic vision is normally absolute, but now he's being asked to go against that, creating by committee instead. It's somewhat sad, but you can almost hear the tiredness in his voice as you read the words he's written, and get the sense that despite Alien making him an international name, and one of the most famous artist of the modern era, he at times probably hated it. This does go against the way he would talk in interviews over the years, usually having such a positive outlook on it, but as these are his words at the time they feel so much more genuine, more raw, in how they come across; and thus it makes this a strangely personal book at times.

Alongside Giger's thoughts, the book contains a number of behind the scenes pieces, ranging from preliminary sketches, to more finalised designs, to the construction of sets and monsters, and things that never made it to the screen. All of this artwork comes from Giger, the evolution of certain designs showing how boldly different the film could have been, whether that is a Facehugger that's some huge creature, the Chestburster that resembled some horrific plucked bird, or the eggs originating in a breast-like silo structure rather than the derelict spacecraft. A lot of these images are ones that I've seen before, through various documentaries and behind the scenes features on DVD and Blu-ray releases of the film, so it's the photographs, taken by Giger's girlfriend of the time, Mia, that took centre-stage for me.

These photographs chronicle the practical process of the film, following along as Giger constructed the alien landscape that the astronauts would trek across from bone and chicken wire, ultimately becoming a full-sized set. There are photographs of the iconic derelict alien craft being constructed from Styrofoam before having all of the gorgeous detailing added to it. And there are photographs of the construction of the Xenomorph itself, of the complexity of the suit that was made by hand, scrapped and refined over and over until the iconic creature came to life. These photographs offer a unique perspective into the making of the film, and alongside Giger's words, create a narrative that I'd not heard before; a brutally honest account of the creation of one of the most important science fiction horror films ever created.

Perhaps my only criticism of the book is that it feels like it ends somewhat abruptly. The final entry from Giger is from the filming of the movie, after the Xenomorph suit has been created and is being used on screen. Giger is talking about how his work is still continuing, as he's spending the nights after each day's filming repainting and repairing the costume, making sure that his creature remains as horrifically beautiful as possible. The next page jumps forward in time, to after the film's release. This final entry, written by Mia, describes the night that she and Giger attended the Oscars, where he and the other members of the Alien team wins the award for Best Visual Effect. She talks about the almost child-like excitement and happiness that Giger experienced upon his win; something sharply at odds with his emotions during the production. It's a lovely way to end the book, but it does almost feel as if some pages have been excised thanks to the sudden change.

Giger's Alien has been lovingly recreated, a huge, coffee-table book that's designed to be read through once, but leafed through over and over again. The artwork inside the book is going to be a major draw for a lot of people, and might be the reason that some folks pick it up to begin with. However, it's also a personal account of Giger's time on the film, one that shows some of the worst parts of the production for him, an account that almost makes the making of the film sound like a horror story unto itself. Giger's Alien is a must-have book for any Alien fan, one that will make you appreciate the beauty of Giger's creations even more.

Giger's Alien is out now from Titan Books for £39.99

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The Hammer Horror Omnibus by John Burke - Book Review

 

'Hammer Films set the benchmark for horror cinema, creating some of horror's most enduring icons. Back in print after decades, discover these seminal novelisations from the studio's classic era of macabre storytelling, with a new foreword by TV showrunner Stephen Gallagher and a new afterword by horror legend Ramsey Campbell.

'The Gorgon - Directed by Terence Fisher, the master of Gothic cinema. what is the terrible secret of the village of Vandorf, where a murderer's victims turn to stone? The Curse of Frankenstein - The film that first united Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, and Hammer's first colour horror film, that launched the studio's golden age. Baron Frankenstein creates a grotesque monster - and is himself condemned to death for the creature's killings.

'The Revenge of Frankenstein - The sequel to The Curse of Frankenstein, dubbed a 'high-grade horror film' by Variety. Escaping the guillotine Baron Frankenstein repays the dwarf who aids him - giving him a new body. But his creation is a killer, worse - a cannibal! The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb - The sequel to the smash-hit The Mummy. From the Egypt of 3000BC to the London of 1900 comes the monster that would not die!'

Hammer is a British icon, one that has become so ingrained in the country that even if you've never seen one of the films you can't help but know about them, even if that's something as simple as the iconic image of Christopher Lee as Dracula. It's not hard to see how the studio became the juggernaut that it was, however, when you consider the sheer volume of films that they produced. As well as movies, Hammer commissioned novelisations of their films. As the foreword of the book laments, the practice of creating book versions of popular movies has become something of a lost art over the last couple of decades as films go from cinema to home release so incredibly quickly; and those that are made tend to be for more hardcore fans and unique collectors than the much wider audience that used to invest in the cheap, mass produced paperbacks of movies people had to wait years to see again. This new omnibus printing from Titan Books brings together four classic adaptations, offering a whole new audience the chance to experience them decades later.

The four films collected together in this omnibus are a bit of a strange mix, having originally been created to coincide with the release of 1964's the Gorgon, the four stories do not really have any thematic linking, and other than featuring the first two entries in Hammer's ever expanding Frankenstein series, there's no obvious reason why any of these were picked out. That being said, the collection does give us a decent bit of variety, not just in story but in artistic style too.

The first story in the collection, The Gorgon is perhaps the most important as it was the reason for the omnibus having originally been created, and it does show how sometimes these film to book adaptations can lead to the reader getting an alternative version of their movie thanks to creative changes that take place on set after the script is sent to the book adaptor. For example, in the film version of The Gorgon has the titular monster be Megaera whilst the book uses the original version Medusa. This difference highlights how something tiny can alter how you'd view the final product, as in the film the gorgon being a character from myth who wasn't one of the three gorgon sisters feels out of place, like the writer knew enough about Greek myth to know a name from it, but didn't realise they'd used it wrong. In contrast, whilst the central plot still feels somewhat silly in the book version, it does at least feature the correct character. 

Sadly, I found the adaptation of The Gorgon to be somewhat lacking at times, and despite it's very short length I often found myself becoming a bit bored with events. Characters were so flat as to have barely any dimension at all, and the story was at times a bit meandering and dull, and despite being a horror story there was almost no tension or horror to be found.

In contrast to this opening story, the next two included in the collection are so much better done. The two Frankenstein tales make the bold move of not being written in the third person, as you would come to expect from a film novelisation, but are told from the perspective of Victor Frankenstein himself, recounting his story. This not only evokes the feeling of the original story, and other horror fiction of the era, but it means that whilst the book is able to be vague on details, and can jump from scene to scene as the film does, it still feels like it's giving the reader a lot more to sink their teeth into as John Burke is able to put so much more personality into the narration.

This shift to the perspective of the villain also puts the reader into an interesting position as you can come away from the adaptation with a very different outlook to having just watched the film. Victor Frankenstein is the one taking us on this journey, and whilst you can still judge him harshly for his poor choices and evil acts you cannot help but want to go along with him to see what happens next.

The final story in the collection, The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb, goes back to third person narration, and manages to avoid some of the dullness of The Gorgon likely due to the fact that whilst the film it's based on isn't that great, it's at least not dull. It also helps that the lack of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing in the second Mummy film isn't felt here, as you can just imagine the two of them in any of the roles that you want.

Somewhat schlocky in nature, this second The Mummy story is perhaps more enjoyable in it's book form, as the silliness of it's ancient cult, living dead mummy, and con-men out to make money, make the story feel like a pulp tale, one not designed to be taken too seriously, and I was largely able to switch off my brain and just go along with all of the silliness and schlock.

The Hammer Horror Omnibus is a rather delightful collection, one that is very much a throwback to a different time of films. Whilst there are definitely some highs and lows throughout the book, with the opening story being the weakest and the one that you really need to push through to get to the good bits, overall it was a very enjoyable experience to be able to go back and read these stories without having to hunt through charity shops or internet sites. For fans of Hammer Horror, and people who may remember reading these stories when they were kids who want to experience them all over again, this new printing is a fantastic way to add these stories to your collection.

The Hammer Horror Omnibus is out now from Titan Books for £10.99.

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