The 'Star Wars' Thread

[LMP]

 

[impy13]

But the box doesn't have a hole in it...

 

[No spoken words]

1 - Cut a hole in a box

I like La-Mom, FYI.

 

[LMP]

?

 

[No spoken words]

2 - Put your junk in that box

 

[lazarus]

"that's great, great. keep your fingers there..."

<SNAP>

 

[No spoken words]

3 - Get her to open that box

 

[Lancemc]

"that's great, great. keep your fingers there..."

<SNAP>

Your failure to acknowledge my latest post in the Tom Cruise thread makes me sad.

 

[Utoo]

I'm in Star Wars mode again (I'm sure my wife loves it!), so I'm reviving the thread. Minus all the talk about Lance's mom, etc.


So, I'm actually reading the novelization of A New Hope (picked up the one-book collection of the OT from my mom's used bookstore). I'm only about 50 pages into it, but it's already interesting to note some differences. Not in terms of missing scenes, etc., a la the PM novelization, but in terms of changes in characters' emotions, or sides of characters that weren't necessarily hinted at in the film. For instance, there are a few scenes of Luke with his Tatooine friends in which they call him "Wormie" and he's seriously as annoying as Jake Lloyd. In the first Death Star scene, it's Tarkin who's touting the supremacy of the battle station, not Tagge (the other guy's name in the book..not sure if that name carried over to the film). The Emperor's described almost like a dwindling recluse, his lieutenants and governors seeming to have obtained more power in running the Empire than he has, while his own power is fading. And Vader, again in that first Death Star scene, seems to dislike the Emperor (he says something like, "As the Emperor wills it, it shall be done" but is noted to say it sarcastically). I can understand Vader disliking the Emperor, given Episode III, but that doesn't really come out in the film of Episode IV at all.

Anyway, it's interesting reading the book... I get the impression that some of Lucas' world really was fully fleshed out from the start like he says, but some of it either came about later because of the films, or perhaps as the case might be with ANH, improved upon in making the films.

I'm blabbering with little point, so I'll stop. Though I do want to note that the upcoming release of "The Force Unleased," combined with Lego Indiana Jones, is seriously making me consider getting a Wii....

 

[lazarus]

Utoo, a great book you should get is Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays, which compares the various drafts of the scripts for the original trilogy. It's cool to see how the story and characters evolved, as well as finding out how old certain ones (like Mace Windu) have been around.

I think you can get a paperback copy for pretty cheap.

 

[Utoo]

Thanks, I"ll have to check that out. Back when they first started making those big 12" figures that came with a book on the character, Vader was the first one. I remember enjoying the Vader book very much...it was awesome to see the evolution of the character, all the different ideas for the masks (from simple gas-mask look on through all kinds of samurai styles), etc.

I have to make an Amazon purchase anyhow...I'll see if the Annotated Screenplays is on there & pick that up, too.

One thing that is interesting to note about the novelizations of the OT, it seems like the ANH one really was a lot of Lucas' initial visions, whereas the second two are almost screenplays, with scenes and dialog straight from the films.

 

[lazarus]

If I'm not mistaken, the Star Wars novelization was written before the screenplay was even finished, whereas those subsequent ones were adapted from the shooting scripts.

 

[Utoo]

that would fit. the ANH story is Lucas & dated 1976, whereas ESB and RTOJ are written by other people (not Kasdan, etc., btw) and dated the years of the films.

 

[LMP]

I remember reading an older draft of Jedi where the final battle took place on Coruscant, Obi-Wan "came back from the Netherworld of the Force" to help Luke fight Palpy, and I think Vader wasn't redeemed. It was pretty wonky.

 

[phanan]

I still have an early copy of A New Hope. Always a cool read.

Gotta love the Journal Of The Whills prologue...

 

[LMP]

http://starwarz.com/starkiller/scripts.htm

Funny to see 3PO originally having the "It's a trap!" line.

But sirrrrrrrrr

 

[Utoo]

http://starwarz.com/starkiller/scripts.htm

wow, that stuff's awesome. I can easily see myself wasting the next few weeks reading all of that instead of studying...

 

[Lancemc]

Speaking of something only marginally off-topic, I finally got to see American Graffiti the other day. I was pretty blown away. Kept saying "This is a George Lucas film? No way...just no way!"

Yeah, I was impressed.

 

[LMP]

It's even crazier that he wrote it, too. What a fun movie.

"Your car's uglier than I am!... wait, that didn't come out right."

 

[Utoo]

I need to catch up on 'American Graffiti.' That and THX have been on my "to see" list for a while.

 

[LMP]

I really need to see THX.

 

[lazarus]

Speaking of something only marginally off-topic, I finally got to see American Graffiti the other day. I was pretty blown away. Kept saying "This is a George Lucas film? No way...just no way!"

Yeah, I was impressed.

Have you seen THX, Lance?

If you're impressed by Graffiti you have no idea what you're in for.

 

[phanan]

THX is a great film, as is American Graffiti. It's mindblowing that they are from the same person.

 

[LMP]

I still can't believe he was close to directing Apocalypse Now, too. I don't know if this would've been before/after/during Star Wars though.

 

[phanan]

I wonder how different Apocalypse Now would've been if Lucas had directed it.

 

[lazarus]

I still can't believe he was close to directing Apocalypse Now, too. I don't know if this would've been before/after/during Star Wars though.

It would have been before Star Wars. I actually read an interview with Coppola where he said that Star Wars was, in a way, George's Vietnam film, the rebels representing the Vietcong, and the Empire being the U.S. A flimsy analogy, but one that appears stronger if you consider the "guerilla warfare" the Ewoks succeed with in ROTJ.

Those guys were all pretty anti-war back in the day, though the SW prequels are partially a study in the corruption and dissolution of democracy (as Lucas has stated himself), so it certainly is still on his mind.

 

[Utoo]

Those guys were all pretty anti-war back in the day, though the SW prequels are partially a study in the corruption and dissolution of democracy (as Lucas has stated himself), so it certainly is still on his mind.

It helps that we have our own current-day analogy. I can't remember the line, but I remember Padme having a fairly obvious anti-Bush/Iraq quip in (I believe) AOTC.

 

[Lancemc]

Hah. Speaking of which,

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/showestnews.php?id=42955

 

[Utoo]

cnn.com just posted a story about the Clone Wars movie/series:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/14/film.starwars.ap/index.html

 

[LMP]

It would have been before Star Wars. I actually read an interview with Coppola where he said that Star Wars was, in a way, George's Vietnam film, the rebels representing the Vietcong, and the Empire being the U.S. A flimsy analogy, but one that appears stronger if you consider the "guerilla warfare" the Ewoks succeed with in ROTJ.

Those guys were all pretty anti-war back in the day, though the SW prequels are partially a study in the corruption and dissolution of democracy (as Lucas has stated himself), so it certainly is still on his mind.

Right. Ewoks as the Vietcong are... nice, but Wookies, man. They pull people's arms out of their sockets if they lose.

You can definitely say SW is more like WWII in most respects though.