Star Wars coming to Blu-ray! (part2)

Continued from here:
http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=238224

 

Why?

 

Once a thread reaches 1000 posts we honour it with a sequel.

 

Since you're doing a sequel, don't you think the first thread's title should be changed to "Part 4"? It only makes sense.

 

Nah...call it "A New Hope" instead...less confusing!!!

 

I made it through IV, V, VI and then III yesterday. The biggest difference I notice watching the originals next to a prequel, is the lack of genuine emotion of the actors compared to the old versions.

I realize it's a common gripe, but it is so obvious how much humor, and compassionate interaction there is in the OT. The prequels just seem so forced, emotionally. As a result, it makes the complex plot harder to understand.

 

There's no question that the OT's acting performances had more "heart" in them and that the actors were making the effort to make us believe in the characters and storyline. Except for Natalie Portman and Ewan MacGregor's performances, I never got that feeling from the prequels' human characters!!!

 

That's because in the first prequel, the subject matter wasn't exciting in the least, and the other two prequels, they were largely acting against green- and bluescreens.

 

Yeah, a lot of critics cited the relative lack of humor in the first three episodes. Episodes 4, 5, and 6 have a lot of very funny one-liners and ad-libs. No less than critic Roger Ebert commented: "I bet many film fans can name at least two or three lines from each of the original Star Wars films, but I defy anybody to quote a line from the prequels."

The only lines I can remember are:

"Yoosa thinkin' meesa gonna die?"

"Not the younglings!"

That's about it for me. But Star Wars and Empire have at least a dozen memorable lines. "Will somebody get this walking carpet outta my way?"

 

"I have the high ground!"
"Don't try it!"
*slice*

 

Sadly, the most memorable quote from the prequels is Darth Vader's "Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!".

 

And from Jedi, too. I remember in the theater back in '83, Vader's 'Noooooo!' was a hit with audiences...

 

Don't drink the blue milk, man.

 

Lucas worked with terrific writers for "Empire" and "Jedi" and, in the case of "Star Wars" I'm sure there was a lot of ad libbing and rewriting during the rehearsal phase just take a look at the audition tapes with its clunky dialogue that basically is the same scene with much better dialogue.

Ford said something of the effect to Lucas at one point (IIRC) "George you write this stuff (meaning the dialogue) but you don't have to say it".

The reality is that Lucas isn't all that great a writer when it comes to dialogue.

 

I figured out the problem with the NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lucas does not understand the power of silence. Let me give another example.

In Revenge of the Sith, when Anakin confronts Palpatine. Palpatine reveals who he his and says:

"You want to kill me don't you?"

Anakin: "I would certainly like to"

Palpatine: "Yes, I can feel your anger."

Why does Anakin have to vocalize that silly line? Would that scene not be much more powerful if Anakin remained silent?

Do you remember that Clint Eastwood pushed in the Dollars trilogy for fewer lines?! It is not surprising he went on to become a great director. Sometimes silence, which lets the audience use their imagination is far more powerful.

In Jedi, Vader looking blankly (because he has no face), while seeing his son tortured is very powerful. Lucas just does not understand this principle.

 

I'm curious if the new (and instantly infamous) "Noooooooooo! Noooooooooooo!" in ROTJ are alternate takes of James Earl Jone's overdub session for REVENGE OF THE SITH, or perhaps was something recorded for Jedi originally but deemed unnecessary at the time.

This is assuming it is in fact James Earl Jones and not a sound-alike.

 

Consider the alternative:

 

Yep. Lucas had lots of writers (credited and uncredited) punching up the dialog for the original films. The Secret History of Star Wars goes into this in detail. I believe Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz did some of the work (and they had previously written a lot of American Graffiti as well).

For whatever reason, Lucas is said to have written Episodes 1, 2, and 3 all by himself.

 

I agree. George is gifted with a great imagination; yet he seems unable to grasp the concept of understatement.

 

Can we go back to our posts in part 1 and re edit them too?

 

I think he's a brilliant man in many ways, a guy who's unquestionably changed the world, but I also think his best films were written by other people. Especially the dialog.

 

Personally, I'd love it if Lawrence Kasdan agreed to become his permanent ghost writer...

 

In the particular scene you reference, I understand the rationale behind having Anakin speak. It's important to show the conflict within Anakin at that point.

The nooo was totally unimportant though. We couldn't understand Vader's feelings by his obvious physical actions?

 

Too much time on his hands these days.

 

It really wasn't necessary. The very next line, Palpatine tells us about Anakin's conflct.

"Yes, I can feel your anger."