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| Megatron vs. Vader? | | Date Created: Nov 09, 2005, 11:35 AM |
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| Hasbro in association with Lucasfilm has released to market new crossover toys: Star Wars Transformers. According to the Star Wars offical website, a DarthVader/Tie Advanced x1, Obi Wan Kenobi/Jedi Starfighter, General Grievous/Wheelbike, and Luke Skywalker/X-wing Fighter figures will be available on the retail market soon. They actually look pretty cool! No word on when they'll have an Anakin/TeenAngstDeathStar available. |
| Episode III out today! | | Date Created: Nov 01, 2005, 11:52 AM |
Yes, I've already got my copy of the DVD via fedex and I'm glad I preordered!
This is definitely the best of the prequels and beats Return of the Jedi in many aspects. I still hold that Empire was the best of all the Star Wars movies. |
| Revenge of the Sith DVD | | Date Created: Jul 26, 2005, 11:46 AM |
 The Revenge of the Sith DVD will be available on November 1st as well as the eagerly anticipated Battlefront II videogame. The Episode III DVD will include some new documentary material from Lucasfilm while the sequel to the recent hit videogame Battlefront will include some new features like playable Jedi.
More info at Empire Movies.
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| Darth Vader's Light-Umbrella? | | Date Created: May 25, 2005, 03:45 PM |
 Man... I want one of these things... unfortunately, $85 for an imported (from where else... Japan) Star Wars lightsaber like umbrella is a bit much.
The poster shows that you can have a sheath for the actual canopy that makes it look like the lightsaber's red blade.
It's calling to me.... whispering "open your wallet".... I.... must... resist....
It will be available mid-late June this year but is available for preorder here. |
| DUH x2 | | Date Created: May 24, 2005, 11:36 AM |
 Keeping with the "Star Wars Stupidity" theme...
Check out The Force is a Tool of Satan Website.
Seriously... the Star Wars wackos are coming out of the woodwork today. Something tells me this isn't the end of it.
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| DUH! | | Date Created: May 24, 2005, 10:56 AM |
 From the BBC:
Two Star Wars fans are in a critical condition in hospital after apparently trying to make light sabres by filling fluorescent light tubes with petrol.
A man, aged 20, and a girl of 17 are believed to have been filming a mock duel when they poured fuel into two glass tubes and lit it.
The pair were rushed to hospital after one of the devices exploded in woodland at Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire.
A third person present at the incident had been questioned, police said.
More info at BBC News online. |
| Review: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith | | Date Created: May 23, 2005, 01:48 PM |
| Fair warning before I delve into my review of Revenge of the Sith. Before opening weekend I avoided revealing any spoiler material, but to fully engage the issues surrounding the final Star Wars movie, I thought it best to have it open including spoilers. So if you want to remain spoiler-free and haven't watched EPIII yet, stop reading this review and consider yourself warned. |
 Before I delve into the actual plot, visual effects, and acting portion of the reviews, I'd like to discuss the differences in the available media for Episode III. I've now watched Episode III: Revenge of the Sith two times as of the date of this review. The initial viewing was the analog film at 1:30pm showing in Edgewater, NJ on the Thursday May 19th (date of the launch). The second was the digital DLP video at Jersey Garden's Loews Theater in Elizabeth, NJ at 2:45pm on Saturday, May 21st. The differences between both the film and digital versions were night and day. I don't know if it is attributable to the fact that this movie was taped using high definition video at 24fp or because of the inherent advances in DLP cinema, but the fact of the matter is that this movie HAS to be viewed using DLP. There is definitely something lost in the translation when it was transcribed to regular film. Details such as the cameo appearance of the Millenium Falcon as it approaches the Senate Docks and the general melding of the live action and computer generated backgrounds/characters really only came to life in the digital version of the movie. In the film version the clones faces tended to look more "fake" and "stitched together" than in the digital version. Color contrast and fast motion (which this movie has in droves) also suffered under the film translation. Audio for some reason also seemed to have been affected. The film version had muddy audio, and disproportionate audio levels for character dialogue. In contrast, the digital DLP's audio was more nuanced, with John William's score seeming to "meld" more with the action on screen and the tiniest details of the environments shown drew you in with the ambient sound effects just behind your ears. Most dramatic in terms of audio and visual effects differences was in the lightsabers. Saber combat rang more "true" in the digital version with deep bass whines and thrums while again, the audio was muddy and too "merged" in film. The film version suffered from the mish-mash of the bright lights with the viewer not being able to tell where one saber began and the other ended (probably attributable to the problem of handling fast motion in the film version as I mentioned above). The strobe flash of lightsabers clashing was a much more enjoyable experience when viewed in Digital. You actually were able to see how fast and how elaborate the saber combat was. |
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| Like the other prequels before this one, Revenge of the Sith suffers quite a bit from wooden emotional and romantic scenes. I truly doubt this is the fault of the actors involved (some who have received or been nominated for Academy awards and are wonderful actors in non-Lucas vehicles). George Lucas just does not know how to write romantic/emotional dialogue and has equivalent problems in directing those types of scenes. Whether it is the cheesy lines he threw together for Padme and Anakin's balcony scene or the climactic scene on Mustafar when Anakin's fall is completed through force-choking Padme (which I found emotional DESPITE the staid dialogue), GL proves that he has no business writing dramatic dialogue. He should have relied on his friend Stephen Spielberg or Irvin Kershner (who directed The Empire Strikes Back) to help with those scenes. That said, if you "expect" this sort of thing from a Lucas movie, you should still be happy with Episode III. One thing that helped Lucas this time around was lack of dialogue (except for a single burp and "excuse me" about 10 minutes into the film... something the scene could have done without) from Jar Jar Binks. One saving grace in terms of the acting in this movie was Ian McDiarmid's performance. The subtle political dealings have given way to true evil manipulation in his portrayal of the Imperial rise. No matter how bad the dialogue, he brings an air of class to any scene. |
| Visual Effects as always was incredible with Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. Typifying the state of the art in CGI and visual effects has become the mantra of Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic. The melding of CGI and live action was much less noticeable with this episode, but suffered a bit under the digital-analog translation for the film version (as noted above). Definitely a showcase of DLP based cinema, EPIII's strengths were in the details. More accurate CGI character movement, the number of independent elements on screen (opening Seige of Coruscant which evoked true chaos as intended), and the lightsaber combat scenes were a few examples of what was improved in Revenge of the Sith. |
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| As for the story of Revenge of the Sith... I somewhat cheated in this regard. I read the novelization and the backstage stories a month before EPIII was released. It is the reason I know that George left quite a bit out of the final theatrical cut. Other than the Bai Ling cut I mentioned on this site previously, there were many scenes that really elaborated on the tensions between Anakin, Padme, and Obi Wan and I believe would have made the plot flow in a smoother fashion. Especially disconcerting was the removal of the whole "Beginnings of the Rebellion" subplot that focused on the secret meetings of various senators including Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, Garm bel Iblis, and Padme to discuss Palpatine's unholy rise to power. Other than the links to the Expanded Universe storylines, the subplot would show Padme's growing anxiety about her husband's dealings with Palpatine and her conflict with her feelings. Obi Wan's discussion with Padme after the last "Rebellion" meeting, the night before he left for Utapau, was also removed (though mentioned in dialogue between Padme and Anakin the next morning). This scene I thought essential for exposing Obi Wan's conflicted thoughts about Anakin's behavior. There were also other various scenes removed that would have significantly added to the emotional impact of the main plot and would have made Anakin's fall more poignant. The fact that George Lucas removed these while keeping in scenes of Jar Jar burping shows how disconnected he is from dramatic story telling. Some action scenes involving the rescue of the Chancellor and some dialogue right before Dooku was beheaded were also removed where they should not have. Overall, the story does not suffer fatally from these editing gaffes, but I'm hoping the DVD version expands to an extra half hour or hour so these scenes could be re-integrated (and not just be added to a deleted scenes menu). |
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 I enjoyed Revenge of the Sith despite the structural problems due to overzealous editing and the now traditional Star Wars wooden acting. It's better than most of the other Star Wars films and is a nice close to the film saga. But is it really over? With the Star Wars Expanded Universe books, comics, video games, role playing games, and other story telling forms continuing, and the newly announced Television series (two series: one live action and one animated), the Star Wars phenomena will continue into the forseeable future. I'm hoping the rumors of both Stephen Spielberg and Kevin Smith with the new Live Action series is more than wishful thinking. Both series are supposed to deal with the timeframe between Episode III and Episode IV effectively bridging the gap between the Prequels and the Original Trilogy. |
| The animated series will probably continue Genndy Tartakovsky's Clone Series into the Imperial era while the Live Action series will deal with side characters mostly, not Darth Vader nor the newly minted Emperor. Current bets are on Aayla Secura (who seemed to have been layed low, but they say wasn't killed, in EP III) and other exiled Jedi and some interesting Bounty Hunters like Aurra Sing. |
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| Of course you can expect the merchandising to continue as well, with prominent names such as Burger King making deals to tie into the Imperial era TV shows... |
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My current ranking for all the Star Wars Episodes:
1. Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
2. Episode IV: A New Hope
3. Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
4. Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
5. Episode II: Attack of the Clones
6. Episode I: The Phantom Menace
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| I give Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 4/5 deathstars. |
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| Sith Happens... | | Date Created: May 19, 2005, 04:43 PM |
 Yes, I've just come back from watching EP III.
No, I don't have a review yet... I think it will take a few more viewings to really get my feelings wrapped around the last Star Wars (supposedly) film. Expect my review and thoughts on Star Wars in general early next week...maybe Sunday. |
| Who are the Sith? | | Date Created: May 19, 2005, 12:59 AM |
 Everything you ever wanted to know about the Sith and more...
Continuing their Star Wars Week, HowStuffWorks.com has setup a bunch of pages detailing the history and background of the Sith encompassing the movies, the books, the comics, and everything in between. Check it out Here.
If you are avoiding spoilers, i'd wait until after you watch Episode III before checking the article out...but afterwards, it's very much worth reading (even if you're an EU buff and think you know all there is to know about the Sith).
You can also check out their Star Wars week index of articles here. |
| Things Bode Well for Episode III | | Date Created: May 18, 2005, 11:30 AM |
 With more good reviews than bad for Revenge of the Sith, there was some more confirmation (other than my dog Ricky's Spoiler-Free Review) that Revenge of the Sith won't suck. Unlike the previous prequel installments, Episode III got two standing ovations and almost endless applause from a screaming crowd at the recent Cannes Film Festival. The last two received only faint praise and some harsh commentary.
George Lucas also received the Festival Trophy at the 58th festival at Cannes, France for his lifetime of work in the film industry.
I won't be viewing EPIII at midnight like many other fans tonight, but I will be joining a "Team Building Offsite Meeting" around noon tomorrow funded by my boss at the local Digital Cinema down the road. |
| The many uses for a lightsaber... | | Date Created: May 05, 2005, 04:03 PM |
Excerpt from How Lightsabers Work on HowStuffWorks.com:
If you are lucky enough to acquire a lightsaber, you are probably purchasing it for personal defense purposes. A lightsaber completely blows away a can of pepper spray as a deterrent in muggings or robberies. However, many new owners are pleasantly surprised by the many domestic uses of a lightsaber around the home or office. Let's examine a few of the more common applications here, and then you can use your imagination to come up with others.
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The big advantage of using a lightsaber, of course, is that you can both cut and toast the bagel in one stroke.
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| Bai Ling cut from Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith | | Date Created: May 03, 2005, 10:45 AM |
 Actress Bai Ling (from Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, Anna and the King and The Crow) who was supposed to play Senator Bana Breemu in Episode 3:ROTS has been cut from the final film. She was brought to tears when she found out while attending the Tribeca Film Festival. She thinks it's because she has posed topless for Playboy and that issue will be released around the same time as Revenge of the Sith, but LucasFilm spokeswoman Lynn Hale denies this was the reason. According to Hale, Ling's single scene was already cut from the film more than a year ago.
She has visited the fans in line and conducted interviews about her Star Wars experience in the past. She even attended this year's Celebration III (a convention conducted for Star Wars fans before each Prequel was released by LucasFilm). With that much time devoted to her short scene that's now on the editing floor, it's pretty sad that it was all for naught.
More info and statements are on Page Six. |
| New Live Action Series Info! | | Date Created: Apr 25, 2005, 11:01 AM |
 Originally from The Force.Net
by Joshua Griffin:
Here's what we've been told officially about the upcoming live-action TV series from Lucasfilm.
• 100 episodes
• 1 hour each
• based on a spinoff character
• Lucas will direct first season
• write season one at one time
• film season one at one time
• takes place between ROTS and ANH
Also related TV news from The Force.Net: Aayla Secura (the blue skinned Twi'lek Jedi from EPII, EPIII, and the EU Comics) may have a role in the upcoming TV series. |
| Legacy of the Force | | Date Created: Apr 24, 2005, 05:10 AM |
| If any of you are interested in the books and the Expanded Universe... you already know about the Sith Era, Old Republic, Empire, New Republic, and New Jedi Order eras for the chronological series of books. The new post-NJO era books have been recently named at the Celebration III conference. "Legacy of the Force" will be the name of the new book series and the era will be the Legacy Era. The first book is called "Betrayal" and should be ready by June of 2006. |
In the meantime, the Dark Nest trilogy should satisfy until the new series begins. Expect Dark Nest I: The Joiner King to be available in paperback on July 26, 2005.
In fact you can order the paperbook already through the link to the right. |
| Order Star Wars Books from here! | | Date Created: Apr 23, 2005, 08:33 PM |
Please help support this site by ordering Star Wars books through these Amazon.com links. Many discount deals can be found vs. retail shops.
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| Articles in Star Wars (Total Entries: 15) | | | | | - DUH x2
Date Created: May 24, 2005, 11:36 AM
| - DUH!
Date Created: May 24, 2005, 10:56 AM
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