Those of us old enough to have seen the original Star Wars film during it’s initial run have a fond memory to cherish. When the Flash Gordon-inspired, yellow text crawled its way up the screen, it began with, “It is a period of civil war,” and then continued on. There was no subtitle to the film since, we assume, no one really knew if it would be a hit or not. If you’ve seen the film since the 1980s, though, then you’ve most likely seen the subtitle Episode IV: A New Hope added above the crawl. (For a GREAT article on May 25, 1977 and all that goes with it, please see May 25, 1977: A Day Long Remembered by Michael Coate.) Read More
Tag: a new hope
The Battle of Yavin
Yavin IV is a small moon orbiting the gas giant Yavin. It’s also where the Rebel Alliance decided to set up camp. Most of the battle preparation scenes took place in the hangar, and briefing room, not counting the few exterior shots. The famous awards ceremony in the throne room closed out the film. The battle itself obviously took place in space, and there were a few changes from script to film. Let’s take a look at some of these differences.
The Cantina
When I think back to when I saw Star Wars for the first time in a theater in 1977, I often recall that the Cantina scenes contained some of the most memorable imagery. There were all these wonderfully crazy aliens, our introduction to Han Solo and Chewbacca, the over-zealous Greedo, the catchy music with the swinging band, a bar fight resulting in the loss of an arm, and so much more. All the TV shows and news programs aired clips from it constantly. However, even the most memorable scenes fall prey to the film’s mighty editors.
Life on Tatooine
Tatooine was home to Luke Skywalker. His friends lived there. He grew up and was educated there. He worked there. The only family he knew about lived there. While he seemed content, he looked to the stars, longing for adventure. Little did he know that a wise, old man would come into his life soon and things would drastically change.
Biggs Darklighter
Luke’s childhood friend, Biggs Darklighter, was a big influence on him. He was the friend that got away, joined the Academy, and did something with his life. Luke longed to be like his friend. He wanted off the farm and to have his own adventures. The relationship between Biggs and Luke was diminished in the final film, unfortunately. There were casual mentions of Biggs and another friend named Tank. There was a short reunion with Biggs during the battle at the end of the film. That was about the extent of it, though. Biggs’ missing scenes fill in a lot of the blanks in Luke’s backstory.
The Droids You’re Looking For
C-3PO and R2-D2 are two of the most beloved characters in popular culture. They are also central to the Star Wars universe. That first line spoken by C-3PO (“Did you hear that?”) started us on a never-ending journey full of action and adventure. This semi-comedic pair never seem to be out of trouble, and someone’s always searching for one or both of them at any given time.
Leia’s Torture
There has been a long standing rumor about a scene in Episode IV where Leia was hung upside-down by Darth Vader and extensively tortured while being held prisoner in the Death Star detention block.
Ryan Silva helped with the debunking of this old rumor. Here is the entry from the “Debunk” section of his old Lost Scenes web-site:
A friend of mine was just telling me about the Leia-Vader torture scene. She said that she was reading an interview with Carrie Fisher, and in the article she described the scene as the most awful day of filming on the set. She described the scene in very much the same way it was portrayed in the [NPR] radio drama. She described being hung upside down while they filmed her being tortured until she eventually passed out. She then noted how pissed she was when she saw that it had been cut from the movie.
From ROLLING STONE, issue no. 322, July 24th, 1980: p. 35. Carrie Fisher Interview:
“…Fisher laments the fact that several exotic scenes never made it into either film. ‘In the original script, I was captured, and when Mark and Harrison found me, I was hanging upside down with yellow eyes, like in THE EXORCIST. They shoulda just gotten Linda Blair for it. Some form of radar torture was done to me and I was in a beam, bruised and beaten up, suspended in midair. The reason it was cut from the film was because I was unconscious and the Wookie[e] would have had to carry me for, like, the next fifteen minutes. But I loved the idea of having yellow eyes and being beaten and carried.'”
The torture scene Carrie Fisher remembers reading about WAS NOT FILMED. That scene is part of the 3rd Draft by Lucas. She hangs upside down with yellow eyes, and Chewbacca must carry her for about 10 scenes onwards. Of course, this scene is NOT in the shooting script, the 4th Draft.
The Lost Cut of Star Wars
There are many phases associated with making a film. First there’s the preproduction phase, where much time needs to be invested otherwise you’re flying blind for the rest of the production. There’s the actual shooting of the live action, known as the production phase, which is where you capture your vision on film. Then there’s the postproduction phase, where everything comes together and you use your skills and talents to create an end result that’s pleasing to not only you but hopefully to everyone who sees it. In between those three phases, however, lie many sub-phases too numerous to mention here. From writing and casting to lighting and cinematography to editing and looping dialogue; the process can be very involved but it’s that end result, the zenith of the director’s vision and the crew’s hard work, which makes it all worth it. Getting to that point is the real challenge. Read More