The Story of the STAR WARS Trilogy
George Lucas
Brief biography
George Lucas is a film director and an author who gained cinematography skills and knowledge at Southern California University. Lucas wrote and directed some of the world’s leading films, including Indiana Jones series and Star Wars, as well as establishing Industrial Light and Magic Special Effects Company. Lucas was born in Modesto, California, in May of 1944 (Biography, 2017). His parents were business people owning both Walnut Ranch and sold retail office supplies in the state of California. His Oscar award film, American Graffiti produced in 1973, was inspired by his early childhood passion for racing cars as well as the suburb neighborhood of Modesto. In addition to film making, Lucas dedicated most of his life to improving education through his educational foundation.
Birth of Star Wars
After the American Graffiti, Lucas began his next project, Star Wars, the first script was a handwritten 13-page story synopsis that was finished in 1973. The project initially started as a children’s morning Saturday serial but eventually evolved into a full-length feature. Its characters and plot followed a Japanese film called “The Hidden Fortress” produced in 198 by Akira Kurosawa. The producer of the Japanese movie had been Lucas’ childhood hero. The film also contained a bit of elements such as fantasy from Flash Gordon. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
During the writing of the script, Lucas researched fairytales, social psychology, and mythology to create a blend of modern technology and traditional story elements (Bendu, 2010). In creating the right combination, he studied classical and contemporary science fiction through novels from authors like Alex Raymond, Frank Herbert, and Isaac Asimov, among others. Due to a mix of ideas and a lack of proper punctuation skills, the first draft initially meant to be a screenplay that had a confusing plot. The script was rejected by Universal pictures and United Artist but was sold to Twentieth-century Fox thanks to the popularity of the previous movie, The American Graffiti.
Star Wars Filming
Lucas pushed the boundaries of special effects in his Star war film franchise as early as 1977. The movie, which was made using $11million, eventually grossed $513 million globally utilized special effects and Computer-generated imagery. The film was originally a technical marvel that used costumes, miniatures, old fashioned craftsmanship, and puppets to place the entire universe on display. The effects were then further enhanced using computer-generated imagery, which is 1977, and early years of production were considered rudimentary and relatively primitive. However, the film looked fantastic due to its mix of practical and digital effects that had been incorporated (Figueroa, 2018). The movie has an inspiring special effect with fantastical landscape and captivating characters of droids, which easily resonates with myths and fairy tales.
Star Wars is a movie with some of the most memorable characters, thanks to its best film editing techniques. The techniques used in this movie gives its characters life while making the viewers feel their desires visually. The characters easily resonate with the audience due to these effects. The choice at which point to cut was wisely made, and like in the episode where Luke finds out his parentage, the movie editor opts for a long take of him in a medium close-up. The shot is held for about 13 seconds, and the editor does not cut it, which makes the audience feel like Luke’s world is going into flames. The episode and other film episodes also utilize music swells and quicker shots, which raises the audience’s expectations of the abilities of the characters. The movie produces a cinematic feel both by using Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) with fantastic costumes, especially the Mandalorian and funky looking aliens.
Opening day
Critic Reviews
Star Wars; Rise of Skywalker held a 57% rotten score review on the rotten tomatoes site from a total of 156 reviews (Whitten, 2019). Most of the critics of the film suggested that the movie spent much time fixing the problems that fans had with the previous season called The Last Jedi and added more characters without exploring the potentials of the ones they had introduced during the last season (Noren, 2010). The reviews, however, gave credit to excellent actor performance and proper use of visuals in the movie.
Viewer reviews
However, reviews from moviegoers scored well with about 86% rotten tomatoes score. Rotten tomatoes summarize the review by stating that The Rise of Skywalker suffered from a lack of imagination. However, the film ends with a focused fan devotion. One viewer says that the movie is impatiently spaced, and its finale seems to repurpose most of the things that come before it.
Franchising
The Star wars is a media franchise with existence from 1977 that quickly became a worldwide pop-culture. The production company created by Lucas, which had been at the forefront in filming the movie was sold to Disney. It relinquished its ownership of the franchise to Disney in exchange for equity in Disney. Thereafter the franchise was expanded to include TV series, novels, comic books, and novels, all of which encompass a fictional universe. Currently, it holds the world’s Guinness record as the most successful film merchandising franchise with a total value estimated at $70 billion.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Watching this film, I think it is the most visually stunning among all the Star war episodes. Most of the characters speak with a bit of wit and a lot of elegance, which makes the acts outstanding. The movie is additionally funny, with some unexpected episodes and occasionally profound acts. Besides the visual effects, the cinematography is stunning. The plot is well structured, grabbing the audience’s attention from the very first scene and doesn’t let up, guiding the viewers in a thrill ride.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
After thirty years since the battle of Endor, there is the rise of the first order and Kylo Ren, a villain who is a new threat to the Galaxy. However, Rey, who is a young scavenger, discovers powers that completely shift the trajectory of her life and which will save the Galaxy. The movie takes place in several settings, including the Hosnia prime, Niima outpost, Maz’s Castle, and the graveyard of ships, among others. Additionally, technology has been utilized in most occasions, such as D93-Inciniretor flamethrower, lightsabers used by Rey and Kylo Ren the Vlain, interrogation chair, and Rey’s Quarterstaff, among others. Additionally, the genetics of Kylo character and Rey’s power, coupled with CGI effects, makes it interesting to watch.
Birth of Lucas films
Before his long film career, Lucas had a dream to be a racing car motorist but changed his mind to join a cinematography school after a near-fatal accident that would change his life’s trajectory. He joined a community college but later moved to the University of Southern California, where he created his first short film titled Electronic Labyrinth. The film earned him an opportunity to be nurtured by Francis Ford Coppola, who would later convince the Warner Brothers in making a feature-length of the short film. Even though the film flopped in its 1971 release, Lucas has been able to record one of the most successful film careers. He has directed some of the highest-grossing films and set a stage for the current film themes and computer-generated imagery.
Impact on movies after Star Wars/ filmography
Indiana Jones
The expensive series directed by several producers and created over the world involved young Indiana Jones mirrors Mr. Lucas’s ambition to play a role in the nation’s education system. The movie connects the education at that particular time with technology. The series has four movies, Raiders produced in 1984, Temple of Doom in 1989, Last Crusade, and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull. The producer uses modern technology with the addition of Computer-generated imagery. Additionally, Indiana Jones’s adventures became an inspiration as it led to the increase in archaeology courses offered in universities as well as increased the number of students pursuing them.
Jurassic Park
Jurassic park represents a theme park with genetically engineered dinosaurs while also showing the chaos that may arise when the creators of the park fail to contain their attraction. Over the last twenty years, the evolution of Cinema with a number of major developments tracing back to the film. The movie revolutionized CGI setting out examples on how to perfectly blend traditional methods with digital effects (Luxford, n.d.). Jurassic Park also inspired future classics as it not only benefited monster movies but also inspired contemporaries, including Lord of the Rings. Lastly, the movie inspired development in science, such as in DNA research and increased interest in Paleontology.
Willow
Willow, a fantasy film produced by George Lucas, had an impact both on people and in film production. It pioneered special effect techniques and opened the potential of computers to enhance what the audience would watch on screen. Willow also had hints of the “Morphing” sequence, which at the time was groundbreaking. The effect would latter emerge in several movies in the late ’80s and early ’90s.
New Star Wars Trilogies
Star Wars have had a significant impact on modern popular culture with the movie themes and characters made casually with an assumption that everyone’s world understands. The characters in the movie are recognized around the world, and phrases used in the film, such as “may the force be with you” and “evil empire” have also been used widely. Special effects used, the songs, games, and text are now an integral part of the American cultural society. Star Wars have used groundbreaking visual effects; however, the sound in the movies has been significant in the film. In the prequel trilogy, the distinctive sound design by Ben Brutt encompassing the screech of laser blasts, the electronic language of R2- D2, and the hum produced by lightsabers assisted in offsetting dodgy and CGI deluge. The music represents the force in the movie while at the same time, plays a vital role by distinctively bringing certain moments, allowing the audience to hear Luke Skywalkers’ heroism. The utilization of sound effects has was groundbreaking while additionally influenced the usage of music in movies. The film had also influenced the boom in making science fiction movies in the ’80s. In the lives of the viewers, the film had a religious impact as the movie version has followers use the Jedi code, which means that they believe in the concept of force as the energy field which binds the Galaxy.
Awards
Lucas had several wins and nominations for different film awards. The film titled “American Grafitti” became his first commercially successful project, which ended up receiving five academy award nominations. Star Wars, an epic space opera, became one of the highest-grossing films in 1977and eventually won six academy awards. Lucas himself became one of the most successful filmmakers receiving four academy awards.
Reference
Biography. (2017). George Lucas, Biography. Retrieved from https://www.biography.com/filmmaker/george-lucas
Figueroa, J. (2018). 15 Times Weird CGI Hurt Stars Wars (And 10 Times It Saved the Movies). Retrieved from https://screenrant.com/star-wars-cgi-hurt-saved-movies/
Luxford, J. (n.d.). Mammoth Impact: Nine ways Jurassic Park change Cinema. https://www.amexessentials.com/jurassic-park-cinema-legacy/
Noren, A. (2010). Starkiller: The Jedi Bendu Scripts. Star Wars. Retrieved from https://www.starwarz.com/starkiller/category/star-wars-scripts/star-wars-star-wars-scripts/
Whitten, S. (2019). Critics blast ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ as disappointing finale to a Star Wars saga. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/18/star-wars-the-rise-of-skywalker-reviews-what-critics-are-saying.html