World Famous Comics: The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film (Star Wars)
The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film (Star Wars)
By: J.W. Rinzler Publisher: Del Rey Average Rating: Binding: Hardcover Label: Del Rey Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 372 Publication Date: April 24, 2007 Release Date: April 24, 2007
Product Description: After the 1973 success of American Graffiti, filmmaker George Lucas made the fateful decision to pursue a longtime dream project: a space fantasy movie unlike any ever produced. Lucas envisioned a swashbuckling SF saga inspired by the Flash Gordon serials classic American westerns, the epic cinema of Japanese auteur Akira Kurosawa, and mythological heroes. Its original title: The Star Wars. The rest is history, and how it was made is a story as entertaining and exciting as the movie that has enthralled millions for thirty years–a story that has never been told as it was meant to be. Until now.
Using his unprecedented access to the Lucasfilm Archives and its trove of never-before-published “lost” interviews, photos, production notes, factoids, and anecdotes, Star Wars scholar J. W. Rinzler hurtles readers back in time for a one-of-a-kind behind-the-scenes look at the nearly decade-long quest of George Lucas and his key collaborators to make the “little” movie that became a phenomenon. For the first time, it’s all here:
• the evolution of the now-classic story and characters–including “Annikin Starkiller” and “a huge green-skinned monster with no nose and large gills” named Han Solo • excerpts from George Lucas’s numerous, ever-morphing script drafts • the birth of Industrial Light & Magic, the special-effects company that revolutionized Hollywood filmmaking • the studio-hopping and budget battles that nearly scuttled the entire project • the director’s early casting saga, which might have led to a film spoken mostly in Japanese–including the intensive auditions that won the cast members their roles and made them legends • the grueling, nearly catastrophic location shoot in Tunisia and the subsequent breakneck dash at Elstree Studios in London • the who’s who of young film rebels who pitched in to help–including Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, and Brian DePalma
But perhaps most exciting, and rarest of all, are the interviews conducted before and during production and immediately after the release of Star Wars–in which George Lucas, Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Sir Alec Guinness, Anthony Daniels, composer John Williams, effects masters Dennis Muren, Richard Edlund, and John Dykstra, Phil Tippett, Rick Baker, legendary production designer John Barry, and a host of others share their fascinating tales from the trenches and candid opinions of the film that would ultimately change their lives.
No matter how you view the spectrum of this thirty-year phenomenon, The Making of Star Wars stands as a crucial document–rich in fascination and revelation–of a genuine cinematic and cultural touchstone.
Everything you wanted and more The title of the book says it all. This is THE definitive collection on the making of Star Wars. Of course there were tons of documentaries being made after the initial film was a huge success but since nobody really knew what was going on with this strange film, film and video footage is sparse at best. This gives us all the insight we could want about the making of this space fantasy. Even if you're not a Star Wars fan, you will love this record of this high budget independent film.
Making of STAR WARS It's high time. Nicely edited, lots of detail. Basically I am flashing back to my childhood every time I open this book. It is not a casual read as it weighs a gazillion pounds and the print is small. Don't change a thing! Thanks for finally recording this history in a quality fashion. EMPIRE STRIKES BACK may be the cinematic masterpiece but this film was what defined all major studio decisions since, and it is charming, exciting, and inspiring simultaneously. Ironic since Fox never were behind this film in the first place (Holla, Alan Ladd, for believing).
STAR WARS ! HOW DID THEY EVER DO ALL THAT & MORE! REMEMBER THE GOOD OLD DAYS WHEN WE CALLED THOSE CORNY SCIENCE FICTION MOVIES "OUT OF THIS WORLD" BECAUSE OF THE PRIMITIVE PROPS & SILVER SCREEN TRICKS THAT SEEMED TO MAKE FANTASY REAL! WELL PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT & IF OUR CIVILIZATION WERE TO DISAPEAR & A LONE STAR WARS TAPE WERE TO BE FOUND IT WOULD BE CONSIDERED " THE WAY WE WERE " AS IT IS GOSH !JUST SO WELL DONE! THIS BOOK EXPLAINS THE TRUE GENIUS BEHIND THE BRILLANT GROUP EFFORTS OF SO SO MANY TO MAKE A SPACE FANTASY SCIENCE FICTION STORY MORE THAN JUST ENTERTAINING! THAT WAS STAR WARS & THIS BOOK IS AN ALL TOO COOL SCI-FI FOOL SHOW & DO TELL VIA ALL THAT WILD & CRAZY FUNTASTIC STAR WARS SPACE RAZZ A MA TAZZ JAZZ! GET THIS BOOK & THE AMAZON FORCE WILL BE WITH YOU SO PLEASE DO SMILE!
George Lucas' Heroic Journey Fairy tales are usually about a young man who becomes a hero by battling the most dispicable enemies and achieving his heart's desire. In the end, despite great odds, monsters are vanquished, villainy is given the heave-ho, the princess' heart is won and great treasure is acquired far from the eyes of the Internal Revenue Service (which is how you can tell this is a fairy tale).
"The Making of Star Wars" is just such a fairy tale, but it's not about the one up on the screen. This big, beefy, bouncy delight tells in 360 eye-squinting pages of type and hundreds of photos the story of how George Lucas, armed at first with nothing more than a bare bones script and a reputation for interesting, if not money-making movies, devoted more than four years of his life, bet his precarious career, and came up with a movie that not just redefined Hollywood blockbusters, but reimagined heroism and other virtues that touched a generation made cynical by the upheavals of the `60s and `70s.
How he did it -- as described in this book -- should give all writers, artists and other dreamers pause to reflect on the value of preparation, hard work, a willingness to absorb ideas from others, and going into a project knowing that you have not only no idea how it will come out, but that bad luck will doom you no matter what you do.
It's amazing that "Star Wars" was made at all, when it becomes clear in the book that the executives in charge at 20th Century Fox were more interested in busting Lucas' chops instead of making a movie. As one of Lucas friends notes: "There was a lack of respect for George. The movie industry is a very vituperative and petty industry most of the time -- and part of the negotiations was just to see how much they could push George around because they felt like they could."After getting Lucas under contract cheap, before the success of "American Graffitti," Fox proceeded to fritter away their leverage by withholding the contract for "Star Wars." To keep the project going, Lucas was forced to invest his own money, and in the end, had to threaten to stop filming to get the contract. By that time, the project was so far along that Fox was faced with either agreeing to his demands, or letting the project go to another studio. Hence, was born the most lopsided contract in history, giving Lucas say over final cut, plus control over all sequels and merchandizing.
Considering that "The Making of Star Wars" was published nearly 30 years after the movie's stunning debut, going back and putting together this history is a major accomplishment. Fortunately, J.W. Rinzler had access to interviews conducted during the production of `Star Wars," when people were in the midst of the work and uninfluenced by its future success. This fills the book with episodes and incidents of such detail that it's possible to fall into the pages and imagine yourself, back in the mid-'70s, where hair was blow-dried, collars and pants were wide, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter were atop the political pyramid -- reflect on that when you look at Obama/Clinton/McCain!
For the two weeks, I was in film geek heaven, boring my wife at lunchtime with details about alternative casting (Christopher Walken as Luke! Jodie Foster as Leia!), alternative storylines (Luke was a girl at one point and named Starkiller; the robots were originally bureaucrats working for the Empire; Lucas toyed with filming it all in Japanese, with subtitles), sources for names (Han Solo? From a brand of paper cups) and those small incidents that acquire greater meaning (an out-of-work James Earl Jones spending a day in a studio to record Darth Vader's lines for $7,500). And don't get me started on the models and special effects; we'd be here all week.
But the heart of the story is George Lucas, and while I've always respected the man, my heart went out to him once I understood the impossible odds he worked again. "Star Wars" was made because he willed it into being; he was the Jedi who rescued his movie.
Lucas created a fairy tale for our times, but his story had a fairy tale twist as well. After laboring for years, fighting the studio executives and impossible deadlines, Lucas got his movie out. But he thought he had failed: "When I saw the first cut, my only opinion was that I did a terrible job, but it works. It doesn't work very well, but it works. ... And then when I finally saw it with an audience for the first time, I realized that no matter how far short I fell and how far short all the departments fell from what I wanted, the film did work for an audience. ... They all laughed at the right place and they believed it."
So the hero wins after all, but not in the way you'd expect. That's the hallmark of all good stories.
From a true and original Star Wars Fan.... Having seen all 3 original trilogy movies over a hundred times a piece, (I paid theater admission for most of those viewings, no video back then), I was and still am interested in the behind the scenes events that took place during the making of the movies. I have read all three of the "Making Of" books about the original trilogy. This book is definitely the most thorough and indepth with the technical aspects and day to day events on set. I enjoyed the interviews with George Lucas and the other people involved in the film. On the lighter side, (Being a huge Luke/Mark Hamill fan) I really enjoyed the candid photos of Mark Hamill and the other cast members on set. The true Star Wars fan will enjoy the unlimited access to George Lucas' earliest thoughts about the trilogy and a detailed look into his film making style. This book is a must have for all who have ever dreamed of "a galaxy far, far away....
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