Disney acquires Lucasfilm for $4.05billion, announces Episode VII for 2015.

[smokehouse]

As some her may or may not know, SW is a religion for me. Sadly, much of my "religion" is fan writings. The SW universe is amazing and like others have said, for once I have HIGH hopes for the franchise now that Disney has taken it over.

Lucas has done amazing things, but much of his movies aren't part of that legacy. I've said it before but EP I-III are train wrecks full of horrible storytelling, CG jerk offs and some of the worse dialog you'll, heave this side of an indie film.

It has a few necessary plot elements but Lucas managed to fuck the story up so badly, it needs to be mostly forgotten.

Concerning the Anakin plot however...I don't consider it to me inadequate in the slightest. A crybaby, two dimensional ass hat with amazing powers loses control of himself and manages to destroy much of the Jedi order? I can buy that. The problem is, although realistic (think of how many shit heads are currently in power), it doesn't make for a an entertaining story. The story of Luke, Leia, Han Solo and the supporting cast are FAR more interesting than that of a asshole who turns to the dark side.

This point and JJ Abrams are why I have hope. He managed to reboot another piece of sacred ground damn near flawlessly (sans lense flares). He stepped in and managed to perfectly re cast a story many thought couldn't be done. I mean James T Kirk...William Shatner...there was only one Kirk, until now. The same goes with Bones and Spock but he managed to do it.

I have faith that he can recast Luke, Leia and Solo. If he can do it to Star Trek, he can do it with SW. The cool part is that there is an ocean of stories that can be told to further the franchise.

 

[Taiso]

Concerning the Anakin plot however...I don't consider it to me inadequate in the slightest. A crybaby, two dimensional ass hat with amazing powers loses control of himself and manages to destroy much of the Jedi order? I can buy that. The problem is, although realistic (think of how many shit heads are currently in power), it doesn't make for a an entertaining story. The story of Luke, Leia, Han Solo and the supporting cast are FAR more interesting than that of a asshole who turns to the dark side.

I agree with this point and wanted to add a thought regarding it.

We already know what's going to happen in these prequels. That kills so much of the suspense and momentum going in that it takes an extremely deft storyteller to cover familiar ground and still make it compelling fare.

Lucas proved that he is not a good enough storyteller to be able to handle that task. None of the side elements are interesting at all. Not the politics, not the relationship between Anakin and Obi-Wan, not the villains, not the politics, and ESPECIALLY not the forced 'by the numbers' romance between Anakin and Padme that exists only to telegraph the inevitable birth of Luke and Leia.

There's a kind of magic in seeing the kids being born on screen and then delivered to Owen and Beru, but it has nothing to do with the movie's quality and everything to do with how those characters resonate in pop culture.

But there is nothing moving or affecting about Padme's death or the tragedy of Anakin turning evil because the actors have no chemistry, the drama of the situations isn't effectively established and they aren't even being directed properly. The scene in Sith where Anakin and Padme are on the balcony stands as, perhaps, one of the fucking most terrible and awkward exchanges in cinematic history.

Even their passion is sexless and unbelievable. Lucas tells us Anakin and Padme want each other but the acting is so wooden and the scenarios so chaste that I don't buy it. Compare that with the sparks that fly between Han and Leia on the Falcon in Empire and there is just no contest. You BELIEVE Han and Leia want each other because the action comes from a place deep within their souls and their affection seems genuine and makes sense. Now we understand, partly, why Han REALLY stuck around with the Rebel Alliance all those years ago. The dialogue beats in Empire have fed off of what was shown in Star Wars and evolved the dynamic in a new and unexpected fashion.

In the prequels, all you have is a bunch of actors being told to interact with a fake world. Everything fake, everything blue screen and green screen artifice. The prequels had Liam Neeson, Ewan Macgregor Natalie Portman and Samuel Jackson, four actors with serious pedigree, and even THEY couldn't give any life to the films. And how did this happen?

Because the prequels were never about telling a story that needed or demanded the telling. They were made solely to move product. If you watch those movies, they have the sense of being nothing more than a fucking chore for Lucas, like some burden he has to go through in order to start selling toys and clothes and DVDs and coffee mugs and video games and novels and comic books. Even all his fucking talk about 'the power of myth' is all just a smokescreen to schill the prequels.

Compare that with Nolan's Batman movies which, WHATEVER you think of them, are about telling a story as much as they are about marketing an iconic IP to the masses, or even Marvel's Phase One movie line up leading to the Avengers, which was ALL ABOUT building to the movie where they all got together, and you witness what it is that Lucas should have done with the prequels but failed to pull off.

So here we are. Disney bought Star Wars and JJ Abrams is going to direct. At least it's a new story with a new director and we have no idea what's going to happen now (Disney has flat out stated that they will NOT be adapting any existing material, and THANK FUCKING GOD FOR THAT). I really look forward to it.

 

[Normdog]

Surprising 'Star Wars' Shakeup: Episode VII Returns to a Jedi


By Marcus Errico
Movie Talk

Luke Skywalker has lost Little Miss Sunshine as his wingman.

In a surprising move Thursday, Lucasfilm announced that Oscar-winning scribe Michael Arndt was out as the screenwriter for the hugely anticipated "Star Wars Episode VII," replaced by the tag-team of Lawrence Kasdan and J.J. Abrams, who is also directing.

"I am very excited about the story we have in place and thrilled to have Larry and J.J. working on the script," Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy wrote on StarWars.com. "There are very few people who fundamentally understand the way a 'Star Wars' story works like Larry, and it is nothing short of incredible to have him even more deeply involved in its return to the big screen. J.J. of course is an incredible storyteller in his own right."

Despite the screenwriting switcheroo, the sequel remains on schedule to begin shooting next spring at Britain's Pinewood Studios for an expected 2015 release.

The bona fides for Abrams and Kasdan are inarguable. An admitted "Star Wars" fanboy, Abrams leapt at the opportunity to helm the sequel, leaving behind his successful rebooted "Star Trek" franchise. Kasdan, meanwhile, is a longtime ally of George Lucas, having co-written the screenplays for "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi," as well as "Raiders of the Lost Ark." Most fans consider "Empire" the pinnacle of the franchise.

But the bigger mystery is where things went wrong with Arndt. There was no immediate word on why his services were dismissed beyond a cursory mention at the end of Kennedy's statement.

"Michael Arndt has done a terrific job bringing us to this point," she wrote, "and we have an amazing filmmaking and design team in place already prepping for production."

A "Star Wars" scholar (Arndt has lectured widely on the films) with an unmatched résumé — Academy Award for penning "Little Miss Sunshine," a nomination for "Toy Story 3," and this fall's would-be blockbuster "Hunger Games: Catching Fire" in the pipeline — Arndt seemed like a perfect fit.

He was hired by Lucasfilm even before the company was acquired by Disney and had delivered a 40- to 50-page treatment in 2012 that reportedly envisioned an older Luke, Princess Leia, and Han Solo teaching a new generation of space jockeys.

Earlier this month, George Lucas's son, Jett, said in an interview with Flicks and the City (via Mashable) that his father was "constantly talking" to Abrams about the direction of the new film, and that he had seen the story for Episode VII.

"I already know what happens," he said. "I'm happy with what's going to happen."

Based on today's bombshell, Jett might have been one of the few.

http://movies.yahoo.com/blogs/movie-talk/surprising-star-wars-shakeup-episode-vii-returns-jedi-211055738.html

 

[T.A.P.]

It's not like they can fuck it up any worse than the prequels.

 

[SNKorSWM]

He was hired by Lucasfilm even before the company was acquired by Disney and had delivered a 40- to 50-page treatment in 2012 that reportedly envisioned an older Luke, Princess Leia, and Han Solo teaching a new generation of space jockeys.

Oh yes they can. And presumably this is probably why he was shown the door.

 

[Normdog]

J.J. Abrams reveals reasons behind 'Star Wars' writer switch


By Bryan Bishop

Last month J.J. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan took over as the writers of Star Wars: Episode VII, leaving original screenwriter Michael Arndt behind. Reports surfaced soon thereafter that Lucasfilm was struggling with Disney's mandated 2015 release date, and it appears making that deadline may have played a role. Deadline reports that J.J. Abrams addressed the change during a media call promoting the new Bad Robot television series Almost Human.

"It became clear that given the timeframe, and given the process, and the way the thing was going that working with Larry in this way was going to get us where we need to be and when we needed to be," he's quoted as saying. Abrams described working with Kasdan on Star Wars as "kind of unbeatable," and given his pedigree it's no surprise: Kasdan's credits include such iconic movies as The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and The Big Chill — though more recent work like Dreamcatcher hasn't captured the same spark.

Abrams was quick to praise Arndt's contribution to the project, however, saying that "Working with Michael was a wonderful experience and I couldn't be a bigger fan of his or adore him more." It isn't out of the question that Arndt could contribute to another Star Wars movie down the line, he said — but with production on Episode VII scheduled to begin early next year there will be plenty of work to do before that question is tackled.

http://www.theverge.com/2013/11/7/5077706/j-j-abrams-reveals-reasons-behind-star-wars-writer-switch





Also, Star Wars: Episode VII to Open December 18, 2015

http://starwars.com/news/star-wars-episode-vii-to-open-december-18-2015.html

 

[SouthtownKid]

Abrams is not a bad director. I sure hope he doesn't waste the next 10-15 years of his life/career on a bunch of Star Wars bullshit.

 

[Kid Panda]

Abrams is not a bad director. I sure hope he doesn't waste the next 10-15 years of his life/career on a bunch of Star Wars bullshit.

He seems to be pretty good and consistent about moving around. I could see him farm out SW to another director and released by Bad Robot. I might get flogged about this, but I'd like to see Cloverfield 2.

 

[SouthtownKid]

He seems to be pretty good and consistent about moving around. I could see him farm out SW to another director and released by Bad Robot. I might get flogged about this, but I'd like to see Cloverfield 2.

I'd rather see Cloverfield 2 than Star Wars 7.

 

[T.A.P.]

I'd rather see something new.

 

[Normdog]

‘Star Wars: Episode VII’ Cast Finalized: John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson & Max Von Sydow


By Patrick Hipes

The cast of Star Wars: Episode VII is now official, announced by the team on StarWars.com, complete with a photo of a read-through. As Mike Fleming Jr reported yesterday, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver and John Boyega are aboard, as are Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Max von Sydow and Daisy Ridley. They join returning franchise players Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker.

This pic has been supernova-hot ever since Disney acquired Lucasfilm in October 2012 and announced its intention to reboot the franchise. That got the hard-core fans (there are legion) excited, but the question remains if the franchise can be restored to anywhere near the status it reached before George Lucas essentially cratered the second three movies in the series. Now the speculation will begin if this group has what it takes to make it happen, led by Abrams, who has the sci-fi cred and now has picked his soldiers to head into battle. He is directing, co-writing the script with Lawrence Kasdan and producing with Kathleen Kennedy and Bryan Burk.

Disney has set a December 18, 2015 release date for the first pic in a planned trilogy.

Little is known about who will play what, though it’s thought Driver, a standout on HBO’s Girls, will play the main villain. Also notable: there is only one new female character on this list joining Fisher. The biggest reaction so far has been to Ridley — a Brit actress who has been in a handful of UK series including Mr Selfridge — both because she is fairly unknown and because she’s the only new face keeping this from becoming a total sausage party.

“We are so excited to finally share the cast of Star Wars: Episode VII,” Abrams said in the announcement today, which puts a cap on months of cast speculation – most of it BS. (The announcement also included a cast photo.) “It is both thrilling and surreal to watch the beloved original cast and these brilliant new performers come together to bring this world to life, once again. We start shooting in a couple of weeks, and everyone is doing their best to make the fans proud.”

The rest of the newcomers offer an interesting mix. Boyega, who starred in Joe Cornish’s 2011 genre pic Attack The Block, is an up-and-comer and will become more known after 24: Live Another Day premieres next month. Gleeson was one of the Weasley Brothers in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows and starred opposite Rachel McAdams in About Time. Isaac starred in the Coen Brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis, and of course Serkis needs no introduction to Star Wars‘ target audience having played King Kong, Caesar from Planet Of The Apes and Gollum from Peter Jackson’s Lord Of The Rings and Hobbit movies — the latter role garnering some Oscar-season heat which prompted discussion about whether performance-capture roles should be in the mix for awards consideration.

https://movies.yahoo.com/news/star-wars-cast-confirmed-john-boyega-daisy-ridley-164553500.html

 

[Taiso]

Goddammit I did it again.

Sorry for the redundant thread.

 

[T.A.P.]

I can't believe they got Ming the Merciless to appear in the new Star Wars.

 

[Normdog]

Goddammit I did it again.

Sorry for the redundant thread.

No worries, Taiso