|
|
|
Welcome
to
Roderick Vonhögen's
Virtual Edition
|
| |
| March 2005 |
| |
The Revenge of the Sith trailer !
14th March 2005 |
| On March the 11th, Hyperspace subscribers were treated to a preview of the full trailer for Episode III : Revenge of the Sith. Now, today, it is available to all ! |
| Other fansites have provided a great shot-by-shot rundown, so there's no need to repeat that here. Instead, I wanted to focus on the tone and the story arc. In this recent BBC news article, Lucas is quoted as saying this final instalment "may not be suitable for children". And sure enough, even if we are not following the spoiler reports, we know what to expect from the basic story, and this new trailer confirms the approaching darkness. |
| "Your father was seduced by the Dark Side of the Force", said Obi-Wan to Luke, on Dagobah. "He ceased to be Anakin Skywalker and became Darth Vader." A few years earlier, Old Ben revealed to the farmboy that his pupil named Vader "helped the Empire hunt down and destroy the Jedi Knights." |
| Revenge of the Sith opens with the Clone Wars at a crucial point, and war and destruction is all about. Above Coruscant, capital warships exchange volleys, and crew tumble into the vacuum of space. Heroes and agendas and treason and betrayal share the stage. Clone troopers and their Jedi generals stationed across a myriad worlds fight back the Separatists, and the battlefronts ebb and flow. |
| Chancellor Palpatine reveals an academic's knowledge of the Dark Side of the Force to the jaded Anakin and offers him greater power, while at the same time ensuring the Knight a place on the Jedi Council. Loyalty is then torn once the Council discover the true identity of the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious. With the powerful Skywalker swayed to the Chancellor's side, the Jedi Purge begins, and the clone troopers turn against their Jedi leaders. |
| As an Empire rises from the ashes of the Republic, Masters Yoda and Obi-Wan resolve to face their respective nemeses, Sidious and Vader, in a Duel of the Fates that will leave the galaxy reeling. |
| These Master Jedi are understandably shocked to discover this rapid turn of events, and how wrong-footed their esteemed Order had been. Anakin had been the Hero of the Clone Wars, but the allure of power and strength pull him into the darkness. As Padmé desperately clings to both her husband and her galaxy, both slip away from her, and it is left to such senators as Bail Organa to hold the flag of peace. |
| "You were the Chosen One !" implores Obi-Wan to Vader on the fiery world of Mustafar. Anakin was to have saved the Jedi Order and restored Balance to the Galaxy. Instead, it appears all is lost, and the Sith have had their revenge ......... |
| Nathaniel Reed, 14th March 2005 |
| |
 |
| |
The Revenge of the Sith poster !
9th March 2005 |
With mere days before
the release of the second
and final Epsiode III trailer,
the Official Site has unveiled
the theatrical poster. |
 |
| Once again designed and painted by Drew Struzan, who provided the covers for some of the post-ROTJ EU novels as well as the posters for the Original Trilogy Special Editions and the two Prequels, the Revenge of the Sith artwork explodes on to the scene ! |
| The silhouettes of Anakin and Obi-Wan battle it out in the centre of the composition - accurately pitting blue 'sabre against blue 'sabre - while the portraits of Padmé, Anakin, and Obi-Wan halo around them. Either side Yoda and Mace Windu appear with 'sabres lit ; bottom left presents the two Jedi starfighters that open the movie. The masked helmet of Darth Vader dominates the header, while the menace of a phantom puppet-master, Darth Sidious, lurks in the bottom
right hand corner. Passionate reds and oranges and portentous blacks are the colour palette, and the former hues hint also at the fiery world of Mustafar where the Duel of the Fates will take place ! |
| On monday the 14th, the two and a half minute ROTS trailer will be released. However, for Hyperspace subscribers, this will be available from the evening of thursday the 10th of march. Much plot and dialogue will be revealed, and we will begin to discover how Sidious seduced Anakin Skywalker to the Dark Side of the Force, and how the Sith Lord was able to purge the galaxy of his Jedi foe and proclaim himself "Emperor" ! |
| In addition to the poster, the official site also released news of the publication on April the 2nd of two e-books tying-in with the release of the support material. One will be the 'Revenge of the Sith Illustrated Screenplay' while the other will be the aptly titled 'The Making of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith -- The Final Chapter', essentially an epilogue charting the final in-flux stages of the film, detail that missed the deadline for the paper publication. |
| Nathaniel Reed, 9th March 2005 |
| |
|
| |
Creature comforts
3rd March 2005 |
| 'Making Of' 15 has been released to Hyperspace-subscribed members, and this time it's a close look at the prosthetics and animatronics involved in creature fabrication. |
| Even in this age of digital, great advances have been made in appearance, articulation, and even comfort of these oversuits. And, as befitting the author's role, Lucas himself often had direct involvement in the design and subsequent modification of maquettes. Additionally, for the primary characters, the actors found that they could not only offer input, but also that the visages would foster subtle personalities and character history with which they could work. |
According to the publicised schedule, ILM's deadline for digital effects in less than a month away now, on friday the first of april [my birthday !!]. And Lucas was present at the Oscars ceremony on february the 27th, where he updated reporters regarding the stage the final episode is currently at :
"The film is finished, basically," reported Lucas. "We just finished the music last week, and I'm going to mix it next week. In a month, it will be pretty much finished."
|
| The other bible on the Star Wars fan's bookshelf - in addition to Laurent Bouzereau's SUPERB 'Annotated Screenplays' - is the 'Star Wars Chronicles', an expensive hardback tome displaying model and costume photography to a quantity and detail not found elsewhere. Now, Lucasfilm has confirmed that there will be a 'Prequels Chronicle' too, slated for release in December 2005. It will hold film and publicity stills, sketches and computer renderings, and will include insightful text. |
| The Official Site has unveiled the Star Wars Saga Trivial Pursuit dvd game, to be released in May. Covering all six episodes, it appears very comprehensive and challenging for the fan who thinks he knows everything to do with the Saga, although padawans are not excluded ! Subject areas include characters, locations, plot, the colourful and oftentimes 'obscure' backdrop, and a 'wildcard any question' feature - as Obi-Wan would say, "In my experience, there's no such thing as luck". |
| Much spoiler information continues to be revealed at fansites millenniumfalcon.com and starwarz.com. At the beginning of april the 'spoilers' will be made null-and-void with the publication of the tie-in material ranging from story adaptations to reference books. And even now the ROTS toys are being unveiled, for example this range showcased here by the Official Site ! |
| And finally, the second and final trailer for Episode III : Revenge of the Sith is due to be released during the evening of thursday march the 10th US time. UK fans will have to catch it first thing friday morning !! |
| Nathaniel Reed, 3rd March 2005 |
| |
|
| |
|
|
