What is one of the single most recognized films of our time. If you said Star Wars, you would be right. The first Star Wars was released in 1977. It starred Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, James Earl Jones, Alec Guiness, Peter Cushing, Peter Mayhew, Anthony Daniels, and David Prowse. This film falls into the "New Hollywood" film style. In fact, this film could only have been done during this "New" age. This film, under the direction of George Lucas used some of the biggest special effects available. The technical specs of the filming materials is here. Special effects were a big focus in the film.
"Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) spent most of the production period in chaos, attempting to create special effects that had never been created before. They blew half their budget on four shots which George Lucas rejected. Ultimately, around $5,000,000 of the $8,000,000 budget was spent by ILM."
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076759/trivia?tr0742646
Not only were special effects important to Lucas, but sound was as well. In the third film: Return of the Jedi, THX sound was used, which was developed by Tomlinson Holman, at Lucasfilms. This sound went on to revolutionize audio in many films and theaters.
Star Wars is classified as a space opera, which is a sub-genre of science-fiction. This idea was also fairly new as well. Instead of having a sci-fi movie be "B" movie or something lacking depth, it was an epic detailing a boy defeating an empire. This style had really only been done previously in 2001: A Space Odyssey. The plot idea was not new, but the way it was presented was. Character development was a huge portion of this movie, from the introduction of Obi-Wan Kenobi, to the Mos Eisley Cantina, you get a feeling for who the characters are, And the type of universe they reside in. Like any film, Lucas drew on elements of history and culture to make the ideas for his films. The jedi, closely resemble the samurai of Japanese culture, in the idea of honor, and in appearance.
This film, along with other films of the 70s and 80s, was different from older film styles in its use of sequels as well. Not many films before this made a large continuing plot between films, before the 70s. Its epic spanned across 3 films (6 if you count the prequel garbage).
Star Wars also used a large variety of camera techniques that were developing as well. The scene in which they are heading to Mos Eisley in the speeder comes to mind, with its long range view of the speeder, and the blurry background. The films also used a mix of distance shots.
The Star Wars franchise, has become such an icon that it is one of the single largest franchises today. From video games, to action figures, to countless other pieces of memorabelia. Even those who haven't seen the movies can identify the icons of them. That is why it is a classic of New Hollywood.
At the Star Wars Cantina
I just gotta start off by saying I'm thirty and Star Wars isn't even a part of my time - how old are you Ben? I'm just playing; Star Wars is a very influential movie. Just look at all the references that can be found in 'Robot Chicken' and 'Family Guy'. One thing though, you should of pointed out that this was the film that gave birth to Lucas' own company Industrial Light and Magic. This is important because without Star Wars, ILM would not be around for movies like 'Jurassic Park' etc. Just a little side note - did you know that THX is not a sound system when it comes to movie theatres. I was there when they set one up for a Harkins, it's a gimmick. It uses either 'Dolby Digital' or 'DTS' as the sound system, all that THX does is send a LucasArts' rabbi to ensure the position and placement of the speakers is up to specs. I don't know how the home setups work that say THX Certified but I was pretty disappointed to discover that it is not a sound system in theatres. Another thing is after they have already setup your speakers it cost something like 10,000 dollars a year to state that you a THX Theatre, Harkin's stopped paying that in early 2000's and that is why you never get to see the THX robot make the moo sound anymore there. The theatres are still THX Certified but they just can't say that anymore.
ReplyDeleteGood point about the character development in the movies - that is still one of the reasons I return to those movie, and the only reason I watch Episode 3. I want to know what happened to Darth Vader. Another side story - FOX did not think Star Wars would make it so they gave all the rights to Lucas, so when you mention all the Star Wars franchise in you last paragraph, all of those went right into Lucas' pockets - not the studio - how’s that for 'New Hollywood'.