logo Sign In

Icons Unearthed - new 6 part documentary on the OT (VICE) — Page 3

Author
Time

G&G-Fan said:

I don’t see any problem with not wanting to work with your ex. Seems like a natural thing for a human being.

I find it a little ironic that she apparently left George because he wouldn’t stop making movies, but now she thinks it’s unfortunate that she wasn’t brought in to do the prequels.

Still, it would’ve been interesting to see what impact she might’ve had on the prequels.

In what way did she “fix” ROTJ?

watch the doc. It’s absolutely worth it, especially the Jedi episode

Author
Time
 (Edited)

G&G-Fan said:

I find it a little ironic that she apparently left George because he wouldn’t stop making movies, but now she thinks it’s unfortunate that she wasn’t brought in to do the prequels.

That’s not what really happened, though.

And in the time of greatest despair, there shall come a savior, and he shall be known as the Son of the Suns.

Author
Time
 (Edited)

digitalfreaknyc said:

Emre1601 said:

digitalfreaknyc said:

Just watched that 4th episode.

Wow. That’s all I have to say. To all of it.

Very much this, and also The 5th episode of the series too. Some interesting views and opinions in it on the Special Edition and Phantom Menace films. Just 1 more episode still to be shown.

Everyone seems to be too busy salivating over L&M to talk about this. I find it far more interesting.

Me too. I enjoyed the first 3 episodes of L&M, focusing on the OT, but it then got kind of rushed and uninteresting, they didn’t talk about the Special Editions, only had a 10 minute segment on the Prequels, and I didn’t think they talked about the Sequels at all. The later episodes felt like an official promotion for ILM & the Disney era rather than telling a BTS or history story.

This Icons Unearthed series has been far more interesting to me. More insights and stories from the people making the films, especially Howard Kazanjian, Ken Ralson, Phil Tippet, Marcia Lucas and David West Reynolds, speaking more at ease and openly. It has turned some parts of what we thought we knew about Star Wars history on its head. I wasn’t sure I’d enjoy watching episode 5 but I really did, and hope it finishes well this week with the 6th episode.
 

Edit: I thought I’d written about this in more detail, and on Episode 6, but I must have forgot to click on the post button.
 

  1. Marcia creating the ‘ticking clock’ of having the Death Star attack the Rebel Base in Star Wars to give the ending more tension.

'Marcia Lucas’ focus was the Death Star run. Using old World War II movies like The Dam Busters as her guide and sometimes stand-in (again, the ILM team struggled to complete their shots), she stretched the sequence as far as she could. Originally, Luke Skywalker took two passes at the trench before scoring a hit, but Marcia encouraged George to excise the first. He agreed, but with only one pass, that trench run needed to be as tense as possible. Marcia rearranged and inserted frames, prolonging the battle by adding a countdown clock.

Star Wars‘ initial edit [or script] did not have the Death Star approaching Yavin 4. Using voiceover and Death Star gunner footage stolen from the previous destruction sequence of Alderaan, Marcia Lucas created a ticking clock for the final battle. Originally, the only danger belonged to the X-Wing pilots and the Death Star denizens. Marcia Lucas removed the threat-exclusivity from the battlefield and placed a target on those good Rebels not yet in the fight. If Luke Skywalker doesn’t hit his target, millions more will die shortly after.’

‘‘Star Wars’ was Saved in the Edit’ section of https://filmschoolrejects.com/marcia-lucas-interview-icons-unearthed-star-wars/

^ I loved the description in the article above. Also Marcia’s description of it in the program too.

 

  1. Marcia Lucas on editing Return of The Jedi.

“The third film was the most problematic editorially. It went through several English editors and we weren’t happy with any of the assembled footage. I had to beg off another movie to stay and fix this one. The battle in the desert over the monster hole - I spent two months cutting that into something intelligible. I worked with Rose at ILM for the entire time. She probably hates me to this day I was always on her to get finished effects shots so I could cut them in.”

Her looking back on Empire Strikes Back: “I cut Yoda’s death scene together - in the first cuts it was too dry - no emotion from Luke and by extension the audience.”

As well as Marcia editing 'all the emotional scenes’ and the ‘dramatic scenes’ for Return Of The Jedi - including rounding out and giving more emotion to the Vader death scene with Luke in the hangar on the Death Star.

https://thedirect.com/article/star-wars-george-lucas-wife-marcia-original-trilogy

^ To learn of the many scenes she edited in ROTJ was very cool.

 

  1. Episode 6: Marcia divorce with George.

George did not HAVE to sell the Graphics Group, other companies or stretch himself to pay Marcia. He CHOSE to:-

Episode 6 where we find out “George had signed a promissory note, promising to pay her for her share of LucasFilm”, but that George did not HAVE to sell any part of the company or subsidiaries for Marcia’s share of the divorce. The promissory note was for WHEN ever it was that he would eventually sell the company. Instead, George CHOSE to pay down the note and so sold ‘The Graphics Group’ (Pixar) to Steve Jobs because he didn’t want to have own Marcia anything in the future, to have anything to do with Marcia in the future.

^ That was quite a revelation.

 

  1. 'In Episode 6, Marcia in her own words on being erased from Star Wars history.

“This is painful, but when I left George he was very unhappy. He was very hurt. And the way he dealt with my leaving him was to decide I never existed. He erased me from history. He went… as far as I know my daughter wasn’t even supposed to mention my name in his house. You know, he was just so… resentful and so angry for me for leaving and he just sort of… that’s the way he had to deal with it. They wrote a book called ‘The First 20 years of Lucasfilm’. I opened up the book and looked at the Index and it said Marcia Griffin Lucas - one page: ‘Marcia Griffin Lucas was an assistant editor I married in 1969’.”

There is no other mention of Marcia Lucas’ work or contributions to the Original Trilogy films [including her impactful work on editing all the ‘emotional scenes’ and the ‘dramatic scenes’ for Return Of The Jedi]. As discussed above, and also in Category #3 of this thread, there are only minimal mentions of Marcia in other official books, documentaries and content from Lucasfilm. In effect, Marcia was erased from Star Wars history.’

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/George-Lucas-Star-Wars-Creator-Unreliable-Narrator-Time-Travelling-Revisionist/id/66986 (Category 29)

^ This was very sad and emotional to see. Even after a long amount of time has passed. If is good that people know more of the facts on this is recent years, that Marcia was part of a very talented editing team that added so much to the Original Trilogy films.
 

  1. Dave West Reynolds, the man who crafted the Episode I trailer, having it be what the movie really was, and admits having misgiving about it.

DWR: “We’re very aware of all the expectations that are resting on this little piece of film because its gonna set the emotion that we’re gonna bring to the release of the film. So much depends on the reaction to this trailer.”

IU:SW narrator: ‘But while making the trailer, David had come to a devastating conclusion about the film.’

DWR: "It’s not exactly what I was looking for. "

IU:SW narrator: ‘He had a huge decision to make.’

DWR: “Are we gonna make a trailer… that reflects what this movie really is… Or are we gonna make the trailer for the movie that we wish this was? We went with 'Let’s create the the trailer that… that we thrill to see… before you find out what you’re really gonna get.”

DWR: “People really responded well to that trailer. We always felt misgivings. I just hope that people would forgive us for that eventually because it was a sincere gesture. We were trying to show them that somebody here knows what you wanted.”

^ That was a big surprise to me, to hear someone from Lucasfilm openly admit that.

 

 

It is sad to see people, George zealots, get so angry when talking about Marcia Lucas and some of the other talented people who contributed to the Original Trilogy films, even sending abusive messages to other fans for simply talking about it:

New Star Wars documentary features a rare interview with editor Marcia Lucas at boingboing website, in July 2022.

The abusive message, also with shitty remarks about Marcia Lucas:
 

Edit: just like G&G-Fan’s like-minded Ejn troll friend, now in the RocketJump’s Video on Star Wars “being saved in the edit” thread.

Edit2: and now Ejn trolling his issues with Marcia Lucas being talked about in Star Wars history: The inaccuracies in “How Star Wars Was Saved in the Edit”.

Edit3: and now also OT basher Jelperman trolling about Marcia Lucas having a place in Star Wars history in the same thread.

Trolls really do love defending that awful Nerdonamous video anywhere they can, like flies to shit. And also hating it when other fans simply talk about Marcia Lucas’ editing and effect on the OT films. Those George zealots can really be delicate flowers when they are not busy threatening people.

 
 

This was such a good enjoyable series, one of the best “Top 5” documentaries series on the Original Trilogy for me. Just to see and hear many of the people behind the scenes talk openly and lovingly about their work and time on the films.

The people behind this program are doing a 2nd season, for The Simpsons.

The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear.

Author
Time
 (Edited)

To me the most interesting part was Lucas needing a whole new team for the prequels he brought over from The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. I would love to read a book on the making of Young Indy, or even watch a documentary.

So little is known of Rick McCallum as well. He is kind of an enigma. It was nice to hear of Marcia’s contributions and Howard Kazanjian’s. I didn’t like how they barely mentioned Kurtz and only in a negative light. I had no idea Marquand’s cut of ROTJ was so bad it was unreleasable and had to be reshot in places and reedited.

Author
Time

For anyone who loved this series as much as I did, it’s on sale on iTunes right now for $5.99 (down from $12.99).

Author
Time

digitalfreaknyc said:

For anyone who loved this series as much as I did, it’s on sale on iTunes right now for $5.99 (down from $12.99).

There is a ‘Icons Unearthed: Star Wars’ companion book coming out in May:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/icons-unearthed-peter-holmstrom/1141939366

There are not many details and seems expensive $28 US. But I hope there is more stories and information from the cast and crew that featured in the series. And maybe even some updates too.

The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear.

Author
Time

Emre1601 said:

digitalfreaknyc said:

For anyone who loved this series as much as I did, it’s on sale on iTunes right now for $5.99 (down from $12.99).

There is a ‘Icons Unearthed: Star Wars’ companion book coming out in May:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/icons-unearthed-peter-holmstrom/1141939366

There are not many details and seems expensive $28 US. But I hope there is more stories and information from the cast and crew that featured in the series. And maybe even some updates too.

Yep. Their company (Nacelle) is coming out with two other books next year that might be of interest to people here.

  1. One is on the radio dramas: A Wind to Shake the Stars: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B8BJZ5LD/?coliid=I359QU1JNQ3NC1&colid=H7HTKBYC5QTS&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

  2. The other is on Indiana Jones: It’s Not the Years, It’s the Mileage: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B8BG696Q/?coliid=ILSNM5O9Y2NRQ&colid=H7HTKBYC5QTS&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

I’m assuming they’ve collected so many interviews with people who have worked on both that I wouldn’t be surprised if they threw them into these 3 books. ALSO, I wouldn’t be surprised if the next Icons Unleashed is about Indiana Jones to tie in with the new film (and that book).

Author
Time

This is coming out on blu-ray next month with the full uncut interviews.

3/12

Author
Time

6 hours of uncut interviews, 3:12 of Marcia Lucas especially!

a