Star Wars Time

My brother and I were talking about this the other day.

How long does "Star Wars" last? Is it a few days or a matter of hours from Luke meeting Ben to the Death Star blowing up?

In "Empire" how long is Luke training, and cosequently, how long do the gang spend cooped up in the Falcon (with no changes of clothes!).

"Jedi" seems the easiest to figure, as it's in the narratvie that they go straight from Jabba to the rendevous. Maybe a day or two?

TPM seems a couple days, AOTC seems a few weeks, and ROTS takes at least a few months, but any guesses as to a more precise time frame?

What's your best guess? Is there an official answer for this?

I don't buy the months-elapsed-in-ESB thing. That's not in the film we have, whatever Kershner intended.

DarkFather said:

Vaderisnothayden said:

I don't buy the months-elapsed-in-ESB thing. That's not in the film we have, whatever Kershner intended.

 

I was always under the impression it was a few days. There's really nothing whatsoever in the movie to suggest otherwise.

 I agree. Did Boba trail behind the Falcon for months? If they were on the Falcon for months, wouldn't Han have put the moves on Leia.

I think it couldn't have been more than a few days... and Luke just got a major crash course in Jediness.

episode one takes place 30 yrs. before ANH. AOTC is ten years later. ROTS is two years later. ANH is 18 years later. ESB is 3

yrs later. ROTJ is 6 months later. its two days before they do the briefing at the rendevouze. in empire, according to the

novel luke is on daghobah for four months at least. thats standard btw.

Whatever the intention ESB feels like a span of a few days at most. Wasn't the whole point of going to cloud city that it was relatively close to where they were?

LEIA: What did you have in mind for your next move?

HAN: Well, if they follow standard Imperial procedure, they'll dump
their garbage before they go to light-speed, then we just float away.

LEIA: With the rest of the garbage. Then what?

HAN: Then we've got to find a safe port somewhere around here. Got any
ideas?

There's really nothing in the movie to indicate a great passage of time. Maybe they should have done a token 80's training montage?

Johnny Ringo said:

There's really nothing in the movie to indicate a great passage of time. Maybe they should have done a token 80's training montage?

 

 Intercut with shots of wacky things as everyone tries to live on the Falcon for months. Waiting in line for Leia to use the shower, doing laundry, Leia finding out that Chewie used her razors to shave, lots of playign holo-chess.

Johnny Ringo said:

Whatever the intention ESB feels like a span of a few days at most. Wasn't the whole point of going to cloud city that it was relatively close to where they were?

LEIA: What did you have in mind for your next move?

HAN: Well, if they follow standard Imperial procedure, they'll dump
their garbage before they go to light-speed, then we just float away.

LEIA: With the rest of the garbage. Then what?

HAN: Then we've got to find a safe port somewhere around here. Got any
ideas?

There's really nothing in the movie to indicate a great passage of time. Maybe they should have done a token 80's training montage?

 

AH! but you for got one line from Han, "Bespin is pretty far but i think we can make it"

True, but I still don't get the impression that they traveled for more than a day or so.

rcb said:

Johnny Ringo said:

Whatever the intention ESB feels like a span of a few days at most. Wasn't the whole point of going to cloud city that it was relatively close to where they were?

LEIA: What did you have in mind for your next move?

HAN: Well, if they follow standard Imperial procedure, they'll dump
their garbage before they go to light-speed, then we just float away.

LEIA: With the rest of the garbage. Then what?

HAN: Then we've got to find a safe port somewhere around here. Got any
ideas?

There's really nothing in the movie to indicate a great passage of time. Maybe they should have done a token 80's training montage?

 

AH! but you for got one line from Han, "Bespin is pretty far but i think we can make it"

 

Yeah, but I think that's pretty far but still "somewhere around here".

The claim that months pass during ESB is bizarre because there is a conspicuous lack of anything onscreen to suggest that months pass. My thinking is the months thing was the original plan (and thus got into the novelization), but was dumped. Edited out or whatever. Maybe months was Kershner's idea but Lucas wanted to go with days. 

Johnny Ringo said:

There's really nothing in the movie to indicate a great passage of time. Maybe they should have done a token 80's training montage?

 Funny you should mention the token montage:

From the 4th draft of the script:

306X. EXT BOG CLEARING - SWAMP - DUSK - DAGOBAH
(formerly part 310)

Luke runs through the dense jungle on the last leg of what must have been quite a marathon. Yoda rides in a pouch on Luke's back. The young apprentice is sweaty and exhausted. He stumbles into the clearing where Artoo has been patiently waiting. As Luke is about to collapse, Yoda throws a small metal bar in front of him. Luke ignites his laser sword and swings at it. He missed and the bar falls to the ground. Luke does too.

LUKE
(breathless)
I can't... Too tired.

YODA
It would be in seven pieces, were you a Jedi.

LUKE
(gasping)
I thought I was in good shape.

YODA
Yes, but by what standard, ask I? Forget your old measures. Unlearn, heh, unlearn.

307X. EXT YODA'S BOG (MONTAGE) - DAY - DAGOBAH
(formerly 308)

At the edge of a wide pond, Yoda sits on a log. In his mouth is a Gimer Stick, a short twig with three little branches at the far end. Luke is nowhere in sight, but now we begin to hear the sound of someone crashing through the foliage. Suddenly Luke appears on the far side of the pond at a run and leaps out toward Yoda. It's an extraordinary leap, but he falls short by six feet, creating a huge splash, which drenches Yoda and his Gimer Stick.

308X. EXT YODA'S BOG (MONTAGE) - DAY - DAGOBAH
(formerly 307)

In the bog clearing, Yoda and Luke sit facing two bowling ball-size rocks. Artoo observes from the side. Luke stares at the rocks, Yoda stares at Luke. Slowly, one of the rocks lifts from the ground and floats up to rest on the other. Luke smiles with satisfaction and turns to Yoda for approval. The floating rock tumbles off. Artoo beeps his review.

309X. EXT YODA'S BOG (MONTAGE) - DAY - DAGOBAH
(formerly 309 and part 310)

Luke's face is upside-down and showing enormous strain. Soon we see why. He is standing on his hands and Yoda is perched up on Luke's feet. Yoda taps Luke's leg. Luke focusing and quickly removes one hand. His body wavers, but he maintains his balance.

Artoo races up to his master whistling and beeping like mad. Luke is trying to maintain his balance, desperately and finally collapses. Yoda jumps clear.

These ideas are carried over from the novel.  There is evidence that most of this (like Luke cutting the metal bar) was filmed, but cut out later.

Are you thinking of his cane?  I think somewhere along the line, the cane started to be called a gimer stick.  I don't think they were the same thing originally.

The montage shows that a bit more time was devoted to Luke's training, although it doesn't answer the question of how much time.