Scruffy

User Group: Members
Join date: 29-Nov-2005
Last activity: 31-May-2016
Posts: 625

Post History

Post: #167918
Topic: What scene in the (O-)OT do you hate/dislike the most?
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/167918/action/topic#167918
Time: 5-Jan-2006 3:15 AM

The SEs are included in the OT-in-general, though. Do you mean, the OT in general and especially the SEs? Or are you positing the existence of some SEs that are not a subset of OT-in-general?

Post: #167917
Topic: Emperors Head Slugs????
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/167917/action/topic#167917
Time: 5-Jan-2006 3:14 AM

I can see it in the screenshot if I focus on it, but I've never noticed it while watching the movie. This has been a momentous day: I finally learned how to microwave the hamster in Maniac Mansion (use Sid or Razor!), and I've finally seen an Imperial Head Slug.

Post: #167916
Topic: Now when I talk about SW, I have to specify the old ones!
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/167916/action/topic#167916
Time: 5-Jan-2006 3:11 AM

Can you think of a better word to express what I assume we all* understand to be the subject? Policentricity, maybe? We could go Latinate, and try civicentric, genocentric, or patriacentric. The first of the three is rather civilizational (or municipal!), and the second subnational, but the third is a nicely national notion. Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori, after all.

* Well, most.

Post: #167774
Topic: Now when I talk about SW, I have to specify the old ones!
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/167774/action/topic#167774
Time: 4-Jan-2006 2:55 PM

Isolationism, as a political philosophy, went out of vogue in the thirties.

Post: #167570
Topic: What scene in the (O-)OT do you hate/dislike the most?
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/167570/action/topic#167570
Time: 3-Jan-2006 6:13 PM

I'm lost. Is this about hating the O-OT, the SE-OT, or the DVD-OT? Or just the OT in general?

Post: #167493
Topic: Do you know who has a vintage OOT
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/167493/action/topic#167493
Time: 3-Jan-2006 2:48 PM

There are people who don't own the O-OT???

Post: #167050
Topic: Death Star spotted by Cassini probe !!!
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/167050/action/topic#167050
Time: 1-Jan-2006 9:31 PM

Okay. I thought they discovered another DS-like object. I guess it would've been too hard to say, "We took another image of Mimas."

Personally, I think Iapetus is a better match, from the right angle. Even if Mimas is closer in size. And, of course, theories abound that Iapetus is artificial, like the Death Star. But that's getting into sci-fi territory....

Post: #166959
Topic: Death Star spotted by Cassini probe !!!
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/166959/action/topic#166959
Time: 1-Jan-2006 10:00 AM

I'm actually interested in what that is, but they have to sex up the science so much as to make it incomprehensible.

Post: #166860
Topic: Questions about AOTC
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/166860/action/topic#166860
Time: 31-Dec-2005 8:28 PM

Pulp fiction? No name?

Post: #166858
Topic: EU books: A funny Lucas contradiction
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/166858/action/topic#166858
Time: 31-Dec-2005 8:23 PM

Vader needs a hyperbaric environment --or perhaps just a greater oxygen partial pressure -- to breathe. That's what his meditation chamber on the Executor is. When they got him out of the medical capsule into the operating suite, they just pumped up the air pressure or the O2 content.

Post: #166857
Topic: ROTS a kind of AOTC 2.0?
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/166857/action/topic#166857
Time: 31-Dec-2005 8:21 PM

It makes me sad that a fan doesn't know the name of Ulic Qel-Droma. Maybe we need an Original KotOR forum, too.

Post: #166609
Topic: You know you’re an O-OT fan when............
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/166609/action/topic#166609
Time: 30-Dec-2005 6:05 PM

I knew about Jeremy Bulloch being Lt. Sumner -- his CCG card actually hints that he's Boba Fett's twin. Didn't know about those other two, though. Here's one -- Clive "Voice of the Emperor" Revill also did the voice of Gen. Dodonna in the CD-ROM edition of X-wing. My first Star Wars game, and still one of the best. Also, Carrie Fisher did the voice of Salacious Crumb in RotJ, but Lucas had someone else do Salacious's new lines for the SE.

Post: #166480
Topic: Someone please explain why there is a 50's diner in the Star Wars universe...
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/166480/action/topic#166480
Time: 30-Dec-2005 10:11 AM

Well, given that the GFFA has at least a million populated worlds, and that these worlds have been growing ever-closer for the past 25,000 years, odds are pretty good that at least one world in all that time developed the concept of the fifties diner. I mean, we did, and it only took 10,000 years (from the beginning of human civilization) and 2.5 billion people (world population in 1950). It was still pretty stupid and did nothing to invest the film with awe or wonder, but it's possible.

Post: #166265
Topic: Lines you thought they said...
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/166265/action/topic#166265
Time: 29-Dec-2005 12:19 PM

Originally posted by: Invader Jenny
Another common one for me grown up was "Gentlemen wastes time to be traveling lightly." When it really was "The Juttland wastes are not the be traveled lightly."

Well, it's the Jundland Wastes that are not to be traveled lightly, although the Jutland Wastes are nothing to sneeze at, either.

Post: #165929
Topic: digitally remastered
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165929/action/topic#165929
Time: 28-Dec-2005 6:23 AM

Ah, but do you want digital video to look like digital video or film? The resolution and bitrate of DVD Video, and even HDDVD/BD, often is not enough to capture the fine grain of an original copy of a film. The HDDVD spec calls for simulated grain to be added based on a metainformation channel that describes how much grain there is in a given shot. So I guess then you can have digital video that looks like film, even if the filmic quality of grain is reconstructed mathematically. (Technically, so are P- and B-frames.)

To me, grain is an artifact of the photographic process, like lens flare or motion blur. It should be retained, if possible, to provide a truer representation of what is on the film. This is epsecially true for photographers and directors that consciously use it for its artistic effect.

That being said, I've never bothered to play with a DVD player, TV, or computer program to try to make grain visible on something. I may try it and see what happens.

Post: #165838
Topic: ANH in 1080p
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165838/action/topic#165838
Time: 27-Dec-2005 3:19 PM

It's rapidly replacing Google as the first site I go to when I want to know something.

Post: #165821
Topic: First airing of ANH on TV
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165821/action/topic#165821
Time: 27-Dec-2005 3:00 PM

Rijir, if you ask on the preservation forum, I'm sure someone will either
a) have some use for it, or
b) already have it and be working on a DVD release.

They really are trying to preserve everything SW-related over there.

Post: #165819
Topic: digitally remastered
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165819/action/topic#165819
Time: 27-Dec-2005 2:56 PM

I would imagine the DVDs should have more grain, rather than less. Grain is a fine detail in film, and shouldn't show up as well in an nth-generation syndicated copy as it would in a high-bitrate MPEG2 copy. If Paramount ran them through a de-graining algorithm before committing them to DVD, that'd suck. I don't know, because I refuse to pay Paramount's price for the series; but I remember it looked pretty good when Sci-Fi Channel had it.

Post: #165813
Topic: Green screen, CGI and the 'Minute' documentary from ROTS
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165813/action/topic#165813
Time: 27-Dec-2005 1:46 PM

I think the distinction between acting in front of a green screen and acting against a green screen should be noted.

Actors should have no problem being in front of a green screen. I have seen more plays with minimalist sets than with elaborately-constructed sets; the fact that Elsinore was nothing more than three columns didn't screw up Hamlet, nor did reducing Rome to a single ladder screw up Caesar's eulogy. As John Rhys-Davies said in the RotK commentary, (paraphrase) We are actors, we are paid to live and work in the imagination, this is what we do (end paraphrase). I would expect any A-grade actor, supported by his or her director, to do green screen work nearly equal to his or her on-set or on-location work.

That caveat, of course, is key. As an actor is asked to imagine more outlandish premises, he will need more direction. I'm sure if Liam Neeson were told to act out a situation from a well-established play/movie or something from one's common experience, he could do it on autopilot in front of a green screen. He could be a taxi driver, or a passenger on an airplane, or an alien abductee. Everyone knows what you do in that situation, even if you've never driven a taxi or been on an airplane. But it's much harder when one is told, "You'll be playing the hologram of a Jedi master projected from Tatooine to Coruscant," or whatever. Do you play it as if you're in the room, talking to people face-to-face? Or do you adopt a more formal, telephonic demeanor? Are you comfortable, or trying to finish the conversation quickly? Is the transmission crystal-clear, or are there reception problems? Is there lag? Etc, &c.

And I'm sure acting against a green screen -- or a tennis ball, or what-have-you -- is much harder than even that.

Post: #165805
Topic: ANH in 1080p
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165805/action/topic#165805
Time: 27-Dec-2005 1:15 PM

Wikipedia is your friend.

Post: #165802
Topic: Holograms...
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165802/action/topic#165802
Time: 27-Dec-2005 1:12 PM

I kinda like the hologram idea. It would get rid of the tail-stepping sequence (as absurdly funny as I thought that was), and if the hologram were a close-up on his face, it would delay the full reveal of Jabba until RotJ. Assuming, of course, one hadn't seen TPM.

Post: #165801
Topic: digitally remastered
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165801/action/topic#165801
Time: 27-Dec-2005 1:07 PM

What's wrong with Star Trek? When they remastered it, they brought out details that hadn't existed in the broadcast tapes (like coffee stains on Spock's uniform). What you're seeing may be different than the old NTSC broadcasts you're used to, sure, but it's closer to the 35mm prints. And wait until Paramount dips into Trek again for HD/BD and you can see it in 1080p!

Edit: Darth Richard, check out www.starwarslegacy.com. That's just the tip of the iceberg; there's lots more samples on the web of screwed up colors. My favorite is the subtle gradations of color on one of the Tatoo stars disappearing and turning the star into a big red dot.

Post: #165800
Topic: A More Elegant Weapon, a More Civilized Age
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165800/action/topic#165800
Time: 27-Dec-2005 1:02 PM

Good point on the space battles lacking plot, too. The Battle of Endor clearly has several stages that you can follow from the dialogue and the VFX. The Battle of Coruscant starts in media res, and frankly, I have no idea how it ends. We know the Invisible Hand takes a broadside and crashes, but what's the disposition of the other ships? How does the battle evolve? Why were they engaging at such close ranges? Who were the commanders on both sides? (Grievous was clearly responsible for capturing Palpatine, but I assume he wasn't in tactical control of the fleet.) Endor answered most of these questions and interleaved two other plot threads, to boot. (It's a bit vague on where the Imperial fleet goes after the Death Star is destroyed.) Like the Mustafar duel, the Coruscant engagement was unelegant, uncivilized forces smashing together over a cool backdrop.

Post: #165483
Topic: A More Elegant Weapon, a More Civilized Age
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165483/action/topic#165483
Time: 25-Dec-2005 2:14 AM

I find that explanation utterly unconvincing. Sword fighting isn't all about parry-riposte-repeat, a lot (most?) of it is about footwork. We saw this in Episode I, when Darth Maul kept on the move, choosing the time and location of his full-on engagement. We saw it in Episode IV, when Obi-wan retreated to the hangar bay in the Death Star hoping for a chance to escape. We saw it in Episode V, when Darth Vader three times (at least!) forced Luke into a position from which he could not fight. We saw it in Episode VI, when Luke used the obstructions and the dead drop in the Emperor's Throne Room to launch a surprise, and nearly fatal, attack on Vader. A lightsaber fight was always fought with the intention of moving from a disadvantageous position to a favorable position.

In contrast, the RotS duel was simply two people trying to murder each other. At the end, a stroke of luck (the Force

) put Obi-wan on the high ground, as he so helpfully told the audience. You know, just in case we missed it. And then Anakin, who is evidently so in tune with Obi-wan's thinking that, you know, neither can hit or even beat/parry the other, leaps at Obi-wan and gets cut to pieces. Because he knew that's exactly what Obi-wan would do, and when you know what your opponent will do, you never try to use that to your advantage.

Merry Christmas, and may the Force be with us, everyone.

Post: #165355
Topic: A More Elegant Weapon, a More Civilized Age
Link: https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/165355/action/topic#165355
Time: 24-Dec-2005 6:49 AM

When I first saw The Phantom Menace, like everyone else, I was blown away by the Jinn-Kenobi-Maul duel. Here, at last, was what real Jedi combat looked like. Constant motion, Force pushes, light and color flying and cracking everywhere. But my opinion of it faded over time. Why do they keep moving their blades out of a sensibe guard position into dramatic poses? Why do they keep spinning their sabers around pointlessly?

Somewhere on the web, I read an essay on the duel that made me reappraise it (again). One of its points stuck with me: When Kenobi pauses to twirl his lightsaber like a showman, Maul kicks him in the face. This, I thought, was the beginning of the evolution that would give us the Kenobi of A New Hope. By Episode III, I expected Kenobi to keep his center of gravity low, make only controlled movements, focus on defense, and save his energy for one or two really devastating attacks.

Of course, that's not what happened. Kenobi in Episode III is just as showy as ever. At one point, Kenobi and Skywalker stand face-to-face and twirl their blades about to no apparent effect for several seconds. Either one could've kneed the other in the groin at that part and ended the fight. (Probably against the Jedi code duello which, as I've pointed out before, is a highly ritualized affair.)

My only experience with swordplay is fencing foil under the FIE rules. Sport fencing is so formalized as to be almost useless when the subject is real combat, but I'd like to think a few of the things I've learned are applicable. Mainly, masters don't play around. Kenobi must've had a decade on Skywalker's training, and should have been objectively the better lightsabrist. I would've expected Skywalker to use powerful, if ill-timed, blows, combined with Force attacks (he is the Chosen One with more midiclorians than Midiclorianmart); while Kenobi kept his distance, parried and retreated from every attack, and waited to strike until he could choose the time and place. (The last, at least, sort of happened.)

Am I way off track here? Did anyone else expect Ewan-Obi to end up fighting just like Sir-Alec-Obi, and Hayder to fight like Daver? Should I believe that Obi-wan and Darth Vader were also meant to fight like kendo monkeys on crack, but Lucas didn't have the technology to inject Guinness and Prowse with that much crack? Or his latest rationalization, that cyborg-Vader just wasn't a very good swordfighter and Obi-wan was too old for that game?