This week, we’re joined by Engadget senior editor Devindra Hardawar for his epic review of newly released Windows 10, Universal leaks its own film to pirates, a nightmare for one Apple Music user, Twitter drops stolen tweets, tech leaders speak out against warfare AI, the Amiga turns 30 ... and much much more [...]
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Oh... Hell... Yeah! With The Force Awakens on the horizon, the original classic, Star Wars, gets the Honest Trailers treatment. You just know what you’re going to get here: Lucas criticisms, the special editions, the prequels... let’s tear them up. “The Film that transformed the entire film industry... into an assembly line for special effects blockbusters and action figures... and we are not calling it, A NEW HOPE."
Check out the Honest Trailer below. [...]
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Back in 2012, George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney for $4.05 billion dollars, most of which went directly to educational charity. Since then the Mouse House has released Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which is on track to beat Avatar for the title of highest grossing box office film of all time. But while we wait for that news to happen. With the film breaking all sorts of records and being recognized for being one of the best Star Wars films since A New Hope - even though some have criticized that The Force Awakens is a retread on that story - there are some people who are unhappy with what the franchise has become, and that person is none other than Lucas himself.
After the jump, you will find out why he is so unhappy with the film (despite saying that he was pleased with it after watching an early preview), why Hollywood has become so reliant on franchises, and his plans to make original films in the future. [...]
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It wasn't too long ago that George Lucas had some harsh words about selling his Lucasfilms to Disney, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and the state of Hollywood. A lot of what he said sounded more like buyer's remorse than criticism. But the fact that he referred to Disney as "white slavers" in an interview with Charlie Rose was very questionable. And now it looks like the Star Wars creator has realized that.
Lucas has now apologized for his ugly remarks. Read his apology here [...]
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In October of 2014 we shared with you news that Labyrinth, the 1986 movie directed by the late, great Jim Henson, could be getting a sequel. Many were excited by the news, but it was then reported not long after that that sources had denied that a sequel to the puppet filled fantasy flick was actually being made. And we all moved on.
Though fans were excited about the thought of another adventure in the labyrinth with all of our favorite characters, including Jareth the Goblin King (played by David Bowie), prepare for some news you might not be so excited about. It's now being reported that, not even two weeks after Bowie left us forever, a reboot of Labyrinth is in the works. [...]
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Since today, May the 4th, marks the annual celebration of that film in the galaxy far, far away known to the billions of generations as Star Wars, I thought it would be fun to go back to 1976, the year right before the film was released when filming was still underway and a generation of science-fiction fans were being teased with elements and characters from the upcoming space opera, most notably at that year's San Diego Comic-Con.
The SDCC that everyone knows today circa 2016 was nothing like what it was four decades ago. There was no social media; there was no hint of that kind of anticipatory buzz that comes with each upcoming Con as the New Year bell tolls; cosplay was a term that was non-existent in those days, as well as even trying to get licensed or unlicensed for that matter favorite character paraphernalia to dress up in. You wanted a Spidey mask to wear? You best ask your mom to ask your grandmother to knit one out of itchy yarn. The things that Comic-Con goers take and see as gospel in today’s climate was light years away, unheard of, in 1976 [...]
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I have had a tough time this year coming up with a topic for this most important date, May The 4th, aka Star Wars Day. So I'm going to just speak from the heart about the tragedy that befell my family thanks to my own selfishness and thoughtlessness. Beware, for this could happen to you, too!
A year ago, I wrote a piece about how my daughter had recently discovered and become enamored with Star Wars, or at least the six films we had at that time. I fixated, yes I chose that word correctly, on her love of the franchise and how I felt vindicated in raising this amazing little mini-me. I spoke longingly of that which once was and my hopes of what might be. All of this happened over half a year before the new film, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, came to theaters near us all. I wrote how I respected creator George Lucas for his vision, if not for his revisions. I did all of this before I saw the new film. The new film that Disney created [...]
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The World According To Star Wars
Hardcover | Kindle Edition | Audio CD
Written by Cass R. Sunstein
Dey Street Books
Release Date: May 31st, 2016
No one can deny the power of the Force as it permeates all aspects of American society (and other societies), including education and especially pop culture. It's amazing how a silly little science fiction movie from the 1970s became a global phenomenon, spawning bunches of movies, television shows, books, and toys for billions of dollars. I remember sitting in a college mythology class reading Joseph Campbell's The Hero With a Thousand Faces, and the professor said, "Luke Skywalker follows the cycle of the hero," and I perked up. He really does. I, in turn, taught mythology to high school students and used Luke Skywalker (and Neo from Matrix). I've also discussed it right here on Geeks of Doom, a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.
And that is just a drop of what Cass R. Sunstein discusses in his soon-to-be-required-for-college text, The World According To Star Wars.
More below [...]
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Earlier this year, Disney confirmed they would be releasing Indiana Jones 5 in 2019. The film will be directed by Steven Spielberg, with Harrison Ford reprising the title role he's been playing since 1981. Given how well the actor's return to playing Han Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens was received, it only made sense that we get to see Ford play Dr. Jones once more.
But like the Star Wars films, some are worried that George Lucas will have some influence on the creative direction of the franchise. However, we might not have to worry about that any longer. According to David Koepp, Lucas might not be as involved as we originally thought [...]
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The Prequels Strike Back: A Fan's Journey
Amazon Instant Video
Directed by Bradley Weatherholt
Official Website | Ministry of Cinema
Not Rated | 80 Minutes
Release Date: September 14, 2016
Midichlorians. The Trade Federation. Watto. The coarseness of sand. Jar-Jar freakin’ Binks. Oh, and you can’t forget…. “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!”
George Lucas’ Star Wars prequels comprise what is possibly the most controversial motion picture trilogy of all time. Despite grossing hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office and selling countless DVD and Blu-ray copies, Episodes I through III remain a serious bone of contention for ferociously devoted fans of the Star Wars universe for many reasons.
Bradley Weatherholt’s Indiegogo-funded documentary The Prequels Strike Back: A Fan’s Journey provides -- through a series of insightful and provocative interviews with open-minded admirers of the films and their thematic elements and links to the original trilogy –- a pointed critical analysis of the prequel trilogy’s multitude of perceived narrative and technical flaws [...]
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In 1977 the world was amazed and delighted by the now iconic film Star Wars. The following year, a short parody film by the name of Hardware Wars found its way into the hearts of millions. With characters by the name of Fluke Starbucker, Augie "Ben" Doggie, Princess Anne-Droid, Ham Salad, and Chewchilla the Wookiee Monster, the short film's cast was an obvious tongue-in-cheek referencing to the original Star Wars roles. Household equipment made up the vast majority of props in the parody, hence the name. Hilarious and goofy, the video lampoon was and is a cult classic to this day. As a matter of fact, I just watched it again and laughed all the way through [...]
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This week only, Labyrinth, one of the most beloved classics of the 1980s, returns to movie theaters, thanks to Fathom Events. The film is the brainchild of three magnetic forces of entertainment: produced by George Lucas, directed by Jim Henson, and starring the incomparable David Bowie, Labyrinth appealed to anyone and everyone when it debuted in 1986 [...]
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It's no secret that George Lucas had planned on releasing a new Star Wars trilogy before he sold it to Disney for $4 billion. A trilogy of trilogies of sorts. This new trilogy would have ended his vision for the saga. But that wasn't the case after the release of J.J. Abrams' The Force Awakens. But no one knew about what Lucas had in store, until now.
A new excerpt from James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction book reveals that there was more science to the Force than originally thought. So if you needed a better explanation for midi-chlorians, then you would have gotten it in his new trilogy. More on the story below [...]
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Created by Star Wars creator George Lucas, the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars first debuted back in 2008. It ran for five seasons on Cartoon Network until 2013, and ended with a sixth season known as "The Lost Missions" on Netflix in 2014.
At San Diego Comic-Con 2018, however, the show was resurrected. Dave Filoni---who developed, wrote, and was the supervising director on Clone Wars; created its successor Star Wars Rebels and the upcoming Star Wars Resistance; and is someone many fans strongly believe should be creatively involved in helping to make upcoming Star Wars movies---announced during a 10th anniversary celebration for the show that The Clone Wars is coming back.
See what Filoni had to say about the big news below, along with a trailer for the show's return and a poster [...]
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Available on Blu-ray today, Solo: A Star Wars Story contains all of its supplemental content on a second Blu-ray disc. A Movies Anywhere digital copy code is also included with purchase.
Below is a breakdown of the bonus materials and special features included with the in-home release [...]
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When the Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker title first appeared at the end of the new teaser trailer, fans had a few theories on what it could mean. But director J.J. Abrams had a chance to speak about the meaning of the title. While he couldn't provide any specifics, he did leave fans enough to go on.
Additionally, Abrams addressed the mysterious laugh that was heard at the end of The Rise of Skywalker trailer, and how George Lucas had a hand in shaping the film. Check out all of this in the full report here below [...]
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There are already multiple Lucasfilm TV series coming to Disney's streaming service Disney+ including The Mandalorian and an untitled series following Cassian Andor from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Now another Lucasfilm title could be on the way, but it's not set in the Star Wars universe. According to reports, Ron Howard and Jon Kasdan are in negotiations to bring a TV series based on the 1988 fantasy movie Willow to the streaming service [...]
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After Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, Star Wars creator George Lucas thought that the studio would be using some of his drafts and stories to develop a brand new trilogy. However, a new memoir by Disney CEO Bob Iger tells us otherwise. Despite the fact that Lucas stayed on as a creative consultant, Disney went in an entirely different direction with the Star Wars franchise and moved forward with Star Wars: The Force Awakens from writer and director J.J. Abrams and co-writers Michael Arndt and Lawrence Kasdan.
Now excerpts from said memoir reveal how unhappy Lucas was with that decision. More on this below [...]
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The ongoing debate on who shot first, Han Solo or Greedo, continues. This honestly wouldn't be a thing if changes hadn't been made to the original Cantina scene from the first Star Wars film, in which Han was the first to shoot his blaster at Greedo. However, the controversy started when George Lucas altered it in the 1997 Special Edition, making it look like Greedo shot first, followed by a fatal shot from Han. Other alterations would soon follow, but none as crazy as this.
Now that Disney+ has launched, subscribers are taking a look at what the studio's streaming service has to offer, including a 4K restoration with Dolby Vision and Atmos. But the impressive upgrade comes at a huge cost to the infamous "who shot first" scene, at least, because fans have notice that it has been further modified. Now it has been made to look like Han and Greedo shot simultaneously. More on the report below [...]
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