Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.

Harry Lime is my best friend. He's also my writing partner. When Lucasfilm recently invited AICN to visit Skywalker Ranch for a press day regarding the release of the new EPISODE I DVD, Harry wrote back that he wanted me to go with Harry Lime as my photographer. Lucasfilm wrote back to gently remind us that I am still banned from the Ranch, and that there would be no photography allowed.

Despite my disappointment (Van Ling is the producer of the DVD, and he started the freakin' company called BANNED FROM THE RANCH, for pete's sake), I decided it was more important that Harry Lime go to the Ranch than it was for me to be vindictive and us not report on the DVD at all. For one thing, you, the readers, deserve to know what's going on. For another thing, Harry Lime is the biggest SW freak I know.

The following article doesn't really seem to be what Lucasfilm was expecting. It's not a dry recitation of stats on the DVD. Instead, it's exactly what I hoped it would be... the impressions of a life-long fan who finally got called to Mecca. Enjoy. I certainly did.

HARRY LIME DOES THE RANCH

The wait is over: The first STAR WARS movie is on DVD! STAR WARS: EPISODE I THE PHANTOM MENACE! Worldwide DVD release begins October 16, 2001!

But enough about the DVD.

Let me start by saying that I love STAR WARS. It’s never been a secret. I can remember my very first viewing of George Lucas’ groundbreaking original film back in 1977. At the age of seven my life was about to take a dramatic change in direction. My parents, who could not have guessed what this seemingly normal day at the movies would eventually spawn, took me to a local theater in our hometown of Washington, Pennsylvania. It was actually their idea to see the movie. I had no clue what STAR WARS was. My mother later told me that they had read something about the movie and thought I would enjoy seeing it.

My first viewing was incredible. Images from the film became permanently etched into my brain. Creatures from the cantina, Luke igniting his father’s lightsaber, the Tie-Fighters thundering by, and Darth Vader making his grand entrance in the smoldering corridor of the Blockade Runner will stick with me forever. Vader’s entrance was the first indication for me that I was witnessing something extraordinary. Every time I throw on my widescreen laserdisc of the non-special edition and watch that moment, it reminds me just how perfect that first film is. There’s seemingly nothing human about the black-clad imposing figure when we’re first introduced to him. That moment never fails to make me wonder, “What’s this guy’s story?” Finally, over twenty years later, George Lucas is in the process of answering that question.

STAR WARS (or A NEW HOPE as it’s called these days) was so successful that the inevitable sequel, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (directed by Irvin Kershner), followed three years later. EMPIRE is awesome. Some fans might even slug you if suggest it’s less than the finest entry in the series. It was the chance for Lucas to do it again, but this time with far more freedom and panache. The first film is so simple and elemental, though, that I put it just a notch above EMPIRE. The first film could almost play as a silent movie it’s so perfect. It’s a trick Lucas has so far been unable to replicate with his sequels and prequels. In 1983 we were given the somewhat unsatisfying RETURN OF THE JEDI (directed by Richard Marquand), the final chapter in the first STAR WARS trilogy. JEDI made a ton of money, sure, but if you ask most true fans they’ll explain to you in very blunt terms the problems they feel plague the film. The Ewoks are intolerable, Han and Leia have somehow lost every bit of that great chemistry they had in EMPIRE, and the infestation of Muppets in the STAR WARS universe seems to undermine what should’ve been the gravest installment in the trilogy. On the plus side, though, the first incarnation of Jabba The Hutt is right on the money, the speederbike chase is a trilogy high watermark, and the Luke/Vader storyline pays off beautifully. The scene on Endor when Luke turns himself over to the Empire, the lightsaber duel, Luke unmasking Vader, and the funeral pyre all make me think back to those first few moments of Vader in A NEW HOPE. If the air conditioner is turned down low enough, I get chills when I watch those scenes. The character arcs for Luke and Vader are the aspects of JEDI that Lucas had to get right and thankfully did.

The further process of shedding light on the Vader character began in the mid 1990’s as a project called “The Beginning.” George Lucas wrote it and was back in the director’s chair for the first time in two decades. As producer Rick McCallum says of the film, it’s the story of Darth Vader when he was “a good boy.” It’s also the story of an awkward Gungan named Jar Jar Binks who steps into a pile of Bantha poo doo and discovers his inner strength as a leader. The first installment of the new trilogy, finally titled THE PHANTOM MENACE, was released in May 1999. The reactions were radically mixed and spurred heated debates. It was the first new film in the saga in 16 years and expectations were incredibly high. In this way, MENACE is a close relative to Francis Coppola’s THE GODFATHER PART III. In the respect of reaction and expectations, both films had a mother of a hard road to go down. It wouldn’t have mattered if these films had been absolutely perfect... they were gonna get an ass beating, no two ways about it. I can still remember the frenzy of the summer of ‘99. It was like Woodstock for geeks. Professor Moriarty, myself, and a few friends of ours waited in line outside the Mann’s Chinese on Hollywood for the better part of May 18th for the 3:30 am showing. As the time got closer and closer, I remember thinking to myself, “Can this be true? Am I really about to see a new STAR WARS movie?” I prayed that it wasn’t just a dream. I had a very confusing first reaction to the film. I didn’t dislike it. I was just a little surprised by some of the choices made. The following evening, to avoid a gigantic crowd, we all went to a multiplex to see it again. After my second viewing, it was love.

I know that many cynical people take great delight in bad mouthing the movie. There are also a fair number of fans who defend the film simply because it’s STAR WARS. I find myself in a separate camp altogether. I’ll never bad mouth the film, but occasionally I’ll poke fun at it for obvious reasons. I’ll also never defend the film just because it bears the name STAR WARS. I will, however, discuss the merits of the film and talk about why I enjoy the hell out of it with anyone who gets vocal about it being a load of crap. For better and for worse, it’s truly a STAR WARS film. Lucas made a few wacky decisions, but for the most part the film is an extraordinary vision. We’ve never seen a sci-fi fantasy world realized this meticulously on film. This is a brave film in many ways. Even Jar Jar, the brunt of most of the attacks on the film, is a character that’s very fitting from the mind of George Lucas. Sure, he has an irritating voice. Sure, he steps in poo doo and gets farted on by an Eopie in the space of about forty minutes, but is he completely without worth? He’s a familiar character. He reminds me of SRT, the entertainment hologram who fumbles his way into the real world in Lucas’ very first feature, THX 1138. He also reminds me quite a bit of Charles Martin Smith as Terry “The Toad” Fields from the American Graffiti movies. In the first GRAFFITI, Terry is clumsy and nerdy, but has a lot of heart. By the second film, the hugely underrated disaster MORE AMERICAN GRAFFITI, Terry has become much wiser and is no longer quite the pushover. For some reason, maybe heeding the whines of millions of bitchy disappointed fans, Lucas has decided to cut back Jar Jar’s involvement in the next STAR WARS film, ATTACK OF THE CLONES. It’s a shame because he could have tried to deepen his character, really make us care about him. If he did this and was successful, by the third film, if Jar Jar dies, there wouldn’t be a dry eye in the theater. That would have been an accomplishment.

There are other echoes I found in THE PHANTOM MENACE that call my attention to the past films and characters of George Lucas. The other day I was watching my DVD of the original AMERICAN GRAFFITI and Harrison Ford’s character, the arrogant and reckless hot roder Bob Falfa, reminded me quite a bit of Sebulba, the arrogant and reckless pod racer. Falfa and Sebulba even share a similar fate. In addition, the pod race has a big MORE AMERICAN GRAFFITI vibe overall. The first time I saw the sequence I thought to myself, “George has finally done it. He’s created the racing scene of his dreams.” Everyone knows that Lucas has been fascinated with cars and racing his whole life. Even those who detest MENACE deeply admit that the pod race is worth watching. It specifically reminds me of the John Milner storyline of the second GRAFFITI. The atmosphere of the racetrack, the cheering spectators, the pit teams making last minute adjustments before the start of the race, engine fumes in the air, and the long shot racer that no one is betting on but in the end will be victorious... all of this could easily describe the scenes from both films. To take the comparison a step further, I believe the underlying messages of THE PHANTOM MENACE and the John Milner story in MORE AMERICAN GRAFFITI are almost identical. They’re both about people being able to set aside petty differences and work together for a common good. The Naboo and the Gungans realize that the Trade Federation poses a bigger threat to their ways of life than each other. John Milner and his drag racing nemesis finally see that the only way either of them has a shot at beating the factory racer is to team up. I guess it’s safe to say that Lucas has certain agendas and doesn’t mind repeating himself to make a point clear.

For anyone who’s a STAR WARS fan like I am, Skywalker Ranch is a holy land. It is a place where magic happens. To go there, you must either be very important or very lucky. To be perfectly honest, I’m not remotely important. Fortunately, I have been known to be lucky from time to time. My luck is either extremely bad or extremely good. A few weeks ago, while I was driving the Limemobile (a permanently dirty red Saturn) through the streets of Vienna, my good luck kicked in. My phone lit up with the name “Harry Knowles.” We amoral scumbags like to keep in touch. I answered the call and Knowles was direct with me. “Lime,” he said in a serious tone, “how would you like to go to The Ranch?” I collected myself and spoke timidly, “You mean... Skywalker Ranch?” Knowles explained the situation to me. He told me that Lucas was throwing a two-day media awareness thingy for the DVD release of THE PHANTOM MENACE. He also told me that he could not attend because the whole thing sounded a little tedious to him. When I asked why he didn’t ask Moriarty to go and cover the event, he reminded me of the ban which was placed on the Professor for streaking The Ranch wearing only tube socks and sneakers back in ’88 at the release party for WILLOW. It was up to me. Like the hero as described by Joseph Campbell, I had no choice but to accepted the call to adventure.

I decided to drive up to Marin. It’s a six-hour drive, but I figured the money I saved from not buying an airline ticket I could put to good use at The Lucasfilm General Store. I know what you’re thinking: Marin is not a six-hour drive from Vienna. Just pretend, okay? So, anyway, I embarked at about five in the morning on my journey. Mrs. Lime thought I was out of my damn-fool mind, but I had to go. The drive up was a lonesome one. I brought along my STAR WARS CDs to keep my mind occupied. Everything was proceeding on schedule until an unexpected scenic detour took me off the I-5 for about thirty minutes or so. I thought for sure I was going to be late, but my good luck was still in effect and I made it Lucas’ neck of the woods with plenty of time to spare.

For those of you who have never been to The Ranch, if you ever get to go, I should warn you against taking cough syrup or getting liquored up before driving on Lucas Valley Road. This thing is worse than The Indiana Jones Ride at Disneyland. When I described the road to a friend of mine, he shuddered at the thought of George traveling this route regularly. “Y’know, I sure would like to see Episode III,” he remarked, only half joking. After about eight miles of pure vehicular terror I came upon 5858 Lucas Valley Road. As I pulled up to the gate, I flashed back on the creepy documentary STARWOIDS. In the documentary a few STAR WARS enthusiasts drive up to The Ranch and ask the guards over the intercom if they can come inside and audition for the role of Boba Fett. A crazy smile jumped onto my face: I’m here. Before I could even press the call button, the wooden gates began to swing wide. I pulled up to the main guard kiosk where I was treated very nicely and was told to park in the gravel lot just below The Victorian. “The Victorian,” I said as that crazy smile crept back onto my face. “Oh, sure... I’ll just park in the gravel lot below The Victorian.”

I drove slowly up the main road inside The Ranch. The speed limit is marked 15 miles per hour and believe me, I kept that needle at 15. The last thing I wanted to do is run over Bambi at George Lucas’ house. The reduced speed made the trek up to the gravel lot take forever. In my gut I knew I was possibly on the verge of some serious STAR WARS closure. Nearly twenty-five years earlier this whole thing started, and now I was at the home of it all, the nucleus, and perhaps I was about to see the man himself. This thought stuck with me as I made the walk up to The Victorian on unsteady legs. I began feeling the full weight of my mission as I looked up the grand house, which is seated smack dab in the middle of a true slice of heaven. I can’t remember the last time I was at such a peaceful place. There’s no traffic noise, no sign of any neighbor. There’s only nature, gigantic, rolling and green. This time of year, though, the green is giving way to brown and gold. I stopped for a moment before entering The Victorian. I just needed a second to let it sink in. “This is it,” I thought. After a second, I made my way inside.

Day one started with a grand tour of The Victorian. They showed us quite a bit of the place, including the famous library that you see from time to time in photos and video. Most recently I spotted the library on the relatively new Criterion DVD for Akira Kurosawa’s classic THE HIDDEN FORTRESS. There’s an interview with George Lucas on the disc that was taped in the library. In the interview, Lucas talks about how the film was a primary influence on the original STAR WARS. I put the DVD on the other night and couldn’t help think of Liam Neeson in THE PHANTOM MENACE while watching Toshiro Mifune’s great performance. Echoes of Kurosawa can be seen in a lot of Lucas’ work. Being the junky that I am for new DVDs, the main thought on my mind as the tour wrapped up was getting my grubby little hands on a review copy of MENACE. It wasn’t going to be that easy, though, as I was soon to find out as they lead us into a tiny, darkened room.

This room was so dark I’d swear Gordon Willis did the lighting. They sat us down in extremely comfortable chairs in front what looked to be a very expensive TV. I had a good idea what was coming as our host, Jim Ward (Vice President of Marketing at Lucasfilm), introduced himself. He talked about the specs on the DVD and how much work went into constructing it before the lights dimmed for a little demonstration. We were shown excerpts from two scenes: the pod race and the final lightsaber duel. He did this to show off not only the amazing visual transfer of the movie, but to let us listen to the stunning Dolby 5.1 Surround EX soundtrack. Curiously, it seemed the clips were started and stopped at noticeably strategic points. What was it they were trying to hide?

The DVD 2-Disc set is indeed impressive. When EPISODE I came out on videotape and not DVD a while back, I was critical of Lucasfilm. I thought that a barebones version of the movie on DVD with few extras would be fine until a better version could be completed. I take it back now. This DVD was definitely worth the wait. The menus are beyond cool and there are lots of extras to look at. Disc one, the “crown jewel” as nearly everyone at The Ranch refers to it, basically consists of just the movie and commentary by Lucas, Rick McCallum, Ben Burtt, Rob Coleman, John Knoll, Dennis Muren and Scott Squires. I definitely feel let down by the fact that Lucas doesn’t do a solo commentary, but I pretty much suspected he wouldn’t. I guess we should be thankful that he speaks at all. In addition to the expected Dolby 5.1 Surround EX and Dolby 2.0 tracks, there’s also a Spanish language Dolby 2.0 version that is actually quite excellent. There’s also an Easter egg blooper reel that’s worth a look. In the cut outs, ILM actually went back and put Jar Jar in, reacting like the rest of the cast to the mistakes. In the last clip, there’s a shot of Jar Jar and Anakin laughing together which is absolutely my favorite shot of them. I find it a little painful to think that what I consider is their best take ended up as a mere disc supplement, a throw-away. There’s more heart and honesty coming from them in that one quick outtake than in the entire movie. It’s too bad Lucas couldn’t have harnessed more of those real moments and found a way to work them into the picture. It would have been just the right ingredient to counter-balance the almost too calculated approach he’s taken.

We were escorted down to a screening room deep within the catacombs The Victorian for a look at most of the contents of disc two. And let me tell you, the theater was sah-weet. Even though we were watching a DVD, it was projected onto a regular sized movie screen and pretty much looked like film. Disc two is loaded with great stuff. It’s got seven deleted scenes, a documentary to accompany the deleted scenes, an hour-long documentary chronicling the making of the film called THE BEGINNING, a multi-angle storyboard-to-animatic-to-film section, five featurettes detailing various aspects about the making of the film, the award-winning twelve-part web documentary, “Duel of the Fates” music video, a never-before-seen photo gallery, theatrical posters and print campaign, theatrical and launch trailers, seven TV spots, and a DVD-ROM weblink to exclusive STAR WARS content. There’s also a making of the “Star Wars: Starfighter” game, as well, but for all complaining I was about to hear during the Q&A about bit budgeting for the discs, I’m a little surprised they’d foist this inconsequential little advertisement on the fans instead of putting in another great film oriented added value feature. No offense to the guys in the short documentary who obviously take their craft seriously and are no doubt delighted to be a part of the release.

Obviously, the deleted scenes were a treat to see on the big screen. When I got my DVD home and watched the movie, I learned why they showed us those strategically chosen clips. If they had shown us a little more, we would have learned that a few of the new shots from the pod race and an entire scene on Coruscant have been cut into the film proper. Making this, you guessed it, a sort of unspecified Special Edition. Most of the scenes are executed well, while some aspects fall sadly short. Overall, it’s apparent that the team responsible for the effects in the theatrical release was not the team put to work on these scenes. For one thing, the character animation, especially for Sebulba’s new material, is nowhere near as elegant and striking as the stuff in the film. It’s not as articulate, it’s not as well “acted,” and unfortunately it seems to only dilute the potency of what already exists. In the new shots he’s also more cartoonish and cute than the menacing character we’ve come to know. During the line up at the grid before the pod race, he now blows kisses to the crowd and gestures at himself with his thumbs as if to say, “I’m all that.” Although I’m a big fan of the Special Editions, I have to admit that most of the new stuff Lucas sanctions only serves to take the edge off of scenes and characters. I don’t think there’s a fan around who will forgive him for allowing Greedo to shoot first in A NEW HOPE. Recently, while watching the original version of RETURN OF THE JEDI, which I hadn’t watched in a long time, I was stunned to realize that, even though Muppets are running around rampant, it’s actually a lot darker in tone than the Special Edition. The combination of the cute new CG creatures and song “Jedi Rocks” seems to make the scene a shade less unpleasant for children. When I was seven and saw the original film for the first time, I hid my eyes during the cantina sequence. That’s part of the reason I loved the film as a kid. This all goes straight to the heart of a comment Moriarty made the other day while we were discuss the films. At the time, he kind of infuriated me, even though I knew he had a valid point. He was complaining about what he called “the infantalization of STAR WARS.” He went on what must have been a twenty-minute tirade about how THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK is not a children’s film. And, y’know, he’s right: It isn’t. I can’t even call A NEW HOPE a children’s film, at least not to the degree that I can say that about RETURN OF THE JEDI and THE PHANTOM MENACE. Even though I consider myself a true fan and have a lot of love for the films, I can’t pretend there hasn’t been a not-so subtle shift. Given the fact that the last two films, the ones Lucas has had the most control over while making, have played more like Disney movies, I can’t imagine the next two films are going to be anything like old-school STAR WARS. I hope they will be, though. I can’t think of any other way for Lucas to conclude this saga. He keeps saying that EPISODE III is going to be a lot darker than anyone expects. I pray he doesn’t abandon this attitude when it comes time to make it.

We also were shown THE BEGINNING, an excellent documentary detailing the making of EPISODE I. The documentary was directed and photographed by Jon Shenk. We were told that the documentary was whittled down from a staggering 600 hours of rough footage. Given this, I’m certain there’s a ton of great stuff were missing. There are only a couple real criticisms I have about. One, its hour-long running time is way too short. As I mentioned above, if bit budgeting and giving the fans what they want were true concerns while assembling this DVD, I most assuredly could have done without the video game commercial and had more of this great documentary. The thing that makes this stand apart from most documentaries you see about the making of a movie is that fact that there’s no narrator. As a result, the viewer can’t help but be drawn into the scenes. Without the intrusion of a narrator forcing a point of view on me, I was able to slip into the real drama that took place while making this elaborate movie. The other criticism, and this one really puts off, comes during the sequence when Lucas is down to three potential Anakins and has the three young actors do screen tests with Natalie Portman. The scene they do is the moment the two characters first meet in Watto’s junk shop. One of the child actors is, of course, Jake Lloyd, who eventually ended up winning Lucas’ heart and the role of the future Dark Lord. Watch that sequence closely when you get the DVD. When Jake delivers his lines during the screen test, for part of the scene, while we’re focused on Lucas getting teary-eyed, it appears as though they’ve lifted the edited, polished soundtrack from the movie and inserted it here, giving Jake the clear edge over the other actors. Then when they cut to a shot of Jake that couldn’t have been tinkered with and we’re left with what can only be the authentic soundtrack of the audition, he doesn’t seem quite as perfect. If there’s any truth to my observation, this moment of the documentary isn’t a very fair depiction of this audition process and is also kind of a slam on the other two kids working hard to get the part. If I’m right, I guess you could call this a Special Edition of Jake Lloyd’s audition. And if I were indeed right, why would Lucasfilm do this? Could it be that they’re trying to convince us that their casting choice was right? “See! He gave the best audition!” Maybe there’s nothing intentionally deceitful about it. Maybe the soundtrack from Jake’s audition was somehow flawed and couldn’t be used. Or maybe I’m completely wrong and there’s nothing screwy about it. If I am I’ll gladly admit it, but as for now my opinion, based on the material, is that there is a manipulation beyond the simple editing of footage.

The next day we were finally presented with our check discs. Since I brought my copy back, needless to say, I’ve been a very popular guy. I’ve watched it about a dozen times at home and twice so far on my friend Frosty Skywalker’s new 60-inch 16x9 HD television. If you’ve spent all your paper route money on a high-end system, you will not be disappointed with this DVD purchase. Exploring the contents of disc two on Frosty’s system reminded me of Christmas morning as a child when I’d dig deep into my stuffed stockings for goodies. I’d cram my little fist down there and feel around until I was sure there was nothing left. I let Frosty borrow it for an evening and he told me that he just sat down and didn’t get up until he was sure no stone was left unturned. The disc is very addicting. We screened the disc for a few friends and, as I suspected, they were at times irreverent and made the usual disparaging comments. One of the funnier remarks, something I’ve hadn’t heard before, was made during the scene in which Qui-Gon discusses his discovery of a “vergence” in the Force. When he attempts to persuade the council to see Anakin and Mace Windu gives a look to Yoda, the guy seated next to me exclaimed in his best Sam Jackson, “Now he’s bringin’ more white people here!” I guess you had to be there.

The DVD comes in a case like the one for the new TERMINATOR 2 DVD, just without any kind of special shell. Hey, that would have been a good idea: an aluminum outer shell with a classy raised “I” in the middle. Why didn’t they do something like that? Speaking of the T2 DVD, the guy who produced that disc is also the mastermind behind this one. He’s Van Ling, a longtime James Carmeron collaborator who on a side note was at one time officially “banned from The Ranch” for doing something I guess Lucas didn’t dig. He was the first person to be on stage for the Q&A session, which we were told would culminate with an appearance by the headcheese himself.

During the session, the subject came around to the fact that the film is not a transfer from a digital source like the Pixar/Disney DVDs. This revelation seems to take the wind out of a few people’s sails, but Van defended the choice by explaining that it “was a very conscious decision to go from the print rather than from the digital files. And I think part of that is that this is a film, and we wanted to maintain the spirit. This is part of the style of colors and look that we wanted to maintain with the picture. And we didn’t want it to feel like perhaps A BUG’S LIFE, or something where it has that kind of digital edge to it, which works great for those movies. But we wanted to really say this is a film.”

The question I had for Van, since this was brought up, is whether or not the deleted scenes were finished on film or simply completed and transferred over without the involvement of film. Some of the new shots certainly (to my untrained eye, anyway) look as though they never saw a frame of film, but Van emphatically stated the opposite when put the question to him:

HARRY LIME: Were the deleted scenes ever taken to film? Or were they just transferred from the digital source?

VAN LING: Absolutely, they were finished on film. All 300 of those shots were finished on film and put together for the DVD.

After basking in the warmth of Van Ling for about thirty minutes, EPISODE I producer Rick McCallum took the stage with a definite spring in his step. He was met with a quite a reception and he looked damn happy to be there. This guy can sure talk and make you excited about whatever it is he’s up to. Its little wonder Lucas has this guy at his side. I have to say, he was a real delight and made things fun and interesting. One of the more interesting questions directed at him concerned his repeated use of profanity in the documentary footage of THE BEGINNING. A number of times Rick is heard using the “F” word. Imagine that, a producer using the “F” word. Given the fact that THE PHANTOM MENACE is aimed at a family audience, I guess the reporter had an interesting question.

Q: Well, I had to laugh because you cuss so much in the documentary. Are you concerned about the young kids that will be watching that?

Jim Ward, who was serving as moderator for the Q&A, jumped in quickly.

JIM WARD: No, we bleeped it out.

Q: But, I think most kids these days know what that is.

Rick just smiled reassuringly.

RICK McCALLUM: Everything I’ve learned is from my kids.

The conversation soon returned to the less confrontational subject of the material surplus they had to sift through while putting the DVD together. Rick became animated as he discussed the possibilities of the DVD medium with immense enthusiasm.

RM: Well right now, within the world that we live in, there’s nothing that comes close [to DVD]... I don’t know if Jim has mentioned, we probably shot about 600 hours worth of behind the scenes footage. Not that that would all work, but you know there’s a good 2-3 hours about how to design costumes. There’s 2-3 hours about setting up and budgeting a movie, scheduling a movie. Unfortunately, right now with the limits we can’t use all that material. But there is that material and one day, in fact it’s one of my worst nightmares, I’m going to get the call from George saying, “You know, I’ve got a really good idea. Let’s put out a 250 hour DVD.”

The rest of the Q&A offered other unique perspectives on the making of this DVD. Jon Shenk, who made THE BEGINNING, Palbo Helman, who supervised the visual effects for the new deleted scenes, and Richard A. Dean, Principal Engineer of the Digital Mastering Program for Lucasfilm THX, all made appearances.

Everyone waited without complaint for the icing on the cake to arrive. Mr. Ward informed us that icing was running late but would be arriving shortly. It wasn’t too long before he showed up, though. From seemingly thin air, the man finally appeared. George Lucas, complete with silver pompadour and customary flannel shirt, walked into the room casually. There was little fanfare, but a sense of true reverence was obvious in the room. George, or Darth Flannel as he’s often affectionately called on the Internet, took a seat and the Q&A continued without much ado.

The gentleman seated to my left asked the first question. Even though he was just a foot away, I didn’t hear it. I think he asked something about Coppola and DVD. I didn’t hear what the guy said because George Lucas had just walked into the room and sat down about fifteen feet in front of me. I also won’t make an apology for sounding like a teenage girl at an N’Sync concert. This is George-freaking-Lucas, people. This is a guy who created a phenomenon, a monumental piece of pop culture artwork, something I’ve probably thought about at least once every single day since I was first exposed to it. And now, here he is. As he answered the first question with a quiet confidence, I made the decision to definitely be the one to ask the next question. I wasn’t about to let this moment slip away. There was a brief pause after George finished his answer and my hand, almost involuntarily, shot up above my head. Jim Ward pointed to me and Lucas’ eyes fixed on me like a spotlight from THE GREAT ESCAPE. A thought something like, “Holy shit... okay... just talk,” went through my mind before I opened my mouth.

HARRY LIME: Historically speaking, how do you think PHANTOM MENACE will be seen, say, 100 years from now? How will it be thought of?

In retrospect, I can think of dozens of better questions. But since we were warned to keep our questions limited to EPISODE I topics only, this one wasn’t too bad. Regardless of how much you piss on PHANTOM MENACE, you have to acknowledge that it’s a groundbreaking motion picture. Like it or not, it’s the stepping-stone to an entirely new age of filmmaking. They basically had to revolutionize the way they went about constructing a movie in order to incorporate all the recent technological advances. It didn’t take George long to think it over before beginning his answer.

GEORGE LUCAS: Well, I have no idea. I mean, obviously I won't be around so it won't make any difference, but at the same time I would guess that it’d be thought of as the first chapter in a six-part movie. So, it'll be thought of really as STAR WARS, not as PHANTOM MENACE.

I didn’t think that George really understood what I was asking. Admittedly, the question was rather brief and maybe wasn’t as specific as it could have been so I decided to clarify a bit. As I did, George listened patiently.

HL: I was thinking more as far as cinema goes because it seems to have a very pioneering spirit about it. It kind of reminds me of the days of silent movie making, when people were trying to figure out how to make a movie for the first time?

GL: Well, I don't know. I mean, when we made STAR WARS it was with a sort of pioneering spirit in its own way, too, but now it's sort of old hat. You know, people forget very quickly the technological advances that are made on each movie. I guess there are technological advances made all the time. It's a progression of the medium, especially in terms of being able to incorporate digital characters and sets and that sort of thing. It had been done before but not on this scale. And you know the next film will be more extreme and I assume that when I make the third one it'll be even more extreme.

A few questions later, as my euphoria ebbed, I heard something that made me think Lucas might have plans for further alterations to PHANTOM MENACE. It also may shed a little more light on aspects of the continuing relationship between Obi-Wan and Anakin. Maybe I’m just reading into this want I want, though.

Q: One of the scenes I was hoping to see, that I’ve seen pictures of, is Obi-wan being lectured in the swamp by Qui-Gon because his saber burned out.

GL: In the end, you know, it’s like four lines. I mean, the scene is there, it just would be longer. And it’s the kind of thing that overall, in looking at the movie, I felt that that discussion didn’t really fit into the movie. It’s more relevant in the grand scheme of things than it is relevant to the movie that I’m making now... it’s kind of like Jabba the Hutt was in NEW HOPE. Which is it’s not really relevant to A NEW HOPE but it is relevant to RETURN OF THE JEDI... And this is just a couple of lines that sort of resonated against similar kinds of lines that are going on in this movie. But, you know, in the end it’s a shading. It’s not really a big issue. And in a lot of cases you’re sort of trading off shadings what might be appropriate in the grand scheme of six movies, but not appropriate in the individual movie as it exists. Unfortunately, I’m writing a novel and I’m writing it a chapter at a time. And one chapter comes out every three years. So each chapter has to kind of work unto itself. And it’s kind of tricky, because you don’t want to do things that bring the whole thing down just because if you saw the whole thing at once it’ll all make sense but it doesn’t individually. So, I have to kind of weigh those two things against each other all the time.

Another highlight for me was a question concerning the argument about when and if a film is ever finished and who gets to make that determination.

Q: ... You said earlier that what used to be called the Director’s Cut is now called DVD, but do you think in some sense that it’s quite difficult to say at what point a film is finished, or that there’s a final version or a definitive version?... It muddies the waters in a way. This may not be a bad thing. Maybe you think that’s a good thing. But there’s a fuzzy sense of when a film is finished...

GL: Yeah. Now it’s [film] not unlike all other art forms. All the other art forms have that advantage, improvised additions and you know for things to be touched up or redone. You know, an artist especially, you go into any studio and you’ll find a lot of paintings sitting on a wall that were finished five, ten years ago that the artist is just sitting with until he’s really happy with it. And even sometimes they sell the paintings then come back and revisit it. Not that often, but I think with film, like anything else as far as I’m concerned, the film is finished when the Director is gone... so to speak. And you know it brings up another issue that a lot of us have been campaigning for in the last 10 or 15 years which is artists’ rights, because more and more it’s going to get to a point where people can re-cut each other’s movies and studios can re-cut your movies and do the same thing that now is essentially left to the director to do. And then you’re going to get some very distorted views of movies. It’s like what happened in the theatrical experience. And you know you hear all the complaints from the directors, “That’s not my cut, that’s not what I wanted, you destroyed my movie!” And right now we’re sort of getting that back through the DVD process of actually making it more the way we, the filmmakers, actually originally intended it. But then there’s always this danger that the studios will take it back and say, “Well, I don’t care what he wanted, I’m going to do the new DVD which is the better cut.” You know, the executive/middle management cut. The corporate cut. And we’re looking to try to see that there are some protections about who actually gets to re-cut these movies. And then as far as I’m concerned the artist should always have the right to re-think what he’s done because that’s ultimately what people are interested in.

One of the most fascinating responses followed a question about Lucas’ relationship with the Internet. It was the last question, actually. A reporter, who brought up the idea that perhaps Lucas has embraced the online community, inquired as to what kind of role the electronic fan presence plays in decisions Lucas makes concerning his franchise. The answer came without hesitation or a hint of uncertainty.

GL: When I did Phantom Menace... I started to read some of the Internet stuff for the first time. And, you know, I found it rather disturbing in its complete fantasy life. I mean, about two percent of what I read had any credibility whatsoever in terms of being true. And the rest of it was just complete B.S. that had been created by somebody somewhere. And at first you sort of say, well, they can’t say that and this is crazy, why would they, and what are they talking about? I was doing it pretty much when I was editing, because I didn’t have anything else to do... And after I finished that movie and everything, I stopped reading the Internet. And I haven’t really gone back because it’s not in a way relevant to what I do. So, I just stay away from it. It’s like reading reviews. People expressing their opinion for whatever reason and that’s fine, but in the end I’ve got too many other things to do than spend my time listening to 10,000 opinions.

With that, the Q&A was over. Jim Ward, a broad smile on his face, thanked Mr. Lucas, who promptly stood up and vanished like David Copperfield through secret doorway in a shadowy corner of the theater. We all filed out into the lobby of the building, happy we had our DVDs, satisfied that we got the icing on our cake, pleased with our spoils from the raid on the Lucasfilm general store (I actually ended up not purchasing anything). Rick McCallum and the rest of the fellows from the events of the day moved into the commissary to do further interviews. There wasn’t a trace of the man who started it all, though. He was most likely en route to a nearby editing bay somewhere inside The Ranch to supervise the cutting of EPISODE II: ATTACK OF THE CLONES. Like children clutching their toys, we took our PowerBooks, Palm Pilots, and customary black shoulder bags and stepped out into the harsh sunlight.

And with that, Harry Lime slinked away into the sewers and the shadows once more.