Mr.Roboto- Is this Vader picture supposed to be when he is Vader just for a certain part of the movie?
Moriarty- This is the end of the movie.
Herc- This is the last time we see Anakin, right?
Moriarty- This is the last time we see him in the film. And it’s just supposed to be the end of the movie, that appearance.
Herc- Wouldn’t it be funny if there was a snowboard… because it works. They do kinda look like snowbooties. She’s right about that.
Obi-Swan- What’s great about the design is, you get to have the Darth Vader “breathing”, but you get to see Anakin’s eyes.
Momma Frattelli- Yeah, that is pretty cool. Smart.
Obi-Swan- And that’s good for Hayden, because that allows him to be in the whole movie and not be covered up with a mask.
Moriarty- And because he has the filter on his mouth, you can use the James Earl Jones voice now. And so it could actually… it could fit what Jones has been saying for a while.
Herc- Do you think that it’s also the first time we see….this costume…
Moriarty- I think it’s the only time we’ll see it in the movie.
Sarah- That would actually tie-in really well with JEDI, if that was like the last thing we see of him… and him and this face… except for the little ghost thing or whatever, but the last time you see Vader is without the mask. And that actually fits perfectly.
Mr.Roboto- So we’re talking about not seeing a helmet on Vader?
Moriarty- Not at all.
Momma Frattelli- I think that’s cool. I like that a lot.
Jed- I don’t think you should see Vader in Episode III at all. I think in terms of keeping with book-lore, which is ostensibly is what the whole fucking thing is supposed to be, that’s killing the Vader entrance. That’s David Prowse in 1976. That’s what you have to work with.
Moriarty- One of the Talkbacks we had from Nordling was, “Not seeing Vader in III actually makes a sort of sense. Think of the first time you see Vader in costume in A NEW HOPE. Its one of those iconic entrances you don’t forget when it comes to film. Now I wouldn’t seeing Anakin strapped down with the mask or something screaming, “Obi-Wan!” in James Earl Jones’s voice. We gotta see the mask, at least. Still, what I’d like to see is Obi-Wan kicking Anakin’s ass and then him seeing Vader later on and not having any idea who he is, and Vader gets away, and Obi-Wan only later discovers its Anakin.”
Moriarty- And the last comment C-Tit had from last time, or when I talked to him today was, he’s made peace now with the idea of there being no Vader in Episode III. In thinking about it, he started to see how that could be really cool preserving the mystery. And when I told him about the Vader I was showing tonight, he goes, “Well goddammit! I just got used to the idea! Make up your mind! Show him or not!”
Frosty Skywalker- I think it’s completely wrong to have Vader in Episode III. I think that the only way that you can have it is maybe a partial costume. But the entrance of Darth Vader in Episode IV is the entrance.
Mr.Roboto- I disagree. I need Vader in Episode III.
Moriarty- Did we talk last time about Jim Ward and the marketing department and what is going on right now?
Obi-Swan- I don’t think we did.
Moriarty- There is the internal struggle that is going on right now. Evidently, Jim Ward runs the marketing department for Lucasfilm, and wants to use Darth Vader as the key image in the sales for Episode III.
Herc- If I could just interrupt, for the images of Episode I, they used the same image… the shadow of Darth Vader.
Moriarty- Which by far is the best teaser poster. That poster was gigantic in terms of response, and in terms of what it did to fans.
Herc- So clearly they are not breaking any ground.
Moriarty- And he really wants to make Vader the central image of the ad campaign this time, but he’s being told there’s no Vader. It’s not that. It’s not the typical Vader. So it’s not going to make sense to put it at the center of the ad campaign.
Momma Frattelli- But that is what I said the last time. We need a villain. We need someone cool and badass, and I am afraid that everybody is going to be so wishy-washy and going to straddle the fence…
Mr.Roboto- She has a point… there is no villain…
Sarah- But I think that Palpatine has such a huge role in this one.
Momma Frattelli- But he’s not Vader.
Moriarty- And he’s not the same kind of imposing.
Momma Frattelli- But he’s wishy-washy too. You never know…
Sarah- But I think that this is the film that sets him up as being the Emperor. Being the ultimate evil. He was far more evil, was bad through and through the whole time while Vader still had some good in him. Meanwhile, Palpatine/Emperor…
Moriarty- And they’ve already shot evidently the scene where he comes out.
Mr.Roboto- Really?
Moriarty- They’ve shot that. That was on the set diaries. They talked about Ian McDiarmid back on set. They shot some of that and they said, and they were very vague, but they said there was a scene where he asks someone to do something that mirrors a scene in Episode II. Lucas is big on mirroring scenes. It mirrors a scene in Episode II, but where in that movie it was kinda benign, in this movie it’s evil what he’s proposing, what he’s asking someone to do.
Sarah- Supposedly he has some of the most crucial scenes in Episode III. He’s in a lot of the film.
Moriarty- They said he’s in most of the movie this time.
Sarah- And every crucial point is coming out of him. Where we’re used to seeing the Rebels and the good guys controlling where everything is going, we’ll watch him manipulate.
Momma Frattelli- That would be interesting. It would be darker.
Mr.Roboto- Which would be cool.
Sarah- Again, that goes with a dark story. He’s the one who is putting everything in motion. Everything is going to revolve around what he wishes to happen or happens.
Mr.Roboto- I think that in Episode I and II, Palpatine or Sidious or who ever, is like a villain from the Super Planets. He’s just so useless. It’s like, “I’ll have my friend Darth Maul get them!” He was just like the Super Planets. Vader was a real villain. You feared him. There has been none of that in I or II and I crave that.
Jed- I am rooting for Darth Tyrannus in Episode III at this point. I’m for it. Kill them all! I’m happy.
Moriarty- Although I understand that he is dispatched fairly early. I understand that the Christopher Lee question is answered and that’s that.
Frosty Skywalker- This goes back to what I said at the last Jedi Council and what I think happens in the films. Right at the beginning of the film, Palpatine sends Anakin, and says, the only way you are going to settle the whole mom’s death is if you kill…
Moriarty- Which is the moment that really… I think that is really is his transformation into Vader. Even though we’ll see him as Anakin for the rest of the film, he’s not Anakin. Once he’s done that, he’s no more than a hit man or a thug.
Sarah- I don’t think he’s Anakin anymore, anyway. I think the scene where you see him carrying his dead mother and the look of anger on his face… it’s dark.
Obi-Swan- I think it happened before that. When he was surfing on that creature... that’s when he became Darth Vader.
Moriarty- (pointedly ignoring Obi-Swan) I think the last connection… he still loves after that… there are things that happen after that that are not pitch black. And I think that after he whacks Christopher Lee, he’s not coming back. That’s really the end of him. But that is going to be early on, so then we really won’t have a villain. A lot of this is just going to be a third act of Scooby-Doo where it’s pulling masks off.
Mr.Beaks- By that time it’s MACBETH. He’s killing Duncan. He’s… that’s actually. Wow. Now I’m starting to get interested.
(General disbelief and laughter by all!!!)
Sarah- JOIN US in the excitement!
Mr.Beaks- Draw a Shakespeare parallel and Beaks becomes interested.
Mr.Roboto- I and II suck but I am anticipating III. I have no idea why.
Sarah- II does not suck. I put it up with EMPIRE. You talk about the dialogue…
Mr.Roboto- Wait a second…
Sarah- … all you nineteen-year old boys talked like idiots. I dated you. I still date you. You still talk like idiots.
Jed- At no point, wait, I don’t think anybody in this room went on this extended fireplace metaphor… give us a little credit.
Moriarty- “Sand. It gets in your crack and your itchy places.”
Sarah- Hey, it worked for Bernie Mac this summer.
Mr.Beaks- No, it didn’t work for Bernie Mac.
Obi-Swan- There is a Talkback that deals with the Anakin-Padme love story and how unbelievable it is.
Moriarty- I think this is the one you are talking about Obi-Swan: “The Clone Wars happen almost entirely off-camera. What most fans have waited sixteen, twenty years to see essentially happens off stage.” He’s referring to something we said. “BING BING BING!! This was the number one element of Episode II that pissed me off. It pissed me off more than the fake stagey acting to all sorts of non-existant special effects, more than the atrocious dialogue and pathetic delivery during the love sequences, more than Lucas' lack of balls when it comes to showing Anakin as genuinely dark and malevolent. They end with the beginning of the Clone Wars, which I think has to be the single most retarded storytelling decision ever made for a story of this magnitude. What ever happened to the guy who set up the huge three-way drama at the end of Jedi? Luke vs his father and the Emperor. The Rebel fleet being annihilated. And... ok, well, there were the Ewoks too, so sue me. Honestly, he even did a much better job with the conclusion of Episode I than with II. He was going to end this like Empire, on a question, right? Well... there was no question, there was no concern. Anakin just wasn't dark enough yet. This needed to be a full-blown WAR MOVIE, complete with the irresponsible teenage hormone-influence romance between Anakin and Padme, while the world seems to be absolutely falling apart. Anakin should have been raging and pissed at the world everywhere but when Padme saw him, at which points, he's in love with her. IOW, she soothes him, not like that rough sand back home that gets all up his shorts. But I never believed it. Did you? Did anyone believe them when they confessed their love? Not I; I was holding down bile. Episode III better have some monumentally earth-shattering discoveries and balls-to-the-wall tension or it won't be enough to undo Lucas' failure with the first 2 prequels.” That’s Empyrea10.
Mr.Roboto- Amen.
Sarah- I think we would have bought the love story more, if as actors, they had better chemistry.
Momma Frattelli- No, it blew its wad. It’s the whole “Moonlighting” syndrome. How hot were Maddie and David for the ten years while they fought and they weren’t together? As soon as they got together, it was so f-ing boring. And everything is like that. And because he admits his love right away, there is none of that sexual tension. And since there was no sexual tension, there was never time to make it hot.
Obi-Swan- That’s what made EMPIRE work.
Moriarty- That’s essentially what drives EMPIRE. They know they shouldn’t be together, they know they shouldn’t be together…
Momma Frattelli- That’s so hot.
Moriarty- … and they really wanna be together. And you know every time they look at each other, they are thinking about bumping uglies. And there is nothing of that in Episode II. You don’t get a sexual charge between those two. Neither of them seems particularly sexual. Natalie Portman still seems, unless you are Harry Knowles, too young…
Sarah- Bring back Keira Knightly.
Obi-Swan- I just wanted to say that, speaking on behalf of Hayden, I think that his performance, I’ve really grown to like it. You have to think about who Anakin is. He’s a person who has been cooped up with Jedis, who are asexual, and he’s told that he cannot love, he can’t have attachments, but he has these feelings. And I think that he’s responding like anyone would in that situation. He’s a little creepy, he’s a little weird, and he doesn’t say the right things, and he sounds like a romance novel.
Frosty Skywalker- I agree with what you are saying, but I think it would be fucking cooler if they did the EMPIRE STRIKES BACK love story. You guys said it. It does work. But that means it would have to be written by the same man who can’t write dialogue.
Mr.Roboto- The dialogue is a big problem, the dialogue is weak.
Moriarty- I’ve noticed that a lot of Star Wars fans talk about the ideas under a scene, and when they are talking about the ideas, they are talking about a better film than you are actually seeing. I think a lot of fans read into things and they give things an inner-life, and it’s not wrong, we all do that with movies. We all project things….
Obi-Swan- That’s art.
Moriarty- … I think there are a lot of fans who project better ideas on to the scenes that they are watching then necessarily were there when they were made.
Jed- I think we have been doing that for twenty years. Even with the good stuff. And it works.
Moriarty- Look… there’s Tarkin on the screen now. (He motions to ANH playing on the TV.) I don’t know if we said it on tape yet, but Tarkin is shooting this coming week, allegedly, and we should have a cast announcement soon. By the time this article runs, we should know who is playing Tarkin. Which is exciting. I have to admit, I am just happy to see Tarkin again. I’ve always loved his exit in this movie. This is my favorite ending for a bad guy. He’s like, “Now, victory is ours!” BOOM!!! He has no clue it’s coming. He’s blindsided. “Now quick, crush the planet!” BOOM! He’s gone.
Obi-Swan- He died thinking they won.
Moriarty- It’s such a great exit in a movie.
Sarah- Then if he died thinking they won…
Mr.Beaks- That’s always been the argument on WRATH OF KAHN, that Kahn never knew he lost.
Obi-Swan- Was that STAR TREK talk??!?!?
Moriarty- Mr.Beaks, you have to leave now.
Frosty Skywalker- He’s already starting to convert to Episode III…
Sarah- I know… it’s a joyous time.
Mr.Beaks- I said I was interested, but I’ll get interested in anything. I’m going to see HOW TO DEAL next week, so…
Frosty Skywalker- So you’re just a whore for movies.
Mr.Beaks- It doesn’t take much. It really doesn’t.
Herc- Do you like the dark-haired Mandy better?
Moriarty- May it be noted that Herc hasn’t perked up except to ask about Mandy Moore. I like that.
Obi-Swan- Can you just for a minute talk about the “gay robot”?
Herc- I will just say that I would never be a Star Wars fan at all if it was not for the gay robot. The robot totally made the first film.
Moriarty- I’ll tell you what… there is a lot of gay robot in this one. Evidently, they’ve shot quite a few scenes with him.
Herc- I don’t like the gay robot anymore though.
Moriarty- They ruined him?
Herc- They really did. These last two movies…
Moriarty- I would agree. There was a weird vibe at the end of the second one between C3PO and R2D2 because R2 is a prick in that movie. He’s laughing, pushing people off of ledges, he’s waiting until the last second to help people out, and there is a malevolent turd quality to him now. And I’m not a big R2D2 fan. Used to be.
Mr.Beaks- Well, in EMPIRE he disappears for a while and just goes off kicking around.
Herc- I just need to clarify something here. R2D2 does believe in gay marriage. And equality in the workplace for gays. But remember, R2D2 is no homo.
Jed- He’s all man.
Herc- There is only one gay robot in Star Wars, and he’s big and gold.
Mr.Beaks- Do you think gay droids are made gay, or do they become gay through being in service to…
Herc- What do you think, Beaks? I think that in Threepio’s case they manufactured him gay.
MrBeaks- Yeah, I think he was manufactured gay.
Obi-Swan- This isn’t me, I’m just saying that for the record, but a friend of mine with certain beliefs or whatever, believes that since Anakin didn’t have a father, he created a gay robot. That’s not me…
Sarah- And we say that the fans read too much into the film?
Herc- I guess that the biggest question for me is who gave the big midiclorian injection to Anakin’s mom?
Moriarty- I’m almost willing to lay money that we’ll never hear that word again.
Mr.Roboto- We’ll never hear it.
Moriarty- I think it’s going to be like, “No, we didn’t say anything about that. What are you talking about?”
Obi-Swan- Have the balls to make the answers. Answer your stupid questions that you bring up for no reason.
Herc- Chris Carter never learned this. Will George?
Frosty Skywalker- Chris Carter actually had a great thing going…
Mr.Beaks- I honestly think that George wants to get this fucking thing over with. I think he wants to shoot this movie and be like, “Oh, god. For the headaches it’s caused me, it’s made me a lot of money, but I’ll be happy when I never have to make another Star Wars movie again.”
Frosty Skywalker- I’m going to say two things in general that I have heard through the grapevine. One, they’re quoting that the budget on this film is $170 million, but the rumor I’ve heard on the inside is that it’s a $100 million film and they’re lying…
Mr.Beaks- I never care about budgets in Star Wars movies.
Moriarty- Budgets on Star Wars movies aren’t the same as real money. It’s like me going to Montreal next week and spending money. Thanks to the exchange rate, it’s not real money when I am up there. It’s Monopoly stuff. It’s money he’s spending at ILM, it’s pretend.
Sarah- It’s him taking his wallet and moving it from one pocket to the other pocket.
Sarah- Mr.Beaks, to get back to what you said, I have a friend who worked for Disney Imagineering who tells a good story about how one time he was at a function and George was there… this is after Episode I came out. And they were kinda private and off in a corner, and someone asked about how it was going, and George kinda shook his head and said, “I wish I wouldn’t have started this again.”
Mr.Beaks- That’s the sense that I get from these movies.
Moriarty- Which gets us to this Talkback from TheFury: “There are no Prequels. There is no Original Trilogy. There is only Star Wars. And the Prequels are amazing. The only people I hear complaining about them are the ego-maniacs who post drivel in “Jedi Councils” in the hope that Lucas will make the movies that THEY want to be made. LUCAS will stick to his guns and do his own thing rather than listen to a bunch of fanboys and he has my TOTAL RESPECT for that.”
Frosty Skywalker- Wait, now I have to make a comment. Remember how I said I had two things to say? The second thing was, my friend told me that originally Episode I was supposed to be here (holds his hand up), then Episode II would be here (holds his hand up higher), and then Episode III would be here (holds his hand up higher still). That there was a natural progression, but after the reaction to Episode I, where the direction of where Episode II would be this way. It was a complete reversal based upon the fans and the people reviewing it.
Obi-Swan- He is basing his next moves on what people are saying…
Moriarty- Of course he is.
Mr.Beaks- That is why I think Episode II is such a waste.
Obi-Swan- It’s a Band-Aid.
Mr.Beaks- Right. It’s overeager to please me.
Moriarty- This is has happened before with Lucas. It always cracks me up when I hear Spielberg… Obi-Swan, you made the best analogy about this… it always cracks me up when I hear Spielberg call LAST CRUSADE an apology for TEMPLE OF DOOM. But it’s the kind of apology where two kids who have had a fight on a playground and the teacher grabs them and goes, “Now APOLOGIZE to him!!!” and the other kid just goes, “I’m sorry…. I’m fucking sorry.” There is no heart to the apology.
Obi-Swan- And in retrospect, I enjoy TEMPLE OF DOOM more than THE LAST CRUSADE.
Moriarty- Why apologize if you made the film you wanted to make, you know? If someone didn’t respond to it the way you wanted, don’t apologize.
Mr.Beaks- I like TEMPLE because it hates Indian people. That’s my thing.
Moriarty- I’m sorry?
Mr.Beaks- I said I like TEMPLE OF DOOM just because I hate Indian people.
Moriarty- No, no… I’m the one, who because I don’t like THE CELL and because I’ve dared question the all-knowing Manoj Night, I’m racist. It’s me who doesn’t like Indian people. Get that straight.
Mr.Beaks- Okay, sorry. (Laughs)
Obi-Swan- Aren’t you racist against the English?
Moriarty- I don’t like the English either, evidently. I get a lot of hate mail from people who think I don’t like the English.
Momma Frattelli- Well, why would you like the English?
Moriarty- Oh, please don’t say that. You don’t understand the trouble I’ve dealt with. Anyway, it’s the idea that he’s being so reactive and that he thinks that if he backs up and tries it this way… and I’d be so much more interested if he had just stuck to his guns and made exactly what he wanted to make. And I think…
Momma Frattelli- Then why are we sitting here bitching?
Moriarty- Because now we know that is not the case. That there is such a reactive process and that he pays enormous attention. The fact is that Lucasfilm appears to employ people whose job is, their whole job, is just to surf the internet all day and find every reference and find every new article.
Mr.Roboto- What everyone bitches about is his writing and his directing and he hasn’t given that up.
Obi-Swan- I wonder if they have surfed and found my website, “Star Wars stars I want to have sex with.” I have pictures and explanations as to why I…
Momma Frattelli- Let me guess… it goes Chewie, C3PO, Uncle Owen…
Moriarty- Frank Oz’s hand…
Frosty Skywalker- No, it starts with C3PO…
Obi-Swan- I sat next to Frank Oz at the Episode II Day… I missed my chance.
Mr.Beaks- How many times did he say, “Fuck”?
Obi-Swan- You know, not once.
Mr.Beaks- Really?
Moriarty- Yeah, he was really well behaved.
We’ve got more of this later in the week. You know you want to keep reading. You know you can’t resist. So until then, use those TalkBacks to jump in and join the conversation. As is obvious from the discussion above, speculation and digressions are encouraged...
"Moriarty" out.
