PT New Article| Ewan: "Quite difficult" when Prequels weren't "well received..."

Thoughts about this article? Usually I only hear McGregor speak well of the Prequels....

 

It’s sad that the reaction made him think they were “universally disliked”. And though I’m sure it was difficult to act scenes on a green screen I don’t think he’d be criticizing the prequels use of technology if there wasn’t that backlash and Disney wasn’t using “more practical effects” to market their stuff. It doesn’t sit right that they’re still in the attitude of fixing the prequels

 

I love EM as Obi-Wan and I'm glad he's back but over the years he's consistently shown how completely out of touch he is in regards to the actual reception and response of the prequels over and over again. He also has selective amnesia on the productions themselves because he's seems to have completely forgotten how they shot on locations as well as having an entire studio complex of sound stages with a mixture of fully built sets or 3/4 or 1/2 or 1/4 all the way down to the actual screen only sets he's talking about.

I would guess it comes out of basically being a creature of Hollywood and that system. At this point it's hard to take anything he says about the production of the prequels all that seriously because it they really were "They were universally not very much liked." then why exactly is this Obi-Wan series even happening? Why would you want to go back to it? Why bring in HC? When bring in the same actors who played Owen and Beru? How were they so successful at the box office? On home video? In TV sales?

Take this summation:

He recalled how much CGI effects Star Wars creator and director George Lucas employed for those prequel films, including entire backdrops of bluescreens.

"After three or four months of that, it just gets really tedious — especially when the scenes are… I don't want to be rude, but it's not Shakespeare," he added. "There's not something to dig into in the dialogue that can satisfy you when there's no environment there. It was quite hard to do."

Obi-Wan Kenobi, the series, will feel "so much more real," he promises, because of StageCraft, which The Mandalorian showrunner Jon Favreau utilized for his Star Wars series.

"They project [the virtual backgrounds] onto this massive LED screen. So if you're in a desert, you're standing in the middle of a desert. If you're in the snow, you're surrounded by snow. And if you're in a cockpit of a starfighter, you're in space," McGregor said.

As ever an actor cares about what they care about which is the dialogue they speak. AG knew the dialogue was "nonsense" relative to Shakespeare but unlike other actors like Ford he found it charming.

The numbers and kinds of sets that the prequels built simply don't have to be anymore because they only have to built smaller and partial sets with the rest done with The Volume/Stagecraft. The PT used tons of practical effects which simply aren't done now because of CGI. The production on this series is a case in point:

"So if you're in a desert, you're standing in the middle of a desert."

What's even more bizarre about that is overall the Obi-Wan Kenobi series will actually be far less "real" than the prequels were because they won't actually be going to Tunisia for Tatooine which they did for TPM and AOTC.

Yeah but it's like he's using some reworked part of the pressbook from TFA where everyone involved in that production seemed to mention in every single interview that they were going to "real" locations and using "real" sets. So just like all the Star Wars movies from Lucas before that were or in fact like tons and tons of other movies were.

The difference here is that they take out the going to "real" locations (which they almost never do) and play down the "real" sets which don't have to be built because they can just create the environment on the screens.

That nonsense was mostly around the TFA period. After that Lucasfilm calmed down about the pressing of their version of "practical effects" being locations and sets. Never mind that TFA had some 2000+ VFX shots like each of the prequels did but so without all the practical effects elements (models and miniatures shot with motion control shooting).

Lucas simply didn't promote all the practical work the PT did because he emphasized the CGI. I wonder if he wanted the audience to actually believe everything was done on the computer?

 

Now 20 years later there is so much dialogue from the three movies that is memetic because it was unique and meaningful, it is more like modern Shakespeare than most critically acclaimed action movies released since

 

Very solid point. As ever the Lucas dialogue is "bad" when it's from the PT but great when it's from the OT.

Never mind that it's from the same writer who wrote all six screenplays and rewrote and approved all of the changes from all the writers he hired to rework his dialogue.

 

My theory is Ewan is being forced to repeat Disney's company line that prequels where shot entirely with CGI everything in order to get the project made.

Dude obviously knows the truth(that there where more practical effects shot in each prequel film individually than the entire Disney trilogy and anthology films put together )because he was there.

Disney has been pushing this historical revisiomism since the first show reel of TFA which Abrams opened "Real sets and Practical effects "

 

Did George Lucas write the screenplays for each/all of his 6 Star Wars Episodes?

 

In part, yes.

 

For Empire and Jedi I thought he just wrote either the first draft or an outline and then handed that over Leigh Bracket for Empire and then Kasdan for both Empire after Brackett passed away and also Kasdan for Jedi.

George and the directors though would than alter things as the films where being made further and even in editing (Marsha Lucas, Georges first wife was a film editor and Lucas himself also had a background in editing and they would change things even in the edits)

Sources-JW Rinzlers. Making of books.

For the prequels he wrote the screenplays but had some help at points from friends, Carrie Fisher is rumored to have done some script doctoring work on the prequels. Spielberg had a hand in laying out some of the actions scenes in revenge of the sith(he visited the set in Austarlia to see the pre vis tech and ended up helping with ideas for some of the big action set pieces)

 

For Empire, he did that for Brackett; the after the Brackets draft he wrote several versions of the script by himself. Then he got Kasdan to fine-tune his script. So, yeah, he co-wrote it.

 

To be fair, he wasn't really around for the on location stuff during the prequels. He wasn't in Tunisia for TPM or AOTC, and Obi Wan's scene at the end of ROTS was filmed with his body double while filming AOTC. He also wasn't in Italy for TPM or AOTC either. Come to think of it, he might have been on location for the short forest scenes of TPM, but in general the on location stuff was usually reserved for the other characters.

There were plenty of elaborate sets for the prequels, so the criticism that still gets mentioned occasionally doesn't make all that much sense. But I don't think it is wrong for an actor to like having more of a visual reference. The more you have, the more you can work with. It's not mandatory, after all, stage actors can do just fine with little or nothing, but just because you can do it without that stuff doesn't mean that you can't like it better if you have a bit more to see.

 

There was a thread here showing it. It was quite a interesting thread with a lot of posts.

https://boards.theforce.net/threads...e-prequels-sets-pictures-models-etc.50017310/

It boils down to a lot of the cgi in the prequels was the same as what was used in the ST. It was set extensions not full sets. the few all.cgi stuff is things like Kashykk, or the different planets in the order 66 montage.

Take Kamino, that was almost entirely practical. The background in the exterior shots, the early part of the clones life cycle(when there in the gestation capsules) and the Kaminoans are are the only not fully non practical stuff there.

The fight between Obiwan and Jango is A practical set with practical rain and a cgi extension for a background.(the behind the scenes has a hilarious look at Temura Morrison dancing and singing,"Singing in the rain" on the landing pad with an Umbrella.

Utapau is A partial set and miniatures for wide shots. As is the arena in a episode 2(they built it in sections with a wall and had sand down and then extended I the arena). Alot of the invisible hand was also practical. They built the Generals quarters and the only with the blue screen being used for The space battle scenes through the windows behind Palpatine is chair.

 

Someone from ILM shooting a model in post doesn't change the fact that Ewan had to film tons of scene's in a sea of blue.

Doesn't matter if the model was real or not. Ewan and everybody else still had to act on a little area of sand surrounded by blue. I feel like a lot of fans don't realize that it doesn't matter how much is REAL versus CGI when both elements are put in after the fact regardless.

 

Did George Lucas write the screenplays for each/all of his 6 Star Wars Episodes?[/QUOTE]

The simple answer is yes he did.

Expanding on that which I also touched on is that he used officially credited and uncredited writers many of who he got in to do various dialogue touch-ups he asked for, oversaw and rewrote to whatever suited him.

He decided to give Leigh Brackett credit and simply take a story credit for TESB while giving his actual co-writer, Kasdan the secondary screenplay credit he deserved. Similar to what he did with ROTJ.

I don't see why McGregor would know that but he should know enough about the actual day to day production to say how many actual sets he shot on which were plenty.

Because it's using practical effects in it's proper Star Wars terms not the ones that Disney created for publicity purposes.

By the Disney definition of practical effects being shooting on sets and going to locations then movies like The Godfather I and II or Raging Bull or whatever are practical effects movies.

The actual term of practical effects is tied to productions like the OT that used models and miniatures (as well as matte paintings) all shot with motion control cameras to create the VFX. The PT used these methods as well. The difference being the PT was able to use far more of these and in a more complex way due to being able to digitally combine the elements as opposed to the optical combination.

TPM used the most combination of models and miniatures of any Star Wars movie (or some argue any movie ever). After TPM the ships and vehicles seemed to be mostly done with CGI but the exactly what was what doesn't seem to be well known. Various shots used multiple techniques so it depended on the shot. The various environments like Mustafar, Kamino, Geonosis, Kashyyyk et al were created in miniature with Mustafar being the longest miniature shoot in ILM history. Of course the PT's matte paintings were all digital not on glass like the OT but once the element exists then it's combined into the shot on the same principle.

The actual bulk of practical effects Disney uses is for the creature shop. That is where they are more practical because Lucas used far less of that and went with the CGI characters.

Like he said he if he has the choice of having weird creatures that are fully interactive and can be treated like any other actor as opposed to weird creatures that are limited and you have to shoot around then he'll take the digital characters.

If Disney has any actual practical effects shots like the OT or PT had with models and/or miniatures with motion control shooting then I can't say I recall any. Work of that kind is basically CGI now. There is no way if they did Mustafar now that all the actual practical work wouldn't be replaced with CGI.

 

I think it's fair to say that Lucas collaborated with others on most of his Star Wars screenplays. He had uncredited assistance on the initial screenplay for the first Star Wars and both credited and uncredited assistance for TESB and ROTJ. I can't speak of TPM, but I know he had a credited writer (Jonathan Hales, who helped him on Young Indy) for AOTC and Carrie Fisher helped with dialogue for ROTS.

 

They really using "the real desert" line again? Oh boy.

I do find it interesting how a lot of SW content gets rewritten or recontextualized as a way to improve/fix/erase the PT. Whether TFA being "the cure" for PT-related content, RO as "the good prequel," TCW as "the PT era for those that hate the PT," etc. I really was hoping with Hayden's return, Disney was moving on from tryna to "fix" the PT for people who won't really ever embrace it and just "celebrate" it for those fans.

On the other hand, McGregor has always been critical of his role in the production of those films and that can even be seen in the "Within a Minute" documentary on the ROTS DVD. And unlike Hayden, he didn't really get to go to Tunisia and Italy for AOTC. Still, you'd think he remember sets like the Invisible Hand throne room, Mustafar Control Room, Geonosis Hangar, the Naboo core room, Dex's Diner, and the Coruscant Night Club/streets.

 

Look at it from his POV as an actor. Did he actually get to interact with those sets, or were they just rooms where he stood and said lines? The only set I can think of where he even comes into contact with anything is Dex's Diner where he gets to sit down and lean on a table.

I can understand how that's frustrating to an actor. I'm sure you've heard about Ian McKellen having a small breakdown on the hobbit set.

 

Both Ewan McGregor and Ian McKellen were getting paid very, very, very well to do a job most of us would kill to have. Forgive me if I don't take their bellyaching all that seriously.

If Ian McDiarmid, Christopher Lee, and Samuel L. Jackson could do it and have a positive attitude about it, Ewan could do it. I love him as Obi-Wan and as an actor, but the guy had and continues to have a huge chip on his shoulder about working on the prequels.

 

You sure you're not just a bit prickly hearing a common complaint about the PT from the people who don't care for the PT coming out of a PT actors mouth?

 

That's overtly what's happening. Is this supposed to be some kind of burn or something? I don't get it.

 

No, no burn or anything. It's just, it seems like tons of people have always been critical of the acting in the PT and many have chalked it up to a mix between bad direction from Lucas and no actual sets; only a sea of blue or green. And now that one actor has confirmed that that was his overall struggle (the constant blue screen), we get stuff like the following...

...which makes it seem like Ewan isn't being truthful, even though it lines up more or less with what he had been saying all the way back in the "making of" documentaries that were made during the filming of the prequels.

 

I literally said in my post that he's always had a chip on his shoulder about working on the prequels. It's not news that he feels this way.

Ewan did a great job in the prequels. So did all the actors I mentioned. The difference is they didn't constantly complain about getting paid megabucks to play make believe.

So, clearly, it's possible to do a good job under those conditions. What Ewan is saying is that it was difficult for him. I mean, ok, sorry? That's what the money was for, I believe.

And seriously, why does he think this whole miniseries is even happening in the first place? He knows why. He must know.

 

Sort of but this time instead of the ST going to a "real" desert for the first time ever since the OT

Now it's going to be a completely fake desert that "feels real"

Yes, but to do so would mean spending time and energy setting this reporter straight and he's never shown any inclination to do so. Quite the opposite as over and over again he's fed into all the ill-informed interviewers he's ever had.

Why stop now I guess?

Wouldn't it be nice if he ever got interviewed by someone who actually knew about the basic production facts of the prequels?

IIRC Sam Jackson was pretty annoyed at actor's who complained about working with green screen and admonished then for not using their imaginations. Which is all the stranger on the PT when clearly there were lots of sets even if they also had various parts screened off.

Some of the most he did was ROTS with HC for the duel at various parts but since he was totally in the duel scene it's not like not having "real" feeling lava around was all that necessary nor would it be possible anyway.

 

Do you think having a vivid imagination should have been a prerequisite for acting in the PT? Being able to visualize something and pretend it's there.