Discussion Should the Anthology films have opening crawls?

I already said earlier in this thread that I don't think they should have the crawl, and I still feel that way, but they need SOMETHING to clearly indicate where the film is situated in the timeline. So I guess I'd be okay with something similar to what we got in the Clone Wars-- narration over a montage of events. In the case of Rogue One, I suppose it could even incorporate clips from Attack Of The Clones (Geonosis, Death Star hologram) and the ending of ROTS (Vader and Palps looking at the Death Star being constructed), along with a bunch of newly filmed clips showing the progress made on the Death Star, etc.

 

This is a movie, not another episode in a TV show that airs weekly. The montage of past events is about as non-cinematic as possible, unless it's worked into a prologue that contains new material/ new angles we have never seen.

I still support a crawl for all Star Wars films, though I would also be fine with a cold open after some basic text describing the historical context, as you sometimes get in period films.

 

I think you may have missed the bold part of my post:

In other words, I'm thinking of something like what we got in Fellowship Of The Rings (which was pretty cinematic, I think), but I just suggested that it COULD incorporate some clips from AOTC and ROTS, along with new material.

 

Great idea, a montage. Basically recreate the scene from Episode 3, have Vader looking out at the construction of the DS, then cut to its progress, show Stormtroopers creating the police state all over the galaxy. etc.

 

A LOTR-esque prologue could be great, but please no reused footage from the prequels. All new footage.

 

I like the idea of a cold open, even credits over an opening scene. It'd be good to create a sense of urgency and closeness to the action - have the crawl restricted to the grand events.

I think it's going to become clear that this film needs to be differentiated significantly from TFA to avoid confusion for casual film goers

 

I think, until we know if a stand alone series of Star Wars will resonate with the general population to make them profitable enough for the studio to keep making them, they should be as close to traditional as possible. The further people feel away from the Star Wars format, the more scared I am about it lasting.

Movies are cancelled all the time. Honestly Rogue One is really the most important film for the future of the franchise. It will answer whether a Star Wars movie outside of the traditional episodic format, can survive in the market place.

Remember, like it or not, its a business. In a world where movies make money over budget and are still considered flops by studios, we need this movie to succeed badly.

And for all of the people saying they don't read the opening crawl. Jesus guys, how much effort does it really take? Are people's attention spans really that limited that not only do books not matter anymore, but a 30 second crawl of text before a movie is too much effort?

 

Of course it will have an opening crawl. There's no other way to do it. End of story. By that logic, the PT shouldn't have had an opening crawl because it wasn't even star wars.

 

Hey...quote my whole sentence. I said "by that logic." I didn't necessarily mean that.

 

Hope they say if it will or will not have one before release...

 

That makes zero sense. What about the ewok movies? Did those have opening crawls?

 

I could live with "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away," followed by an opening scene, and then the title card. But I still think they should stick with crawls. For whatever reason, they're a really immersive tool.

 

I'd rather the Anthology series have their own way to open the film, something where after it becomes established you see it and immediately go, "This is an Anthology film" versus seeing the classic opening and thinking, "This is a Saga film." And I'm not just talking about the crawl either, but the actual title card itself. The Clone Wars and Rebels have their own ways of displaying the title cards, with their own distinct musical cues that clearly distinguish them form the films. I'd really like for the Anthology films to have something similar.

 

This is a tricky question. In a way I can fully see Rogue One using it and getting away with it, given how closely it connects to the original Star Wars. It feels right when the film will put us on the side of the Rebel Alliance fighting the Empire. Perhaps the font and the colour of the text could be different and that would set it slightly apart.

But would it really be appropriate for a Han Solo film or a Boba Fett film? Admittedly I'm imagining the crawl as inseparable from the classic theme. Maybe that doesn't have to be the case. But can you separate the crawl from the title zoom? Do you really want to see the full set of words "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" zooming away from us as the main theme (or some new unsatisfactory John Williams knock-off theme) kicks in?

 

Well the Christmas Holiday Special didn't have an opening crawl so....

 

Yes.

 

all games do so these should too.

 

I think I'd like to see the crawl remain, but let them move away from the starfield opening if they want.

 

What if it had an Opening Dainty Skip?

 

Yeah, I'm totally okay with the anthology movies opening with their own specific stylistic choices, different for each movie. The Star Wars fanfare blast and opening crawl, etc, should be the domain of just the Episode entries in the sga.

 

I suppose I don't absolutely need the crawl. But "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away..." is absolutely essential, IMO.

 

Actually story group member implied there is no crawl fro the anthology flicks:

http://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/431581-the-star-wars-celebration-news-roundup-4-19-15

"Pablo implies that there will be no crawl at the start of the spinoff films."

But I do agree with keeping "A Long Time Ago" title card. After that? Go nuts, be different.

 

They should just get the guy who used to say, "Previously on 'Lost'..." to say, "Previously on 'Star Wars'...."