STAR WARS
STORYBOARDS: THE PREQUEL TRILOGY
Edited by J.W.
Rinzler
Introduction by
Iain McCaig
Published by ABRAMS
Reviewed by Scott Weller
As a shiny new STAR WARS universe gears up for production in conceptual art and animatics at
LUCASFILM/BAD ROBOT, this weighty behind the scenes tome from J.W.
Rinzler, custodian of the LUCASFILM behind the scenes flames, excels as an enjoyable memory lane trip to an artistic, creative renaissance time in the mid-nineties when the Prequel era of creator George Lucas’s considerable imaginings had not yet been treated with such
unfair and often unreasonable disdain by die-hard fans. The beautiful looking
adventure and drama of the era presented here through the medium of storyboard
storytelling (given new high-resolution scanning life), leading up to the birth of the Empire and Darth Vader is evocatively
and chronologically charted, but also proves intriguing for what could have been as well as what would
be, within its 350 pages.
In this visual
medium, before the equal wonders of animatics would win the decisive realms of
movie previsualisation, pictures certainly speak thousands of words- something
that Lucas was unafraid to utilise in his three blockbuster
films that made would make such an impact on moviegoers lives, ingratiating
them and infuriating them in equal measure, between 1999 to 2005.
Here, STAR WARS storytelling,
via the emerging computer technology in the special effects field, was finally capable of
being of the grand scale that had once previously and exclusively resided in his dreams for so long, eventually
going beyond what was seen in the previously iconic and beloved Classic
Trilogy. Storyboards and mild animatic had been a key factor in those prior films
creations, too, but, but in relations to the all-important first film of the new
trilogy-The Beginning, later becoming
The Phantom Menace, STAR WARS for the
next generation if you like -they would be more important than ever in planning
the huge special effects and stunt work needed to bring the adventures of
Anakin Skywalker and co. to life.
Within its pages
we get to see how new characters like comedic amphibian Jar Jar Binks and
baddie Sith Lord Darth Maul would evolve within the art, alongside some of the
abandoned ideas and concepts linked to them (intriguingly, Maul would almost be
of the female persuasion, in the form of martial arts superstars of the time
Maggie Cheung or Brigitte Ling, long before the arrival of Sith Witch/assassin
Asajj Ventress).
Further foundation
building journeying through STORYBOARDS reveals the necessary evolving state of
play on the films, especially at the beginning of the new saga, from script to
storyboard to screen, and often, in life influencing art, from storyboard to
script to screen, too, especially if the influenced Lucas liked certain things
coming out of the artists powerhouse.
Unused energetic ideas show us more on the Trade Federation droid takeover of Naboo, the Gungan battle
(Jar Jar riding a Stap bike during the conflict looks like it could have been
genuinely funny) and the appearance and fighting styles of the more
Samurai-like Jedi pairing of Qui-Gon Jinn and his Padawan learner, Obi-Wan
Kenobi. There’s other sequences that were either filmed yet cut for time, or scrapped
in advance for proving too costly to the films budgeting or clashing with the
nature/tone of the evolving screenplays.
The talents of the
cutting-edge team working in the attic of SKYWALKER RANCH, under the direction
of soon STAR WARS legend Iain McCaig, are well showcased through the book, alongside
notes from him and other key talents (including Benton Jew, Rodolfo Damaggio and Derek Thompson).
McCaig also contributes some new storyboards specifically for the book, notably
for the death of Darth Maul-the character he would become most responsible for
visually. In these early
days, two years before live-action filming commenced on EPISODE I in 1997, its interesting
to see the way these new, some old, heroes are visualized prior to actor
casting, portrayed by the artists in a different light to they way they would
ultimately become, especially little Anakin Skywalker and the Jedi.
EPISODE I has the
most storyboards, pretty much all presented here, alongside key action
sequences from EPISODEs II and III (the animatics process now starting to take
on a life of its own during pre-production from II onwards). Epic battles, incredible vistas
and intriguing new aliens to be realised into model and CGI life- moments that
only cinema can provide are charted- like the superb adrenaline charged Pod Race through
Tatooine’s Jundland Wastes, and the climactic duel between Darth Maul and
venerable heroes Jinn and Kenobi. Plus a look at the last minute addition by
Lucas of the Geonosian Droid Factory sequence to EPISODE II, which had to be
storyboarded in its entirety as a shooting reference, as there was no time to animatic
it. EPISODE III presents us with many of the epic ideas that McCaig and his team had for the vital opening of the film-the battle of Coruscant and the rescue of the captured Palpatine from General Grievous (whose conflicts against sworn enemy Kenobi are a major part of this section, going into their final confrontation on Mustafar), and the final cataclysmic scenes relating to Anakin Skywalker, now at one
with the dark side, and Obi-Wan- a particular sequence of events that fans had
been waiting, anticipating, for years since reading about the fall and rise of
Darth Vader in a popular STAR WARS poster magazine in 1978.
Despite a few tantalising sequences which I'd hoped to see not present (primarily EPISODE III's ORDER 66 sequence- was this ever storyboarded?), and a bit of a dearth of big text on the way the art/storyboarding team came together and evolved their work processes over eight years beyond whats noted in the foreword and introduction pages, STAR WARS STORYBOARDS is overall a sumptuous package in the way it shows the power of pencil and imagination in such a memorable and effective way.
Despite a few tantalising sequences which I'd hoped to see not present (primarily EPISODE III's ORDER 66 sequence- was this ever storyboarded?), and a bit of a dearth of big text on the way the art/storyboarding team came together and evolved their work processes over eight years beyond whats noted in the foreword and introduction pages, STAR WARS STORYBOARDS is overall a sumptuous package in the way it shows the power of pencil and imagination in such a memorable and effective way.
AFICIONADO
RATING: Another essential purchase for fans to celebrate, STAR WARS STORYBOARDS
– THE PREQUELS is an aspirational and enjoyable product. Let’s
hope it’s not too long before the Classic Trilogy gets a deserved book in this
area as well. 4 out of 5
Get hold of STAR
WARS STORYBOARDS here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Star-Wars-Storyboards-Prequel-Trilogy/dp/1419707728/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1369825111&sr=1-1&keywords=star+wars+storyboards
STAR WARS.COM feature on the book: Star Wars Storyboards—The Prequels Book Announced | Star Wars Blog
Storyboard artist Benton Jew's blog: bentonsblog
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