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Title: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace The Illustrated Screenplay by George Lucas, George Lucas ISBN: 0-345-43110-3 Publisher: LucasBooks Pub. Date: 21 April, 1999 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.6 (30 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Better than the Movie.
Comment: This book is by far better than the movie. Why? Because lines in the script that were cut in the final product actually fill in the blanks and add more substance to the plot movement. The scene where Amidala appeals to the senate is just one example. There were a lot of little lines that were cut out here but, I feel, important lines. Another facet of this book is when you read it you really feel Anakin should have been at least 14 rather than nine years old and Amidala 16 rather than 14(You'll undertand why when you read the book but the "Angel" dialogue at Watto's was cut so you don't experience it in the movie). It also explains why Anakin was able to enter the Droid Control Ship when everyone else couldn't! The only downside is there isn't any color photos or reasons for the cuts made (Like in JC's Titanic Illustrated Screenplay). A Must Read for ALL Star Wars fans.
Rating: 5
Summary: Truly Wonderful...
Comment: This is easily the best screenplay I have ever read. George Lucas has done an excellent job making an excellent storyline for the Star Wars universe once again. I saw the movie last Sunday, May 23rd and just got the screenplay today. I also got the book by Terry Brooks before the movie came out. I must say that I really enjoyed the movie, and the screenplay is just as good, really getting you into the storyline. The illustrations are also truly wonderful. This is a must-have for any SW fan. Or anyone who wants a good screenplay to read. I suggest listening to the soundtrack while reading it, and do yourself by seeing the movie first.
Rating: 4
Summary: Politics, intrigue, and the boy who would be Vader.....
Comment: I have been fascinated with screenplays and the art of writing them since I read my first copy of Carol Titleman's The Art of Star Wars, a trade paperback which, along with production paintings, costume designs, photos of models, composites, and storyboards, contained the uncut fourth draft of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. (This, by the by, was the first time I saw the new moniker for the film everyone still calls "Star Wars.") In that book, I not only read lines of dialogue and relived some of my favorite movie moments (this was before I owned my first VCR), but I also saw scenes that had been left out of the final film, either left unshot or deleted after filming (such as Han's encounter with Jabba the Hutt.)
Shortly before the premiere of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, I was stunned when I saw The Illustrated Screenplay and Terry Brooks' novelization at my usual bookstore. Lucas had clamped down on the release of the Return of the Jedi novelization 16 years before (to prevent certain plot revelations from getting out too soon), and I had expected him to do the same with The Phantom Menace. Being the dedicated Star Wars fan that I am, I bought both and read them as the soundtrack album played in the background.
The Illustrated Screenplay's version of The Phantom Menace differs somewhat from the finished movie. It is essentially the same, of course, following the Naboo Crisis from the arrival of Qui-Gon Jinn and his Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi aboard the Trade Federation flagship to the parade at Theed. However, in an attempt to cut the film's running time to just over two hours, several heavily political scenes set in the Galactic Senate were nixed, which in a way helped the film. Sadly, a few lines which I really liked, including one involving Obi-Wan and a shorted out lightsaber, didn't make it to the finished film. (Other scenes, which were filmed but later deleted, can be read in their entirety and in context; it's up to the reader to decide whether or not deletion was necessary.)
To me, reading the screenplay ahead of the May 19, 1999 premiere enhanced rather than detracted from the enjoyment of the picture. In fact, even while I was watching the much maligned Episode I (I think I am one of only the few non-Lucasfilm-connected persons on Earth who really likes The Phantom Menace) I not only understood what Palpatine was up to, but I could also see parallels between Anakin Skywalker's experiences and his son Luke's in Episode IV (which is set 32 years later).
The storyboards presented in this book are only a fraction of the thousands used during the pre-production stages, yet they give the reader a hint of the film's visual rhythm and energy. They are almost as good as the ones by legendary visual artist Joe Johnston, who worked on the more popular "classic" Star Wars trilogy more than 20 years ago.
For anyone interested in the finer points of screenplay writing and/or the strengths and weaknesses of the prequel saga, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace: The Illustrated Screenplay is a good reference.
Alex Diaz-Granados
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Title: The Empire Strikes Back: The Illustrated Screenplay (Star Wars) by Leigh Brackett, Lawrence Kasdan ISBN: 0345420705 Publisher: Del Rey Books Pub. Date: 01 April, 1998 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: A New Hope: The Illustrated Screenplay (Star Wars, Episode IV) by George Lucas ISBN: 0345420691 Publisher: Del Rey Books Pub. Date: 01 April, 1998 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: Return of the Jedi: The Illustrated Screenplay (Star Wars) by Lawrence Kasdan, George Lucas ISBN: 0345420799 Publisher: Del Rey Books Pub. Date: 01 April, 1998 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: Star Wars: The Making of Episode I by Laurent Bouzereau, Jody Duncan ISBN: 0345431197 Publisher: Del Rey Books Pub. Date: 19 May, 1999 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones Movie Storybook by Jane Mason, Sarah Hines Stephens ISBN: 0375815341 Publisher: Lucas Books Pub. Date: 23 April, 2002 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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