"Star Wars" on Blu-Ray: Disc #7 – The Prequel Trilogy Archives – Taking our first steps into a larger world...
As explained in this post, I’m reviewing the Star Wars Blu-Ray set disc-by-disc, and today, we take a look at the first of three bonus feature discs, this one containing archives pertaining to the Prequel Trilogy. I’ll go through all the included features and give you my thoughts on their quality, organization, etc.
Review of Disc #7 – The Prequel Trilogy Archives, coming up after the jump…
Let me begin within a general overview of the Bonus Features found on the last three discs on this set; explaining their layout and organization can be somewhat complicated, but the actual experience of exploring all the features – according to Lucasfilm, over 40 hours of material in total – is incredibly rewarding.
The first two bonus discs - #7 and #8 overall – are the “Archives,” named for both the style and wealth of material included. This is where you’ll find the Deleted Scenes, interviews with cast and crew members (some new, many vintage), concept art, and 360-degree turnarounds of props, costumes, and models. In short, it really is a comprehensive archive of Star Wars supplemental material, and if you find yourself fascinated by a location, costume, or model while watching the films, these are the discs you’ll pop in to learn more. The amazing thing is that no matter what sparks your curiosity in the films, chances are these archives will have something pertaining to the subject.
Though the content on the discs differs, with Disc #7 covering the Prequel Trilogy and Disc #8 covering the Original Trilogy, the layout on both is identical. The disc boots up to a screen with the episode numbers; on Disc #7, I, II, or III, and on Disc #8, IV, V, and VI. Clicking on the episode number will take you to the menu for that film, and from there, all the content is arranged in sub-menus pertaining to different locations from the film (theoretically, as the content doesn’t always fit the location). For instance, clicking on “Episode I” will allow you to choose from three locations: Naboo, Tatooine, and Coruscant. Once you arrive at the location, there are always four types of features (each with their own sub-menus…this is starting to sound like the synopsis of “Inception”): Interviews/Overviews, Deleted and Extended Scenes, The Collection, and Concept Art Gallery.
Interviews and Overviews is exactly what it sounds like; every location features an “overview,” a five-to-ten minute survey of everything that went into creating this location, material one will see in greater depth as they explore the content. There are usually, but not always, individual interviews with members of the cast and crew available to watch as well, again themed to the location. Deleted and Extended Scenes are again exactly what they sound like, arranged based on which location they take place in; Lucasfilm has conveniently added a text blurb at the start of each scene explaining where it would have fit in the film, why it was excised, and sometimes how far the scene was into production before it was cut.
Some of my favorite stuff, however, comes in The Collection. This is where you’ll find all the props, models, puppets, and costumes from this film and location, scanned in three-dimensions in full HD. You can look at these items from any angle; there’s a 360-degree turnaround, focus points on every major bit of detail, text info about the size/creation of the object, and on occasion, a video commentary where crew members explain how they created the object. This is absolutely fascinating stuff, the next best thing to walking through a museum filled with Star Wars memorabilia. Better, actually, because in a museum, you wouldn’t get to explore these items in nearly as much detail. The Concept Art Gallery is equally engaging, and there’s more here than the title suggests: you’ll get the expected sketches and mock-ups, but also matte paintings used in the film! If these discs had nothing but The Collection and The Gallery, I’d be satisfied – they are that cool.
Though the arrangement of all this material may sound complex, the interface is actually very efficient and intuitive. Once you understand the film/location structure, you get the hang of things very quickly, and it becomes easy to zip around the disc checking out everything of interest. The “Guide to the Galaxy” booklet included in the set also comes in handy, as it indexes everything found in the Archives. There’s a ton of material on these discs, and I’ll admit, I haven’t hide time to check it all out. So for the rest of today’s article and tomorrow’s, I’ll highlight some of the best content on the discs, and my general feelings about the features, but I can’t give a comprehensive overview of the material. That would be impossible – this is stuff you really have to experience for yourself, and that experience is extremely rewarding.
Today, we’re focusing on the Prequel Archives, which I found to be a lot more engaging than I would have expected. After all, this disc is an archive of recently-made films, but Disc #8, the Original trilogy, is an archive of classic film history, films that haven’t been nearly as well documented as their more modern brethren. So imagine my surprise when I wasn’t just enjoying the Prequel material, but had trouble tearing myself away from the screen to continue writing this review. The strongest element of the Prequel Trilogy, at least Episodes I and II, was the visuals; whatever their narrative faults, I don’t think anyone would ever argue against the fact that these movies were visually groundbreaking and endlessly creative, so a Blu-Ray disc full of nothing but material about the visual ingenuity is, in essence, a distillation of everything the prequels got right. As such, in the case of the first two films, I found the bonus features to be a lot more entertaining than the actual movies.
One of the first things viewers should check out are the Overview featurettes found in each location; there’s so much to learn here, especially if you’re interested in the geography and creation of the Star Wars universe. The “Naboo” overview blew me away by revealing that the city itself was actually a scale-miniature filmed on blue screen; I always thought, given Lucas’ love of digital effects, that Naboo and all the other locations were CGI, but I was wrong – which explains why Naboo looks so damn good. Over on the “Episode III” side of things, the ‘Kashyyyk’ overview is a bit mind-boggling, as the ILM craftsmen reveal that they based the design of the Wookie homeworld from the Kashyyyk design seen in the infamous “Holiday Special!”
Good stuff all around, and the Interviews found in these sections are also very neat; most are vintage, taken from press materials or on-set tapings, and that gives them a good sense of immediacy and authenticity. Fans won’t want to miss an interview with Lucas from 1994 as he discusses the early stages of writing “The Phantom Menace.” He isn’t fully confident yet on what the prequels will turn out to be, and as such, he isn’t so insistent about how they sync up with the original trilogy – at this point, he was just excited to be making movies about the Star Wars backstory, something that had long fascinated him. I also really enjoyed a piece with Liam Neeson, who gives a surprisingly thoughtful analysis of Naboo politics.
But in my mind, the best material you’ll find on this disc lies in the Collection. For “Episode I,” there are lots of physical ship/character models to look at, since they still relied on physical props at this point. Episodes II and III are mainly comprised of CGI models, but nevertheless, it’s all fascinating to look at. Being able to zoom in or rotate 360-degrees gives one a great look at the artistry of these props. As I said above, it’s the visuals that have always stood out to me in the prequels, and the Collection is an in-depth, often breathtaking look at the coolest parts of the films. One of the objects I immediately looked at was the Trade Federation ship from “The Phantom Menace,” one of my favorite ships in the saga; indeed, it looks even cooler close up and in detail, and it’s very neat to watch video commentary or read text notes about the creation of these props. The Concept Art Gallery is just as wonderful for many of the same reasons; I was particularly amused by the myriad of early designs for Jar-Jar, all of which are extremely different than the final character.
The Deleted Scenes are the only section of the disc that drops the ball. Lucasfilm inexplicably decided to leave all the Deleted Scenes from the original DVD releases of the films off this Box Set. I have fond memories of many of these scenes – they weren’t necessarily great, but many were neat moments that built upon the material in the films, and quite a few were finished or near completion. But since they aren’t here, we’re left with a handful of very rough, unfinished bits and pieces that were rightfully left on the cutting room floor; many are in storyboard or animatic form, and none are particularly coherent or revelatory. They would be nice additions to the Deleted Scenes from the DVDs, but without those clips, this portion of the Archives feels woefully incomplete. How can you really call this disc ‘comprehensive’ if the majority of the deleted footage isn’t here?
Oh well. When it comes to the prequels, I don’t think anyone really it off as fluff, but instead, it’s one of the best parts of this set. The prequels are very flawed, but on the whole, this Archive disc was masterfully constructed, and one could literally spend hours watching the overviews and interviews, perusing the collection, looking at concept art, etc. The prequels succeeded in enriching the Star Wars universe, and this disc is an excellent in-depth analysis of all that great visual material the films gave us.
From the “Guide to the Galaxy” booklet, here’s a list of all the features you’ll find on the disc:
Episode I
Naboo
--Interviews
--Naboo Overview
--Liam Neeson Interview
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Trash-Talking Droids
--The Battle is Over
--Anakin’s Return
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Tatooine
--Interviews
--Tatooine Overview
--Rick McCallum Interview (podracers)
--Rick McCallum Interview (Filming in Tunisia)
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Battle on the Boarding Ramp (NOTE: This is the rare lost Prequel moment I really liked, a more satisfying ending to Qui-Gon and Darth Maul’s first duel)
--Extended Podrace Wager
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Coruscant
--Interviews
--Coruscant Interview
--George Lucas on Preparing to Write Episode I – 1994
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Bail Organa of Alderaan
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Episode II
Coruscant
--Interviews
--Coruscant Overview
--Ewan McGregor Interview
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Extended Speeder Chase
--The Lost Twenty
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Naboo
--Interviews
--Naboo Overview
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Anakin’s Nightmares
--Anakin and Ruwee
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Tatooine
--Interviews
--Tatooine Overview
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Geonosis
--Interviews
--Geonosis Overview
--Hayden Christensen Interview
--Blue-Screen Acting
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Raid on the Droid Control Ship and Extended Arena Fight
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Episode III
Coruscant
--Interviews
--Coruscant Overview
--Samuel L. Jackson Interview
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Elevator Antics
--Escape Through the Hangar
--Changes to the Constitution
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Utupau
--Interviews
--Utupau Overview
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Utupau Chase Animatics
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Mustafar
--Interviews
--Mustafar Overview
--Natalie Portman Interview
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Mustafar Duel Animatics
--Mustafar Duel/Lava River Animatics
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery
Kashyyyk and Order 66
--Interviews
--Kashyyyk and Order 66 Overview
--Deleted/Extended Scenes
--Kashyyyk Attack and Order 66 Animatic
--Anakin Kills Shaak Ti
--Jedi Imposters at the Temple
--Senate Duel Animatic
--Yoda Communes with Qui-Gon
--The Collection
--360-degree turnarounds
--Video Commentaries
--Concept Art Gallery