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Post by Cryogenic on May 26, 2021 18:24:35 GMT
As Rutger Hauer once observed, "Film is about the little details."So I'm wondering: Are there any details that it took you a while to notice? And what might some of your favourite small details of the Star Wars Saga actually be?NOTE: These details can be visual, aural, a piece of dialogue, a small story event, etc. -- whatever you personally find captivating or relevant. There's a few in the meditation scene (as I call it) that I think qualify. (I'm going to use some screencaps, but approach your response(s) however you like). For instance, pooling water and rain can be vaguely seen a few feet in front of where Anakin is standing:  When Lucas was on location filming this scene, he quipped, "It's God's way of adding to the movie." Note that in adjacent scenes, Obi-Wan ventures outside the cloning facility onto a rain-lashed world to contact Mace and Yoda, and then, per their instructions, to capture Jango:   It's like some rain "leaks" into the scene on Naboo. It ought not be here, but it is! Another nice detail is how a small jet of wind blows Anakin's gauzy top as Padme walks away and turns back around:   When Anakin turns away from Padme and looks across the water, he appears to be gazing at a small building/house (or possibly several of them) set into the mountain in the distance. It took me many views to realise he might be momentarily fixing his gaze on something; and what that something was! I believe it makes his quest for his mother more poignant. As Anakin tells Padme in a deleted scene at her home: "I never really had a home. Home was always where my mom was."  It's also interesting that Padme appears to be gazing at Anakin the whole time his back is turned (so to speak), apparently drawn to the shapely human outline underneath his almost skin-toned shirt. We even have a quick shot of her showing repressed fascination -- a moment of soft, tender eroticism (the female gaze):  Lastly, when Anakin turns back round, we can see that his shirt is slightly disordered, almost as if it is snagged or becoming tangled near his mid-section -- a very subtle indication of Anakin's inner state of mind, perhaps:  Anakin himself, in his panicked/disordered state, almost misses a subtle detail himself -- Padme near-whispering, "I'll go with you" (a line with a lot of symbolism for Anakin's total saga journey):  So those are a few of mine. The floor is yours.  |
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Post by Seeker of the Whills on May 26, 2021 18:40:15 GMT
It took me a long time to notice the clone trooper riding a creature on Felucia. It goes by so quickly.  |
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Post by Cryogenic on May 26, 2021 19:43:15 GMT
It took me a long time to notice the clone trooper riding a creature on Felucia. It goes by so quickly. A nice detail there is how Aayla Secura is distracted moments before her ugly death by a flying creature:  IIRC, the creature flying past, or being the source of distraction, was a relatively late addition to her death scene. |
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Post by Seeker of the Whills on May 26, 2021 20:10:13 GMT
It took me a long time to notice the clone trooper riding a creature on Felucia. It goes by so quickly. A nice detail there is how Aayla Secura is distracted moments before her ugly death by a flying creature: IIRC, the creature flying past, or being the source of distraction, was a relatively late addition to her death scene. I never noticed that either. You always learn something new. My favorite detail is probably Anakin's Vader-like gestures.    |
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Post by Cryogenic on May 26, 2021 20:35:32 GMT
A nice detail there is how Aayla Secura is distracted moments before her ugly death by a flying creature: IIRC, the creature flying past, or being the source of distraction, was a relatively late addition to her death scene. I never noticed that either. You always learn something new. Yep. That's another reason I love the PT: it places us all in the position of "Padawan Learners" and reminds us that learning never ends. Even the first real dialogue exchange of the trilogy (between Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan in Episode I aboard the Trade Federation cruiser) involves a "Master" exhorting his apprentice to "Be mindful of the Living Force" -- which is also an instruction to the viewer. We are initiated into the temple of learning, the diaspora of paying attention, from the very start. "Much to learn, you still have" could almost be a tagline for the entire PT -- and a suitable epitaph for humanity! There's always some distant horizon we're trying to reach; and always farther horizons yet to even be perceived. Ergo, it's very apt that Anakin is "still a padawan learner" in the middle of the PT. Because that's really all of us. Only we don't always have the humility to admit it, or the self-awareness to realise it. But avoiding hubris is good (even if we all need a bit of it to power us forward). Hubris is basically the downfall of the Jedi and the antithesis of humility (look how Padme humbles herself in front of the Gungans to forge an alliance). So many interconnected themes! Ah, yes. Anakin exhibits the habit of finger-pointing and oddly firm conviction even in Episode I: Indignant and incredulous toward Qui-Gon ("No one can kill a Jedi") -- and slapping the table:   Arguing with his mother and bossing Qui-Gon around about his podracer:   |
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Post by smittysgelato on May 26, 2021 21:06:38 GMT
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Post by Cryogenic on May 26, 2021 21:28:32 GMT
It makes me laugh how it took me years to notice the significance of this particular moment because it is actually very unsubtle in a VERY AMUSING way. Padme is trying really bad to repress her attraction towards Anakin, but he winds up in her bed pretty much immediately... Waking her up from her unconscious state of mind about her attraction towards him. Or is he a waking dream for her? Then he uses his...ahem..."lightsaber" to rescue her from two very slimy looking "slugs" (the two pillars theme again?  ) Anyway....Now you all know how dirty minded I am. Ah! First off, I love all the blue! What a gorgeous start to AOTC those early scenes are. You're nothing out of the ordinary here, Smitty -- so don't worry (and sorry to disappoint? ). As one particularly astute prequel fan observed on TFN in 2013: An observation I've long since loved! Jedi_Ford_Prefect also wrote some articles on the prequels, including this insightful (if somewhat critical) examination of AOTC in 2010: wondersinthedark.wordpress.com/2010/04/08/bob-strikes-back-at-attack-of-the-clones-naysayers/From there, this intriguing cinematic analogy: Also -- check out Artoo snapping off a dirty Polaroid:  |
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Post by Pyrogenic on May 26, 2021 22:22:12 GMT
 See that little digital green rectangle compression artifact in the DVD screenshot above? Back in 2009, it made me think of the cursor at the beginning of The Matrix and then I went down a hidden message rabbit hole I'm not sure I ever climbed back out of. I've talked pretty extensively to Cryogenic about this over the years, and some of it is probably not appropriate in the context of this forum (personal details stuff), but...yeah. |
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Post by smittysgelato on May 27, 2021 4:18:34 GMT
CryogenicR2's dirty polaroid. I'm dying now. Just imagine Luke cleaning R2 and stumbling upon multiple dirty recordings of his parents. Hahaha. And jeez. Poor Shmi. Can you imagine getting raped by a Tusken Raider? The donkey braying noises alone would be disturbing.
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Post by Seeker of the Whills on May 27, 2021 10:15:02 GMT
I never noticed that either. You always learn something new. Yep. That's another reason I love the PT: it places us all in the position of "Padawan Learners" and reminds us that learning never ends. Even the first real dialogue exchange of the trilogy (between Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan in Episode I aboard the Trade Federation cruiser) involves a "Master" exhorting his apprentice to "Be mindful of the Living Force" -- which is also an instruction to the viewer. We are initiated into the temple of learning, the diaspora of paying attention, from the very start. "Much to learn, you still have" could almost be a tagline for the entire PT -- and a suitable epitaph for humanity! There's always some distant horizon we're trying to reach; and always farther horizons yet to even be perceived. Ergo, it's very apt that Anakin is "still a padawan learner" in the middle of the PT. Because that's really all of us. Only we don't always have the humility to admit it, or the self-awareness to realise it. But avoiding hubris is good (even if we all need a bit of it to power us forward). Hubris is basically the downfall of the Jedi and the antithesis of humility (look how Padme humbles herself in front of the Gungans to forge an alliance). So many interconnected themes! Totally. I feel like a student of Star Wars, especially the prequels. Always finding new details and connections to appreciate. But there is something elusive about the PT, and I don't think I've yet to discover what makes it tick. What exactly makes it so beautiful, richly complex and different. What is that key factor, that final piece, the mysterious Whills in all this. |
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Post by Cryogenic on May 27, 2021 13:10:46 GMT
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Post by Cryogenic on May 27, 2021 16:10:42 GMT
Another neat detail: Nicely accompanying Palpatine's wickedly happy grin, we have Obi-Wan casting a suspicious glance at the edge of the frame: "Hey, hands off my padawan, pal(patine)!" Palpatine, of course, is already boosting the kid's ego -- Anakin comes to the Jedi attached to worldly things, and here is Palpatine, before Anakin has even been officially accepted into the Jedi Order (that comes in the next scene), promising him more of the world if he wants it. And in "broad daylight". Obi-Wan didn't stand much of chance, really, did he? Ian McDiarmid has previously said, "If you wanted a subtitle for these movies, it could be 'Fathers and Sons'". And here the Battle of the Fathers -- the earthly Duel of the Fates -- has already begun. |
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Post by Somny on May 28, 2021 0:09:42 GMT
The perfect spot for a blink-and-miss-it detail I've been intrigued by since the mid-2000s. I can now finally air it and in good company:
Anakin stalks the interior of the low-level Coruscant club, looking for the assassin...
A mysterious, veiled woman enters his field of view and passes by in front of him...
The woman draws Anakin's eye toward another patron, this one donning a headpiece resembling a familiar helmet...
Anakin, seeing the patron with the peculiar headpiece, appears affected by the visage. He looks away in a seemingly knowing manner...
He is well-aware of his fate.
The screen caps don't do this moment proper justice. Far better in motion.
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Post by Cryogenic on May 28, 2021 12:32:33 GMT
The perfect spot for a blink-and-miss-it detail I've been intrigued by since the mid-2000s. I can now finally air it and in good company: Ha! It's good to have good company! Nice eye! There's something pretty peculiar about the "nightclub" scene. First off, it might be the most "contemporary" location in Star Wars. It's the only time you see people chilling and mingling in a somewhat garish, rowdy, "earth"-like interior setting -- including the only example of televisual sports broadcasting:  Second, it's an odd oasis from the relatively chaste "Golden Age" space fantasy we're mostly dealing with when it comes to the PT (and to the live-action Saga generally). Check out the shapely legs here, for instance (an inverse "Elvis on The Ed Sullivan Show" shot: "from the waist down"):   Third, Lucas really embraces the digital texturing and solarised lighting profile of his then-new camera/imaging system, as in this shot of Anakin, coolly displaying purple, blue, and yellow-green off-white head and shoulder accents:  Fourth, and perhaps most interestingly, several Star Wars characters/actors are "unmasked" in this scene, including comedy rivals Jar Jar and C-3PO: Ahmed Best looking dapper, and resentfully responding to Anakin's idle "settle down" gesture, at the centre of the frame (as Achk Med-Beq), and Lucas' daughter to the left, Katie Lucas (as Lunae Minx), shooting Anakin a dreamy look:  Anthony Daniels (as Dannl Faytonni) turning away from some ladies and reacting to Obi-Wan's handiwork:  And Ahmed doing likewise:  There's even Matt Doran from "The Matrix" ("Mouse"; and here as Elan Sleazebaggano) hassling Obi-Wan at the bar -- who, somewhat unlikely for a Jedi "on duty", casually tells him he wants to "go home" and "re-think" his life, and then swills back a potentially intoxicating concoction:   We even have Mouse's "Woman In The Red Dress", who promptly appears and then disappears when Anakin and Obi-Wan enter the club: Now you see her...  Now you don't...  But hey, at least she's replaced with some cuties flanking Anakin and Obi-Wan as they cross the threshold ("Fire ships on the left and the right"). Oh, but she doesn't truly disappear -- AOTC and its "persistence (or metamorphosis) of things". Check out the the woman checking Anakin out! She is the "Woman In The Red Dress" (Fiona Johnson playing Hayde Gofai): (Fun fact: Hayden, Fiona, and Cryo are all about the same age and have birthdays in April).  I sense Lucas had some fun putting this Jungian den of iniquity together. |
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Post by Cryogenic on May 28, 2021 15:43:42 GMT
Some premium-level sith: When Tion Medon gets close to Obi-Wan and those three light filaments in the background:  Also... Obi-Wan's greying temples. It ain't easy being Anakin's master.  |
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Post by Seeker of the Whills on May 28, 2021 17:50:19 GMT
Ah, yes. Anakin exhibits the habit of finger-pointing and oddly firm conviction even in Episode I: Indignant and incredulous toward Qui-Gon ("No one can kill a Jedi") -- and slapping the table: Arguing with his mother and bossing Qui-Gon around about his podracer: I just remembered that he also points and gives an order in AotC:  "Wait right there." |
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Post by Cryogenic on May 28, 2021 18:52:04 GMT
I just remembered that he also points and gives an order in AotC: "Wait right there." Yep. As touched on in my nightclub post ( Reply #13), Anakin coasts by Ahmed Best's character, Achk Med-Beq, making some gesture with his hand as he walks past his table, presumably trying to quell the nearby patrons, and maybe throwing "Achk Med-Beq" off his game -- prompting a look of concern/resentment:  |
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Post by Somny on May 29, 2021 23:34:59 GMT
During the parade at the end of TPM and shortly before the closing shot/iris-out-to-credits, we see Artoo as he lets out a phrase of beeps. Obi-Wan hears it and proceeds to look out across the festivities looking somewhat... well, not quite suspicious but certainly not at ease. We don't know what Artoo has communicated and Obi-Wan's expression is our only clue. It's a subtle one-two moment that suggests that amid all the cheer and excitement, something is not quite right. Not everyone is eating up all the cake and watermelon.
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Post by Cryogenic on May 29, 2021 23:47:26 GMT
During the parade at the end of TPM and shortly before the closing shot/iris-out-to-credits, we see Artoo as he lets out a phrase of beeps. Obi-Wan hears it and proceeds to look out across the festivities looking somewhat... well, not quite suspicious but certainly not at ease. We don't know what Artoo has communicated and Obi-Wan's expression is our only clue. It's a subtle one-two moment that suggests that amid all the cheer and excitement, something is not quite right. Not everyone is eating up all the cake and watermelon. Things being off. This is why we love the PT. Off but beautifully so. Off-on. Off-on. And then just off. Off, off, off. Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan. He's wan without Qui-Gon. Qui-Gon became one with the Force. Yoda will sniff him out. Yoda's got big sniffers. |
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Post by Subtext Mining on Jun 14, 2021 21:22:21 GMT
Cryo brought this to my attention years ago, and it really lept out (pun intended) to me and stuck with me. It looks as if the destroyer droid comes out of Padmé’s chest. Creating a buffet of symbolism paths one could tread.  |
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) Anyway....Now you all know how dirty minded I am. 
