Favourite Editing Choices

I agree. This is an excellent idea for a thread.

I like your choices, Samnz. The funeral one, in particular, is one I love. It carries a lot of impact, and it feels like Anakin and his "heavy" emotions are motivating the camera. Note how the other people are "cut out" of the tighter shot on Anakin when he slumps to his knees, like they don't exist anymore. Anakin goes into his own world -- or falls into it.

Although a tinge of Cliegg can still be seen at the left of the frame. Cliegg in his floaty chair (like Yoda), and Anakin symbolically touching the ground, as if someone ought to. Perhaps Anakin, in the back of his mind, through all his grief and sorrow, is "living" for Cliegg. After all, Cliegg was a man who freed Shmi from slavery, as Anakin promised to do, and he actually loved her in Anakin's absence. Cliegg is the only one of the Lars whom Anakin doesn't shoot a dirty look to when he returns with Shmi's body.

Cliegg, in missing a limb, also alludes to Anakin's own fate (requiring mechanical assistance after "battling" over the life/honour/ownership of his wife) later on. Yet Cliegg is also responsible, in part, for Anakin murdering the Tuskens and starting down the path of the Dark Side in the first place. He told Anakin that they were little more than "vicious, mindless monsters". In his soft-spoken compassion, he resembles Qui-Gon. In his denunciation and rejection of the personhood of others, he's more like Palpatine. 

Anyway, here's a few edits (mostly wipe-based) I like:

Some of these might come off more like shots or favourite frames, but with the prequels, it's difficult to get around that, I think!

Commencing here with an utterly iconic image:

"I will not condone a course of action that will lead us to war."

Straight away, the "higher path" of pacifism is communicated: enshrined. Even if Amidala later triggers the Clone Wars. But we're in TPM here and her regal determination and stoicism in the face of imminent invasion are admirable.

Also, all these next few shots, combined with the stirring music, function as an incredible introduction to Naboo -- and a re-introduction to Star Wars, and fantasy cinema, in general. The Master, George Lucas, had returned.



This next shot is almost three shots in one:







Where do we see such visual elegance these days?

Anyway, down to the surface of Naboo at last:

Again, the visuals, the music, and the sound design are formidable. It feels like an enormous galaxy with rich goings-on from the start. An incredible achievement. And the editing is exceptionally graceful.





Lavish pomposity:

"Ah, victory!"



A lovely three-shot composition -- as usual with Lucas, it's the perfect number, and it's all that's needed:







This part actually does feel like you're sneaking around with the Jedi (and Jar Jar):







TPM is a very three-dimensional movie. There is constantly a strong sense of a galaxy, a whole other universe, being unveiled for the first time.

I'll jump forward a bit now, to briefly cover the other major planets/locales, or I'll be here all day!

Jar Jar lingering like a little kid:

I guess I'm already wading into "grey" territory. But I count this as an edit, of sorts, because it's the last shot of the heroes leaving the junkshop, and the last view Anakin has of them for a while. The triad of colours inside the bright doorway is also like a movie within a movie: blue, red-orange, and, well... orange. Artoo, Jar Jar, and a sealed door. So many of the visuals in TPM are an absolute trip.



Padme thinking of her people:

I like how this brief shot is edited into the meal scene (and I love the editing of the meal scene in general, by the way) to underscore what is at stake trillions of miles from Tatooine. It also shows how Anakin is capable of "getting" to Padme and pricking her emotions, even inadvertently.



A perfect way to close the scene. And back to the "larger world" we go:

This edit is a good demonstration of how Lucas creates mood and emotion, and conveys all the necessary plot details, without belabouring a point or wearing a viewer out. It's also proof that he couldn't have cast a better actor in the role of Qui-Gon than Liam Neeson. Liam Neeson and Tatooine -- these things are pure Star Wars.



Qui-Gon getting into this gambling malarkey:

Just a wonderfully fun and humanising shot. The actors all look so great in this movie. Lucas' embrace of pro-mist image filters (a camera lens mount that diffuses light and lends an angelic/soft-focus/fantasy touch) is also nicely in evidence here.



Shmi Skywalker:

And with perfect musical accompaniment.



Goodnight, Shmi. The Sith are coming into town:

And again, the damn music!



Queen takes bishop and will soon deactivate pawn (via some tricky piloting by Anakin in the Battle of Naboo):

More great music, too. In this case, very understated and somewhat dreamy.



Impossible visual beauty:

The sun is setting on the Republic -- and why have one shot when you can have three? A gorgeous triptych, like the prequels themselves. 

Once more, the music is also exceptionally beautiful, perfectly accentuating the underlying mood. As Lucas said a few years ago:










Sudden close-up on Amidala:

Love the blue tones in the background. And such intelligence and longing in Natalie Portman's eyes here. The glittering beads of the flying cars and their glowing engines, and all the windows of those high-rise super-scrapers, are replaced with a bejewelled person, lost in the political labyrinth -- perhaps looking for a pattern amidst all the random noise.



Jar Jar bursting with excitement and the queen's ship blasting off back home:

(It's almost a rhythm -- like so much in these movies).

"Wesa goin home!!!"

This moment is very meta, which I just love. Jar Jar has been silent on Coruscant, except for briefly reassuring Anakin in the air taxi and pouring some words of comfort into the ear of Amidala (as it turns out, at a crucial moment, and in a critical way, almost like Jar Jar planned it).

And here, at the end of a stuffy passage, full of politics and bureaucratic machinations, is our excitable Gungan (the only "alien" amongst the heroic cohort) just letting go, looking forward to returning to his home planet. Enough star-voyaging for this homesick Gungan. His burst of delirious excitement/relief is palpable.

It functions as a great capstone to the Coruscant segment -- like Jar Jar, it's wildly out-of-sync with the rest of the chapter, and yet it's also perfectly placed and communicates reams of meaning. Lucas is great at integrating these little "milestone" markers, and this one remains one of my favourites.





"Blasting" into the future -- and, as it happens, into danger. But also into fresh possibilities.

It's kind of Star Wars in a nutshell.

Gosh, I'd better stop here for now.

From swirling chaos:


To tranquility:


Williams' score in particular captures the mood of this transition perfectly, as we move from the sandstorm into the warmer environs of the Skywalker home.

You know, sticking with the premise of this thread, there's actually a strange editing choice in that scene.

Cheeky Artoo, the gallant fixer/re-router of the power to the queen's ship, really gets a move on here:



Double vision (Ah! Two!):

"The Hidden Fortress" of the saga... "R2-D2, Your Highness":





How often do the movies wipe back to the same character and duplicate them on-screen like that?

It's not the only weird thing. As I said, Artoo really gets a move on. The film actually speeds up here.

Even the three tracks Artoo leaves in his wake (top two frames) are like a signature in the Force (or of the Force). TPM is full of trialities. 

I'm not sure why the film speeds up here. It's an unusual editing choice. It's definitely implying things about Artoo and maybe Tatooine itself. They both have that "oo" sound, and they're both extremely elemental to the Star Wars Saga. Later on, Obi-Wan complains to Qui-Gon, "What if this plan fails, Master? We could be stuck here a very long time." His dialogue not only evokes the classic blue opening text, but possibly hints at the slow pace of Tatooine and its time-distorting effects. It feels that something strange is happening here: when Artoo is left to his own devices, he sneakily speeds the movie up. "Wesa gonna speed yous away." Or is Artoo himself being sped up? What is doing the speeding up and why? How? I like to think that Artoo, the Keeper of the Blue Flame, is up to something, when everyone has their backs turned and is too distracted by the sandstorm to notice. He practically is the Force in robot form. And contrast this with Artoo's slow trundling around on Tatooine in ANH where he seems to deliberately get captured by the Jawas. The music further adds to the mystical feel. There are some tricks that Lucas will take with him into the Netherworld of the Force.

It's one of my favourites, too. I thought of adding more frames, but there were already so many and I felt it allowed things to be a little abstract with that wipe of Shmi and the subsequent one of her turning away as Darth Maul's Sith Infiltrator flies into frame. But yeah, what a phenomenally beautiful scene and transition. The music is again perfection. It's these specific moments on Tatooine, involving Anakin, Shmi, and Qui-Gon, that give TPM a very warm feel. I think they're also why some people feel TPM has more "heart" than the other prequels. Episode I anchors "The Tragedy Of Darth Vader" brilliantly.

Returning to an earlier post:



These two shots are also perfect storybook transitions. The Sith appropriately feel like something old, ancient, and exotic -- while those same aspects are also present in the overgrown statues with notably Asian-looking faces. It was Ingmar Bergman who said, "The human face is the great subject of cinema", and Lucas clearly understands that sentiment and powerfully expresses it in his own way. As this page observes, "From silent film to modern Hollywood, perhaps more than any other body part, the human face has been processed by multiple cultural periods and movements and greatly influenced the history of the medium."

Another detail that's quite evident here (at least, once you catch sight of it, as with so many things about these films) is how soft the transitions are. Literally. The edges of those wipe ellipses are incredibly smooth, appearing more like ink blots on a piece of paper. Nothing harsh. All filtered and smoothed over.

Finally, there's the colours and the mise-en-scene. Both frames are very alluring here because they are phenomenally composed. Anakin is either at or near to the centre of both shots -- and a dim, small figure in one, turned away from the camera, and very much shown in "portrait mode" in the other. The movie isn't really about Anakin, per se, but these visuals do show how he is "caught up" in bigger events once he leaves Tatooine. 

And just as Maul's face appears to be emanating from the central chakra in that statue, so Artoo appears to be projecting Sidious. Weird stuff. I love how you say the Sith are haunting Anakin. It's either that or he's genuinely sensing things, even if he isn't able to put it all together -- much like the other characters, who as we see from Episode II, are all operating in a fog of one or another. Yet Anakin's exquisite sensitivity is a key part of his character. There's another moment that shows this brilliantly -- and this little scene wasn't even part of the movie originally on its theatrical release!

"I must speak with the Jedi Council immediately. The situation has become much more complicated."



I like how Qui-Gon almost whispers that to Valorum. But it's no good. Anakin still picks up on it.

In the theatrical cut, this is never shown. Instead, the film cuts straight to an abridged and alternate version of the air taxi ride to Palpatine's apartment.

But on the DVD and onwards, we get this very curious moment:

"What you say, bro?"



Qui-Gon looks nervous and subtly backs off, drawing his arms inwards:



Anakin stands there looking "lost and confused" (without his "Viceroy"), while Padme calls for him to follow:



Looking past the obvious symbolism of Anakin being torn between following Padme and the Jedi path, this moment is plain unsettling. Again, the music accentuates the feel that something is off. Anakin is always hearing things ("Master, sir, I heard Yoda talking about midi-chlorians..."). At this stage, as Qui-Gon says to him on Tatooine, there is "no fooling" him. Even a powerful Jedi Master like Qui-Gon realises he has to watch his words and thoughts around someone so strong in the Force.

(But then, you know what, here's a more radical thought: If Qui-Gon was helping Anakin "win" during the podrace -- perhaps sneakily implied by the line, "You Jedi are far too reckless" -- then maybe he imprinted on Anakin and made some kind of metaphysical "bridge", and here we see that bridge still in effect. Perhaps Qui-Gon forgot about it or thought it had dissipated by this moment in the film, but if so, he was clearly wrong).

A close-up on Padme, once again calling Anakin to follow her:



Anakin looking back to Qui-Gon for confirmation/reassurance:



Qui-Gon waving him on:



Look at their stern faces. 

"Are you really sure about this? Am I doing something wrong?"



A rare glimpse of the real Jar Jar suit.

Wide shot of the taxi filling up:



I think this is maybe the only time in Star Wars we see a vehicle being boarded like this, in a wide shot, by so many people, so small in the frame. It's neat.

Note that Anakin and Jar Jar are allowed to sit up-front. The two most "innocent" characters of the story. The politicians and royalty sit behind.

Also, the taxi looks a bit like a toaster. Not sure if that was intentional given Anakin's fate. 

It's also not the nicest-looking of vehicles next to the queen's gleaming starship (especially when you get a closer look at it). 

Some people have complained that even the visuals here are "off", and they slightly are. Allegedly, Lucas liked this scene so much after it was rendered, he was swayed into adding it for the DVD cut of the movie. But you can see, if you look carefully, the image isn't really at "theatrical presentation" standards: it's somewhat pixellated and looks upscaled. However, I couldn't be without it. It adds a whole other dimension to the film, to the Coruscant passage, to Anakin, and to his relationship with Qui-Gon. Perhaps Anakin's disquiet is what causes the image to become a bit rough-looking. I mean, look at him inside the taxi:

Jar Jar attempts to talk to Anakin about how cool -- or "hot" -- it is about the queen being "grossly nice":



Jar Jar's dialogue is really curious. Queen? Who does he mean? The decoy? Does Jar Jar know more than he lets on (like the Jedi)? And what does he mean about the queen being "grossly nice"? To whom? About what? About letting them ride in the taxi? Letting them sit at the front? It's all tinged with ambiguity when you take five seconds to try and break it down. 

What's also notable is that Anakin and Jar Jar aren't the greatest pair-bond, and Anakin is barely listening to Jar Jar, even when sat right next to him. 

Indeed, Anakin seems to be in his own little world, transfixed by the sights around him, and possibly mulling over the strange thing that just happened and trying to get over his disorientation. While Jar Jar is ebullient and enthusiastic, Anakin is quiet and sullen:



But there's no time to linger. When the taxi pulls away, we are treated to a breathtaking view of this strange city planet:

Vertiginous:



Dreamy:



Forbidding:



Old World:



You're not on Tatooine anymore, Ani.

Great addition. Just added to it myself. 


I wrote music, but it's half-way between music and a sound. It sounds like a lone chant or vocal drone of some kind. Similar sounds can be heard when Qui-Gon reports to the Jedi Council -- the first and only time a Jedi Council scene in the PT is presented that way. 


Yep. I like to think that Anakin isn't just hearing the words, but sensing the force (no pun) behind them -- almost like seeing into Qui-Gon's mind. Lucas has said that the Living Force makes people sensitive to the feelings of others and allows them to perform mind tricks. Since Anakin has an exceptionally high midi-chlorian count, and he is perhaps "homed in" on Qui-Gon's aura in the Force in this strange new world, it seems all but inevitable he would react to anything being said about him, even if his name isn't mentioned directly.


I believe it has been in every version since, including the theatrical 3D release. The 2011 Blu-ray version of TPM is meant to be nearly identical to the 3D version the following year -- although they were still working on the 3D version after the Blu-ray came out. The newer 2020 Blu-ray version basically includes the final tweaks applied for the 3D release (notably: some colour changes).

There are so many references to speed in the dialogue of Star Wars -- sometimes invertedly so. Like Padme casually telling her entourage, or idly informing the Jedi, who have already "phased" into a different movie-space as they fix their attention on Darth Maul: "We'll take the long way." Damn straight.

Indeed, so much of the aesthetic of Star Wars rests in speed and motion. There is, for example, a chase sequence in every episode (crowned and formalised as an epic race sequence in Episode I), and the original film even opens with a chase scene. And prior to Star Wars, there was, of course, "American Graffiti", which ends on a drag race, and "THX-1138", which also ends with THX racing to freedom and evading the last vestiges of his underground society (there is a progression from subterranean, to earth, to space in Lucas' unofficial "Rocketship To Success/Goodbye To Modesto" trilogy: THX, AG, SW).

A few years ago, I wrote the following down on a pad as a prompt for further research and analysis:

Speed as:

- Aesthetic / Photographic
- Entertainment / Cosmogonic 
- Structural / Organising
- Symbolic / Abstract
- Moral / Sensual
- Spiritual / Mysterious

On top of all that, Lucas is a guy that likes to keep things moving. Some select moments from "The Beginning" show this concisely:


 

And later, in a famous part after watching a rough cut of the controversial film-to-be:


Seriously, long before he got into filmmaking, and even a good while before he got into racing and tinkering with fast machines -- while he still just a wee youngling, in fact -- Lucas was captivated by speed as a storytelling value: a sublime essence in its own right.

As Chris Taylor explains:


Well, gee, I guess as Qui-Gon would say, "Nothing happens by accident." And heck, in a sublime twist, Lucas' automobile accident was reported as front-page news in The Modesto Bee:

www.forcematerial.com/home/2017/1/28/the-car-crash-that-changed-the-galaxy

You can see several other Star Warsian motifs in that little story. It begins with a fairy-tale opening, a small creature stings or zaps a larger but still comparatively "little" being (like Artoo zapping that Ewok or the gangly-but-hierarchically-lowly Jar Jar getting bumped out of the way by Artoo), an aspect of nature is compelling the boy to suddenly be fast, and it also shows Lucas' early facility with humour and irony.

Lucas also elides the explanation that the boy is obviously stung -- his last two lines instead convey the concept comically and rhythmically. Which is another strong feature of Lucas' filmmaking, especially in the PT: viewers/users are expected to join the dots. As densely-laden with "exposition" as some people claim the PT is, it's also got a ton of subtext and things happening off-screen and between the films. In other words, "Show, don't tell". Plus, in Episode I, the Star Wars Saga is reframed to focus on a promising boy, who has somehow developed natural "Land of Zoom" reflexes (and likes racing at ridiculous speeds), as Qui-Gon quickly detects. 

There's even an ounce of tragedy in the little tale. The middle of the story, or the turn, states that the boy "wanted to talk to the horse" that he'd just met, but he is rudely interrupted in that desire by the bee and presumably gives it no further thought -- as if being slow and thoughtful, or wanting to talk to people/creatures, is bad. The boy comes across in these scant lines as somewhat innocent and naive, lacking mindfulness; and nature, through the bee, teaches him a lesson.

Thus, a gentle moment of boy-horse bonding is lost -- somewhat foreshadowing the homestead being brutally besieged by the Empire in ANH and Luke finding Owen and Beru charred to their bones, or Anakin very nearly being clipped/run over by Maul on his speeder bike seconds after leaving his mother; and then losing Qui-Gon to the same assailant and being stuck with Obi-Wan instead. Or, keeping more closely to the tragic dimension of the story and how that is transliterated in the PT: inadequate communication, or communication that is broken or interrupted, is a big theme in the PT. Indeed, somewhat like the bee, Nute Gunray resolves early on to "disrupt all communication down there", on the peaceful, idyllic world of Naboo. Another world waiting to be stung and Zoom-i-fied. The blockading ships even vaguely appear like a swarm of bees, and there's something vaguely insect-like about the Neimoidians, too. Maybe Lucas just hates bees. "I see them -- buzz droids!"

Thank you, Somny. 

As usual, I just sort of "found it" as I went. But as indicated, I did have those terms sitting on a notepad, and that little story in Chris Taylor's book (which is a very good read) really struck me when I first read it. Haven't we all been "stung" by Lucas one way or another?