Archive for ‘The Movies’



Cheap Cantina Aliens Look Awesome

StarWars.com Team | August 20, 2009

One of the most beloved scenes of A New Hope is when Luke Skywalker and Ben Kenobi look around the Cantina for a suitable pilot and we all get an eye-full of crazy-looking aliens enjoying their ale.

io9.com recently blogged about their favorite non-CGI aliens. Of course, Greedo and Cantina aliens make the list!

Weirdly, later live-action Star Wars movies have never featured aliens that felt as interesting and lively as the first glimpse we got in that Cantina scene. Of course, we’ve already exposited about our love for Greedo, but all of the quick glimpses of aliens in this scene have a liveliness that makes you feel like they’re each the star of a cool story. Not bad for an underdog film with a tiny $8.5 million budget (not much even in 1977) whose crew was busy trashing the set and making fun of the Wookiee costume.

Read the whole article here:
Dirt-Cheap Aliens Who Still Look Awesome
(via io9.com)

Be sure to check out our lineup of some of the coolest looking aliens lurking in the Cantina:
Cantina Roll-Call: Shedding Light on Some Alien Aliases
(via Starwars.com)

No Joke! Tauntaun Sleeping Bag For Reals?

StarWars.com Team | July 9, 2009

When Think Geek presented their Tauntaun Sleeping Bag as an April Fool’s Gag, little did they realize how many fans would gladly hand over their cash for the real thing. So the Think Geek gang went into hyperdrive to see if it could indeed become a reality, just in time for the holidays.

Think Geek’s PR guy, Shane Peterman, chatted with LA Weekly about their progress:

Will you ever sell the Tauntaun sleeping bag for real?

We are definitely trying to make it in to an actual item to be sold 
on our site. As of right now, it’s still an “if,” but it’s turning in
to more of a “when.” Things are looking pretty good, we just don’t want 
to get too far ahead of ourselves. There’s certainly been enough of a
demand, both from customers and from those of us that work here. Right now, we’re aiming to have it available 
for the holidays, or at the latest, the 30th anniversary of The Empire 
Strikes Back next spring.

Have you gotten the go-ahead from Lucas?

We’re still working with Lucas to get approval for a final design. Again, it’s looking good, we just can’t say too much right now since it’s still in the works.

The joke price was $39 bucks. Is that how much it will really cost?

The price will very likely go up a bit once we actually make the
 sleeping bag. Since we haven’t gotten to the production stage yet, it’s hard to say what the price will be, unfortunately. I think it’s safe to assume that the kids size will be at a lower cost than the adult size, that much I’m pretty sure of. The cost of material and the actual production of it will dictate what the retail cost will be.

Read the full interview here:
Don’t Joke About Tauntaun Sleeping Bags (via LA Weekly)

Tatooine 2009

StarWars.com Team | June 10, 2009

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Frequent starwars.com contributor Gus Lopez recently posted some captivating photos of a trip to the Star Wars filming sites in Tunisia, including the Skywalker homestead, Mos Eisley environs, and Obi-Wan’s house, among others. What makes these so compelling is how Gus has matched up the original screenshot from A New Hope with the new images — head on over and take a look! (Incidentally, The National recently shared another fan’s experience of several of the Star Wars locales in Tunisia as well).

While checking out Gus’ photostreams, you also may want to check out a couple very cool items he’s got showcased in another image series — a 1979 cast and crew goblet issued by the Finse hotel that housed the production for The Empire Strikes Back, and an actual Hoth Rebel headpiece prop (wow!).

52-Pound LEGO Mon Calamari Star Cruiser

StarWars.com Team | March 23, 2009

Star Wars and LEGO go together better than intergalactic peanut butter and chocolate. Case in point, this impressive 7-foot long model of the Mon Calamari flagship from Return of the Jedi — complete with integrated lighting!

Jesus Diaz from Gizmodo reports:

The stunning LEGO model — created by Thomas Benedikt — was created to scale from the official LEGO Star Destroyer, which is an impressive 3,104-piece beast on its own. According to Thomas, the ship was almost impossible to recreate in LEGO because of the difficulty of its surfaces: There are no right angles at all. After considering many building techniques, he decided to use studs joined by hinges, with transparent yellow studs to let the light from the Star Cruiser’s interior shine through.

Check out all the glorious photos here:
52-pound LEGO Mon Calamari Star Cruiser Can Kill Darth Vader on Impact (via Gizmodo)

Cantina Theme on Harp

StarWars.com Team | March 17, 2009

We’ve heard talented Star Wars fans play their favorite songs from the films on banjos, thermins and even Tesla Coils, but this is the first harp rendition of the Cantina Band theme we’ve witnessed and it’s most impressive. Great job, Benjamin!

WATCH VIDEO: Cantina Band from Star Wars on Harp (via Youtube)

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SOURCES: ClubJade.net, PopWatch

Tesla Coil Plays Imperial March – By Hand

StarWars.com Team | March 16, 2009

We’ve already blogged about ArcAttack playing the Star Wars Imperial theme with a band, but here they are with just one guy playing the theme by hand in a special suit. Now that’s Force lightening!

Parsec Iron Clad, AKA Patrick, AKA Parsnips MonkeyClown builds and tests a new Faraday suit to the tune of the Imperial March.

WATCH VIDEO: Arcattack: Faraday Fun – Imperial March

“Revenge of the Sith”: 1986?

Pete Vilmur | February 27, 2009

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Who woulda thunk the fans would be on to the title of the third chapter in the Star Wars saga nearly 20 years before it was released? Well, a recent eBay find reveals that at least one savvy fan — an Ellen Randolph of California — published an unsanctioned 194-page fanzine novel entitled “Revenge of the Sith” all the way back in 1986, when Return of the Jedi had left theaters but its original title — Revenge of the Jedi — was still likely fresh in many a fan’s mind.

We’ve admittedly not invested ourselves into this hefty chuck-o-fan-fic, but we can glean a bit of the story’s plot from the introduction, which reveals the storyline comes nowhere near prequel territory:

“Nearly twenty years have passed since the Alliance learned the truth kept hidden by Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia: they are the twin offspring of the Jedi Knight who became the Dark Lord of the Sith. Condemned as traitors and criminals along with the entire Jedi Order, Luke and Leia fled to the desert world of Tatooine. At the secret Jedi Sanctuary there, training has continued as they prepare for a future in which the Jedi Knights will again take their rightful places in the galaxy…”

Toy Fair 2009: LEGO Star Wars and Clone Wars

Pete Vilmur | February 16, 2009

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There was a lot to soak in at LEGO’s booth this year with both the Star Wars and Indiana Jones LEGO properties going strong, and we snapped a few pics of some of the great pieces you’ll be seeing later this year.

Easy stand-outs were the Venator-class Republic Cruiser, which had so many moving-opening-separating parts that it made our heads spin — and of course Anakin’s Y-wing Starfighter, the coolest ship (in my opinion) to emerge from The Clone Wars series. A close second is the new Republic Attack Shuttle, which should be reaching store shelves now. You can check out these and more in our Flickr series here.

Stay tuned for an update on LEGO Indy merch, and be sure to check out our continuing photo coverage of this year’s Toy Fair!

Star Wars Saga Begins Tonight on SPIKE

StarWars.com Team | April 4, 2008

In case you somehow missed all the rather cool ads reminding you to tune in, tonight is the night that the Star Wars saga debuts on Spike TV. Everyone can catch the six movies that span generations and bring guys (and gals) together all in one place. Starting today, April 4th, at 8PM/7C, Spike will begin airing the saga in chronological order, starting off with Episode I. On Saturday comes Episode II, and on Sunday is the World Broadcast Premiere of Episode III. Then, next weekend starting on April 11, the original trilogy kicks off with Episode IV, Episode V on Saturday the 12th, and Episode VI on Sunday. And throughout these airings, don’t miss sneak peeks into The Force Unleashed (Check out that schedule here).

For more info visit Spike’s Star Wars site here.

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Jedi, Sith and Queens: CE Costume Pageant

Bonnie Burton | July 15, 2007

One of the best parts of attending a convention like Celebration Europe is to see all the fans wander around in costume. There’s Darth Vader eating some fish and chips on the entrance stairs. Tween Princess Leias are waiting in line to see the Vader Project. And look, Chewie just got some gum stuck in his fur!

And while many fans wear costumes for fun, a few dedicated folks put a lot of time and effort into their wardrobe so they can compete in the Celebration Europe Costume Pageant. Categories included Light Side and Dark Side for adults and kids.

Revenge of the Sith Creature and Makeup Supervisors Lou and Dave Elsey and Original Trilogy costume designer John Mollo acted as pageant judges, while surprise celebrity guests Darth Maul actor Ray Park and Original Trilogy Boba Fett Jeremy Bulloch did the honors of handing out the award prizes of various Star Wars collectibles. Wicket actor Warwick Davis presided over the pageant as host and read notes to the audience about the making of each costume.

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