Recasting Stars Wars Episodes 1-3
I just finished watching the "first" three Stars Wars movies - Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi. Not all in one shot, mind you, but over the course of a couple of weeks.
Got me to thinking again how badly George Lucas has so far mangled the "second" three Stars Wars movies. You could really see the trend begin in Return of the Jedi, where he got away from the human drama in favor of technology and aliens. The last half or so of Return of the Jedi is great, especially the showdown between Luke and Darth Vader, but the rest falls flat.
One of the flaws is in the pitiful casting choices Lucas has made for the young Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. Nothing against Ewan McGregor - he's a fine actor - but he's a poor choice for the serene but strong Obi-Wan. Alec Guinness could pull off the subtle nuances, not McGregor. Hayden Christensen as Anakin? Forget it. He definitely cannot pull off the subtlety of being essentially a good person corrupted by his dark side.
Now, if I were casting these flicks, whom would I choose? Glad you asked, even though you didn't. My top choice for Obi-Wan is Sean Bean. He's an outstanding Shakespearian actor and was excellent in Lord of the Rings as the swashbuckling but troubled Boromir. I can see him growing into the older Obi-Wan. Actually, if he were younger, he would be the ideal choice for Anakin. Aside from Bean, I would choose Kenneth Branagh.
Matt Damon would be perfect as Anakin. Sure, he's a bit old, but you never knew just how old Anakin was in the middle episodes, and Damon has shown consistently that he can pull off grey characters. Think The Talented Mr. Ripley and Jason Bourne. If you want to go a bit younger or from the British Isles, which Lucas seems to like, there's Jude Law, Christian Bale, Colin Farrell, or even McGregor. Farrell is the closest to Christensen in age, but all have the ability to capture the nuances of the character. However you slice it, any of them would have been better choices.
Oh well, it's too late now, and I'm not especially looking forward to the next installment. Might not even bother to see it in the theater. That's how much of a let down the first two were.
Comments
1st thing I would do would be to replace Lucas as the writer. He blew it with the planet of the killer teddybears, and hasn't recovered.
Even his re-write of star wars episode 4 is worse for the revisions. Why make Han Solo shoot second when he was being held up by a bounty hunter on tatooine? Can't a good character opperating outside the law shoot first?
Back when I was in highschool I read star wars take-offs that were better than the tripe he has been peddling, attempting to recapture the magic of the original.
Posted by: Justin | October 26, 2004 03:54 PM
Ah, a topic I can sink my teeth into.......I'm an old Star Wars geek in recovery(meaning I'm not as pathetic as I once was).
I agree that Hayden Christensen is wrong as Anakin, but I don't think Damon would be right. But you may have something with Jude Law...I could see that.
I disagree about Ewen McGregor, I think he's doing a good job as a young Kenobi. Sean Bean is another excellent actor, but I think he'd be good as Kenobi when he goes into hiding after the 3rd movie and before the 4th.
My biggest beef with the movies is that they've become 2 hour toy commercial with scripts that could only appeal to those younger than 12. Lucas has totally forgotten the older segment of the audience. Worse yet, I've heard that Chewbacca will appear in the next film and that part of the film takes place on the Wookie home world....which brings back horrible memories of 1978's Star Wars Holiday Special..UGH!
Posted by: Randy | October 27, 2004 06:33 PM