The Writer – Keeping The Dream Alive

The Writer – Keeping The Dream Alive

by DarkJade

I Find Myself in an Interesting Place

I just Read Two Different Articles with Completely Different Opinions about “Giving Free” Copies of your Ebook away.

One Article seemed very Intelligent, and left me feeling like it would be a good Idea to Give a Copy of My Novella “I Died Once” away…

Followed by a Second Article, that was pretty much saying that Social Media basically Creates More Social Media, Lol

As opposed to Book Sales that is.

There are Certain Built in ‘Inner Conflicts’ in pursuing a Professional Career as a Writer.

Conflicts I also ran into when I was briefly pursuing Film Making for a Few years.

And they are this…

1) Yes, I’d Like to be Making a Living from My Writing…

Nothing wrong with that… Right? Being Paid for what your Passionate about… Not having to do a 40 hours a week Office Job Etc…. Or so it was with me anyways

Yes, for me it went something like this…

• Bus Boy at a Restaurant (First Job)
• Box Boy, then Meat Clerk at a Market (Like, 3rd and 4th Job)
• 5 Years of Data Entry, and/or Office Jobs (Arghh, Artificial Lighting, Lol)
• 6 1/2 Years Inside Sales (I actually did well at this, but was completely fried on Sales by the end of it)

Before I finally said $@#$ it! and walked away from the High Paying Job, and started to take other more basic jobs to pay the bills while I pursued Film Making.

Granted, I didn’t have any Kids, so it was a bit easier to take this kind of Risk…

I then spent the next 3 years Pursuing Film Making, whilst taking an assortment of jobs to pay the bills, eat, and roof over my head kind of thing.

And I have to tell you, it was completely Satisfying.

Then I ran into some Medical Issues which slowed me up a bit… Don’t worry, I’m fine now… But during this time where I found myself at Home a bunch, I shifted My Film Making pursuits into Screenplay Writing Pursuits.

Yes, I spent a lot of time Watching Old Classic Movies, which got me even Further In Touch with ‘True’ Story Telling… But it also turned me off the Current Film Industry a bit, which made shifting to Screenplay Writing from Film Making a bit easier then if My Health had Forced me to Give up My Dream.

Wrote Screenplays for a couple years, without being able to establish an Agent (Though I only sent a Hand Full of Query Letters Out), then sat Writing down for a while… These are things I’ve mentioned before. Yes, I fell in love, and played lots of World of Warcraft for a while, Lol

But I needed the Break… I’d Worked from the age of 15, and then went right into Passionately Pursuing My Dreams for 6 Years after that…

But mostly the Medical Scare, though I got through that, Created the Need to just take a Break for a bit.

And last year, just as I was about to get into Writing again, My Girlfriend and I broke up…

Two Months later, I Created This Blog, and spent the Next Year+ Writing, and Writing, and Writing. (The Goal was to get into the Habit of Writing, which Worked, 800-1,200 Words Per day on Average)

A Lot of Poetry… A Lot of Blog Stories… My “I Died Once” Novella… My Up and Coming Fantasy Novel “Chess With Agatha”… And My Vampire Series “Allure” which I will Publish as Short Novella’s next year…

And That’s when I began Self Publishing My Own Work

But first, My 2nd Point about Why I Want To Write

2) I’m a Storyteller… I want to Get My Stories Out, and Share them with People that might Enjoy the Worlds, and or Characters I Create.

For this I largely Blame George Lucas… His First Two “Star Wars” Movies not only Inspired me to be a Film Maker… They also Inspired me to be a Storyteller.

Sure, he’s not the Greatest Writer in the World… There is a Strong Simplicity to the Actual Script and Dialog of his Films…

But… His Story Concept… Story Scope… And Characters… Were Brilliant, Interesting, and Diverse.

Yes I was there… I was a young kid when I saw these first two Films… And it not only Changed The Film Industry… It Changed the World.

Well… At least for me.

But My Points are this

1) I Want to be a Professional Writer… Be Paid To Weave Tales, and Share them with People

2) I Want to Write Stories, Tell Stories, and Share Stories with as many People as care to Check them out. To Connect with the Readers, and possibly even be Inspired by other Writers as well. Which by the way I have been in the last Year+ that I’ve been Writing/Blogging.

So when I look at the Possibility of Giving Out Free Digital Copies of My Novella “I Died Once” (Something I hadn’t planned on doing)… Whether it Generates Future Interest in me as a Writer, and Perhaps My Future Books or not… One thing that it does for sure, is Share the Stories in My Head with as Many People as are Interested in taking a Peak.

Nuff Said

Thanks For Listening/Reading

DarkJade-

PICTURE CREDIT – The Writer

Disney Buys Lucas Film For 4.05 Billion – It’s A Changing World

Disney Buys Lucas Film For 4.05 Billion – It’s A Changing World

I have to admit, I have mixed feelings about this.

Mostly because I saw the Original “Star Wars” in the Theater in 1977, which basically lead to me pursuing Film Making in 2000-2003.

Granted, both “Walt Disney” (The Man), and George Lucas are two of my Greatest/Fondest Heroes… Walt Disney even more than George Lucas.

So in one Respect, I’m totally for it.

Also, I know/realize that George is getting older…

But in truth, I really never expected him to let go of Lucas Film… And what I mean by that is, it just never passed through my mind that he’d sell it.

I will say this about Disney, their movies weren’t doing that good, especially one of their last ones, “John Carter”, which by the way is a fun movie to watch.

But one thing that the Newest President of Disney did do that was Brilliant, was Purchase Marvel Comics a hand full of years back… Now that was brilliant thinking… Just like purchasing Pixar was brilliant.

As we all know, the Marvel Films are doing Extremely well in Sales (The Avengers was the 3rd Worldwide Grossing Film in History, behind Titanic and Avatar)… So basically Pixar saved their Animated Department, and Marvel has saved their Movie Department… At least in my opinion.

And now there’s whispers about Disney making a New Star Wars Film in 2015… All I can say is… Wow… We’ll have to see.

But that’s ok.

My first instinct is “Get J. J. Abrams” Aboard maybe to Film it… He is an Awesome Producer (He Produces “Person of Interest” which is a Brilliant T.V. Show, and many many others), and Film Maker (He did the New Star Trek).

But enough of all this… For me it feels like a bit of a Sad Day to see George Sell his Brain Child… But from a Pure ‘Mortality’, and ‘Business’ standpoint, it makes perfect sense.

Good Luck Disney

DarkJade-

DarkJade Presents – My Sci-Fi Path

DarkJade Presents – My Sci-Fi Path

As I’ve said many times before, The Original “Star Wars”, and “The Empire Strikes Back” were the two Films that Inspired me to Pursue Film Making…

But I thought it was time I Truly Shared My Path Through the Sci-Fi Genre, which basically started in the 70′s for me when I was very young.

Space 1999 (1975-1977)

Now I don’t remember when I started watching “Space 1999″, it probably wasn’t as early as 1975… But sometime when I was very young, I did watch it… And it was Cool, Lol

Wow, that was kind of painful, Lol… The 70′s man, Lol

Star Wars (1977)

Then came the Original “Star Wars”, and that was it, I was ‘hooked’ on Sci-Fi.

I was Han Solo, My Brother was Luke, and My Favorite All Time Villain Became Darth Vader.

Star Trek (1966-1969)

And of course “Star Trek” Reruns were on T.V. frequently, which were just Awesome… Spock was, and is, my favorite Star Trek Character.

The Ultimate in Sci-Fi Melodrama, Lol… With a sprinkle of Shakespearean Undertones for Good Measure, Lol

Buck Rogers In The 25th Century (1979)

I hardly remember the Buck Rodgers Television Show, but I know My Brother and I used to Watch it, Lol

Wow… Wow… The 70′s… Wow, Lol

Planet Of The Apes (1968)

Somewhere in there the “Planet of the Apes” Movies were on T.V. on some of the Channels as well…

“TAKE YOUR STINKING PAWS OF ME YOU DAMN DIRTY APE!” Lol

Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979)

We Loved this Show, Lol

Alien (1979)

Yes, are Mom actually took us to this Flick, Lol… Which is a Brilliant Film, but basically Scared the Hell out of My Brother and I, Lol

She regrets taking us, Ha

But in the end, I think we survived it ok, Lol

Uh, Yeah… It was pretty scary for a couple of young kids, Lol

Flash Gordon (1980)

We Loved This Flick, as Cheesy as it was, Lol… In fact I not only met Timothy Dalton years later, but My Current Cat is also Named “Baron”, after the Timothy Dalton Character, Lol Not to mention “Queen”, and more specifically “Freddy Mercury” was my Favorite All Time Singer…

Spaceships, Hawkmen, Queens Music… Yeah, this was my kind of Flick, Lol

The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

And of course, One of My All Time Favorite Films, “The Empire Strikes Back”… Han was My Man, and this Film was definitely His Film.

In My Opinion, the Best Sci-Fi Film Ever… No “Star Wars”… No “The Empire Strikes Back”…  No “Star Wars”… And so it Goes, Lol

But I will Say The First Two Star Wars Films are one of My Main Motivations Behind My Focus of “Characters”, “Story”, and “Character & Story” Development. And the Importance of a Great Villain.

Blade Runner (1982)

“Blade Runner”… Also one of the Most Brilliant Sci-Fi Films Ever Done… Just a Masterpiece… And also very Influential on My Screenplay Writing, for Sure.

“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I’ve watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.”

One of the Best Sci-Fi Lines, and Scenes Ever… Wridley Scott is a Film Genius Basically… And of course the Writer Philip K. Dick, whose “Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?” Book it was based on.

TRON (1982)

“TRON”, a Film Way ahead of its time… My Brother and I Loved This Film.

At a Time when We Lived in Video Game Arcades, it was like Being in One of them…

And the List goes on and on… But those were the one’s that got My Bro and I Off the Ground so to speak, in regards to Sci-Fi.

Thanks For Listening/Watching/Reading

DarkJade-

“The Written Word” One Year Anniversary

“The Written Word” One Year Anniversary!

Believe it or not, Today is My One Year Anniversary of Entering the Blogosphere…

Here’s what My Very First Post Said

“

The Writer

Inside of all of us is The Writer… I’ve been writing since I was young, but I have never truly given my Writer a home… It is my intention to finally and truly embrace my Writer, I intend to do this by Writing, Writing, Writing…

But to do this, I must first create the space for it… Where will I write… What music will I listen to… Who will I share my writing with while I develop it… Time will tell”

This entry was posted on August 18, 2011 at 3:49 am and is filed under Writers, Writing with tags Dreams, Hope, Imagination, Truth, Writer, Writers, Writing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Edit this entry.

500 Posts Later, I have been Writing My A$$ Off, Lol

And I have to say, though I am Thrilled To Death about the Amount of Work I have Accumulated Along The Way, it is You The Readers… Writers… Photographers that have come to My Site Along the way that have been My Greatest Inspiration.

And I Mean that.

The Thought of Just Writing, Hording All Of My Work, and Sending it Off to a Publisher In Hopes to Get My Work Represented, and/or Published, never, ever Appealed to me.

No, though it’s a bit more “Emotionally” Risky, I decided 1 Year Ago, that I wanted Feedback along the way on My “First Draft” Work, which everything that I Post on this Site is… I don’t Edit it Prior to Posting it… I Treat this Site Like a Writing Journal, and it has been a Great Experience.

And Being someone whose Grammar has never been that Great, I figured I’d hear about it a lot along the way… But I really haven’t… I’ve maybe had 2 People in the Year I’ve been Writing give me a hard time… Which is Shocking to me.

No, My Readers have looked beyond that, and truly basked in the rawness of what I had to offer, which, in truth, I had no idea what people would think. But that’s one of the other main reasons that I Created a Blog, to see how What I Wrote, was, and is, Perceived.

I think perhaps the Greatest Surprise in regards to my work, is how many Poems I’ve Wrote over the last 12 Months… 136 of them. But what the real surprise has been, has been My Reader’s Response via both Comments, and the “Like” Button.
Not that I get tons and tons, but there have been so many people that Consistently Clicked the “Like”, and/or Posted a Response. It’s blown me away. I had no idea that what I feel inside, would reach others the way I would hope that it would. And because of it, it’s Inspired me to Keep on Writing them… And beyond that, it inspired me to Self Publish My First Work ever, which was My Volume I Book of Poetry, “Winter, Lust, And Wonder”.
So thank you all for that.

Also during this last year, I’ve developed many Friends, and Comrades in Art… Which has been unbelievable… Something I never thought I’d find online. And as a Writer, it has meant a lot to me… It helps to Inspire me to Keep on Working at it, even when some Posts don’t get any Comments or “Likes”… I don’t let that stop me… I just Keep on Writing.

I Could go On and On… But I won’t… I just want to Say Thank You to all of you who Came for a while, then Faded away… To all of you that Come here and there…  To all of you that have been here with me since the beginning, and hung out allll along the year, Lol

One Visit isn’t too Little… Every Visit means a Great Deal to me.

And as I begin My Second Year of Truly Pursuing “Writing” as a Profession, I Wish You All the Greatest of Success in All that you do… And I look forward to continuing to have all of you with me along the way.

You are Great… And your time is not wasted on me… I appreciate Every View, Every “Like”, and Every Comment… Truly.

As you all know, Life can sometimes be a Lonely Place… But here, I am Never Lonely… There’s always someone out there Floating through and Leaving their Print On My Site… And on Me

And I thank you for it

Sincerely,

James/DarkJade-

————————————————————————————————-

And Now I Leave You With a Few Songs that Very Much Represent Parts of Who I am

In Hopes that you may Know Me a Bit More, After Hearing them

Halcyon On And On (Ever Since I First Heard This Song in 1998, It has Struck Me As How My Soul Sounds Inside, should Someone Press their Ear Against My Chest/Heart, and Listen)

Dreamer – Supertramp (My Theme Song Since I was 5 Years Old, though this is a Live Version)

Every Breath You Take – The Police (Pretty Much My Favorite All Time Band… This Song is The Way My Heart Works, Or At Least Sounds… It’s Great Being A Romantic, But It Can Also Be Very Painful… Poetry Helps… And so Does Love)

Freddy Mercury (My All Time Favorite Singer… There’s No One Deeper, or More Talented… Not Really)

Deep Purple – Smoke On The Water (My Favorite Song when I was 3 or 4 Years Old, Lol)

Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dosed (In 1998 I Left My Path of Greyness, and Began The Pursuit of All My Dreams… First by Creating an Emotional Rock Band, then Studying and Making Experimental Films, then Writing Screenplays… This Song, and Band’s Album “Californication”, Was The Heart Beat of the Path That Lead me out of My Own Induced Darkness… Which wasn’t Drugs, or Drinking… No, My Darkness lay within the walls of The Dreamer who wasn’t Pursuing his Dreams… But those days are gone forever… I am a Song Writer, A Film Maker, and A Writer… Things are just fine)

Lastly the Reason I became a Film Maker, and Then Writer… STAR WARS

…and THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

Thank You All Once Again

Happy Easter… And A Little Star Wars Fun

I Recently Started Filling up some Pinterest Boards…

What Are Pinterest Boards?

Best Just To Show yah

Today I Shall Share With You My Recent Star Wars Pinterest Board That I Started Creating…

Complete with Custom Captions Added By Me, lol

When You’re Done With That You’re Welcome To Check Out My Other Boards, Keeping In Mind That They Are Not Complete… And Not Nearly as Humorous, lol… But There Are Some Cool Pictures There

EnJoy!

And Happy Easter!

DarkJade-

 

DarkJade… The Meaning Behind The Name

DarkJade… The Meaning Behind The Name

I was talking about the Meaning Behind My Name “DarkJade” to a Friend of mine today… To give them a bit of Insight behind it, as this friend was helping me Design a Banner for My Other Blog, The Dark Globe.

And “Dark” in that name is Derived from “Dark” in DarkJade…

She Suggested that I should Write a Post about it sometime, and so here I am. I have talked to a few people about it in My About Page a While back, but I doubt many have read the Comments on that Page.

So Here is the History behind The Name DarkJade…

First of all The Word Dark; It all started back in The Year 2000… I had moved to Eugene Oregon to Work on Short Films with my Brother, who lived there.

I Needed/Wanted a Name for My Film Company, so I came up with the Name “DarkLight Films“…

Now DarkLight was Derived from this; Not that I’m all into the whole “Aura” thing, but having heard the phrase here and there, and how some people say you can see a person’s Aura sometimes, I figured If I Had An Aura, I bet it would be a Dark Blue in Color… As opposed to maybe Yellow, or one of those Brighter Colors…

And so it would be a… “Dark“… “Light“… As Opposed to a “Light”, “Light” I suppose… which I believe most people associate with an Aura.

So That’s how I came up with the Name “DarkLight Films”…

Beyond that, I thought it kind of had a Cool Double Meaning as well, like in Dark, and Light Side of the Force… Which I thought was cool, especially since The Original Two Star Wars Films were a Major Part of why I ended up Pursuing Film Making.

So That’s How/Where the Word “Dark” came from when calling myself “DarkJade”…

Now The History Behind The Name Jade Comes From This;
When I was a kid, maybe 9 or 10, I started to Write a Novel Called “One Knight“… As some of you may be aware from My “One Knight” Site, where I started to Write This Childhood Concept Novel once again…

Anyway, the Main Female Character in The Novel is Named Jade… She is the Wife of The Main Knight Character, and a Character I very much Admired… I made Her Strong, and Well Versed with a Bow… And in the Story, she, and Woman she ends up Training at some point, end up Protecting Her and Her Knight Husbands Castle from Enemies, well he is off Battling Sorcerers and Dragons and such… Like most Fantasy Knights do, right? lol

Now the Second Place that the Name Jade comes from is, when I was in Eugene Oregon working on Short Films, I also sat down and Wrote a First Draft to a Screenplay Called “White Jade“.

Now in this case, “White Jade” was the name of a Japanese Order of Priests.

So that’s where the Name DarkJade comes from… Dark from my “Possible Aura Color” and “DarkLight Films“, and Jade from “One Knight” and “White Jade“… Wola, lol

And if you’re wondering about all of these “Anime’” Portraits… Each one of them has been My Avatar at some point, lol

Why Young Male Anime’ Characters? Because for some reason I relate with them… The Drama… The Pensiveness… The Vibrant Color, or Stark Darkness… And The Vitality. All parts of who I feel I am to a degree, especially Creatively.

And Because “DarkJade” is to a degree The “Catalyst” of My Creative Endeavors, why should he not also have an “Appearance” of his own.

And Now yah know, lol

Thanks for Reading/Listening

DarkJade-

DarkJade Presents – Star Wars???

While checking out some Sites I came across this Video from YouTube…

Here’s a bit about it;

n 2009, Casey Pugh challenged Star Wars fans to contribute their own 15-second segments to a crowd-sourced version of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. (The original Star Warsmovie, that is.)

Thousands of people replied, sending in clips that used people, dolls, dogs, ferrets and sock puppets to stand in for Luke, Han, Darth Vader, C-3PO, and the gang.

The result — called Star Wars Uncut — was finally released this month in all its crazy glory. It’s chock-full of inside jokes, garages and living rooms, Indiana Jones and Ingmar Bergman references, and Princess Leias of varying ages, sizes and races. And everyone grapples with putting together a decent Chewbacca costume. (Article Source)

I’ve Never Heard of, or seen it, and Truth Be Known, you’re goina have to be a Serious Star Wars Film Fan to Sit through it, as it’s TWO HOURS LONG!!!

That said, it is absolutely Hilarious… So get yourself some Popcorn and Snacks, and Sit back and Enjoy…

S.W.U., or… Star Wars Uncut:Director’s Cut – (Hint, watch for the Cat somewhere after the 11:20 mark, hilarious… And, enjoy the many… many… many faces of C-3PO, lol)

Didn’t make it through it?? Don’t feel bad

Did make it through it?? Holy S$@$!! Well Played, lol

Thanks for Listenen/Readen/Watchen

DarkJade-

Filmcraft (Volume 2) – The Empire Strikes Back

FILMCRAFT (VOLUME 2) – THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

Let me start by saying this, it is a General Rule that Sequels aren’t as good as the First Film of a Series… That said, The Empire Strikes gave the Original Star Wars a run for its money.

In fact, whenever I am asked what my Favorite Film is, I generally reply “Star Wars, and The Empire Strikes Back…”… As I find it hard to choose one or the other… The Original Star Wars was Epic, and Industry, and Life Changing to/for me…

However, The Empire Strikes back was simply awesome.

The Empire Strikes Back;

Stage 1 - Epic Snow Based Battle Anyone? Lucas was smart by taking one step back and letting Irvin Kershner Direct this Film…

Not only Because he more than Nailed it, but because I do Believe George Lucas actually had a Heart Attack during the Filming of the First One, and frankly, nothing is worth dying for… Certainly not a Life/Industry Changing Space Epic… Okay, almost worth it.

None the less, I suspect it reduced the amount of self imposed stress that he puts on himself, as well as gave him an even further opportunity to oversee the overall scope of the thing. Well Played George, and Well Done Kershner (who passed away in 2010, may you find peace Kershner, and us Earthlings Thank you)…

Hoth; Back to Hoth… Starting the Film with a little Pod that locates the Rebel Base, just Kicks A$$!! And beyond Luke getten thrashed about by a Snow Monster, lead to one of the Coolest Sci-Fi Battles in Film… Hands down.

Stage 2 – Han and Leia separate from Luke… More Opportunities for Leia and Han to Fall in Love… As he Struts His stuff via Direct Decent into an Asteroid Field…

Never Tell Me The Odds (Which has been my Motto pretty much my whole life)

Well Played Han, way to impress the girl… And if that’s not enough, latch yourself to pieces of Galactic Garbage in order to give the Empire and Darth the Slip… Never hurts, and sometimes it even gets you a Kiss from the Princess…

Once again… Well Played.

Which leads us to…

Stage 3 – Enter The Bounty Hunter. Boba Fett

Pretty much considered to be one of the Coolest Characters in all of the Six Star Wars Films… And with good reason… He Kicks A$$!! lol

Stage 4 -

Yoda

Enter Yoda… The Teacher of the Force… The Master Jedi, who will show Luke the rest of the way to being a Jedi Knight

Unless of course, Luke’s Friends get in Trouble, in which case, Luke will skip Class, and Be the Hero… Again

Stage 5 – The Trap

What better way to Lure a Partially Trained Jedi into a Face to Face Light Saber Battle with Darth Vader Himself, than to threaten the one’s he loves… Well Played Darth

Stage 6 - Carbon Freeze Han (Oh and be sure to set the timer to Defrost in time for the Third Film) – Brilliant

Oh and, toss in an opportunity for Princess Leia to tell Han she loves him… It certainly didn’t hurt the scene… In fact… It made the scene

“I Love You…” “I know…”

Stage 7 – Good Vs. Evil… The Confrontation

But You Are Not A Jedi… Yet

Impressive… Most Impressive… Which Leads to…

Stage 8 - “I am Your Father!!”

Brilliant… Lucas was so smart on this, he didn’t even tell the Actors that Darth was Luke’s Father until right before they started to Film the Scene… The Epitome of Epic

“Your Training is Complete Lucas… Now you, are the Master”.

Stage 9 – The Great Escape, andddddddddd… TO BE CONTINUED IN THREE YEARSSSSS!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

I saw this Film in 1980 as a kid, you could not have had a happier Crowd in a Movie… Ever… Until the End… 3 Years!!! Until it Continues… Oh well… It Paid off for Lucas

And though I didn’t care for “Return of the Jedi” all that much, I did very much like all the Luke/Emperor/Darth Vader Scenes at the end.

Thanks for Listening/Reading

DarkJade-

Star Wars (DarkJade’s First Look)

Star Wars – In Review

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Star Wars – In Review

Star Wars

A Long Time Ago, In a galaxy far, far away…

Star Wars in Review;

In 1977 George Lucas’s Dream Child Star Wars, came to Fruition. Chapter IV A New Hope, which by the way all I knew it as was “Star Wars”. “A New Hope” I don’t recall until Lucas brought the films back out in 1997. Let me begin by saying this Film not only changed my life, but the life of the Movie Industry as well. It was the Return of the Epic, a Space Opera if you will, the likes none had ever seen. But let’s break it down.

The Story; Good vs. Evil, Son vs. Father, the Empire vs. the Republic. Our story begins with the Evil Empire capturing Princess Leia as she attempts to deliver the Plans of a Deadly Space Station, The Death Star, to her Republic Leaders so they might Forge a Strategy to destroy it, and offset the Evil Empires plans of Planetary Domination. But instead she is captured, and the plans are stored in a robot known as R2-D2, and launched off to the Planet Tatooine, where it ends up in the hands of our Hero of the Film, Luke Skywalker. This however does not come without consequence as when the Empire searches for these plans, led by the Dastardly Darth Vader, Lukes Aunt and Uncle, his Guardians, end up meeting their deaths.

Meanwhile R2-D2 leads Luke to a man known as Obi-Wan Kenobi, or as the locals now call him, Old Ben. Known to be some old Wizard to the Tatooine People, the truth is, Ben Kenobi is the last of a Legion of Freedom Fighters known as Jedi Knights. Ben goes onto explain to Luke that Darth Vader had killed his Father, who wasn’t just a Pilot, but a Jedi Knight himself. Ben then gives Luke his Father’s Sword, or Light Sabre as it were, and after watching a Hologram Message from R2-D2, from Princess Leia, requesting Obi-Wan’s help, suggests that Luke partake in an expedition to the Princess’s Home Planet Alderaan as well. Luke, though he longs to be a Pilot like his Father, says that he must stay to help his Uncle, unbeknownst to him his Uncle had already been slain. Ben at this point goes on to explain the Ways of the Force, a Mastering of the manipulation of Energy that surrounds all of us, and a Fundamental Tool of the Jedi Knight.

After finding out that his Aunt and Uncle have been killed at the hands of the Evil Empire, Luke decides to join Old Ben, and the two of them, as well as R2-D2 and C-3PO, a Protocol Droid, head into Mos Eisley to hire a Pilot to take them to the Princess’s Home Planet. The two of them find a Pilot by the name of Han Solo, and his partner Chewbacca, a Wookiee, which is basically a very tall Man Beast. As the Empire moves into Mos Eisley seeking out Luke, Ben and R2-D2, it is discovered to the Audience that Han Solo is being hunted by the Ruthless Gangster Jabba the Hutt, for he owes Jabba a lot of money.

Meanwhile as a Test of the Death Star’s Power, and an attempt to ascertain the location of the Rebel Base from Princess Leia, the Empire destroys her Home Planet Alderaan with a single blast from this new Operational Death Star Space Station. The Princess is devastated by this, and is thrown into a Prison Cell where she awaits execution. At the point of Alderaan’s destruction, Ben Kenobi upon Han Solo’s ship The Millennium Falcon, suddenly feels very ill. “I feel a great disturbance in the Force…” being a Jedi himself, Ben feels the sudden loss of millions of people. When their ship arrives to where Alderaan used to be, they are shocked to see that there is nothing left but debris, and soon the Death Star, which is still in orbit near bye, uses their tractor beam to pull The Millennium Falcon to it.

Once inside the Death Star, Luke, Han and Chewbacca are able to locate and free Princess Leia. Ben on the other hand, shuts down the Tractor Beam so the Millennium Falcon can make its escape, but also comes head to head with Darth Vadar, his old pupil. As Luke, Han, Princess Leia, Chewbacca and the Droids head to the ship to escape, Luke sees Ben Light Sabre Battling with Darth Vader. Ben noting that Luke sees them, lets Darth Vadar strike him down, in order to reinforce Luke’s Conviction to kill Darth Vader himself, for Ben being older, could no longer defeat him.

Luke is distraught by this, but the Republic, now with the Death Star’s Plans in their Hands, has devised a strategy to destroy it. Luke pulls himself out of his misery, and joins the Fighters that are to approach the Great Death Star, and with an immensely difficult Laser Shot, cause it to destruct. Luke pleads for Han Solo to join the undertaking, but Han out of fear of his Life from Jabba The Hutt, is determined to take his payment from Ben, Luke and Princess Leia, and pay back Jabba as soon as possible.

In the end Luke and many other Fighter ships make their way to the Death Star, all being destroyed save Luke. Luke, with R2-D2 connected to his Fighter, makes his way to take the shot, in hopes to destroy the Death Star. Darth Vader, however, who’s joined the battle himself in his Fighter, determines that Luke is Strong with the Force, and moves in to take him out. Meanwhile, Ben, through telepathic communication from the afterlife, something that trained Jedi’s are able to do, convinces Luke to use the Force rather than his Ships Laser Tracking Systems. Just as Luke is about to take the shot, Darth Vader is about to take him out when, ZAM!! Laser shots from above strike Vadar, and the other Empire Fighters, and Darth is set spinning off to Space. “You’re all Clear, take the shot!” the voice of Han Solo suddenly rings through Luke’s communicator, Luke takes the shot, and destroys the Death Star, using the Force.

That just about sums it up; I may have missed a few things.

The Character’s;

Han Solo (Harrison Ford) – A scoundrel with a Heart as it turns out. Han Solo is the epitome of the Unsung Hero by design. It’s all about him, until the chips are down, at which point his efforts and successes are robust. He was my favorite Character as a kid. Let’s face it, I wanted to be him.

Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) – The Winey hero, with boat loads of potential. Luke is the driving spirit behind the film. And though he is but a wining farm boy at the beginning, he is showing signs of being a Masterful Warrior and freedom fighter by the end.

Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) – A fiery, self-righteous, arrogant, strong, bull headed leader of her people. Princess Leia is the Heart of the Republic.

Old Ben Kenobi (Obi-Wan Kenobi/Alec Guinness) – Ben is all that is Wise, and Good in the world. Through his Vigilant Wisdom and Guidance, Luke is lifted to a new level of Consciousness, and Strength.

Darth Vader (Voice – James Earl Jones Actor – David Prowse ) – The Best Villain to ever hit the Big Screen, in my humble opinion. Darth demonstrates the Alluring Qualities of Evil, and the Vastness, and the Extent of its reach.

R2-DW (Kenny Baker) – R2-D2 shows how Excellent Directing, can make even an inanimate object completely lovable.

C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) – The ever present Nagging Mother. Who also appears to have an endless amount of usable information.

Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) – No offense, but he is the Ever Loyal Dog to Han Solo. If Dogs could Stand, and Rebuild Space Ships from scratch, Chewbacca is your man… Or, Man’s Best Friend. He also has a Huge Heart, and an Excellent Sense of Humor. He gets Han more than anyone else.

The Director; George Lucas is able to Bring Forth an Epic Tale of Good vs. Evil, by use of a wide assortment of poignant character’s, in a world that he himself created, in a place far, far away. To put Lucas into words in regards to this first installment of the Star Wars Films is no easy task. I will say, he always left you wanting more.

The Writer; See Above.

Overall Rating; AAA+. Yup, a Triple A. Epic Story, Epic Character’s, Epic Scope.

DarkJade-

Star Wars (DarkJade’s) First Look

Filmcraft (Volume 2) – The Empire Strikes Back

Star Wars (DarkJade’s First Look)

It was 1977, yes I was alive then. My mom took my brother and I to go see the original Star Wars. Neither my brother’s, nor my life, would ever be the same. I partially blame this man

Good Man on a Baddd Ship... Correction, a Fast Ship

Yes, it’s true, I wanted to be Han Solo. But don’t forget this guy

Careful Kid, you Might Hurt Yourself... I Blame his Father

My brother wanted to be Luke. So that worked out well.

Because of the enormity that is Star Wars, I’ll try to stick to just  a few things this go around. But I will say my favorite villain of all time is this next gentleman

"I am your Father..."

Darth Vadar. Need I say more.

For the next 10 years my brother and I gathered quite an action figure collection, sadly G.I. Joe tended to kick these guys asses, but oh well. The truth is, Star Wars is the reason I decided to pursue Film Making in 1999-2002, which in turn lead to pursuing writing. Oh I should mention one more guy at least in this go around

Jango gives George Directions

No that’s not Boba, he’s not even born yet. Somehow I’ve gone the route of corny. It was not intended. George Lucas, in my opinion, had a brainchild that would change everything you know about film. He is the true reason I wanted to become a film maker. Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back are two of my favorite all time films.

Why did they inspire me? Character’s, and character development for one. I love so many of his character’s, and there are so many to love. Why else? Scope; Starting on chapter IV, of VI, inventive, exciting, and alluring.

For me Star Wars, and The Empire Strikes Back have forever instilled the importance of character’s and scope in a story… And the belief in a dream, and the robustness to follow through with it.

Thank You George

DarkJade-

Star Wars – In Review

Filmcraft (Volume 2) – The Empire Strikes Back