Empire of Dreams
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Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy is a documentary about the making of the original three Star Wars films: A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi.
The original cut of the documentary ran at around two hours and forty minutes. It was cut down to around two and a half hours, with only ten minutes cut. This final version was released as the main feature on the bonus disc of the 2004 DVD release of the original Star Wars Trilogy. A shortened version of the documentary premiered on the A&E network in late 2004. This version ran at around ninety minutes, cutting out nearly an hour of content.
[edit] Content
The documentary is strictly chronological, divided into three parts, one for each of the three original Star Wars films. It was executive produced and directed by Kevin Burns and narrated by Robert Clotworthy. It features interviews with George Lucas and major cast and crew. It puts Star Wars into a sociological and political perspective by using interviews with spectators like Walter Cronkite. The documentary was shot in 1.78:1 aspect ratio.
[edit] Deleted content
In the original cut of the film, a ten minute segment was included which elaborated on The Star Wars Holiday Special and Lucas seeing a mistake in not holding full control over the Star Wars franchise. The part was cut, however, because, according to the producers, "it just didn't fit with the pacing of the film."
[edit] Notable exclusions
- Any mention of the Emperor, played by Ian McDiarmid.
- Any mention of The Star Wars Holiday Special
- The appearance of David Prowse in person.
