Archived News
May 2005
Week 2
| Friday May 13, 2005 | |
| Homing Beacon #136 | |
The latest Homing Beacon has arrived and today we get to hear from Hayden Christensen! When Revenge of the Sith opens in theaters next week, moviegoers will witness Anakin Skywalker's transformation from a well-meaning young Jedi Knight to the pillar of evil, Darth Vader. Actor Hayden Christensen recently commented on what he considers to be a substantial responsibility -- creating a believable fall for Anakin. "I was excited to see how George [Lucas] was going to conceive that, and when I read the script for the first time it was very obvious that he had gotten it dead-on," says Christensen. "And then it was a matter of how it would translate in the execution. Having seen the film for the first time a few days ago, I really think that he succeeded." Christensen took Lucas' direction on how to portray Skywalker seriously in order to do the character justice as Lucas had written him, even if that makes the character less than likable in his dark transformation. "Even though you want people to embrace your work and really like it, I was more concerned about helping George realize his vision, and feel like he had hired the right person," says Christensen. "It's never been a popularity contest with me. I think you can get a sense of that from the other choices I've made, the other films I've done." Christensen claims that while he was very much aware of Star Wars and the character of Vader through his childhood, he did not become a fan until he watched the Special Editions on the big screen in 1997. "My first experiences with Star Wars were of memorabilia and action figures and my brother's bed sheets," he recalls. "I don't actually remember seeing the film up until they re-released it in theaters when I was in high school. I went out and bought a Boba Fett t-shirt and went and saw [Episodes] V and VI right afterwards, as soon as they came out." The actor recalls going to see Episode I within days of its release, and thinking "Man, I wonder who's going to get to play that kid in II and III." It's hard to imagine life not changing dramatically after winning the role of Anakin Skywalker right out of high school. Christensen says that the multitude of changes in his life have given him profound appreciation for those aspects that did not change, like family, friends, and time spent in his childhood home in Toronto. While at his home last Halloween the specter of his new public identity stopped by to haunt him, but also allowed him to have some fun. "I had people come (to the door) as both Anakin and Darth," Christensen recounts. "They were very excited when I would occasionally go to the door and give them candy." Although he claims to take advice rather than give it, Christensen agreed to share some thoughts for young actors who find themselves cast in iconic roles. "Focus on the work. You're an actor -- you're not Superman," he encourages. "Hopefully you'll be able to go off and do parts in other films that you find fulfilling and just focus on the work. If you get too caught up in what you're a part of, I think you can lose perspective on what you originally entered in to begin with, which is a craft." |
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| Thursday May 12, 2005 | |
| Star Wars, Limited Edition, Signed Prints For Sale | |
Kevin Graham, one of our staff members is selling some of his work. Graham Art Productions is currently offering Star Wars prints by professional artist Kevin Graham These Star Wars Prints are highly detailed and signed by the artist. They are printed on heavy, acid free stock. The prints are 12x18 and are limited to only 50 at this size. The print will be shipped in a protective tube. For current prices and to order please contact us at: info@grahamartproductions.com. We are also offering the same prints on t-shirts. Special request are welcome. Original hand drawn designs are also available. Here are a couple of Kevin's latest pieces. You can see more of his work over in the Featured Artists section. Get them while you can!
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| Wednesday May 11, 2005 | |
| Yoda's Jedi Training | |
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So, you want to be a Jedi huh? Well as has been reported, Pepsi's Call Upon Yoda promotion of Revenge of the Sith offers fans and Pepsi lovers the chance to win great prizes...and play some cool interactive games. I bought a few cases of Pepsi and Mountain Dew to try my luck...the first go around C3-P0 and R2-D2 popped onto screen to comicly inform me that my code was not a winner, and R2 of course bleeped his displeasure- resulting in 3-P0 telling him to, "Oh switch off...". I meditated through the Force for a moment before entering my second code, and wouldn't you know it? The Force was with me! You only when if Yoda answers the call, and sure enough the little green dude came floating across the screen. I was quite excited until Master Yoda informed me that my prize was only a coupon for a free 2 liter Pepsi-Lime. Just goes to show, as the old Jedi saying goes, "There is no emotion...only peace.." So, I won a 2 liter, good for me. I headed on over to play Yoda's Jedi Training which has six interesting little games you can play, each having various levels of skills. I tried them all and a few are much more difficult than you would think! By far, my favorite was Battle Darth Vader- by which you have to watch for the arrow-key code combination and quickly press the combo to battle the Dark Lord. One misplaced keystroke and snapp-hiss thrummm...aaaghghh!, the vile Lord Vader cuts you down with his lightsaber. 
Another cool one is Defend the Attack in which you are (presumably) Obi-Wan defending yourself against the missile attacks of Jango in the asteroid belt-rings of Geonosis. You must move your mouse quickly to target and shoot your laser to destroy the missiles. The higher the level of play, the more missiles that are launched and it becomes quite frantic, but loads of fun! 
You can pretend to be young Luke as he trains against those pesky remotes as we saw in A New Hope. Here you use the keys A, S, Z, X to move your saber and dodge the mini-laser bolts from the fluttering remote. I was not impressed...yet I did not do well either. 
You can also play Follow the Leader in a Rebel Snowspeeder. All you have to do is follow the Snowspeeder and keep it in your sites, easier said than done as I crashed into an AT-AT, a rock, and a nefarious Imperial Probe Droid on more than one occasion. 
One of the best- all in fun, is the one with R2 where he is passing through a canyon on Tatooine and those pesky Jawas want him for spare parts. Use your targeting crosshairs to shoot the little buggers and delight in their cries, "Umm-cheedeeee!" 
I was less enthusiastic about Uncover the Imposter in which Obi-Wan instructs you to scroll back and forth to match the outline of a Star Wars character with one in a crowd of people at the infamous Coruscanti waterring hole, Outlander Club. You don't need the Force for this game, my young apprentice. 
Fun for all ages and if your at the office with a few hours to kill, try your luck and become the apprentic of Yoda. He will tell you how well you did with such comments as, "Much have you to learn...Done well, have you...". You can send a challenge to friends to try the game and beat your high score, and you can view the high scores of other players from across the stars :) |
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| Wednesday May 11, 2005 | |
| Countdown to Revenge | |
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You know sometimes in life you come across something you wished you would have thought about before? I have seen several countdown counters on various webpages for the May 19th release of Revenge of the Sith, but never thought to utilize the idea myself, until last night that is, with only a week to go! SO, I browsed around for some really cool counters, and here is what I found from clockdown.com; a countdown to Revenge counter for the desktop, full of goodies!! It has scrolling news and updates, movie qoutes, plus 24 different skins you can choose from, or configure to have toggled from every 5 minutes to but once a day! Below are the skins you can choose from. It is only a week away, but if you haven't gotten yourself a cool counter, go on over and get yourself one...I won't tell :)        
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| Tuesday May 10, 2005 | |
| 5 or 6 Deleted Scenes on ROTS DVD | |
MTV.com has the scoop on some goodies we will see on the Revenge of the Sith DVD. When "Episode III - Revenge of the Sith" hits movie screens this month, fans will finally have the opportunity to comprehend the saga of Anakin Skywalker in its entirety. Series mastermind George Lucas said he hopes future generations will watch the prequels and sequels in numerical order, but reports that for now fans will have to continue to purchase each DVD individually if they want the complete set. "At some point," is all Lucas would offer about plans to release a six-DVD box set of the "Star Wars" series. "I am not sure when. First ['Revenge of the Sith'] will probably come out around Christmas time. Then, later on, there will be a six-pack." Before you get ready to storm the gates of Skywalker Ranch, however, you may find your dark side's rage diminishing as you hear about some of the "Sith" disc's bonus features. "There are five or six deleted scenes; they will all be on the DVD," said Rick McCallum, producer of the prequels. "They were great scenes, but they just had nothing to do with getting straight and cutting to the chase of the story. They were more plot-orientated and more setting up of Coruscant, more setting up of the war and kind of understanding where all the politics were." ... |
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| Tuesday May 10, 2005 | |
| Target Collector's Case Update | |
Hasbro has the latest on the Collector's Case problem: As our collector fans know, Target will offer an exclusive Star Wars: Episode III Collector's Case 5 pack for 2005. Originally scheduled for release early May, we are reworking based on initial collector feedback, making adjustments to ensure every Star Wars: Episode III 3 3/4 inch action figure fits properly within each case. We will update fans on availability of this improved value 5-pack version when we have more information. Thanks for your feedback and we are confident you will enjoy the final product soon. |
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| Monday May 09, 2005 | |
| Star Wars TV Series Filmed in Australia | |
Telegraph got to interview Lucas, and the talk led directly to the new TV series. George Lucas is bringing the force back to Sydney. The writer-director of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith confirmed he will bring production of a live-action television series to Sydney. "I am looking forward to coming back and working there some more," Lucas told The Daily Telegraph. "We're going to do a live action show based on minor characters in the Star Wars series. "It's a spin-off, it doesn't involve any of the key characters. "It's a different world unto itself between episodes three (Revenge of the Sith) and four (Star Wars: A New Hope)."
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