Marcia, Marcia, Marcia! The force behind the Force?
#1
Posted 06 April 2006 - 01:18 PM
George Lucas wife and personal film editor in the 70's.
She edited several quality films including "Taxi Driver" in addition to "THX 1138", "American Graffiti", and the OT ( uncredited on "Empire" and "Jedi"). She pieced together the WW2 dogfight film clips that became the template for the Space Battles.
Her involvement was the creative leash to George's imagination and is never more obvious when comparing the PT to the OT pacing. Or comparing the OT to everything George afterwards without her involvement. And I'm sure she was a sounding-board to his raw story ideas as well when together( They divorced in 83').
A film editor is as important as the music composer in setting the tone of the film from a directors footage. A good editor can save a film ( as happened with Vera Fields with Speilburgs "Jaws") from miss matched and over long scenes and continuity issues. This is something that Ben Burtt, talented as he may be with sound design, doesn't know when to cut a scene. Or is afraid to tell George it needs to be.
It seemed that Marcia had the balls to stand up to George during the OT on what works and what doesn't.. And maybe she's the last person to do so.
She has produced only several small un-released films in the 90's in addition to having a USC cinema editing building in her name, but other wise, she's gone missing,-film editing credit wise- since 1979.
Why did she drop out at the top of her game, and could she of saved the PT?
#2
Posted 06 April 2006 - 02:55 PM
Didn't SW win an oscar for Editing? Go, Marcia! Go tell the world what a Fraud your ex-husband was (is).
I put 5 dollars down that she came up with the "'Revenge' of the Jedi" title; just to spite GL in a corner; and never told him better, why, or otherwise.
#3
Posted 06 April 2006 - 09:29 PM
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#4
Posted 06 April 2006 - 10:12 PM
I think he still has some scars from their breakup (he hasn't remarried, though he's dated various women since then, nothing long lasting), and perhaps some of that resentment translates over into his possessiveness and "I can do it myself" attitude about the prequels? All of this "now I'm doing it the way I wanted, the way I always intended" sounds like it might be a spiteful dig at his former partner.
Maybe. But I'm no psychoanalyist...
This post has been edited by KurganX: 06 April 2006 - 10:28 PM
#5
Posted 06 April 2006 - 11:15 PM
but then again she dadted barney gumble so...
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#6
Posted 06 April 2006 - 11:21 PM
Have you ever seen A New Hope?
The pacing of that film is appauling.
#7
Posted 06 April 2006 - 11:55 PM
According to that one Rolling Stone mag interview with Biskind (sp?), it sounded like Marcia blamed Francis Ford Coppola for breaking the marriage up (!??!!).
However, I tend to believe that it was Marcia who pointed George in good directions. After all, it was she who suggested that Obi-Wan Kenobi sacrifice his life to save the others rather than in George's version where he just hung around Yavin until the end.
Note, too. Marriage breaks up after ESB. ROTJ takes a nosedive.
Very... very... very interesting.
Battle for the Galaxy--read the "other Star Wars"
All I know is I haven't seen the real prequels yet.
#8
Posted 19 April 2006 - 09:49 PM
I heard that they broke up in '83, after ROTJ was released, and according to Lucas "she left me for a man ten years younger."
IMDB.com lists Marcia Lucas as an editor for ROTJ (the site lists her as an editor for all three movies in the classic trilogy). It also lists his marriage to her as "22 February 1969 - 1983."
http://imdb.com/name/nm0000184/bio
Now IMDB.com isn't perfect, I just corrected an error earlier today about someone in a documentary that they turned into a man for some reason (on imdb.com, masculinized the person's name). But it's light years ahead of wiki in terms of credibility.
This post has been edited by KurganX: 19 April 2006 - 09:52 PM
#9
Posted 19 April 2006 - 11:42 PM
This post has been edited by jariten: 19 April 2006 - 11:42 PM
#11
Posted 20 April 2006 - 06:05 PM
the truth's gotten 'old' has it...
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#12
Posted 20 April 2006 - 07:40 PM
On the other hand, what you will find (quite rightly) is Lucas at the helm of his own movies, and Lucas (also quite rightly) taking the brunt of any criticism that might come his way.
#13
Posted 21 April 2006 - 02:00 AM
He sought the advice of little children and people who were affraid to question him...
i know people who worked on these films... i know what happened, and how he treated situations.
trust me on this one...
he took on jobs he wasn't cut out for and no one stepped in tell him that wasn't going to work out.
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