Monday, May 13, 2013

May The Force Be With UK

Great news for the British film-making industry...
Filming of the new Star Wars movie will take place in England. This might not be the most surprising news of the day but, after the three prequels were largely shot in Australia, it's good to see the franchise returning to its original roots. The six previous Star Wars films were all partly filmed in the UK at famed studios including Pinewood, Elstree and Shepperton.
In Oct.2012, Disney announced three new Star Wars films, when it purchased George Lucas' Lucasfilm company for US$4.05 billion.
Star Wars: Episode VII (due out in 2015) will be made by director JJ Abrams, and will further boost the British film industry that has been regenerated by the likes of the James Bond and Harry Potter film franchises. It'll continue the story where Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) left off. The Star Wars franchise has grossed more than US$4.4 billion worldwide since we first met Yoda in 1977. 
+ All signs point to Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher reprising their roles of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia. In March, George Lucas said they "had already signed Mark and Carrie and Harrison - or were pretty much in the final stages of negotiation," though he refused to confirm that the negotiations had been successful. Then in April, Harrison Ford said he was "excited about possibly returning." Later that month, Carrie Fisher said she was happy too  "because they're sending a trainer to my house so I can get in really good shape." So everyone's...er...happy! We can safely assume that all three actors will happily appear. But will Leia's ghastly 'croissant-head' hairstyle be back? Will Skywalker still whine like a spoilt brat? Will Solo need a zimmer frame?
+ And the iconic Star Wars music has been voted the third best orchestral piece ever! The John Williams theme bagged an Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe, as well as three Grammy Awards. Now BBC Radio 2 listeners voted it ahead of works by Grieg and Tchaikovsky!! Riiiiiigghhtt!!

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