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I still have the Sketchbook I bought when it was new. It had lots of storyboards as well as sketches (maybe even the screenplay).

One advantage of the tons of junk Lucasfilm authorized is that in their everything-including-the-Death-Star-Kitchen-Sink-Playset mentality they put out things like these books, which simply wasn't done for most movies. Kids into filmmaking like me got a taste of film school.

Uchujin65,

I find a lot of the Lucas hate is way, way over the top. Most of the time I read it and think, "So what's he guilty of? Taking his stuff too seriously, or having childish taste? How's it hurting you?" While I do think he has championed and contributed to the watering down of movies, it's not like he's forcing people to see his garbage or forcing others to make their childish movies.

What I DO dislike about him is his lack of a sense of humor about himself and his work. That sounds like a minor thing, but it leads him to, well, lie about some things, and if one looks at the prequels, this leads to plastic, depressing movies. The life in his first three movies (yes, including THX--not 'funny' but with a knowing wit about it) is nowhere to be found in the prequels. In fact, in some alternate universe, some George Lucas is going to look at the prequels and be motivated to make his own version of Star Wars to counter the sterile, boring worlds Lucas created.

If you've read various books about him or the filmmaking era he worked/works in you find someone who was more comfortable sitting at home watching TV than experiencing life as someone with his resources could. He now lives surrounded by an army of people who depend on him for a paycheck, in a home/office he created that lets no disturbing people or things in--those things the rest of us deal with as part of everyday life. This leads to the death of creativity. I mean, I love my SW art books, but the spark in the McQuarrie work isn't there in the newer stuff--the newer stuff is just trying to copy the old magic, not come from new, original angles. Who would want to have all this success and feel as Lucas must? He keeps saying he wants to work on 'small personal films' but who's stopping him? Who's ever stopped him? Yet some part of him compels him to make this junk that piles up the money--the very situation he made STAR WARS to rebel against.

The guy created one of the movies that impacted my life, so I could never hate him. But he really needs to get the lightsabre out of his butt and chill.

Uchujin65,

While I don't agree it was his marriage, I think you really hit it on the head with your post regarding his not being able to follow the very belief his movie is about. In fact, he sure seems a lot more like the controlling Emperor in terms of his grip on his production people (I recall an editorial in one of the movie magazines that didn't assault Lucas but said it was a little silly and controlling of him to try to copyright using a string to make steady plates for the speedercycle shots in JEDI).

If you read quotes from his friends in various books, Lucas and his wife split in part because his wife was a social person, who thought when SATR WARS was completed they'd use their money to see the world and go out. I'm paraphrasing but one of his friends said something like "They'd go to paris and george would turn on the TV in the hotel and order room service." All of these things were there in their marriage before his huge success. I think when his life became STAR WARS, she just had it. I don't doubt that had a big impact, just that he'd always been that way.

He doesn't seem like a happy person, which is too bad. What's the good of such success if you're cranky all the time?