Unbridled force After George Lucas finished filming the Star Wars prequel trilogy, he did not leave his own universe to fate, but began to expand it in new directions, paying much attention to the preparation of the animated series “The Clone Wars”, the events of which unfold between “Attack of the Clones” and “Revenge of the Sith”, and also joined the guys from LucasArts, taking an active part in the development of an ambitious computer game called “Star Wars: The Force Unleashed”. “Star Wars” may have left big screens, but their story could not just end. The cultural influence of the Saga was too great for George Lucas to understand. Having described to the audience how Anakin Skywalker turned into the sinister Darth Vader, and the Old Republic gave way to the Galactic Empire, the director felt that it was time to reveal to the public the secret of the formation of the Rebel Alliance. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed takes place in two historical intervals. The first level touched the events that occurred on the planet Kashiyik shortly after the self-proclaimed Emperor Palpatine declared the Jedi enemies of society. His right-hand man, Darth Vader, tracked down all the knights who had miraculously escaped Order 66 and punished them with the brutality of the Dark Side. According to intelligence reports, on Kashiyik just hiding a fugitive Jedi who found a common language with the locals, Wooki. Arriving at the scene, Vader easily found the traitor and quickly dealt with him. But it was not destined to get away from the planet so easily, since his attention was captured by the power-sensitive Galen Marek, a young son of a Jedi, from whom it was possible to make an instrument of Sith revenge. The action takes us a decade and a half ahead, a year and a half before Luke Skywalker destroys the Death Star station. Little Galen Marek turned into a grown-up guy, whom Vader called "Starkiller." The hero all his conscious life studied the dark ways of the Force and subsequently went to destroy the last surviving Jedi, believing that he would soon be able to destroy the Emperor himself, thereby opening the way to power both Vader and himself. Under the guidance of creative consultant and producer George Lucas, we saw how Senator Bale Organa, General Garm Bel-Iblis and other leading members of the Rebel Alliance came together. And although the game was exposed a lot of claims, it became one of the most iconic events in the Star Wars universe since the release of Revenge of the Sith.
Paying serious attention to the plot, the game developers saturated the narrative with a lot of video inserts so that we understand that we are actually doing great things, and not just destroying batches of unfortunate stormtroopers. Scenes describing the relationship of Starkiller with Vader and other heroes of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, if desired, could be combined into a single whole, supplemented by short sketches of the main gameplay and such a spectacle in itself could become a full-fledged film. Some especially zealous fans of the Saga did just that, putting their crafts on public display. However, not all enthusiasts wanted to work exclusively with installation. Englishman Sean Roberts went on and together with his comrades shot his own version of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, which became the debut work in his career as a filmmaker. Having gathered a crowd of followers around him, but not being able to invest enough funds in the project, Roberts still did not back away from his plans and created a tape lasting more than one hour, which is unique in itself, because rarely any fan film can boast such an impressive timekeeping.
Review of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Sean Robertson is described as having everything in the game, except for minor reworks of the narrative. The main roles in the project were exclusively friends and like-minded Robertson, for whom “Star Wars” is not just a series of films, but the passion of a lifetime. So, the plot of this film begins where we first started, namely Kashyik. Walking a long way, strewn with destruction and corpses instead of Darth Vader, we finally find the apprentice and then turn him into a killer machine. Or a puppet. Growing up, Galen Marek meets General Ram Kota on his way, along the way destroying the Imperial shipyards as collateral damage to the mission. The hero and the garbage planet Raxus Prime, on which the mad master Kazdan Paratus entrenched himself, did not ignore his attention. For the first time since Revenge of the Sith, the story touches the marvelous beauty of the planet Felutius, the house on which found a member of the Jedi Council Shaak Ti. These and many other characters from the game were recreated by amateurs who personally created costumes. It was not done when creating the film and without computer graphics. The original Star Wars: The Force Unleashed game boasted a detailed world of galactic wonders, most of which could not be imagined with the help of layouts and scenery that Sean Robertson understood. Of course, his technological efforts for the most part leave much to be desired, but the fact that he was not afraid to take on such a responsible project makes him feel respected.
The creators of the short film were not going to overlook any scene from the game, trying to replay them at their own discretion. Yes, it causes interest, but at the same time the tape loses its entertainment and sometimes looks too amateur. Still, it is impossible not to admit that Sean Robertson failed to achieve the desired result, reducing some scenes to a logical absurdity, along the way disappointing technical component. If we consider episodes where the characters are in a passive state and conduct dialogue, then I do not want to put any special claims to them. But when the action begins, and even more so with the participation of space monsters and spaceships, you begin to understand that the presented spectacle can interest only the same fans of the George Lucas Saga as Sean Robertson. It is only gratifying that the director himself sanely assessed the potential of his own craft and did not seek to send it to any film festival at all. Still, the fascination with Star Wars brings joy from contact with this galaxy far, far away. Not all enthusiasts are able to create within its framework, surprising with something really original, like “Star Wars: Revelations”, but this does not mean that you need to limit your aspirations, especially if they do no harm to anyone.
In conclusion, I want to say that “Star Wars: The Force Unleashed” by Sean Robertson can hardly be called one of the best amateur films based on “Star Wars”. This is a completely optional work, which nevertheless may be interesting to true fans of the Saga, as an example of the fact that if you want, you can create anything, and even interest the masses.
6 out of 10