Disney Consumes LucasFilms, Episode VII Gets Cast - By Richard Briggs

Richard Briggs contributes to The Skewed Review.

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The news that Disney had purchased Lucasfilm from George Lucas was alarming to so many people, including Mark Hamill (the original Luke Skywalker).

            

And Disney didn’t even tease us. “Star Wars Episode VII” is going to happen.

            

So much continual speculation will happen between now and May 2015, but I’d still like to add in my own speculation and desires for the new trilogy. After all, I’ve been watching the movies, playing the video games and reading the books since I was a kid, so this universe is special to me as well.

            

The immediate speculation is in regard to the movie’s plot and which characters will take part. There are the Big Four characters who are the only ones that really matter when it comes to the casting: Han Solo, Princess Leia, Lando Calrissian and, of course, Luke Skywalker.

            

I have the storyline in mind that I hope they go with (though it’s unlikely the writers will choose the one I’m thinking), but the casting of these four characters matters a little bit more. I went in-depth with two friends on the potential actors, and after our deliberations here is my fantasy cast: 

            

Han Solo: Gerard Butler

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The majority of the film’s popularity will hinge on the choice of which actor will play Han Solo. Without a doubt Han is the most popular character from the original trilogy, and having to fill Harrison Ford’s shoes will be a daunting task.

            

I scurried through American actors who could play this role with one friend, and we came up with Bradley Cooper and Ryan Reynolds, both risky picks. But then I thought, what actor embodies a lot of what Harrison Ford was during the Han Solo and Indiana Jones days? That’s when I went to Sam Worthington from “Clash of the Titans.” Then another friend said, “If we’re going to go with a non-American, Gerard Butler has more panache than Sam Worthington.”

            

Indeed he’s right about that.

            

Butler has the swagger and comedic timing to be Han Solo. He kind of already looks like a scruffy-looking nerfherder.

Princess Leia: Maggie Gyllenhaal

            

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As I was surfing the Internet to hear more buzz and see others’ ideas for casting (most of which are not realistic casts and copy “The Avengers” cast) I saw that I wasn’t alone in this idea. It made me feel like my choice was credible to bring in the Rachel Dawes of “The Dark Knight.”

            

All of my friends did not like Gyllenhaal as the replacement for Katie Holmes in “The Dark Knight,” and sometimes maybe I didn’t either. Perhaps it’s because Gyllenhaal just isn’t as hot as Holmes.

            

Because of that I think we sometimes forget that Gyllenhaal’s Rachel Dawes was much more authoritative and believable as a lawyer than Holmes’ Rachel Dawes.

            

Gyllenhaal has the look and personality to fit Princess Leia perfectly. She’s courageous, attractive (not jaw-dropping hot), and I can see her wearing Leia’s hair style from “Empire Strikes Back.” That movie is where you actually see Leia commanding troops, so that’s the hairstyle I envision Leia wearing when establishing the New Republic in episodes VII, VIII and IX.

         

Lando Calrissian: Donald Faison

            

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I probably got a little ridiculous with this pick, but after hearing Faison say on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” that his dream role would be to play Lando Calrissian in a “Star Wars” origin story, I had to make the pick. Plus, how can this clip from “Scrubs” not make convince you? 

            

Faison will have to “be smooth,” but to see him playing his dream role of Lando Calrissian would make me happy. I know he would love the role so much that he would dive into it and be Lando.

            

Luke Skywalker: Leonardo DiCaprio

            

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I took a lot of heat from my friends for this pick, but I feel like there’s something here. It’s a role that’s totally different than anything Leo has done before, and the risk is that all anyone will see is the guy from “Titanic,” but to be Luke Skywalker to wrap his rather successful career would be interesting to see.

            

Leo speaks well, he’s done super-dramatic roles and no one hates watching him. That’s the last thing Leo needs to do in his career is go from “Nobody hates me” to “Everyone loves me.”

            

A space opera (a genre within the science fiction genre) is something that Leo has never tried, and if he were to put on the all-black jump suit that Luke Skywalker wears in “Return of the Jedi” while wielding the classic green lightsaber, he would become loved.

            

Plus, if Disney goes with the storyline from the books based five years after “Return of the Jedi,” Luke Skywalker has a lightsaber duel with a clone of himself. How awesome would it be to see Leonardo DiCaprio battling Leonardo DiCaprio with lightsabers?

I don’t live under some guise where I believe this cast is actually possible. I don’t know the connections of Hollywood and who likes working with whom. But this cast is realistic, and the actors I chose fit the classic roles so well. “The Avengers 2” is set for a May 2015 release, and now we have the next “Star Wars” to look forward to. Unbelievable.

Listen Up! Sports Geek Breaks Down the (Musical) Score -- by Richard Briggs

Richard Briggs is a contributor
to The Skewed Review, and is
the outgoing Editor-in-Chief
for Dixie Sun.
Check out his
Sports Geek articles here!

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | SPORTS & RECREATION | SPORTS GEEK -- The art of the theme song is too underrated. It’s time for it to get some love.

Sports, television shows, movies, and superheroes--they all have that tune in the background that rings within our ears and then sends messages to our brains. Our brains then interpret the sounds and we know the familiar notes being played. Whether we receive goose bumps to Superman’s heroic theme or hide in terror when the “Imperial March” signals the arrival of Darth Vader, something happens biologically that excites us when we hear theme music.

I apologize for the previous paragraph sounding like Chapter Four in a psychology textbook, but this is serious stuff.

After my third time watching Marvel’s “The Avengers” in the theater, I finally paid attention to Alan Silvestri’s score for the film. If you need background music while reading this piece, then go to YouTube andsearch Alan Silvestri “The Avengers.” I’m actually listening to it right now.

It’s so cool how old school it is when it comes to movie themes, yet it has a modern sound to it as well. Absolute genius. It further shows the perfection of the whole Avengers project. The music has the superhero feel to it, and then there’s a slight hint of “Phantom of the Opera” at one point with the drum set. It’s subtle and lasts for only a few measures, but it sounds so cool.

Theme music is a necessity for sports because it gives television broadcasts a sense of familiarity. TV broadcasts are so much more graphically developed today, and it’s nice to have something we can cling to from the past. That’s where theme music helps. When I was a kid I especially loved the NBA on NBC theme music, and still today we have the Monday Night Football theme music and the NFL on Fox.

Going back and listening to some of these themes has been giving me goose bumps. It’s hard to put all of this into words because the basis of this column is dependent on sounds.

My favorite movie montage is in “Major League” as the Cleveland Indians go on their big winning streak to force a division championship game with the New York Yankees. The music is so goofy, but it does something inside me. As I said before, music does something to us biologically. Perhaps someone smarter than I can leave a comment explaining the whole process of the chemicals and endorphins released when listening to music.

Theme music, and music in general, goes unappreciated, but next time you’re in the theaters pay attention. A lot of the reason we feel amped at certain points of the movie is because the music is helping us get there.

When the Avengers are in a circle in the middle of New York during the movie and the camera rotates around them, that specific spot was designated to let the music give us goose bumps. When Clark Kent first ripped open his suit to reveal the Superman “S” in the 1978 film, the music matched his action so we could get amped to see Superman. And when Jack Sparrow is singing that one famous “Pirates of the Caribbean” song, the film cuts to black, and the end credits roll, the fast-paced Pirates theme music is meant to remind you of the awesome film you just watched so you’ll walk out of the movie theater and tell all your friends.

Music is awesome--especially theme music. Take notice the next time you’re in the movie theater.

How To Cartoon Politically - By Matty Jacobson

THE SKEWED REVIEW -- The overall look of an editorial cartoon can sometimes seem silly and juvenile—whether it be because of the obvious biases, the sometimes scratchy handwriting, or the caricatured representations of public figures.

But the actual work that goes into creating that single story-telling panel can actually be daunting. There are so many factors that come into play when creating a cartoon that not only has to have a political message, but also be somewhat entertaining. I’d like to guide you through a step-by-step process, and perhaps you can come up with something to share with the readers of Dixie Sun.

1. Know your point of view

There are people who definitely prefer to be the peacekeepers, and there are those who tend to steer completely clear of conflict altogether. If you fall into this category, then perhaps creating an editorial cartoon isn’t for you.

The best politically focused cartoons come from artists and writers who have a definable position on a topic. Pretending to have an opinion can only get a person so far. It won’t take long before you’re out of ideas if you’re a fence-sitter. You need to be the kind of person who can get extremely excited about some things and terribly disappointed in others.

If you approach creating a cartoon with this mentality, then your readers should know where you stand on an issue based on the product you show them.

2. Keep up with the Kardashians

And the Clintons, and the Baldwins, and the Ahmadinejads. If you’re not focusing your cartoon on something current, then you’re most likely going to end up with a “Family Circus” knock-off.

Watch the news, read the papers, peruse the blogs—do whatever it takes to keep yourself current. By keeping current with the news, you’re actually setting yourself up to succeed at step No. 3.

3. Focus on everything ridiculous

Paying attention to the news is all fine and dandy, but you need to keep a special eagle eye out for moments you can make fun of. Why on earth do you think President George W. Bush was re-elected? It was because all the political cartoonists out there were striking gold on a daily basis.

President Obama has had a few gaffs as well. It wasn’t too long ago he made a toast to the Queen of England—in the middle of the British national anthem. To a political cartoonist, that’s the equivalent of handing a book of matches to a pyromaniac and then daring him to burn the city down.

4. Know how to make fun

It simply won’t do to re-tell the exact same story everyone else has been seeing on the news. As an editorial cartoonist, you need to take the common news and put your own spunky spin on it.

Let's use Obama as an example again. It was obviously just a simple mistake when he interrupted the British national anthem; he certainly didn’t do it on purpose. So you can run with that. Perhaps you can have a cartoon titled, “The rest of Obama’s British visit,” and then draw him making social faux pas in ridiculous situations.

You could draw him sneezing into the Queen’s tea, then draw him comparing Prime Minister David Cameron to Austin Powers, and finally show him meeting the Duchess of Cambridge (a.k.a. Kate Middleton) while asking, “And who are you?”

5. You’ve got to doodle-doo

Now I’ve seen my fair share of political cartoons, so I can tell you right now that you don’t have to be a talented artist to pull one of these off. However, you do have to have some sort of flair for drawing imitations of public figures. And if you find your rendition of a certain political person isn’t quite recognizable, you can easily throw a name badge onto your drawing.

You’ll want to sketch it out in pencil first, just in case you make an error. Then you can decide to make your cartoon color or black and white. I started out with the simple black and white format, then I started coloring in my characters with sharpies. Now I use watercolor. The medium is completely up to you. I bet a political cartoon colored with crayons would be a hit.

6. Once is not enough

The very first political cartoon I ever drew was in junior high. Trust me when I tell you it was the equivalent of manure in its first stage. Because I was so unsuccessful at that first cartoon, I was hesitant to do it again. It wasn’t until college that I decided to take another shot at it.

My first cartoon of the year was OK, but it certainly was lacking. However, as the weeks have gone by, I’ve found the concepts come to me much easier, and my art is improving. Just be prepared to make a few mistakes.

So do you think you’ve got it in you to at least come up with one editorial cartoon? We’d love to see it! Share it on our Facebook page at Facebook.com/Dixie.sun.