- Database
- Fanedit Listings
- Documentary/Review
- Star Wars Begins
Star Wars Begins
Updated
Faneditor Name:
Original Movie Title:
Genre:
Franchise:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
1977
Original Running Time:
121
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
138
Additional Links:
Brief Synopsis:
Inspired by a love of the film ‘Star Wars’ and the idea that audio commentaries could be expanded, Jambe Davdar set out to make what he calls “the ultimate audio/visual commentary”. He started the project in February 2007 and finished, nearly four years later, in late January 2011.
Intention:
Star Wars Begins is an unofficial commentary to Star Wars, offering an insight into the development and creation of film. The documentary combines video from the movie itself with seen and unseen behind the scenes footage, rare audio from the cast and crew, alternate angles, bloopers, reconstructed scenes, text facts and more to give an in-depth look at the process which brought the film to the big screen.
Release Information:
DVD
Editing Details:
Film Details:
Video: PAL 16:9 MPEG2 SL DVD (I may do a DL DVD later)
DVD Release has ‘v2.0′ during logo sequence
(Also released as a H.264 to contributors)
Audio: AC3 Audio
Software Used:
Final Cut Pro 4.5
DVD Studio Pro 3
A.Pack
Photoshop CS
Cinematize
MPEG Streamclip
Video: PAL 16:9 MPEG2 SL DVD (I may do a DL DVD later)
DVD Release has ‘v2.0′ during logo sequence
(Also released as a H.264 to contributors)
Audio: AC3 Audio
Software Used:
Final Cut Pro 4.5
DVD Studio Pro 3
A.Pack
Photoshop CS
Cinematize
MPEG Streamclip
Cuts and Additions:
- Star Wars 2006 OT DVD, From Star Wars To Jedi, Classic Creature
- 1997 & 2004 SE, The Making of Star Wars (looking forward to seeing any better transfers), When Star Wars Ruled the World, Deleted Magic*, THX Soundtrack! (anyone fancy doing an NTSC to PAL transcode for me?!)
- BBC Omnibus – Flying Solo
- BBC Omnibus – A long time ago…
- Laserdisc Supplementals
- Behind the Masks
- The Stars of Star Wars
- Unauthorised Story of Star Wars
- Rareties 1, 2, 3
- From the Film Vaults*
- The Holiday Special
- Star Wars Forgotten Scenes*
- Star Wars Unsung Heros (my copy is partly corrupt, please contact me if you have this, thanks)
- Feel the Force
- EditDroid Special Features
- Peter Cushing Interview
- Alec Guiness interview – Parkinson
- Widescreen Star Wars Bootleg
- Machine Men BBC4
- Feel the Force
- Sculpting a Galaxy DVD
- Time & Again
- Magic and the Mystery (UK Version)
- PBS’s George Lucas: Heroes, Myths and Magic
- Magic Magic CD-ROM/DVD
- Behind the Magic
- The Making of the SE
- Paramount Jabba Footage
- Interviews with Star Wars Stars 1998 (youtube)
- WTVJ Montage – Star Wars Interviews (youtube)
- GMTV Interviews 1997 (youtube)
- “THE MIKE DOUGLAS SHOW” (1977) (youtube)
- The making of Star Wars Computer Graphics (youtube)
- AFI youtube videos
Books/Magazines
- The Art of Star Wars
- From Concept to Screen to Collectible
- Lucasfilm Archives
- Star Wars, The Annotated Screenplays
- Star Wars Aficionado
- Star Wars Insider – Lost Cut Article
- Star Wars Chronicles
- Star Wars Portfolio
- Starlog Magazine
- Photoplay Magazine
- The Illustrated Star Wars Universe
- Sculpting A Galaxy
- The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film
Web Resources
- Starwarz.com
- T-Bones Star Wars Universe
- Originaltrilogy.com
- Theforce.net
- Rebelscum.com
- Youtube.com
- Vimeo.com
* = No material will be sourced from this DVD. For research purposes only.
- 1997 & 2004 SE, The Making of Star Wars (looking forward to seeing any better transfers), When Star Wars Ruled the World, Deleted Magic*, THX Soundtrack! (anyone fancy doing an NTSC to PAL transcode for me?!)
- BBC Omnibus – Flying Solo
- BBC Omnibus – A long time ago…
- Laserdisc Supplementals
- Behind the Masks
- The Stars of Star Wars
- Unauthorised Story of Star Wars
- Rareties 1, 2, 3
- From the Film Vaults*
- The Holiday Special
- Star Wars Forgotten Scenes*
- Star Wars Unsung Heros (my copy is partly corrupt, please contact me if you have this, thanks)
- Feel the Force
- EditDroid Special Features
- Peter Cushing Interview
- Alec Guiness interview – Parkinson
- Widescreen Star Wars Bootleg
- Machine Men BBC4
- Feel the Force
- Sculpting a Galaxy DVD
- Time & Again
- Magic and the Mystery (UK Version)
- PBS’s George Lucas: Heroes, Myths and Magic
- Magic Magic CD-ROM/DVD
- Behind the Magic
- The Making of the SE
- Paramount Jabba Footage
- Interviews with Star Wars Stars 1998 (youtube)
- WTVJ Montage – Star Wars Interviews (youtube)
- GMTV Interviews 1997 (youtube)
- “THE MIKE DOUGLAS SHOW” (1977) (youtube)
- The making of Star Wars Computer Graphics (youtube)
- AFI youtube videos
Books/Magazines
- The Art of Star Wars
- From Concept to Screen to Collectible
- Lucasfilm Archives
- Star Wars, The Annotated Screenplays
- Star Wars Aficionado
- Star Wars Insider – Lost Cut Article
- Star Wars Chronicles
- Star Wars Portfolio
- Starlog Magazine
- Photoplay Magazine
- The Illustrated Star Wars Universe
- Sculpting A Galaxy
- The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film
Web Resources
- Starwarz.com
- T-Bones Star Wars Universe
- Originaltrilogy.com
- Theforce.net
- Rebelscum.com
- Youtube.com
- Vimeo.com
* = No material will be sourced from this DVD. For research purposes only.
Cover art by Jambe Davdar (DOWNLOAD HERE)
Cover art by LexX (DOWNLOAD HERE)
Cover art by AvP (DOWNLOAD HERE)
Cover art by LexX (DOWNLOAD HERE)
Cover art by AvP (DOWNLOAD HERE)Star Wars Begins
User reviews
26 reviews
Overall rating
9.8
Audio/Video Quality
9.4(11)
Audio Editing
9.6(11)
Visual Editing
10.0(11)
Narrative
9.9(10)
Enjoyment
9.9(26)
Overall rating
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
8.0
Audio Editing
8.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
9.0
Enjoyment
10.0
Finally watched this again and it is hugely entertaining for sure.
This is an exhaustive mix of sources, some which I do have and are better quality, but the mix of styles can sometimes throw your concentration and rhythmn.
That said, its hard to beat this as a fan made doco so full 10 on the enjoyment scale.
I would love to see an update one day as better visuals come to light.
Excellent work!
This is an exhaustive mix of sources, some which I do have and are better quality, but the mix of styles can sometimes throw your concentration and rhythmn.
That said, its hard to beat this as a fan made doco so full 10 on the enjoyment scale.
I would love to see an update one day as better visuals come to light.
Excellent work!
W
Overall rating
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
10.0
Released in 2011, Jambe Davdar came back after 4 years off to release this "filmumentary" on A New Hope, his magnum opus on the Star Wars trilogy. He had already done one for ESB (review here: https://ifdb.fanedit.org/building-empire/reviews/?user=34747) and one for RotJ (review here: https://ifdb.fanedit.org/returning-to-jedi/reviews/?user=34747) Basically everything I said in those films is also true here, only this one shows the benefit of 4 more years experience, and is really the best of the bunch by far.
There are a couple of inescapable truths here. Firstly, that the A/V sources differ in quality greatly. But it seems a greater effort has been made to clean these up. Also, that some parts of the film are just going to have less to say about them. But really this whole thing is pretty packed, sometimes with interview comments coming in rapid fire, too many great points about a scene to fit in the time alloted for it. The issue with long stretches of silence in the other filmumentaries is not present here. You get the idea that sometimes the editor is choosing to give a breather and just let great moments play out, but it never lasts overlong.
The material here seems pulled from an even greater number of sources, and is truly informative even for a diehard Star Wars fan. There is footage I had never seen, or had seen but didn't note. That's the only real criticism I have, that sometimes the alternate scenes are almost identical, and I don't know that I need to watch an exchange two or three times in a row just because a word or two is different.
But generally, this is just a very tight, very smart commentary viewing on a really great film. With the other two SW filmumentaries, I'm not sure how often I'll choose to rewatch the film that way. But this is one that I'm eager to return to often. Can't wait to check out his work on Raiders and Jaws!
There are a couple of inescapable truths here. Firstly, that the A/V sources differ in quality greatly. But it seems a greater effort has been made to clean these up. Also, that some parts of the film are just going to have less to say about them. But really this whole thing is pretty packed, sometimes with interview comments coming in rapid fire, too many great points about a scene to fit in the time alloted for it. The issue with long stretches of silence in the other filmumentaries is not present here. You get the idea that sometimes the editor is choosing to give a breather and just let great moments play out, but it never lasts overlong.
The material here seems pulled from an even greater number of sources, and is truly informative even for a diehard Star Wars fan. There is footage I had never seen, or had seen but didn't note. That's the only real criticism I have, that sometimes the alternate scenes are almost identical, and I don't know that I need to watch an exchange two or three times in a row just because a word or two is different.
But generally, this is just a very tight, very smart commentary viewing on a really great film. With the other two SW filmumentaries, I'm not sure how often I'll choose to rewatch the film that way. But this is one that I'm eager to return to often. Can't wait to check out his work on Raiders and Jaws!
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
M
(Updated: April 04, 2022)
Overall rating
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
10.0
In the same vein as Roger Ebert's commentary for Citizen Kane, this is essential viewing for any and all cinephiles, regardless of your view on the film itself. If there was anyone competent on the Star Wars side of Disney, this would be on all official releases of the film.
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
Y
Overall rating
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
10.0
A ton of fun -- the story of the genesis and development of Star Wars is one of the great stories in cinema history and I can never get enough of hearing about it. This A/V commentary doubles as a fun way to re-experience the film itself. The other reviewer who compared it to Pop-Up Video got it right. 70s and 90s nostalgia rolled into one, can't beat that!
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
R
Overall rating
9.8
Audio/Video Quality
9.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
10.0
Readers of a certain vintage will remember the "Pop-Up Videos" of the late 1990s. They were regular music videos with various facts about the songs and artists that popped up on screen as the video played. It was horribly cheesy and decidedly 1990s. Now imagine that, but without the cheesiness, and it's Star Wars, with added deleted and alternate takes, behind the scenes shots and an absolutely incredible custom commentary track from everyone involved in making the film. How the editor managed to assemble all these sources and blend them in so seamlessly is beyond me. Highly recommended for anyone looking for insight into how Star Wars was made. Looking forward to the other 2 installments.
A