
Archive
Top SFX shots No.3: Star Wars
Martin Anderson
Published on Dec 29, 2008
Though the opening shot of Star Wars remains the most iconic, it suffered sniffy criticism from some quarters for being a higher-speed re-run of Douglas Trumbull's initial pan on the Jupiter mission in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). This shot, on the other hand is not only equally exciting but far more original, as we take the point of view of a rebel fighter diving into the Death Star's trench to take a shot at the reactors. The vast scale of the Death Star is revealed as soon as we have made our dizzying descent downward, and we see the walls of the trench extend for miles ahead. This three-element shot (model, laser-bolts and star background) relies on the flexibility (rather than the repeatability) of the Dykstraflex motion control system, and is still a stunner.
Return to Top 50 movie special effects shots
Users Comments
Re: Top SFX shots No.3: Star Wars
Posted By beinglllnet 1 May 20, 2009 09:46:57 AM
Post a Comment
Related Articles
- The entire history of Doctor Who in 10 minutes
- Must see: Lionel Ritchie’s Hello via movie clips
- Four seasons of Battlestar Galactica in the style of an old videogame
- The opening titles of Ulysses 31 redone in live action
- The Die Hard quadrilogy in song
- Revolutionise your film with Michael Bay In A Can
- Two floppy drives play the Imperial March from Star Wars
- Matthew Crosby interview: the Edinburgh Fringe, Pappy’s, stand-up, and fried chicken restaurants
- Stop boring Hugh Laurie!


