Any self-respecting Star Wars fanboy will tell you that bar none, the best film out of the 6-film saga is hands down “Empire Strikes Back.” A few days ago I was watching it again on DVD. Unfortunately, the only DVDs of the saga they sell are the “new and approved” digitally remastered and re-edited new edition versions. You know, where they went back and updated all the special effects and added some new scenes, many of which do absolutely nothing for the story. In fact, I would argue that these new edition versions of Star Wars: Episodes IV, V, and VI are less interesting than the original. Case in point: Empire.
The Failure at the Cave
No, I’m not talking about Luke’s failure at the tree cave that is strong in the Dark Side of the Force where he confronts himself and his fears. I’m talking about Lucas Film’s failure at the ice cave near the beginning of the movie in this new edition. It’s the scene in the first act where Luke is trapped in the ice cave by that Yeti-like monster known as a Wampa. In the original version, we see Luke hanging upside, his feet encased in ice. In the distance we hear the sounds of the Wampa. Its menacing growl is terrifying. Luke awakens and sees his light saber just inches from his reach. He desperately tries to reach it but to no avail. The horrific howling seems to be getting closer. Luke rests. Concentrates. The monster’s growls are getting closer. He could pounce at any moment. But Luke stays calm! HOW CAN HE STAY CALM WHEN THE MONSTER COULD JUMP OUT ANY SECOND! Using for the force, Luke commands the light saber to spring to his hands. He activates the weapon and frees himself just as the Wampa is about to pounce. For a split second we see the gruesome face of the monster. It all goes by so fast. You barely get to see him. Acting quickly, Luke strikes and the next shot is the monster’s arm falling in slow motion to the ground. In the next scene we see Luke outside the cave, running for his life.
This original scene was awesome. We are THERE WITH LUKE in that cave. We have no idea how far the monster is or when he’ll be on top of Luke. As an audience member, we can experience the fear and trepidation as if we are there ourselves. And we never fully see the monster. Our imagination fills in many of the blanks.
Now let’s see that scene played out in the new edition…
Again we’re there with Luke in the cave, blah, blah, blah. But this time, when we hear the monster, they cut to a scene of him sitting in the next room chomping on his latest kill, most likely Luke’s Tauntaun I guess. Nothing is left to the imagination what the monster does or looks like. And all the tension from not seeing him is totally gone. We know exactly where he is and what he’s doing. We then cut back to Luke using the force, yada, yada, cut back to old abominable looking up, curious, as if to say “Hmmm, I think my victim is trying to get away. I better go see what’s going on. Humm-dee-dum-dee-dum.” Cut to Luke freeing himself, the monster attacks, Luke strikes, the hand falls in slow mo, the we see the monster with his entire arm severed and screaming in pain.
Sorry, but this new edition scene pales in comparison to the original. And there are a few other added shots and scenes in the film that do nothing but show how cool the new special effects are.
Hitchcock Was Right
The reason why Alfred Hitchcock was the master at suspense was because he realized what all the best filmmakers through time realized: that more often than not, showing the audience LESS is more powerful and compelling than showing them MORE. Hitchcock, Polanski, Kurasawa, and even contemporary auteurs like Tarantino or the Coen Brothers, all utilize what you see and what you CAN’T see in order to emphasize their stories.
Film already has an amazing way of transporting you to a different world. It’s all the more impactful when you can actually draw the audience in and have them viscerally experience what the characters on screen experience. The original ice cave scene in Empire does that. This “new and improved” version takes away from that experience, IMHO.
So, my encouragement to all you aspiring (and pro) filmmakers out there: don’t feel like you have to show us everything in your films. Know when it makes sense to show us more, but be open and prepared to show us less.
Visual effects master, director, and filmmaker Stu Maschwitz makes a great point about this on an episode of MacVideo wherein he gives his take on why 24p is such a big deal. Click the image below to see it.
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