Star Wars as Pulp Sci-Fi

mikelove writes "Salon has an article arguing that Star Wars owes its origins to pulp science fiction and not Joseph Campbell-esque mythology. Finally SOMEONE is realizing this... Also makes the suggestion that Lucas/Kasdan didn't really write The Empire Strikes Back, which makes a certain amount of sense when you compare it to Lucas' other screenplays."

Comments

He's not even credited with it

[Anonymous Coward]

> I don't see why someone wouldn't have already claimed that lucas didn't write ESB.

Perhaps because...

1. Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan are credited for the screenplay and Lucas is not? So to the public, there was no controversy as to who wrote it.

2. Leigh Brackett died after writing the initial screenplay, before the movie was made, so she wasn't around to contest claims made by Lucas and Kasdan.

3. Lucas and Kasdan wrote ROTJ. The weakest film of the original three.

4. Lucas wrote Phantom Menace. The worst of the four. Brackett's mysterious pseudo-spiritual Force from ESB becomes something you might get in your breakfast cereal in TPM. "Wheaties: Now fortified with midichlorians!"

Lucas didn't start making grandiose claims about myth-making until he had a hundred million dollars in his pocket. At that point, you spout whatever claptrap you like and the adoring public eats it up.

Later on, TPM woke up the adoring public, causing them to re-evaluate their earlier adulation. "Hey, Lucas isn't as great as I thought he was!"

Remember, Lucas borrowed from all the sci-fi of the day and a TEAM of artists created the Star Wars look and feel. Lucas is no visionary.

Ignorance on parade

[Rand Race]

One usually has to read the works of a scholar before denouncing those who claim to follow it. Being a semi-adherant of the historical school as typified by Graves, I'm no big fan of the Campbell/Jung school of 'universal' mythology although it has it's points. However, one of Campbells main ideas, and his best theory IMHO, was that the themes shown in mythology are not only common across all historical societies but that the same themes are still the basis of our own stories and tales. Tattoine looks like Arrakis? They are both the friggin' Wasteland for Kibo's sake. Lucas didn't rip off Smith's Lensmen, they both ripped off the Knights of the Round Table which stole from Homer's Greek and Trojan heroes who in turn are updated versions of the heroes of the Upanishads. This was Campbells main point! I personally believe he gave it too much weight, historical happenings color myth more than the Jungian common unconciousness does, but it is hard to argue that such commonality does not exist. Wasn't it Heinlein who said there were only three stories?

Oh, and the nerve of accusing The Matrix of ripping off Nueromancer and then mentioning Blade Runner in the next sentance! Ridley Scott defined the look of cyberpunk thankyou... and even he was borrowing from others. A bit of Omega Man, a touch of Babel 17, some Felinniesque visuals, with just a sprinkle of A Clockwork Orange for good measure.

It's been said over and over again for nearly three millenia (and probably longer), but the Preacher of Ecclesiastes is still right: There is nothing new under the sun.