7 Star Wars Anthology Film Ideas

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story comes out tonight. I'm stoked! You guys stoked?!

Even more than last year's The Force Awakens, Rogue One ushers in a new era of hype and entertainment for Star Wars fans. It's the first of an infinite number of Star Wars spin-off or standalone or anthology or whatever-you-wanna-call-'em movies planned for the future. Star Wars content has been perpetually put out on all possible platforms for the past year or so, but nothing outside the main saga is potentially more exciting than the anthology movies. Since the first Star Wars came out in '77, all the best Star Wars content outside the original trilogy has exploited the inherent vastness of the Star Wars universe. The future anthology films are an opportunity to explore the rich terrain and far corners of our favorite galaxy far, far, away more successfully than ever.

With an infinite number of stories to be told, Disney has a chance to take risks with these movies and let their artist's tell these stories through unique lenses. Despite all the re-shoot and corporate control rumors surrounding Rogue One, the finished product will be a decent barometer of how far they're willing to let these movies go "off-brand" for the sake of worthwhile film-making. And on the off chance that Disney's listening, here are 7 of my favorite ideas for Star Wars anthology films--some I've read elsewhere online, some wholly my own. Just a heads up: I didn't include an Obi-Wan movie on my list because recent rumors suggest we're going to get one after Obi-Wan's role in the new trilogy is fully fleshed out. So here are some more hypothetical ideas. Enjoy...


1. Once Upon a Time On Tatooine

An iconic scene from Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West
provides a template for what a Star Wars Spaghetti Western might look like.

Among all the mythological and cultural influences that coagulated inside George Lucas' brain and gave birth to Star Wars, the American Western looms large. Han Solo--arguably the most popular character of the series--personifies that influence. Likewise, the desert planet of Tatooine and its seedy towns, farms and hermetic dwellings make for an undeniably Western world. I'd love to see a Star Wars movie go full Western, and I'd love to see that movie took an aesthetic queue from Spaghetti Westerns like Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy or Once Upon a Time in the West. Imagine a mexican stand-off like the one at the end of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, only on the outskirts of Mos Eisley spaceport, between some dangerous Outer Rim bounty hunters, with a soundtrack halfway between John Williams and Ennio Morricone. Frankly, I can't think of any Star Wars movie I'd rather see than a Space-Spaghetti Western called Once Upon a Time On Tatooine.


2. Suicide Squadron

It looks like we already have a Dirty Dozen-esque Star Wars movie in Rogue One, but what if we took that concept one or two steps further for a movie that's even closer to Suicide Squad or Inglourious Basterds? What if, after the Battle of Endor, the leaders of the New Republic bring together a vicious group of Imperials, bounty hunters and war criminals and force them into some crazy suicide mission? It'd be a great opportunity to portray the rebel alliance in a less heroic light, and spend some quality time with a cast of badass, morally ambiguous characters.


3. Star Wars: Underground

Star Wars 1313 Concept Art

Every Star Wars fan has uncharted corners of the Star Wars universe that peak their interest. At this point it should be clear that Star Wars' seedy underbelly peaks mine. We've had plenty of vivid glimpses of it--from the Mos Eisley cantina in A New Hope to the gathering of bounty hunters in Empire. Now, just imagine a whole movie focused on Star Wars' criminal underworld. Before Disney bought Star Wars, there were a couple projects in the works that intended to focus on this very concept. One was a planned live-action TV series called Star Wars: Underworld. The other was a video game called Star Wars 1313, which would have dealt with Boba Fett's early bounty hunting days roaming the literal underground of Coruscant's planetary metropolis. A crime movie in space, somewhere between these two projects, would be a Blade Runner/Heavy Metal-esque visual feast of a movie.


4. Princess Leia: A Star Wars Story

Moving forward, I think the key to the anthology films will be knowing which stories are worth telling and which ones aren't. For the most part, I think origin stories would fall in the latter category--especially ones involving the saga's most iconic heroes (needless to say, I'm already super skeptical of 2018's Han Solo movie). Having said that, I can't imagine not enjoying a movie about Princess Leia's formative years. The young female heroine archetype is quickly becoming the favored protagonist model for Star Wars, so why not make a standalone film for the original badass space princess?


5. Boba Fett: A (Non-Origin) Star Wars Story

Rumor has it a Boba Fett movie is already in the works. I hope to God they don't make it an origin story. The aura of mystery surrounding Boba Fett accounts for much of the character's longstanding appeal, and the best way to uphold the mystery would be to make a Boba Fett movie that takes place during or after the original trilogy. Fans of the old Star Wars expanded universe (now designated by Disney as non-canon with the title Legends) will remember that Boba Fett escaped the sarlacc pitt after Return of the Jedi. Now would be a perfect time to bring this story into the new canon and detail Boba Fett's post-ROTJ adventures. For a short glimpse of what this movie might look like, check out the epic fan trailer below:

6. Knights of the Old Republic

I've never played any of the Knights of the Old Republic games, but from what I hear they contain some of the most interesting stories and characters from the Legends canon. Right now, there's nothing in the new official canon that predates The Phantom Menace (though a Darth Maul prequel comic is set to come out soon). A Knights of the Old Republic movie would be a perfect place to start exploring the pre-saga history of the Jedi and the Sith. We'd get both large and intimate scale light-saber action, mysterious heroes and villains, and maybe even a story that could break down, or even subvert the myths that both the Jedi and the Sith have built around their equally dogmatic holds on the Force.


7. Droids

Early reviews of Rogue One are already touting it as the first Star Wars film completely for the grown up fans. If that's the case, we should let the kids have a Star Wars movie all their own as well. When I was a kid, I loved R2-D2 and C-3P0 more than any other Star Wars character, and I was a huge fan of the '80's Droids cartoon. A feature-length animated reboot of Star Wars: Droids would be the perfect way to please the kiddies. And I'd still watch it, because c'mon, droids are fun AF.


Now that you've heard my two-cents, what are some of your favorite Star Wars anthology ideas? Comment below...

A New Hope vs The Empire Strikes Back—Which is the Best Star Wars Film?

With the exception of those psychos who argue that the prequels are better than the original trilogy, most Star Wars fans tend to rank either Star Wars: A New Hope or The Empire Strikes Back as the best Star Wars film of all time (There's also a solid camp of Return of the Jedi die-hards out there, but in my estimation these folks tend to be more influenced more by unchecked nostalgia than the rest of us. "Jedi is my favorite because I watched it the most as a kid" seems to be the most common argument). I've spent equal time in both New Hope and Empire camps over the years. Those first two films are the heart and soul of the entire Star Wars franchise—the source of whatever magic it is that turned this little-space-opera-that-could into a juggernaut of contemporary culture. But if we had to choose, which one is the definitive Star Wars film: the original that gave birth to the phenomenon, or the triumphant sequel that upped the ante in every way possible? Let's make the best case for both and see where we end up...

The Game-Changer: Star Wars—A New Hope

As crazy as it is to think that there was a time when Star Wars didn't exist, it's almost crazier to think that there was a time when it only existed as one single film. My Dad has told me numerous times about his experience of watching Star Wars for the first time. It was at a theater in his hometown of Logan, Utah and he was one of only three people in the whole place. In this isolated viewing situation, on the eve of the first explosions of the Star Wars phenomenon, I imagine my then-18-year-old Dad must have had a pretty clear picture of all the pop-culture ornaments from his adolescence that were coming together in this new Space saga—Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, John Ford westerns, Clash of the Titans, and 1960's hot-rod culture—it was all there, synthesized into one big-screen adventure.
And that is the genius (and charm) of Star Wars: A New Hope. To fully appreciate the staying power and cultural impact of the Star Wars franchise, you have to look back to the source and see where it came from. Star Wars is not just Star Wars. It didn't just come out of nowhere. It is an amalgam of many different cultural influences that George Lucas brilliantly synthesized in the first film, and with this synthesis changed the course of film making and popular culture at large. On top of all that, it's a hell of a lot of fun. If A New Hope is the greatest Star Wars film of all time, it is not solely because it is the original, but rather, it is an original piece of work that brought together a bunch of old things to create something new.

The Ante-Upper: The Empire Strikes Back

I tend to think that the original trilogy is much more interesting when viewed as a series of "epic retro-futuristic eastern mythology hero space westerns" than simply as Star Wars films. In other words, the further Star Wars gets away from its genre roots and becomes its own thing, the less intriguing it gets. But that doesn't necessarily mean that each film isn't worth looking at on its own merits. At the end of the day, no other Star Wars property beats The Empire Strikes Back in terms of storytelling, character development, and just about every technical aspect of film making. Perhaps the most important narrative development in Empire is the addition of Yoda. Not only is Luke's Jedi training at the hand of the pint-sized Jedi master a brilliant elaboration on the eastern philosophy-influenced Jedi mythology from A New Hope, but its setting on the swamp planet of Dagobah makes for an incredible set piece which, along with Empire's other two major locations, marks the true beginning of the saga's unique and highly influential world-building capacities.
The story and scope of Empire wouldn't be nearly as effective, however, were it not for the inspired work of director Irvin Kershner and director of photography Peter Suschitzky. Together, Kershner and Shuschitzky meet the added emotional depth of George Lucas' second act with dark atmosphere and somber mood. Even something as simple as a shot of the Millenium Falcon's cockpit is improved upon by their combined visual flare. Take a look:

Here's the cockpit of the Millenium Falcon in A New Hope...

And here it is in Empire...

There's a clear shift in visual style here. Where George Lucas and A New Hope D.P. Gilbert Taylor gave us a brilliantly updated version of 1950's sci-fi cinematography, Kershner and Suschitzky take spaceships, ice planets, and sky-cities and make them look dark, moody, and romantic. Both approaches are great, but in terms of sheer visual pleasure, The Empire Strikes Back clearly takes the cake. 

Conclusion

So, given the evidence, if we had to chose, which is the better: Star Wars: A New Hope or The Empire Strikes Back?
Here's the thing—we don't really have to choose. At least, not definitively. What it all barrels down to is whether you prefer the swashbuckling, genre-mixing entertainment and retro-futuristic sheen of A New Hope, or the deeper dramatic pull and visual splendor of The Empire Strikes Back.
And for those of you who are still annoyed that I left Return of the Jedi out of the mix, just bear in mind that I didn't do it without good reason. If A New Hope is the "game-changer" and The Empire Strikes Back is the "ante-upper", then Jedi is kind of just the third Star Wars movie, no matter how good or bad it is or how much sentimental value it holds for you. It's not so much that Jedi isn't a great third act, because it is. In fact, it deserves a lot of credit for maintaining the adventurous spirit that defined the the first film as well as the drama that permeated the second. It just doesn't fire on all cylinders like the other two films do, perhaps largely because it's visually the least distinguished work in the trilogy. Had David Lynch or David Cronenberg agreed to direct Jedi when it was offered to them respectively, we'd probably be having a completely different conversation right now.

What do you think? Which is the best Star Wars film?