- 5 minutes ago
Dodgy de-ageing, cartoonish creatures and other dreadful CGI in Star Wars.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00The Star Wars franchise will always be one that looks to push the limits of what is possible with
00:05movie-making technology. But as already shown in the previous version of this list, relying on the
00:11tool known as CGI in some situations has occasionally led to, well, some quite dreadful
00:18visuals in this galaxy far, far away. So I'm Gareth, this is WhatCultureStarWars,
00:23and here are 10 more of the worst CGI moments in Star Wars.
00:2810. A LOT DURING THE ARENA BATTLE
00:31Episode 2, Attack of the Clones
00:33George Lucas evidently wanted to test what CGI was capable of when creating this second prequel,
00:40opting to rely on it even more than he did in Episode 1, The Phantom Menace. But it was that
00:44gamble which ultimately resulted in some of the film's visuals aging like a pint of blue milk.
00:50Not very well. The climactic battle within the Petronachia arena is a prime example of Lucas
00:55perhaps getting a little too carried away with his new favourite toy.
00:59With so many moving digital parts to keep track of as the Jedi start slicing their way through droids,
01:05creatures sprint around the sand, and a bounty hunter tries to pick off a few targets,
01:09a number of poorly executed CGI moments derail the otherwise thrilling sequence.
01:15You have the sight of a number of extras hilariously swiping their lightsabers at nothing in the background,
01:20as the VFX team likely hoped that no one would notice a lack of droid or blaster shot around them.
01:25Then you also have the comically weightless Geonosians,
01:28and Jango Fett looking like a video game character as he dodged the Reek.
01:31Also, try not to let out a giggle at the jarring composite of Padme atop a cartoonish beast,
01:38as she picks up her beloved Anakin mid-fight. It does not look great.
01:42There's obviously a lot to love about this part of the gripping skirmish too,
01:46with close-ups of the aforementioned Reek and many a droid standing the test of time.
01:52They actually look really good.
01:53But this ambitious battle of Geonosis is still a scene that highlights the very worst of the prequels,
01:59that being an over-reliance on this shiny but inconsistent new digital tool.
02:049. Bouncing Ahsoka
02:06Ahsoka
02:07Even with CGI technology hugely improving over the last two decades,
02:11the minds behind the more recent Star Wars projects still haven't been able to completely nail
02:17each and every digital moment they've chucked on screen.
02:20Take the first season of Ahsoka, for example.
02:22While the CGI is generally of a high standard throughout this search for Ezra Bridger and Grand Admiral Thrawn,
02:29the space battles in particular do not disappoint here,
02:31that generally impressive digital work made one dodgy moment stick out like a sore thumb, sadly.
02:37Watch closely as Ahsoka dives out of her T6-1974 to take on Balen's skull on Peridia.
02:44And, well, something seems a little off.
02:46The VFX team have seemingly swapped Rosario Dawson out for a CG Ahsoka as her character hits the ground,
02:53before swapping the actor back in again as she rolls.
02:56But the digital assistance just leaves Anakin Skywalker's one-time Padawan oddly bouncing off the surface
03:03in a way that makes her look like an animated Force user for a moment or two.
03:07It's like we were right back in the middle of the Clone Wars series.
03:09As YouTube user Bombastic Clips pointed out,
03:13perhaps cutting between the moment the actor or their stunt person hopped out of the ship
03:17and them landing would have been the wiser, though perhaps more time-consuming, move here.
03:23Instead, the creators went the digital route,
03:25and fans got a rare case of poor CGI in the otherwise well-made show.
03:30What do you want to see in Ahsoka Season 2, folks?
03:32You let me know in the comments section down below.
03:35Number 8, Here Come the Rakhtars, Episode 7, The Force Awakens
03:39Fans rejoiced as the early stages of J.J. Abrams' first sequel picture
03:45looked to be embracing the more practical side of special effects, just like the good old days.
03:50Along with a ton of beautifully crafted alien inhabitants on the desert world of Jakku,
03:55real, practical sets were masterfully combined with certain digital elements
04:00to create a galaxy that felt far more tangible than the prequels often did.
04:05Then they arrived.
04:06After Finn and Rey bump into Han Solo and Chewbacca in Episode 7, The Force Awakens,
04:12it soon revealed that the latter duo had been hauling Rakhtars across the galaxy.
04:17Instead of unleashing a terrifying, tentacled creature controlled by talented puppeteers, however,
04:22Abrams opted to just lazily have our heroes chased by some rolling balls of crap, rubbery and blurry fury.
04:29Now look, they're not the absolute worst CGI monsters ever to try and chow down on one of our heroes,
04:35but the many-eyed carnivore still felt like something ripped out of another franchise altogether,
04:40like, I don't know, the MCU, and cheaply dropped into this Skywalker saga tale.
04:45This return to far less compelling CGI aliens after seeing some wonderful practical creations in the opening stages,
04:53like the Hap-A-Boar, I love that guy,
04:55was also a major reason this first action sequence involving Chewie and Han in decades felt like a bit of
05:01a letdown in the end too.
05:03Number 7, The Sarlacc Beak, Episode 6, Return of the Jedi
05:07Speaking of unwelcome, digitally-created monstrosities,
05:11George Lucas' special edition tinkering led to an old favourite getting an unnecessary upgrade.
05:18After attempting to rescue Han Solo from Jabba the Hutt in Episode 6, Return of the Jedi,
05:23Luke Skywalker and pals found themselves on the verge of being fed to the almighty Sarlacc found within the Great
05:30Pit of Karkoon.
05:31The sight of all those sharp, deadly teeth and tentacles was already enough to leave folks worried about the Jedi
05:38and his mate's chances of surviving the deep and dangerous pit of doom.
05:42But Lucas did not think that was frightening enough, so he decided to add some additional CG terror.
05:48Would George throw in some more jagged teeth, some claws, or possibly even a set of menacing eyes to further
05:55spook our heroes?
05:57No, not quite. Instead, Lucas gave his Sarlacc a silly-looking digital beak, which was actually its tongue apparently,
06:04and some additional tentacles, transforming this somewhat hidden and disturbing monster into something that instantly felt a bit less intimidating.
06:12The CGI itself also doesn't quite mesh with the rest of the practical creation either,
06:18with the end result just largely distracting from the rest of the rousing sequence.
06:22You probably should have just left this one alone.
06:24Number 6, The Floating Pair, Episode 2, Attack of the Clones
06:28Oh, you knew it was coming.
06:30Returning to the Star Wars project that opted to boldly and sometimes ill-advisedly depend on CG wherever possible,
06:37Episode 2, Attack of the Clones saw a young Chosen One show off his strength with the Force to his
06:43future wife.
06:44Somehow being more excruciating than the sound of Anakin Skywalker attempting to flirt with Padme Amidala,
06:50this Jedi Padawan floats the weirdest-looking pair you have ever seen across a table in front of her whilst
06:56they're enjoying some grub on Naboo.
06:58The act itself is sweet enough, pun intended.
07:01However, there is never a point there when this clearly CG fruit doesn't feel like the fakest object in the
07:08room,
07:08with everything from the way it's chopped up by Annie to how Padme picked it out of the sky like
07:13a snowflake with her fork.
07:14Just feeling seriously uncanny. It's a bit uncomfortable, it's weird.
07:18Now, the attempt was admirable, sure, but the odd finished effect just didn't pass muster.
07:24Would it really have been that hard to just use wires to move a far less weirdly shiny piece of
07:29prop food over to the eventual Mrs. Skywalker?
07:32Apparently so.
07:33And that is why fans were forced to endure another example of George Lucas not knowing when to put the
07:39digital wand, or should that be fork, down.
07:42Cheers for checking out this list today, you lovely person you.
07:44And if you're enjoying this WhatCultureStarWars stuff in your life, then hit that subscribe button right now,
07:49and you're gonna get more of it popping up all over your screen. Good stuff.
07:53Number 5. Layers Training Episode 9 The Rise of Skywalker
07:57With consent from the late, great Carrie Fisher's family, J.J. Abrams and co. were able to use unused footage
08:04from Episode 7 The Force Awakens
08:06to bring Leia Organa's story to an emotional end in Episode 9 The Rise of Skywalker.
08:12Now, considering the circumstances, the team did a pretty impressive job when it came to keeping Leia involved in the
08:18action set in the present day.
08:20However, the same could not be said for her flashback appearance in the film.
08:23During a moment which showed Leia training with her brother Luke many years earlier,
08:28younger versions of both Mark Hamill and Fisher eventually revealed their faces from underneath their blaster helmets.
08:34While Hamill's younger mug actually looked quite convincing as it was lit up by his green lightsaber at night, though,
08:41Fisher's face wandered into Rogue One as Star Wars story territory again, sadly.
08:45Despite using dailies from Episode 6 Return of the Jedi and Fisher's own daughter Billy Lord as a stand-in
08:51body double,
08:52there was still no getting away from the fact Leia's CG face looked like it belonged in a Star Wars
08:58video game here.
08:59Number 4. The CG Backgrounds Episode 2 Attack of the Clones
09:03I promise this would be the last time that this list dunks on Attack of the Clones.
09:07Scout's honor. Or Padawan's honor. I don't know.
09:09Again, while you definitely have to salute George Lucas and his team for the way they experimented with fully CGI
09:15backgrounds throughout this second prequel,
09:17their boldness wasn't always rewarded with stunning results.
09:21Perhaps the most glaring example of a digital background that has aged appallingly
09:25can be found during the moment involving Obi-Wan Kenobi, Mace Windu, and Yoda going for a wander through the
09:31Jedi Temple within the opening 30 minutes.
09:34The scene felt like the actors had been dropped into an animated movie for a few minutes,
09:38with the compositing and lighting during the conversation not quite being up to scratch.
09:42Everything from the colours of the carpet to the gigantic pillars just felt incredibly artificial,
09:48especially when compared to the far more detailed and impressive miniatures and practical sets
09:52used to create Star Wars locations at various points in both the prequel and original trilogies.
09:58Spare a thought for the poor performers who spent hours having to pretend they were walking and talking with little
10:03green aliens in grand structures too,
10:06with nothing but green or blue screens and the odd prop to react to.
10:09I'd go mad.
10:10Number 3, The Creepy Clones, Episode 3, Revenge of the Sith
10:14It's well documented that George Lucas oddly decided to have every single fully suited clone that appeared in the prequels
10:21be an entirely digital creation.
10:23But while the call was a questionable one, the effect itself was decent enough in Attack of the Clones,
10:29and improved further by the time of the final prequel.
10:32But then, Commander Cody opted to take his helmet off in Episode 3, Revenge of the Sith, and things got
10:37a bit weird.
10:38With not a single piece of practical armour being made for this film,
10:42Lucas instead chose to slap a digital suit onto Mira Morrison for the moment he hands Ewan McGregor's Obi-Wan
10:48Kenobi his lightsaber back.
10:50This was unquestionably a tough effect to pull off in the early to mid-2000s,
10:55and while the effort was definitely commendable, it ultimately just felt all kinds of unnatural as Cody's head weirdly floated
11:02around the armour.
11:03Similarly to Bruce Banner's floating head in Avengers Infinity War.
11:06Maybe they should have just left the mask on and saved viewers from being forever haunted by this levitating clone
11:12skull, yeah?
11:13Number 2, De-Aging Anakin and Obi-Wan, Obi-Wan Kenobi
11:17Now here's something a little bit different.
11:19While many of the other entries on this list focus on moments where overindulging in CGI led to cartoonish or
11:26jarring visuals,
11:28this one will look at a sequence that suffered somewhat due to the opposite.
11:31Hopping back in time for a spot of lightsaber training with Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi,
11:36the latter's Disney Plus series saw the return of both Hayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor in the famous roles they
11:43played throughout the prequels.
11:45Both actors were seemingly adjusted slightly via de-aging tech for the engaging back and forth,
11:51but just not quite enough in the end, particularly in the case of Christensen.
11:55For the most part, this wasn't exactly a big issue, especially as most of the scene involved them swinging lightsabers.
12:01You're not really looking at their faces when they're doing that.
12:03In those few moments when the camera captures Christensen's face in close-up, though,
12:09the CG tinkering can't quite mask the fact the actor is noticeably a fair bit older than he was when
12:15he shot Episode 2, Attack of the Clones,
12:17which was set at a similar time as this scene.
12:19Clearly realizing they needed to up their game, the folks working on Ahsoka definitely made Christensen look far more convincing
12:26as a younger version of himself during the World Between Worlds sequence.
12:30In Obi-Wan Kenobi, though, the force was definitely not strong with the digital de-aging of this actor.
12:361. The Blurg, The Mandalorian
12:39Trying to make a real person sitting on top of a fully digital animal look convincing can be a tough
12:46nut to crack,
12:46something that was evident during the first season of The Mandalorian.
12:49Now, it must be said that the majority of the digital effects present in these first few episodes of Mando
12:55Fun are solid to tremendous,
12:57especially for a TV show.
12:59A show with a $100 million budget, admittedly, but that's still smaller than your average modern-day Star Wars blockbuster.
13:05Though that smaller budget wasn't really felt all that much when Din Djarin was interacting with a cute little puppet
13:12Grogu or fighting off Stormtroopers,
13:13it sadly was during the moment when the titular Mandalorian hopped on the aforementioned Blurg.
13:20Feeling like one of the many pointless creatures George Lucas stuffed into his original trilogy over the years,
13:26this alien, first seen in Ewoks' The Battle of Endor, was one of the few low points in an otherwise
13:32strong first season.
13:33Now, the VFX team evidently went to great lengths to bring the Blurgs back into the galaxy far, far away,
13:39even throwing Pedro Pascal and stunt doubles onto a book for the moment when he tries to hop onto one.
13:45The digital Blurg was then added in later, you see.
13:47It's a shame, then, that outside of the odd impressive close-up, admittedly,
13:51the CGI Blurgs dragged down the majority of the scenes they're in,
13:55especially the ones where they're seen going for a weightless run.
13:58Oh my god.
13:59Yep, was not pretty, but we still got Grogu, so everything's fine.
Comments