《星戰》電影系列明顯有正邪對立的思想，然而電影不斷闡述平衡宇宙的「原力」（The Force），代表著神秘的力場和人類的某種信念。有智慧的觀眾都明白「原力」只是故事其中一個賣點，實在無需把這種意念變成真實信仰，正如作者在片頭的字幕敘述：這個故事發生在很久遠的宇宙裡…（A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away….）
註：London Symphony Orchestra for all six feature films, from 1977 to 2005。
後記： 用戲劇元素去觀賞《星球大戰》，確實另有一番滋味；但是我們若細心思想故事裡的角色設計，原來隱藏了豐富的信息。讓我在未來的26天，為你分享一些有趣的發現：《星球大戰》的隱藏信息 （Hidden message from “Star Wars”）。
Star Wars & Aristotle
Star Wars is a classic science fiction created by George Lucas, who is a myth-maker. “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope” was first released in 1977. Since then, the Star Wars Saga has continued and stays strong. Since the Disney Group has invested in the project, the Star Wars Saga has been picked up by a new generation and popularized by a younger audience.
I grew up as a fan of Star Wars. I was fascinated by all aspects of the Star Wars films. This fascination is what inspired me to study industrial design; I wanted to understand the logic and basics behind the films. After I studied the creative ideas in Lucas” films, I started to realize that he has used scientific techniques to doll up an ancient philosophy.
Aristotle, the great Greek philosopher and scientist, defined six elements that make a good drama: Plot (mythos); Character (ethos); Thought (dianoia); Diction (lexis); Melody (melos) and Spectacle (opsis). One can find these six elements in the story of Star Wars. The films are like Aristotle”s “Poetics”: a dramatic plot that is relevant to several generations allowing audiences of different ages to relate to their characters. It is especially true of a male audience who can relate to one of the characters.
The creation of the Star Wars characters follows the “English Classic Character” formula. There is a hero who is seeking for his identity (Luke Skywalker), a mystic Jedi Master (Yoda), a princess who lives with the commoners (Princess Leia), a fighter who is always loyal (Han Solo), a clown-like klutz (C-3PO) and a hero who is evil to the core (Darth Vader). These strong personalities fill the story with life and drama.
The “Good and Evil” are two extreme forces that stands against each other in the Star Wars Saga. However, there is the existence of “The Force”: a force which presents a mystical ancient power or a special human belief. A wise audience probably understands this “Force” is just one of the selling points in the films. It is, therefore, un-necessary to take it as true belief. After all, it is mentioned at the beginning of the story – it happens “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…”.
Language (diction, lexis) is the Story-teller”s mean of communication. Star Wars used “Language” to let the characters express their ideas. Not just the human language, but linguistic experts have created complete alien languages for each of the alien in the galaxy, allowing all characters to have their own expressive diction. Even the robots in Star Wars have their own “voice”. The sound effect of R2-D2 surprisingly expresses great emotions. This pushes the element of “Language” to a higher level.
Needless to say, the special sound effects for Star Wars are superb. The musical compositions of Star Wars are excellent and have become musical classics. All music scores were written by composer, John Williams and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra*. As expected, the element of “Melody” (music, melos) assisted “Spectacle” (scene) to achieve better results – the Star Wars musical symphonies aroused and intensified great emotions of the audiences when they looked at the vast, unsearchable, fathomless galaxy on the screen.
According to the six dramatic elements of Aristotle, the scenes (Spectacle, opsis) not only show as backgrounds for the actions, they also provide hidden hints and messages according to the actions and interactions between the characters (ethos). Taking the six elements in mind, we should watch the films six times, focusing on each element at a time to fully discover the wisdom of the drama. Modern film creations definitely consist of more than just Aristotle”s six elements, we must use different perspectives to enjoy the hard work and creation of every contributor to Star Wars… story-teller, actors, director and all background crew. They all worked relentlessly with one goal and they all used their own talents to collaborate with each other. The end result was the creation of an amazing and incredible Star Wars Saga.
The true “Force” of Star Wars is… “To Work Together with One Heart”!
