OK I think I've found one of the best fan Lightsabre duels I've seen. It is REALLY well done. Have a look for yourself!
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
It is properly known as "Ryan vs. Dorkman", and you didn't know about it yet?
--Jonah
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
No, I don't often go around look for these things - I fell into a youtube clicking storm.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Happens. Sometime soon, I'm probably going to have a go at filming my own lightsaber stuff...
--Jonah
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
I think this film was good - not only for the quality of the rotoscoping but that he had good editing with the close up shots etc.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
After the viral success of the first one on Youtube, they've decided to make a sequel.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
I'm not usually into these little fan films, but this was actually good. Kudos to them.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
Also, I'll take the opportunity to plug a podcast of a couple of friends of mine that had these guys on for guests on one of their shows (coincidentally, also being the one in which I was a guest).
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
Holy Wow. That certainly ain't the Star Wars Kid. I liked the ending.
Posted by bX (Member # 419) on :
Neato! That ain't AlamDV. OnToMars's podcast's poor recording quality and sound production makes it almost unlistenable. The content is pretty great though.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
Yeah, it was one of their firsts still (you should hear the first two episodes), but they've been working on it and it's gotten substantially better.
Posted by bX (Member # 419) on :
I did listen to part of the first ep (had to cut out to avoid spoilers), and listened to the entirety of the second (which was horrendous). The content is great though. Holee crap, you're Brian Finifter! Awesome!
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
I am? I am. Who am I?
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
"Finifter"? I can only assume the name was originally "Sinister", but it was written with the old-timey "long" S, and someone got confused.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
Such mail has come to our house addressed as such - however, the most common perversion is turning the second 'f' into an 's' for Finister. The origin, as best we can figure, is that Finifter is derived from the Dutch word for "fifth."
bX, if I may, I'm curious as to where you've heard my name. From "The Injured Stormtrooper?"
Posted by bX (Member # 419) on :
Yeah, heard about The Injured Stormtrooper elsewheres and thought that was great. Found Star Wars: A Lost Hope through that. Plus I mean, I just listened to that whole podcast with you.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
Ah. Well, thanks. Glad you enjoyed them.
Also, Fig just called me this afternoon to ask if I'd like to be on this Sunday's show, which I said yes to, if you're interested. If you listen live, you can participate in a chat room as the show goes on, if you're into that sort of thing.
www.geekza.com for info and links and such.
Posted by Saltah'na (Member # 33) on :
Looks like the people who created this lightsaber campaign just did a sequel. Check it out!!
I have to say they out did themselves this time. The last saber duel was devoid of sparks that should be there when Lightsabers hit metal objects and stuff like that. There's a cool effect when one of them runs their blade through a pool of water.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
Yup, that would be the sequel I mentioned awhile back. It is an excellent job on their part, well choreographed and well shot.
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
Good - but in the beginning the fighting is a little 'slow' and 'calculated' like they are still learning. The editing and the fighting was much better in the first one - much faster and more suspenseful. Did anyone think the sabres were a LITTLE thin?? I'm not 100% sure on that one. I love the sabres through the concrete etc. though - really well done.
The soundtrack was REALLY good.
The ending was really well done too - I was waiting for that other guy to come back like the first one! Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
The overly bombastic intro sequence missed the mark if they were aiming for "mock"-pretentiousness. Yes, I also liked the CG bits and thought the slack in the editing makes it look like they stop to think every three seconds, also they stand in hugging distance too often. Then again, the final fight in ROTS has the same problem, too neat and over-planned moves most of the time. The Dooku-fight I liked, though.
Note to Dorkman: Get contacts. Note to Ryan: Stop wearing T-shirts three sizes too big (better yet, stop wearing T-shirts in Star Wars movies entirely).
Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
Just rewatching it - the first 30 seconds - the coreography is REALLY annoying... it's like they are moving in slow mo... the movements are all staid and purposeful - not like they are at the height of a life-or-death duel like the first one. The punch with the forearm and the second and third punches are really lame the guy getting hit just moves in sympathy to the blow instead of reacting to it. Anyone else see what I mean?
More reactions:
The guy in black - Dorkman - the way he does the blows and reacts is like he is in some really bad ballet or musical!
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
That's the problem even with hardcore professionals like Sho Kosugi (in his 80's ninja movies) or even the esteemed Dolph Lundgren; they choose overly complicated moves which a real person fighting to the death would never bother with and which is not logical. Like all the fights with the albino twins in "Matrix Reloaded"; they put their razor blade to the throat of all the main characters at least once but never cut.
That said, I'm glad Dork&Ryan are still trying, seeing as they don't seem to have any real fight training or moviemaking experience. Pretty sneaky, though, not charging for the movie but selling a "soundtrack" and "making of"-video. That's skirting pretty close to the edge of trademark law.
Now, here's an example of a realistic fight scene with good, bread-and-butter actors. Posted by AndrewR (Member # 44) on :
Well in the first one their blows were more 'realistic' or their reactions to them... and i think the editing was better in the first one - more urgency. Still a great job, yes.
Still love the sabre through the walls - it is something that I wish they did more of in the movies.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Looking forward to RvD3, when they put it all together.
I'm using everything I've learned from European fencing, three different Japanese fencing styles, tai chi sword forms, and h2h methods I've learned over the years to develop my own ultimate efficient Jedi fighting form. It's coming along nicely, and I hope one day I'm actually in a fan film of my own. *heh*
--Jonah
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
"...they choose overly complicated moves which a real person fighting to the death would never bother with and which is not logical."
To be fair, it's meant to look cool, not realistic.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Yes and we all love it but you only get away with intricate moves if you can make it look serious and intense instead of like posing or "here, I'm giving you my hand please take it".
Which is why "Crouching Tiger" works and "Karate Kid 2" doesn't.
Another example: I thought Hayden Christensen looked very good in the early Dooku fight of ROTS. Tight and focused. Now, it ends in a split second with his strange reach-around wrist chopping of the Count, which is unorthodox and without precedent in earth fencing styles (since it would take too much heft with metal but is just fine with an energy blade). It's over so fast you almost don't have time to catch it the first time around, you just accept that it must've happened because the Count obviously don't have any hands anymore. When it almost can't get any suaver Anakin catches Dooku's saber with his offhand and crosses the sabers at his throat. The only way to top that would be if he'd also slashed Dooku's belt buckle and pulled down his pants. But always there's that flow, that rhythm that needs to be there.
I guess 60% lies in editing and 40% in good rehearsal and chemistry.
Posted by Saltah'na (Member # 33) on :
I also don't like the way Anakin cut off Dooku's arms. Nor did I like the way Dooku took out Anakin's. In both cases the "victims" kind of "stopped" present a "slash me here" sign to the opponent.
When you compare how Darth Maul took down Qui Gon Jinn, and also nearly took out Obi Wan as well, it was in a way which was, in a word, overpowering. Even the way Dooku took down Obi Wan in Ep II was also impressive.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
The guys were on the Geekza podcast the other week, if you're interested in hearing some of the behind the scenes info, check it out. Also, as you'll see on the main page and as I just found out, we/they're going to do a video interview with George Takei sometime this week to be released on the April 1st show.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)