Gareth Edwards famously paid attention to George Lucas’ 70s science-fiction aesthetic when making Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, with the climactic scenes aboard the Rebel Blockade Runner eerily reminiscent of the classic opening of 1977’s A New Hope. In fact, the prequel ends precisely where Lucas began, with Vader in hot pursuit of Princess Leia as she desperately tries to escape with the Death Star plans.
Now, with Rogue One about to release on Blu-ray, Vimeo user Barre Fong has spliced together the two films – and the gap is seamless. Granted, this isn’t the most technically accomplished of fan edits, as it’s essentially simply playing the last minute or so of Rogue One and the first couple of minutes of A New Hope consecutively, but it comprehensively demonstrates the care Edwards took in matching his film to the classic trilogy.
Of course, Lucas had his own stab at this kind of thing in the closing scenes of Revenge of the Sith, in which we see the same familiar monochrome blocky walls, uniforms and delightfully 1970s hairdos. He even had his own go at recreating Peter Cushing, albeit with makeup rather than CGI wizardry.
While it’s interesting to see the aesthetics of the past slavishly recreated, I hope that the upcoming Last Jedi and its sequels begin to forge a new look for themselves rather than imitating what’s came before. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll always be a fan of retro-technology futurism, but the current trilogy should establish its own singular aesthetic, and if anyone can do that, it’s Rian Johnson. For now though, this is a neat tribute to Gareth Edwards and his crew’s hard work and attention to detail.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story warps out of hyperspace and onto Blu-ray on April 4th.
