Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure

Last updated

Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure
Caravan bg.jpeg
Promotional release poster
Also known asThe Ewok Adventure
Genre
  • Adventure
  • Family
  • Fantasy
  • Science fiction
Screenplay byBob Carrau
Story by George Lucas
Directed by John Korty
Starring
Narrated by Burl Ives
Theme music composer Peter Bernstein
Country of originUnited States
Production
Executive producerGeorge Lucas
Producers
  • Thomas G. Smith
  • Patricia Rose Duignan
Production location Marin County, California
CinematographyJohn Korty
EditorJohn Nutt
Running time97 minutes [1]
Production companies
Original release
Network ABC
ReleaseNovember 25, 1984 (1984-11-25)
Related
Ewoks: The Battle for Endor

The Ewok Adventure is a 1984 American fantasy adventure film based in the Star Wars universe. It takes place on the moon of Endor, and features the Ewoks, who help two young human siblings as they try to locate their parents.

Contents

The film was given a limited international theatrical run, for which it was retitled Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure. It was followed by a sequel, Ewoks: The Battle for Endor , in 1985.

Plot

On the forest moon of Endor, a starcruiser lies wrecked. The Towani family – Catarine, Jeremitt, Mace and Cindel – are stranded. When Catarine and Jeremitt vanish, the children are found by the Ewok Deej. After Mace threatens them, the Ewoks subdue him and take both children to the Ewoks’ home. There, Cindel befriends Wicket. Shortly thereafter, the Ewoks kill a boar wolf, only to find a life-monitor from one of the Towani parents with the creature.

They seek out the Ewok Logray, who informs them that the parents have been taken by the monstrous Gorax, which resides in a deserted, dangerous area. A caravan of Ewoks is formed to reunite the children with their parents. They meet a boisterous Ewok woodsman named Chukha-Trok, Kaink the Ewok priestess, and a wistie named Izrina before finally reaching the lair of the Gorax after a few mishaps on the way. The group engage the Gorax in battle, freeing Jeremitt and Catarine, but Chukha-Trok is fatally wounded. The Gorax is thought destroyed when it is knocked into a chasm, but it takes a final blow from Mace (using Chukha-Trok's axe) to defeat the creature, which tries to climb back up after them. The Towanis decide to stay with the Ewoks until they can repair the starcruiser, and Izrina leaves to return to her family.

Cast

Production

Inception

George Lucas had allowed the Star Wars universe to be produced for television in 1978 with the Star Wars Holiday Special , which proved to be an embarrassment. [2] Lucas assumed greater control over a planned half-hour television project about Ewoks. He hired Thomas G. Smith to produce the film, after Smith had stepped down as the manager of Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) following his work on Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom . [3] [4] Lucas also hired Bob Carrau, a personal assistant, to co-write the story with him. [3]

When shopping the film around, Smith discovered that none of the TV networks at the time were interested in airing a half-hour special, but ABC showed interest in a two-hour movie of the week; the project was expanded to fill the request. [4] The producers initially conceived of the project as a cross between "Hansel and Gretel" and Tarzan of the Apes . [5] John Korty, who had directed the Lucas-produced Twice Upon a Time , was selected as director.

Crew

Working from a story written by George Lucas and a screenplay by Bob Carrau, director John Korty transformed the scenic northern California redwood forests into the forest moon of Endor. Joe Johnston, an art director at ILM for years and one of the key concept artists of the classic Star Wars trilogy, acted as production designer and second-unit director. [4] Prior to the movie's release, Johnston also wrote and illustrated a book about Ewoks, The Adventures of Teebo: A Tale of Magic and Suspense. [6]

Visual effects

Both Ewok films were some of the last intensive stop-motion animation work ILM produced, as by the early 1980s, the technique was being replaced by go motion, an advanced form of animation with motorized puppets that move while the camera shutter is open. [7] However, go motion was too expensive for the budgets of the Ewok films, so stop motion was used to realize creatures such as the Gorax. [4]

The Ewok movies proved an opportunity for ILM to use a technique innovated for 2001: A Space Odyssey called latent image matte painting. [8] [ failed verification ] [9] In this technique, during live-action photography, a section of the camera lens is blocked off and remains unexposed. The film is rewound, the blocked areas reversed, and a painting crafted to occupy the space is photographed.

Music

The musical score for Caravan of Courage was composed by Peter Bernstein. "Parade of the Ewoks" from John Williams' score to Star Wars: Return of the Jedi , credited as "Wicket's Theme", appears when the children are first taken to the Ewok village and meet Wicket. Selections from the score were released on LP by Varèse Sarabande in 1986. [10] The release was known simply as Ewoks and also contained cues from Bernstein's score to the sequel Ewoks: The Battle for Endor .

Documentaries and commentary

During the production of Caravan of Courage, the children in the cast had to balance their school work with acting in the film. During their time on the set, Lucasfilm decided that it might be an educational and rewarding experience for the older children, Eric Walker (Mace) and Warwick Davis (Wicket), to be given their own camera to use between takes. Calling themselves W&W Productions, Walker and Warwick shot a documentary of the making of the film, which was released to Walker's YouTube channel in 2014. [11]

Adaptations

In 1985, Random House released a children's book adaptation of The Ewok Adventure by Amy Ehrlich, titled The Ewoks and the Lost Children, [12] which includes stills from the film. There was also a release of a picture book with audiotape for those learning to read.

Release

The Ewok Adventure was first shown on American television on November 25, 1984 on ABC. In its overseas theatrical release, it was rechristened Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure. The film was released on VHS and Laserdisc in 1990 through MGM under the original title.

The film was released on DVD as a double-feature collection with its sequel, Ewoks: The Battle for Endor, on November 23, 2004. The release was a double-sided disc, with one film on each side. For this release, the film bore the theatrical release title, Caravan of Courage.

Prior to 2021, Disney announced no plans to add the Ewok films to its streaming service, Disney+. This prompted Eric Walker to start a petition for Disney to add them. [13] In March 2021, it was announced that both films would begin streaming on Disney+ on April 2, 2021. [14]

Reception

Critical response

In his review for The New York Times , John J. O'Connor noted the film's story as being almost "aggressively simple" and that "Mr. Lucas and crew do not come up with anything terribly astonishing." [15] With Marin County serving as the backdrop, looking "like some never-never land east of the Sun and west of the Moon," O'Connor recognized most of the interactions as following well-established cinematic tropes, the notable ones being between Cindel "looking like one of those little blond angels used to top off Christmas trees" and Wicket, a performance by the-then 14-year-old Warwick Davis, whom O'Connor called "the cleverest of the lot." [15]

Pointing to the main characters and plot elements, one pair of writers concluded that both Caravan of Courage and its sequel are fairy tales despite occurring in a science fiction setting. They point to magical phenomena in both films, which is a fantasy element. They argue that in a science fiction story, the hero wants to disrupt or challenge the hierarchy of a supposed "utopian" society; whereas in both Ewok films, society is not challenged or disputed. Additionally, they argue, that while the Star Wars saga also has fairy tale tropes, it adhered more towards science fiction. [5] Another author agreed that the films are fairy tales, wherein "Science explains all magic." [16]

Colin Greenland reviewed Caravan of Courage for Imagine magazine, and stated that "a casual catalogue of magical folderol about various ancestral talismans carried by the questing koalas. It certainly did the trick for the eight- and nine-year-olds in the front row, but seemed to make little sense to their mums and dads, or to me." [17]

Modern reception has been largely negative, with Aidan Mason of Pop Culture Beast calling the movie, "a story without a sense of urgency" and "a chore to sit through". [18] [ citation needed ]

Accolades

The Ewok Adventure was one of four films to be juried-awarded Emmys for Outstanding Special Visual Effects at the 37th Primetime Emmy Awards. [19] The film was additionally nominated for Outstanding Children's Program but lost in this category to an episode of American Playhouse . [20]

Legacy

Several elements from the film have gone on to appear in other works of the Star Wars Expanded Universe, which was declared non-canon and rebranded as Legends in 2014. [21]

The Gorax was reintroduced to the Disney Star Wars canon in the second season episode "Traps and Tribulations" of the animated web series Star Wars: Forces of Destiny . Princess Leia Organa and Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker aid the Ewoks Kneesaa and Wicket against the rampaging beast.

Related Research Articles

<i>Return of the Jedi</i> 1983 film directed by Richard Marquand

Return of the Jedi is a 1983 American epic space opera film that is the sequel to Star Wars (1977) and The Empire Strikes Back (1980). It is the third installment in the original Star Wars trilogy and the sixth chronological film in the "Skywalker Saga". It is directed by Richard Marquand based on a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas from a story by Lucas, who was also the executive producer. The film follows the ongoing struggle between the malevolent Galactic Empire and the freedom fighters of the Rebel Alliance. As the Rebels attempt to destroy the Empire's second Death Star, Luke Skywalker hopes to bring his father, Darth Vader, back from the dark side of the Force. The film stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew and Frank Oz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wicket W. Warrick</span> Star Wars character

Wicket Wystri Warrick, commonly known as Wicket W. Warrick, is a fictional character from the Star Wars franchise, first introduced and portrayed by Warwick Davis in the 1983 film Return of the Jedi. Warrick appeared in two made-for-television movies, an animated series, and promotional media for Star Wars from 1983 to 1986, all of which are a part of the Star Wars Legends continuity. Davis reprised the role in the 2019 theatrical film The Rise of Skywalker, appearing in a brief cameo. Wicket is a diminutive teddy bear-like creature known as an Ewok, living on the forest moon of Endor and eventually participating in the Battle of Endor as an ally of the Rebel Alliance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warwick Davis</span> English actor (born 1970)

Warwick Ashley Davis is an English actor and television presenter. Active within the industry since he was twelve, Davis is one of the highest grossing supporting actors of all time and has the highest average gross revenue of all time. He played the title character in Willow (1988) and the Leprechaun film series (1993–2003), several characters in the Star Wars film series (1983–2019), most notably Wicket the Ewok, and Professor Filius Flitwick and the goblin Griphook in the Harry Potter film series (2001–2011).

<i>Ewoks: The Battle for Endor</i> 1985 TV movie directed by Ken Wheat

Ewoks: The Battle for Endor is a 1985 American fantasy adventure film set in the Star Wars universe and co-written and directed by Jim and Ken Wheat from a story by George Lucas. A sequel to Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure, it focuses on Cindel Towani from the first film, who after being orphaned joins the Ewoks in protecting their village and defeating the marauders who have taken control of the Endor moon.

Endor (<i>Star Wars</i>) Fictional moon in Star Wars

Endor is a fictional moon in the Star Wars universe, known for its endless forests, savannahs, grasslands, mountain ranges, and a few oceans. The moon was the site of a pivotal battle depicted in Return of the Jedi. It is the homeworld of the sentient Dulok, Ewok, and Yuzzum species, as well as the semi-sentient Gorax and Wistie species. The Endor solar cycle was 402 GSC days orbital, with a breathable earth-like atmosphere conducive for humans, 85% Standard Gravity and 8% surface water. It is where Darth Vader's funeral was held.

<i>Ewoks</i> (TV series) American/Canadian animated cartoon series

Ewoks, also known as Star Wars: Ewoks, is an animated series featuring the Ewok characters introduced in Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983) and further discovered in Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure (1984) and its sequel Ewoks: The Battle for Endor (1985). The series was produced by Canada-based Nelvana on behalf of Lucasfilm and broadcast on ABC, originally with its sister series Droids, and then by itself, as The All-New Ewoks.

<i>Star Wars: Clone Wars</i> (2003 TV series) American animated television series

Star Wars: Clone Wars is an American animated television series developed and directed by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Lucasfilm and Cartoon Network Studios for Cartoon Network. Set in the Star Wars universe, specifically between the Star Wars prequel trilogy films Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, it is amongst the first of many works to explore the Clone Wars. The show follows the actions of various prequel trilogy characters, notably Jedi and clone troopers, in their war against the droid armies of the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Sith.

<i>Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy</i> 2004 documentary film by Kevin Burns

Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy is a 2004 documentary film directed by Kevin Burns and narrated by Robert Clotworthy. It documents the making of the original Star Wars trilogy: Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Return of the Jedi (1983), and their impact on popular culture.

Return of the Ewok is an unreleased 1982 mockumentary short, written, produced and directed by David Tomblin, starring Warwick Davis as himself in a fictionalized account of how he got the role of Wicket W. Warrick in Return of the Jedi.

Guy Boyd is an American character actor. Boyd has starred in more than fifty films from the late 1970s to the present. He is probably best known for his role as Detective Jim McLean in Body Double (1984) and for the pivotal role of Frank Hackman on two episodes of Miami Vice.

<i>Return of the Jedi</i> (novel) 1983 novel by James Kahn

Return of the Jedi is a science-fiction novel, written by James Kahn and published on May 12, 1983 by Del Rey. It is based on the script of the film of the same name. According to Publishers Weekly, it was the bestselling novel of that year.

<i>Return of the Jedi</i> (soundtrack) Film score to the 1983 film "Return of the Jedi"

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi is the film score to the 1983 film Return of the Jedi, composed and conducted by John Williams and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. The score was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London between January and February 1983. Again, John Williams served as producer. Herbert W. Spencer, Thomas Newman and Gordon Langford served as orchestrators. Engineer Eric Tomlinson, music editor Kenneth Wannberg, and record supervisor Lionel Newman again reprised their respective duties. The score earned another Academy Award nomination for Williams. Return of the Jedi, which is the original trilogy's shortest score, was only released on a single-LP instead of a double-set like the Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back soundtracks before it.

Lists of Star Wars cast members cover cast members of productions by Star Wars, an media franchise centered on a series of science fiction films. The lists include cast members of feature films, television series video games and television films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ewok</span> Fictional species in the Star Wars universe

The Ewoks are a fictional species of small, furry, mammaloid, bipeds in the Star Wars universe. They inhabit the forest moon of Endor and live in arboreal huts and other simple dwellings, being seen as primitive in comparison with other sentient species. Ewoks debuted in the 1983 feature film Return of the Jedi and have since appeared in two made-for-television films, The Ewok Adventure (1984) and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor (1985), as well as a 2D animated series, several books and games, and briefly in the 2019 feature film Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

Star Wars has been expanded to media other than the original films. This spin-off material is licensed and moderated by Lucasfilm, though during his involvement with the franchise Star Wars creator George Lucas reserved the right to both draw from and contradict it in his own works. Such derivative works have been produced concurrently with, between, and after the original, prequel, and sequel trilogies, as well as the spin-off films and television series. Commonly explored Star Wars media include books, comic books, and video games, though other forms such as audio dramas have also been produced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric Walker (entertainer)</span>

Eric Walker is a former actor, music producer and occasional film/television producer.

<i>Ewoks</i> (soundtrack) 1986 film score by Peter Bernstein

Ewoks – Original Soundtrack is the film score to the television films Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor composed by Peter Bernstein. The score also includes brief reprisals of John Williams' Ewok theme from Return of the Jedi. A soundtrack album containing Bernstein's music from both films was officially released as a 12-inch LP record by Varèse Sarabande on December 8, 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warwick Davis filmography</span>

Warwick Davis is an English actor. He made his acting debut as Wicket W. Warrick in the Star Wars film Return of the Jedi (1983). He reprised the role in two television spin-offs: Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure (1984) and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor (1985). He has since appeared in several Star Wars films, portraying numerous different characters, usually in cameos. He appeared in the cult-classic Labyrinth (1986). He then played the protagonist in the Ron Howard-directed Willow (1988). In 1993, he portrayed the villainous Lubdan in Leprechaun. He returned to the role in Leprechaun 2 (1994), Leprechaun 3 (1995), Leprechaun 4: In Space (1996), Leprechaun in the Hood (2000), and Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood (2003).

References

  1. ↑ "Caravan of Courage – An Ewok Adventure". British Board of Film Classification .
  2. ↑ Warren, Robert Burke (December 15, 2014). "The Flaw in the Forces: The Star Wars Holiday Special". TheWeeklings.com. Archived from the original on February 20, 2018. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
  3. 1 2 Jones, Brian Jay (2016). George Lucas: A Life. New York City: Little, Brown and Company. p. 338. ISBN   978-0316257442.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Alter, Ethan (December 15, 2015). "'Star Wars': How the Ewoks Came to TV 31 Years Ago". Yahoo. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Douglas Brode; Leah Deyneka (June 14, 2012). Myth, Media, and Culture in Star Wars: An Anthology. Scarecrow Press. pp. 130–131. ISBN   978-0-8108-8513-4.
  6. ↑ Joe, Johnston (1984). The Adventures of Teebo: A Tale of Magic and Suspense. Random House. ISBN   9780394865683.
  7. ↑ "The 5 Most Grueling Star Wars Visual Effects". StarWars.com. September 3, 2015. Retrieved September 3, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Matte Effects – Return of The Jedi". The American Society of Cinematographers. Retrieved September 3, 2018.
  9. ↑ Sawicki, Mark. "Filming the Fantastic: A Guide to Visual Effects Cinematography". American Society of Cinematographers. Archived from the original on March 14, 2017. Retrieved September 3, 2018.
  10. ↑ Osborne, Jerry (2010). Movie/TV Soundtracks and Original Cast Recordings Price and Reference Guide. Port Townsend, Washington: Osborne Enterprises Publishing. p. 175. ISBN   978-0932117373.
  11. ↑ Walker, Eric. "Star Wars Ewok Adventures Making Of Teaser". Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2015– via YouTube.
  12. ↑ Ehrlich, Amy (1985). The Ewoks and the Lost Children. Random House. ISBN   9780394871868.
  13. ↑ Walker, Eric (September 24, 2019). "Disney+ May Not Be The Home To All of Star Wars – All For SciFi". All For SciFi. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
  14. ↑ Ridgely, Charlie (March 16, 2021). "Disney+: Every Movie and TV Show Arriving in April 2021". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
  15. 1 2 O'Connor, John J. (November 23, 1984). "TV Weekend; 'The Ewok Adventure,' Sunday Movie on ABC". The New York Times. Vol. 134, no. 46, 237. p. C34. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  16. ↑ Charles, Eric (2012). "The Jedi Network: Star Wars' Portrayal and Inspirations on the Small Screen". In Brode, Douglas; Deyneka, Leah (eds.). Myth, Media, and Culture in Star Wars: An Anthology. Scarecrow Press. pp. 129–131. ISBN   978-0-810-88513-4 . Retrieved May 20, 2016.
  17. ↑ Greenland, Colin (March 1985). "Fantasy Media". Imagine (review) (24). TSR Hobbies (UK), Ltd.: 47.
  18. ↑ "Star Wars: Every Movie Ranked". Pop Culture Beast. May 4, 2021.
  19. ↑ Leverence, John. "Outstanding Special Visual Effects – 1985". 37th Primetime Emmy Awards, September 22, 1985. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Outstanding Children's Program – 1985". 37th Primetime Emmy Awards, September 22, 1985. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  21. ↑ "The Legendary Star Wars Expanded Universe Turns a New Page". StarWars.com. April 25, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2016.
  22. ↑ Veekhoven, Tim (September 3, 2015). "From Wicket to the Duloks: Revisiting the Star Wars: Ewoks Animated Series". StarWars.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
  23. ↑ Worthington, Clint; Roffman, Michael; Brennan, Collin; Gerber, Mckenzie; Caffrey, Dan (May 22, 2018). "Ranking: Every Star Wars Movie and TV Show from Worst to Best". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  24. ↑ Sansweet, Stephen J. (1998). Star Wars Encyclopedia (1st ed.). New York: Ballantine. p. 50. ISBN   0-345-40227-8. OCLC   36960986.
  25. ↑ Veekhoven, Tim (October 30, 2014). "Meet the Ewoks from Endor". StarWars.com. Archived from the original on November 2, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  26. ↑ Anderson, Kevin J. (1995). The Illustrated Star Wars Universe. New York: Bantam Books. pp. 115, 132–34. ISBN   0-553-09302-9.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.