Ewoks: The Battle for Endor | |
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Genre |
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Screenplay by | Ken and Jim Wheat |
Story by | George Lucas |
Directed by | Ken and Jim Wheat |
Starring |
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Theme music composer | Peter Bernstein |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Executive producer | George Lucas |
Producers |
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Cinematography | Isidore Mankofsky |
Editor | Eric Jenkins |
Running time | 94 minutes |
Production company | |
Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | November 24, 1985 |
Related | |
Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure |
Ewoks: The Battle for Endor is a 1985 American television 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, the human girl 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.
Nearly six months have passed since the events of the first film; [2] the Towani family's star cruiser is almost completely fixed and Jeremitt is putting the final touches on the craft. While the family is preparing to leave the forest moon of Endor, the Ewok village is attacked by a Marauder group led by Terak and his witch-like sorceress Charal. Many Ewoks are captured, while Jeremitt, Catarine, and Mace are killed helping to defend the Ewok village. The marauders steal a power cell from the Towani's star cruiser believing it to have some sort of magic power over the stars.
While running away from the marauders, Cindel and Wicket meet Teek, a small, fast native of Endor. Teek takes them to the home of Noa Briqualon, a human male who is angered by their uninvited presence and throws them out. Eventually he proves himself to be kindhearted, letting Teek steal food for Cindel and Wicket, and inviting the two in when they attempt to build a fire for warmth outside.
At the Marauders' castle, Terak orders Charal to find Cindel, assuming she knows how to use "the power" in the energy cell stolen from Jeremitt's star cruiser. Meanwhile, Noa, Cindel, Wicket, and Teek are becoming friends. It is revealed that Noa is rebuilding his own wrecked star cruiser, only missing the energy cell, originally landing with a friend of his named Salak who disappeared while searching for another cell. Cindel is awakened one morning by a song her mother used to sing. She follows the voice to find a woman singing, who transforms into Charal and takes her to Terak. He orders Cindel to activate "the power", but she cannot, and is imprisoned with the Ewoks where it is revealed Salak was killed after telling Terak about "the power". Outside, Noa, Wicket, and Teek sneak into the castle, free Cindel and the Ewoks, and escape with the energy cell.
Terak, Charal, and the Marauders pursue them back to the ship, where Wicket leads the Ewoks in defense of the cruiser as Noa installs the energy cell. The Ewoks put up a valiant effort, and are nearly beaten by the time Noa powers up the ship and uses its laser cannons to fend off the Marauders. Cindel goes to save Wicket and is captured by Terak, as the other Marauders retreat. Terak and Noa face off, with Wicket finally coming to the rescue, killing Terak and simultaneously leaving Charal trapped in bird form. Shortly thereafter, goodbyes are said, and Cindel leaves Endor with Noa on his starship.
The film, shot in the middle of 1985 in Marin County, California, was directed by Ken and Jim Wheat, executive produced by Lucas, and written by the Wheat brothers, based on a story written by Lucas. Co-director Ken Wheat explained the production and inspiration of the film:
Lucas guided the creation of the story over the course of two four-hour sessions we had with him. He'd just watched Heidi with his daughter the weekend before these took place, and the story idea he pushed was having the little girl from the first Ewok TV movie become an orphan who ends up living with a grumpy old hermit in the woods. We'd been thinking about the adventure films we'd liked as kids, like Swiss Family Robinson and The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad , so we suggested having space marauders, which was fine with George — as long as they were 7 feet tall, of course! The rest of the brainstorming was done along those lines. Joe Johnston (the production designer and second unit director) and Phil Tippett (the creature supervisor) were involved in the second day's story session, and they contributed an assortment of bits and pieces. [3] [4]
Lucas’ involvement during production was primarily in the design and editing stages, according to Wheat. The film's working title was Ewoks II. [5]
Both Ewok films were some of the last intensive stop-motion animation work Industrial Light & Magic produced, as in the early 1980s, the technique was being replaced by go motion animation, a more advanced form with motorized articulated puppets that moved while the camera shutter was open, capturing motion blur in the otherwise static puppet, eliminating the harsh staccato movement often associated with stop motion. However, the budgets of the Ewok films were such that go motion was simply too expensive for the projects, so stop motion was used to realize creatures such as the condor dragon, the blurrgs, and the boar-wolves.
The Ewok movies proved an opportunity for Industrial Light & Magic to hone a new technique in photographing matte paintings, called latent image matte painting. In this technique, during live action photography a section of the camera's lens is blocked off, remaining unexposed, and a painting is crafted to occupy that space. The film would then be rewound, the blocked areas reversed, and the painting photographed. Since the painting now existed on the original film, there would be no generational quality loss.
The musical score for Ewoks: The Battle for Endor was composed by Peter Bernstein. Selections from the score were released on LP by Varèse Sarabande in 1986. [6] The release was known simply as Ewoks, and also contained cues from Bernstein's previous score to The Ewok Adventure.
In 1986, Random House published a children's book adaptation of The Battle for Endor called The Ring, the Witch, and the Crystal: An Ewok Adventure. The book was written by Cathy East Dubowski, and utilized the film's storyline and imagery.
Ewoks: The Battle for Endor initially premiered as an ABC TV special on November 24, 1985. It was given a limited international theatrical release in 1986.[ citation needed ] After the run had disappeared due to low box office receipts, it appeared on home video in late 1987 on MGM/UA and re-issued for retail in 1988 and 1990. The U.S. later released on VHS and Laserdisc in 1990 through MGM/UA Home Video.
The film was released on DVD with its predecessor as a double-feature collection entitled Star Wars: Ewok Adventures on November 23, 2004, via 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. One film was on each side of a single double-sided disc, with no bonus material.
In January 2019, Disney and Lucasfilm released The Battle for Endor on Amazon Prime Video, where it was available to rent or buy in standard definition. As of December 2019, the film was no longer available through that service. [7]
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. [8] In March 2021, it was announced that both films would begin streaming on Disney+ on April 2, 2021. [9]
At the 38th Primetime Emmy Awards, Ewoks: The Battle for Endor and the CBS documentary Dinosaur! were both juried-awarded Emmys for Outstanding Special Visual Effects. [10] The film additionally received two nominations for Outstanding Children's Program and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Special. [11] [12]
In his review for The New York Times John Corry faulted the production's source of inspiration, saying "The problem with Ewoks: The Battle for Endor isn't that it's badly done; on the contrary, it's wonderfully well done. But when it's over it's over, and there is no residue. Mr. Lucas and his colleagues find their inspiration in their own technology, and there should be other places to look." [13]
Aidan Mason of Pop Culture Beast stated the film, "manages to improve on the original" and felt much more like a Star Wars film, although he was still critical of the acting. [14]
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. [15]
Canon appearances of elements introduced in the film include:
Warwick Ashley Davis is an English actor and television presenter. Active within the industry since he was eleven, 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 (1983–2024), most notably Wicket the Ewok; and Professor Filius Flitwick and the goblin Griphook in the Harry Potter film series (2001–2011).
The Ewok Adventure is a 1984 American television 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. The film premiered on November 25, 1984 on ABC.
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 is 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 is held.
Star Wars: Droids: The Adventures of R2-D2 and C-3PO is a 1985 animated television series spin off from the original Star Wars trilogy. It focuses on the exploits of droids R2-D2 and C-3PO between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. The series was produced by Nelvana on behalf of Lucasfilm and broadcast on ABC with its sister series Ewoks.
Ewoks, also known as Star Wars: Ewoks, is a Taiwan-Canadian 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 co-produced by Canada-based Nelvana Limited on behalf of Lucasfilm and broadcast on ABC, with its sister series Droids, and then by itself, as The All-New Ewoks.
Star Tours was a motion simulator attraction at several Disney theme parks, based on the successful Star Wars film series created by George Lucas. Set in the Star Wars universe, the attraction sent guests on an excursion trip to Endor, whilst being caught in an altercation between the New Republic and an Imperial Remnant. The attraction featured Captain "Rex" RX-24 along with series regulars R2-D2 and C-3PO.
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 actor, who has appeared in over 150 stage and screen productions since the late 1970s. He is best known to film audiences for his character roles. He won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his performance in Robert Altman's adaptation of David Rabe's play Streamers (1983), and was nominated for the Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actor for Ticket to Heaven (1981).
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.
Yuu Shimaka was a Japanese actor and voice actor affiliated with Production Baobab, and subsequently with Production Aigumi. He was the Japanese voice of the Disney character Goofy.
Lists of Star Wars cast members cover cast members of productions by Star Wars, a 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.
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.
Eric Walker is a former actor, music producer and occasional film/television producer.
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.
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).
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew is an American science fiction adventure television series created by Jon Watts and Christopher Ford for the streaming service Disney+. It is part of the Star Wars franchise, taking place in the same time frame as the The Mandalorian series and its interconnected spin-offs after the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983). Skeleton Crew tells a coming-of-age story about four children who make a discovery on their home planet, get lost in the galaxy, and go on an adventure to get back home.
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