If the general public is completely unaware of who Ralph McQuarrie is, on the contrary, the eyes of fans of the Star Wars saga will light up. If Darth Vader doesn’t have a father recognized in the saga, we can attribute the character’s fatherhood (at least the memorable aspect of it) to this great artist who died in March 2012 at the age of 82.
A master artist who has worked in aeronautics (began at Boeing), advertising, literature and film, the American illustrator has worked primarily to create the visual world of the George Lucas saga, of which we have given a very small glimpse here. his creation.
Like his colleague Sid Mead, another legendary designer who created the entire visual world of Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, Ralph McQuarrie’s influence was colossal, especially in the world of video games, where many artistic directors fed on his work, as in Saga. space opera mass effect For example.
A different emperor in each scene!
Return of the Jedi finally physically introduced the saga’s oh-so-iconic character, Emperor Palpatine, after a brief appearance as a hologram in The Empire Strikes Back.
However, in this version it was a woman! from editing George Lucas In 2004, the actor was dropped from the film in favor of Ian McDiarmid, Palpatine’s interpreter since then. Return of the Jedi.
In addition to the memorable cast, Ralph McQuarrie had a much more refined idea of the character and his appearance. He had to change his appearance for every scene!
“My conception of the emperor was a character that was more of a spirit than reality. The spirit was so developed that it came in the form of pictures. You’ve never really seen it.
And I did a lot of sketches, so you’d see this emperor who would sometimes appear with the beautiful pink lips of a young woman, and then there was this beastly dog-like creature, growling and growling at you, with those hideous eyes and glaring. you…”
We can obviously imagine that it would be technically very difficult to make so many visual changes in the film, especially in anticipation of the final showdown. But in the end, actor Ian McDiarmid’s performance is just as menacing, if not more effective!
Source: Allocine
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
