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George Lucas’s, 1977 science fiction masterpiece, Star Wars: A New Hope, is the beginning
of one of the best film franchises ever made. The film was such a success because of the premise
but my personal favorite aspect of the film is the cinematography George Lucas used in the 70’s that
gave Star Wars such a timey, homely feeling. Star Wars doesn’t have many close ups or extreme
close ups which contributes to the film because it doesn’t draw too much attention to the makeup
and costumes used by the characters. The costumes for the characters in the Cantina are good but
if seen up close they are unrealistic which takes away from the film. Set design also benefit from the
eye level medium shots and medium high shots because the set required a lot of light to light up
scenes on the death star in the white hallways. George Lucas relies on Long shots because they
show the different characters full bodies and surroundings as they comingled on camera. These long
shots allow the whole set to be seen and creates the amazing landscapes of Tatouine. Another way
the landscape is shot by Lucas are the panning shots he takes of the planets. The Medium, Medium
long, and medium close up shots are the most important shots in my opinion because they show the
torsos and part of the legs as well as the head which allows us to get a good look at the characters.
These medium shots allow Lucas to take great group shots like the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon
to show the interaction and unity amongst the protagonists. These mediums shots quickly create
bonds because the of the number of substantial characters that are shot simultaneously. George
Lucas uses these techniques in the other films as well but incorporates much more CGI as the films
continue and the CGI takes away from the cinematography. The films authenticity makes it a classic
and a film I have watched time and time again
