September 23, 2004 1:11 PM

Deep down, we're all incompetent
Posted by Jason Butlerat 1:11 PM

George Lucas is one of the most successful filmmakers of all time, but he had a tough time directing Star Wars, as Wired describes in its review of Empire of Dreams, the documentary accompanying the Star Wars trilogy this week.

Star Wars was a messy production. Nothing worked -- the costumes were flimsy, the British crew back-talked Lucas, and the studio, frustrated by the rising budget and missed deadlines, pressured him to wrap things up. The young Lucas was no great communicator -- "He lost his voice and we didn't realize it for several days," Carrie Fisher says in the film -- and the footage shows him looking completely defeated, shoulders slumped, worry lines etched in his face.

"George looked like he was ready to burst into tears," actor Mark Hamill says in the film, "and so we tried to cheer him up."

As we muddle through our jobs, it's good to know that even the best have their struggles.

If you don't want to buy the DVDs, a truncated version of the documentary is on A&E Saturday at 1pm.
--------