OT - Star Wars Ep III

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Ohhh yes. Star Wars is very likely based on Frank Herbert's Dune books. The first Dune motion picture was planned for release earlier than SW: A New Hope, but eventually was released later. Otherwise, SW would probably never have been so big and we'd have a large Dune mod for SEIV and perhaps a small, rarely used SW mod.

At least seventeen close similarities were noticed between SW and Dune by Frank Herbert himself IIRC.

[geoschmo]

Star Wars may have similarites to Dune, in the same way that all stories share many common plot themes and character types. Especially two stories that are both from teh same genera of sci0fi the way Dune and SW are. Star Wars is no more like Dune in that respect then Dune was like whatever stories that came before it that inspired Herbert though.

That's not at all the same thing as Muppet Tresure Island being based on Tresure Island. That's a case where the muppet movie is a complete retelling of the story. It's the same story begining to end, just with some minor adjustments and character tweaks.

[dogscoff]

geoschmo said:
Star Wars may have similarites to Dune, in the same way that all stories share many common plot themes and character types.

I agree and disagree. I think the two films are sufficiently different to say that SW owes little or nothing to Dune. On the other hand, it's quite conceivable that the whole "young man of noble birth on a desert world destined to restore a usurped power" is perhaps, umm, shall we say 'inspired' by Dune.

Especially two stories that are both from teh same genera of sci0fi the way Dune and SW are.

I would disagree here. Dune is scifi. SW is sinbad-genre swashbuckling dressed up as scifi. Or, to quote the great Tim Bisley, Star Wars (or at least, EP1) is nothing but a "jumped-up firework display of a toy advert".

[geoschmo]

dogscoff said:
On the other hand, it's quite conceivable that the whole "young man of noble birth on a desert world destined to restore a usurped power" is perhaps, umm, shall we say 'inspired' by Dune.

Perhaps. My point wasn't that he couldn't have used Dune as one of many inspirations. To the contrary I was trying to point out that all stories are derivative to a degree. You could say Dune and Star Wars were both inspired by the King Arthur legend or the story of Moses. There are many other stories I'm sure that would fit the outline. None of this means, as Herbert seemed to be claiming at one point (though I think he's backed off of it the last few years) , that Lucas was ripping off his ideas.

EDIT: Er, I guess Herbert's been dead for a few years now. That could explain his lack of further objections?

Honestly though, it would be difficult to write a sci-fi story in the 70's and 80's without having been inspired by Dune. It was the watershed moment for the genera.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Dune was boring. Clarke and Asimov were writing long before Dune.