In the immortal words of pioneering film theorist Vachel Lindsay, this is fucking awesome: Ryan Wieber vs. Michael “Dorkman” Scott in “Ryan vs. Dorkman,” a lightsaber duel to the death. (The YouTube link is here, and you can also find it on other sites by seaching for “Ryan vs. Dorkman.”) The effects are convincing, but I’m more impressed by the filmmaking, which not only replicates Lucas’s directorial tics, but exuberantly celebrates them. Check out the low-angled master shots, the slow-circling closeups, and the way the lightsabers smear the air when they’re whipped around at high speed. And the ending gag is really funny.
If I were 15 and had access to the software required to make this, I don’t think I would have spent another second in school. I just would have cranked out Star Wars fan films until my family ordered me to stop.
This article was originally published on The House Next Door.
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