Star Wars: Message Boards: Does Chewbacca look his best in ANH,ESB or ROTJ? (You can't CGI a Wookiee)


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starwars.com > Community > Message Boards > The Films > Episodes IV - VI > Does Chewbacca look his best in ANH,ESB or ROTJ? (You can't CGI a Wookiee)

Does Chewbacca look his best in ANH,ESB or ROTJ? (You can't CGI a Wookiee) - 4 replies | 1 page

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Return of the Banthamobile
Total Posts: 1468
Member Since: 06/02

Date Posted: Jul 01, 2008 04:03 AM

Chewbacca seems to evolve in his appearance throughout the OT. Stuart Freeborne did a spectacular job on the original costume for Peter Mayhew, Chewie looks like a living, breathing real animal. I think he gets trashed a little during filming, especially when dumpster diving into the Dianoga's lair on the Death Star.
I suppose they wanted to remake him for ESB, which I believe is Chewbacca looking his spiffy-est. Especially on Hoth, with his hair blowing in the frozen landscape, he looks like a true Ladies Wookiee.
What happened in ROTJ? He just looks silly. I suspect this one was not made by Stuart Freeborne. I was disappointed that Chewie in Revenge of the Sith did not even resemble the Chewie we know and love. And you should never try to CGI a wookiee, it looks so fake. Film makers should use the talents of creature design Masters like Stuart Freeborne and Stan Winston, and not rely on CGI,as creatures never fully inhabit the space in a physical way. What do you think?

		Master Optician Member Profile Total Posts: 17267 Member Since: 09/06

Date Posted: Jul 01, 2008 05:59 AM

What happened in ROTJ? He just looks silly.

I think he looked alright.

I was disappointed that Chewie in Revenge of the Sith did not even resemble the Chewie we know and love. And you should never try to CGI a wookiee, it looks so fake.

Chewie was CGI in ROTS? The documentaries clearly show Peter Mayhew and
other actors wearing the Wookie suits.

Vader'smyfather
Total Posts: 12308
Member Since: 04/02

Date Posted: Jul 01, 2008 06:23 AM

What happened in ROTJ? He just looks silly

What is it you see that makes him especially different?

Return of the Banthamobile
Total Posts: 1468
Member Since: 06/02

Date Posted: Jul 01, 2008 02:32 PM

Chewie was CGI in ROTS? The documentaries clearly show Peter Mayhew and
other actors wearing the Wookie suits.

I didn't say that Chewie was CGI, I said that some of the wookies were CG'd into the fight scenes. And yes, most of the wookiee shots were actors in costumes, but the main point is that the ROTS Chewbacca didn't even look like Chewbacca -- that cannot be disputed. Watch the ROTS scenes back to back with ESB Chewie, and you will see a glaring inconsistency. The ROTS costume designers should have been more faithful to Stuart Freeborne's original Chewie -- he looks so cool!
I suppose focusing on ROTS is off topic, the point is that Chewie does look different in each Episode IV, V and VI, and just wanted to know people's favorite.

Return of the Banthamobile
Total Posts: 1468
Member Since: 06/02

Date Posted: Jul 01, 2008 02:53 PM

This message was edited by Master Mike... on Jul 03, 2008 08:11 AM

What is it you see that makes him especially different?

Well, I noticed several things about the ROTJ Chewbacca photos, while I was building my Chewbacca costume.

First, ROTJ Chewie has these locks of hair that hang down around his face like bangs or something. Chewie never had bangs. Then there's his teeth -- ROTJ Chewie has canines that stick out at weird angles -- the combiantion of these things makes him look a little goofy. I think ESB Chewbacca looks the best.

So I used ESB Chewie as my model for my Chewbacca costume, which is now finished.

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