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Author Topic: RIP Irvin Kershner - April 29, 1923 - November 27, 2010 John Wilson Film God Posts: 5438 From: Sydney, Australia. Registered: Dec 1999 posted 11-29-2010 01:49 PM                     Irvin Kershner — who directed the "Star Wars" sequel "The Empire Strikes Back," the James Bond film "Never Say Never Again" and "Robocop 2" — has died. He was 87. LA Times story Kershner died Saturday in Los Angeles after a long illness, said Adriana Santini, a France-based actress who is a family friend. Kershner already had made a number of well-received movies when he was hired by George Lucas to direct "Empire," which was the second produced but fifth in the "Star Wars" chronology. The 1980 production was a darker story than the original. In it, hero Luke Skywalker loses a hand and learns that villain Darth Vader is his father. The movie initially got mixed reviews but has gone on to become one of the most critically praised. Kershner told Vanity Fair in October that he tried to give the sequel more depth than the original. "When I finally accepted the assignment, I knew that it was going to be a dark film, with more depth to the characters than in the first film," he said. "It took a few years for the critics to catch up with the film and to see it as a fairy tale rather than a comic book." Kershner said he had only one sharp disagreement with Lucas. The script originally called for the heroine, Princess Leia, to tell space pilot Han Solo "I love you" and for him to reply "I love you, too." "I shot the line and it just didn't seem right for the character of Han Solo," Kershner said. Instead, actor Harrison Ford improvised the reply: "I know." Lucas wanted the original line but after test previews agreed to leave in Ford's reply, which has gone on to be one of the best-known lines in the series. The Philadelphia-born Kershner had both musical and photographic training and worked as a freelance illustrator before he turned to filmmaking. He graduated from the USC film school and in the 1950s made U.S. government informational films in Greece, Turkey and the Middle East. He was a director and cameraman for a television documentary series called "Confidential File" in Los Angeles before getting his first movie break in 1958 when Roger Corman hired him to shoot a low-budget feature called "Stakeout on Dope Street." He went on to direct a number of noted features in the 1960s and 1970s, including "A Fine Madness" with Sean Connery, Joanne Woodward and Jean Seberg, "The Flim-Flam Man" with George C. Scott, "Loving" with George Segal and Eva Marie Saint, and "The Eyes of Laura Mars" with Faye Dunaway. The 1976 television movie "Raid on Entebbe" earned him an Emmy nomination for direction. Besides "Empire," his big-budget work included the 1983 James Bond movie "Never Say Never Again" with Connery and "Robocop 2" in 1990. Kershner also occasionally acted. He played the priest Zebedee in Martin Scorsese's "The Last Temptation of Christ."  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-29-2010 02:48 PM                        Weird, all these years I misread his name and thought it was "Irwin." I was all set to put up a correction note but then decided to verify. Anyway, Empire was a great movie and the best directed of that series I think. R.I.P.  |  IP: Logged John Wilson Film God Posts: 5438 From: Sydney, Australia. Registered: Dec 1999 posted 11-29-2010 03:32 PM                     The 'original' version was the best directed of the series. The Special Edition was a victim of 'Revisionist Bastardry' by Mr Lucas and suffered just like the rest of them as a result.  |  IP: Logged Jonathan Smith Expert Film Handler Posts: 201 From: Youngstown, OH Registered: Jan 2010 posted 11-29-2010 04:10 PM                     Talk about telling all the craftsman at Kerner Optical to F-off.  |  IP: Logged Mark J. Marshall Film God Posts: 3188 From: New Castle, DE, USA Registered: Aug 2002 posted 11-29-2010 06:55 PM                    I agree about the original version of Empire. It is my favorite of the series. Rest In Piece. So sad that I have had to type that phrase twice today.  |  IP: Logged Jesse Skeen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1517 From: Sacramento, CA Registered: Aug 2000 posted 11-30-2010 12:15 AM                     I still can't tell if "Eyes of Laura Mars" was intentionally cheesy, but I love it either way.  |  IP: Logged Victor Liorentas Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 800 From: london ontario canada Registered: May 2009 posted 11-30-2010 01:35 AM                     The Empire Strikes Back is in my top 5 favorites of all time! I think of it as a true masterpiece! In fact i refuse to watch it again until the blu-ray arrives or a print drops into my lap crushing me into the floor RIP Irvin Kershner  |  IP: Logged John Wilson Film God Posts: 5438 From: Sydney, Australia. Registered: Dec 1999 posted 12-02-2010 05:21 PM                     quote: Jonathan Smith Talk about telling all the craftsman at Kerner Optical to F-off. Would you mind expanding on that? I'm not sure what it's supposed to mean.  |  IP: Logged Robert John Jeromson Master Film Handler Posts: 264 From: Auckland, New Zealand Registered: Jul 2004 posted 12-03-2010 12:37 AM                     Empire Strikes Back was the first film I ever saw projected and it is still my favourite in the series. RIP  |  IP: Logged Victor Liorentas Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 800 From: london ontario canada Registered: May 2009 posted 12-03-2010 12:50 PM                     It was my first all out 70mm 6 track Dolby Stereo giant curved screen experience! I was blown away!  |  IP: Logged Tony Bandiera Jr Film God Posts: 3067 From: Moreland Idaho Registered: Apr 2004 posted 12-03-2010 01:03 PM                     "Empire" was def the best of the series, very dark and deep, yet still entertaining. I loved "Never Say Never Again", one of my favorite Bond films. The one thing I remember about the first run of "Empire" in 35mm was that almost all of the prints were screwed up by the lab, they had streaks all throughout them from improper drying..it was most noticeable when Vader arrives in his shuttle at the start of the movie.  |  IP: Logged

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