A Disturbance in the Force
Directed by Jeremy Coon, Steve Kozak
Official selection
SXSW 2023
Director
Jeremy Coon, Steve Kozak
Executive Producer
Adam Goldberg
Producer
Jeremy Coon, Kyle Newman, Kozak Steve
Cast
Kevin Smith, “Weird Al” Yankovic, Seth Green, Bonnie Burton, Taran Killam
Cinematographer
Quinn Hester, Tim Irwin, Jay P. Morgan
Sound Designer
Nathan Hoffman
Composer
Karl Preusser
Editor
Jeremy Coon
contact
September Club
“Amusing and exhaustive… Tackling a notorious fiasco in one of the galaxy’s most popular franchises”
- Joe Leyton, VARIETY
“Charms as a reminder of when STAR WARS was gratifyingly less reputable… When franchise junk could be authentically, idiosyncratically terrible — not just the homogenous, boardroom-steered mediocrity of this moment”
- Christian Blauvelt, INDIEWIRE
"Playful in tone and absolutely stacked with sources who either worked on or spent their youth obsessed with the special”
- Laura Bradley, THE DAILY BEAST
There's no doubt that we're living in a golden age of television, producing some of the most dramatically complex storytelling of the last twenty years. 45 years ago, however, we were most decidedly not, and the proof lies in THE STAR WARS HOLIDAY SPECIAL, a two-hour TV monstrosity that has long been named the worst STAR WARS ever (and that's saying something). Produced in 1978 so George Lucas could keep STAR WARS in the public consciousness before THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK arrived in 1980, it tells a story of Chewbacca's attempt to make it home for the Wookie holiday Life Day, complete with the key STAR WARS cast members and... songs? Dancing? And comedy? There's a reason why it only aired once. So awful that even Jar Jar Binks would be embarrassed to be seen in it, but the story behind it may be one of the most interesting to ever come out of that galaxy far, far away.
There have been a lot of STAR WARS documentaries, but Jeremy Coon and Steve Kozak’s A DISTURBANCE IN THE FORCE finally tells a STAR WARS story that’s fresh, new and very entertaining. Speaking with several crew members (among them director Steve Binder and writer Bruce Villanch), along with superfans “Weird Al” Yankovic and Seth Green, DISTURBANCE finally explains just how this turned out as disastrous as it did. It also goes into fascinating detail on ’70s variety TV, the pre-eminent entertainment format of its day, which may explain why this was doomed from the start (even Donny Osmond chimes in). It's definitely more fun than the special itself and as a study of STAR WARS at a time when there was only one movie and Luke still had the hots for Leia, there's nothing disturbing about it. – Matthew Kiernan
Showings
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
Le Cabaret des curiosités Numéros de Cab...
A new cabaret formula combining screenings of local and international short films, comedy acts and live performances.
Apocalypse Clown
George Kane
Four desperate clowns (and one journalist) make their way through the Irish countryside after a freak electrical disaster in what may be the funniest (and only) clowns-and-catastrophe movie ever made.
Killing Romance
Lee Won-suk
Imaginative, hilarious, and visually sumptuous, this madcap musical comedy is a must-see for filmgoers in search of daring and delightful cinema.