The Bearded Trio

A look back at the Welsh filmmaker whose work on Return of the Jedi deserves far more recognition. Every now and then I like to shine a light on the filmmakers who helped shape the movies that meant so much to us growing up. Today I’m revisiting one of them: Richard Marquand, the Welsh director of Return of the Jedi . I’m sharing a video tribute I made to him more than ten years ago. The quality is a little rough because it was created long before modern editing tools were easily available, but the heart behind it is still very much there. Marquand is one of those names that often slips through the cracks when people talk about Star Wars. Ask many fans who directed Jedi and you’ll hear the same line repeated again and again: “George Lucas basically took over.” It’s a comment that has been repeated so often it has become part of the mythology. But if you’ve ever read The Making of Return of the Jedi , you’ll know that Marquand’s involvement was far deeper and far more hands‑on than he’...

Brad’s April Escape - Part 17 April 27 - Return of the Jedi Each weekday this month, I’ll screen a film from The Bearded Trio Cinematic Universe and list 10 random scenes, characters, musical cues or performances that I particularly enjoy and look forward to upon every viewing. I’d love to hear similar little things you enjoy about these films, and hope you join me in this escape from the present-day world. Next up is the conclusion of the beloved original Star Wars Trilogy, Return of the Jedi (1983). Return of the Jedi - An Introduction Yes, I skipped over Empire Strikes Back . Don't worry, I have a three-part mega-post coming on that film to coincide with its 40th anniversary from May 20-22. Until then, I suppose we have to settle for this gem of a film, Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983), wonderfully directed by Richard Marquand. I've been looking forward to analyzing this film for a long time, though I hardly know where to begin. Watching ...

Taking A Closer Look At One Of The Most Underappreciated Star Wars Directors, Richard Marquand Richard Marquand, the director of Return of the Jedi, was born in Cardiff, Wales which is just down the road from where I live.  It may be because of this that I have a fondness for the Welshman but another reason may be the need to get the recognition out there for the talented director's work on Jedi. It's often said by fans that George Lucas really directed Return of the Jedi and at times Marquand was out of his league.  Well let's look at the evidence and see if that statement is really true. What had Marquand directed up to Return of the Jedi to catch the eye of George Lucas?  Well Marquand's directing career began in TV with Edward II way back in 1970 and a couple of episodes of a TV mini-series called The Search For The Nile.  Marquand's first feature film came in 1979, a horror film called The Legacy starring Katharine Ross and Sam Elliot.  Five powerf...

Originally posted in 2015.  Reposting as 2017 marked 30 years since the passing of Richard Marquand Richard Marquand, the director of Return of the Jedi, was born in Cardiff, Wales which is just down the road from where I live.  It may be because of this that I have a fondness for the Welshman but another reason may be the need to get the recognition out there for the talented director's work on Jedi. It's often said by fans that George Lucas really directed Return of the Jedi and at times Marquand was out of his league.  Well let's look at the evidence and see if that statement is really true. What had Marquand directed up to Return of the Jedi to catch the eye of George Lucas?  Well Marquand's directing career began in TV with Edward II way back in 1970 and a couple of episodes of a TV mini-series called The Search For The Nile.  Marquand's first feature film came in 1979, a horror film called The Legacy starring Katharine Ross and Sam Elliot.  ...

Richard Marquand, the director of Return of the Jedi, was born in Cardiff, Wales which is just down the road from where I live.  It may be because of this that I have a fondness for the Welshman but another reason may be the need to get the recognition out there for the talented director's work on Jedi. It's often said by fans that George Lucas really directed Return of the Jedi and at times Marquand was out of his league.  Well let's look at the evidence and see if that statement is really true. What had Marquand directed up to Return of the Jedi to catch the eye of George Lucas?  Well Marquand's directing career began in TV with Edward II way back in 1970 and a couple of episodes of a TV mini-series called The Search For The Nile.  Marquand's first feature film came in 1979, a horror film called The Legacy starring Katharine Ross and Sam Elliot.  Five powerful people meet at an ancient and rather spooky mansion to hopefully get their grubby hands on an ...

Richard Marquand Video Tribute This is a short video tribute I created a few months back to honour Richard Marquand, the director of Return of the Jedi who in my opinion often gets overlooked for his contribution to the Star Wars universe. Rob Wainfur @thebeardedtrio THE BEARDED TRIO ON FACEBOOK THE BEARDED TRIO ON TWITTER THE BEARDED TRIO ON GOOGLE+ THE BEARDED TRIO ON PINTEREST CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON STEVEN SPIELBERG CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON GEORGE LUCAS CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON JOHN WILLIAMS

In my latest blog post for Coffee With Kenobi I look back at the contributions the welsh director, Richard Marquand brought to Star Wars and in particular Return of the Jedi. Richard Marquand, the director of Return of the Jedi, was born in Cardiff, Wales which is just down the road from where I live.  It may be because of this that I have a fondness for the Welshman but another reason may be the need to get the recognition out there for the talented director’s work on Jedi.  It’s often said by fans that George Lucas really directed Return of the Jedi and at times Marquand was out of his league.  Well let’s look at the evidence and see if that statement is really true. Read the full blog post here. Rob Wainfur THE BEARDED TRIO ON FACEBOOK THE BEARDED TRIO ON TWITTER THE BEARDED TRIO ON GOOGLE+ THE BEARDED TRIO ON PINTEREST CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON STEVEN SPIELBERG CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON GEORGE LUCAS CLICK HERE FOR FACTS ON JOHN WILLIAMS

To back up our campaign to have a sound stage at the recently announced Pinewood Studios Cardiff named after Richard Marquand also from Cardiff we bring you this video tribute to the Return of the Jedi director. His input and talent is overlooked especially the input he brought to Star Wars.  We hope this video will highlight some of that talent that resulted in one of the best Star Wars movies.  Featuring rare audio and video interviews with the director and behind the scenes photos and video. Watch the video here. Sign the petition here. Rob @welshslider THE BEARDED TRIO ON FACEBOOK THE BEARDED TRIO ON TWITTER THE BEARDED TRIO ON GOOGLE+

Check out this three minute video showing Richard Marquand talking about Return of the Jedi and how he has a different view on life compared to Irvin Kershner hence why Jedi was more upbeat compared to Empire.  Richard Marquand, a very underrated director. Also as a bonus we get an interview with Anthony Daniels at the end on his role as C3P0. THE BEARDED TRIO ON FACEBOOK THE BEARDED TRIO ON TWITTER THE BEARDED TRIO ON GOOGLE+

The BBC have published a short interview with James Marquand, son of Richard Marquand, director of Return Of The Jedi. From the BBC: As preparations start for the latest Star Wars film to be be made in the UK, the Return of the Jedi celebrates its 30th anniversary. The film was directed by Richard Marquand, from Llanishen in Cardiff, who died aged 49 in 1987. Peter Johnson spoke to his son, James, about how his father became involved in one of history's most successful franchises. Listen to the short interview by clicking on the link below http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-22666264