OK, here is the Star Wars review you’ve all been waiting for. Actually, it’s more like I’ve been waiting to give, since I read the book a while ago, and haven’t been able to talk about it so as not to spoil anything for anyone else. Speaking of spoilers, I will be talking about things that happen in the movie, so if you don’t want to know those things beforehand, don’t click on the “more…” link below, which is where the actual review will be. If you are reading this using RSS (or a direct link to just this post), you won’t have that separator, so just stop reading after the next paragraph, which is just the review of waiting in line.
As I predicted, we were the coolest people in line. As you can see above, the reporters from the paper were very interested in the DVD viewing we were running, showing episode 2 while they were waiting in line. They may have also been hanging out just to partake in some of the free pizza that Randy had ordered. I actually didn’t get there until around 8pm, but luckily Randy was holding our place since the morning, and we were first in line. As I also predicted, we were not the dorkiest, as there were several groups in costume, some of whom were sporting the > $100 light sabers and at least one group of idiots actually fighting with them. One of them apparently broke theirs in the process.
OK, here comes the review of the movie itself.
Well, I think everyone expected this to be the best of the “first” three episodes, and I don’t think they’ll be disappointed. A lot of people (including the actor) felt kind of frustrated that Anakin’s character seemed to be too mellow in the last movie, which was done purposefully by Lucas for the sake of contrast in this one. I think it worked pretty well, either that or he just got better at acting before they did this one. I think they did well at really cutting him loose and showing him “go bad”, especially the scene in the temple with the kids. That could have been bad, but I think they did it pretty tastefully.
One thing that I was relieved to see was the whole “chosen one” thing being cleared up. Randy (and others) had expressed some doubts before about Anakin being the “chosen one” of the Jedi legends, and my opinion was that they were misinterpreting the prophecy in thinking that “bringing balance to the force” meant swinging the pendulum more towards the “light” side, but it was my theory that this was an interpretation clouded in optimism, and that the balance that the “chosen one” would bring would be an actual leveling effect, which would have to be towards the dark side. I was pleased to hear Yoda suggest this exact thing to Mace and Obi Wan.
One thing I was a little confused with after reading the book was that I thought there was going to be an actual Qui-Gon appearance, rather than Yoda just mentioning that he had contacted him, and learned how to do the transparent blue ghost thing, and would eventually pass this knowledge on to Yoda and Obi-Wan. I think that this must have either been cut from the movie or not done due to conflicts with Liam Neeson or something.
The other highlight for me (other than all the obvious visual effects, and fight scenes, etc. which were probably the best yet) was the emphasis on explaining the subtle nature of the political plotting that led up to this point. This was something that I appreciated in the first two movies, but I think a lot of people were so pissed about the Jar-Jar thing that they missed the good parts of those movies. This episode really brought all that to the forefront, but you had to have been paying attention to it during the first two to really appreciate it. It’s really interesting when you consider the parallels with today, concerning wars that are being waged in the name of greater security but which obviously have other motivating factors behind the scenes, and the use of fear as a tool to sway the senate and the greater public opinion towards gladly surrendering more and more of their civil liberties until it is too late to put a stop to it.
The only negatives for me were the voice of the emperor after his “transformation” (I thought it was kind of annoying for extended dialog/monologue - they should have kept it like it was in ROTJ) and a couple kind of cheesy scenes of Vader, especially when he finds out that Padme died. There were also a couple more lines that I can’t recall right now, but I remember them setting off the cheese-meter in my head. I know those are minor points, but I didn’t think it would be a complete review without a little bit of criticism.
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Thanks for the review, I actually kind of want to see the movie now. I haven’t let myself get too excited over this one. After being burnt by Episodes I and 2 I don’t think I could handle the letdown again. I hope you’re not in denial right now because it did take a while for people to muster up enough courage to admit Episode 1 at least kind of sucked.
Oh by the way, *soft gentle voice* please lay off the KPFK. It’s going to be the end of you. Try to increase your intake of NPR to take off the edge. Never quit bad news cold turkey.
Thank you for the warning- not to “ruin” the movie for us. Love the picture of Randy in action, in the paper. You guy really are geeks but we love you anyway.
KPFK has quite a few decent shows, but in reality I actually don’t listen to it too much (maybe 5% of my radio listening time versus probably 90% other public radio stations that are more “centered”). I do enjoy the predominant KPFK point of view (although they do have non-left voices) on a lot of issues since it often happens to align with mine, but a lot of the hosts get caught up in the very same kind of closed-mindedness that plagues their right-wing radio and TV counterparts such as Fox and Clear Channel.
I’m assuming you’re bringing that up because of the reference to the similarities I pointed out between the movie and real life, in term of the tactics of fear and manipulation to achieve a desired goal. But you would be mistaken to think that I only brought that up because of the kind of radio I listen to, I brought it up because anyone with their eyes open is able to see the parallels, even if you don’t agree with their accuracy. In addition, unlike many people (on both sides) who tend to just parrot what they hear on the radio on these types of subjects, the views I express here are completely my own.
I just got back from watching it the second time, and two more things in this vein continued to resonate with me. The first is the continued reference by *both* sides that they are struggling to allow “democracy” to prevail, spotlighting the broad and differing interpretations of that word.
The second that stands out in this regard is a quote when Padme remarks (at the announcement of the restructuring of the republic into a galactic empire, when most of the senate erupts in cheering): “So this is how liberty dies… with thunderous applause.”
The egregious loosening of the public’s grasp on freedom since 9/11 should be plain to see, no matter what media outlets you watch / listen to. Sure, if you go mainstream (the big networks and Fox) you will never be presented with any intelligent representation of the side that questions these policies. But when it gets to the point where you actually have “free speech zones” imposed specifically to put dissenting opinions out of sight and out of mind of both the president and the media, even the most lazy, spoon fed observers should sit up and take notice. Anyone who sees the color-coded alert system designed to tell us when to be afraid (and of whom and to what ‘degree’) should have alarm bells warning of propaganda ringing loudly in their heads. It really is shocking how easily Americans will lay down their constitutional liberties in order to get a warm fuzzy sense of security, albeit a false one, and I’m sure you remember what Ben Franklin said about that.
But as far Star Wars, yes, this is definitely recommended for everyone that didn’t like eps 1 & 2, and is probably the kind of movie they were hoping for the first two times around.
I actually enjoyed both of the first two (the second much more than the first), primarily because I was able to look past the several negative aspects of each. Even in ep. 1 where these parts dominated the film, there were still good aspects to be extracted and enjoyed.
I’ve said this many times before (although maybe not on here), but if I would have seen Return of the Jedi at the same age I was when I saw Episode 1, I probably would have disliked the inclusion of the Ewoks just as much as I disliked the Jar-Jar character. They were added to their respective movies for exactly the same reasons, and (I think) were equally annoying if you look at them objectively.
i agree about the vader scene. the main other cheese factor moment was when anakin turned into a robot after windu. “yes master. i will do thy bidding.”
padme seems to change amount of pregnancy suddenly after passing out.
i’m a bit confused by the glowing blue thing because i thought it was something the person dying had to do (which is why qui-gon, yoda and obi-wan disappear). otherwise how come obi-wan suddenly appears to luke? obviously luke didn’t make that happen.
i was very impressed by anakin’s conversion process. all the motivating factors were perfectly done. i also think yoda’s fighting was waaaay better than in aotc.
poor younglings…
could you explain “mellow” anakin in aotc? cuz i thought he was anything but. lucas cut the only scene from that film where anakin and padme actual enjoy some bonding with her family and he doesn’t keep saying creapy ass shit. i had no reason to believe she was falling in love with him in that movie, which is a thousand times worse than jar jar in tpm (who isn’t bad at all and is necessarily idiotic to act as palpatine’s fall guy in aotc).
what, jar jar isn’t allowed to have a single line in rots? he’s religated to standing in the background of three scenes? guess they’re not friends anymore now that he’s a big, important senator.
Qui-Gon didn’t disappear, I don’t think. The book has more details on this, I don’t remember them all at the moment.
By mellow, I meant that he held back on the anger aspect (under specific direction from Lucas) which is probably why some of his scenes just came off as creepy. Several people I have talked to would have liked to basically see what we saw in ep 3 drawn out over the first 3 episodes, or at least 2 & 3. I’m not saying that’s *my* opinion (I actually liked the prequel series in that regard), just that some were hungry for some more evil vader type stuff.
As for the love scenes / buildup in atoc, I would agree, but you never know, maybe he was using Jedi mind tricks on her. Either that, or they just didn’t focus on that aspect of the story, which is the explanation I’ll choose. I’d actually rather not see them try to introduce some kind of cutesy, girl-movie style romantic scenes (which the actors in question may or may not be able to pull off). In fact, you could even argue that it’s more realistic that way; most non-movie people who “fall in love” for don’t do it strictly because of a few short-scene length moments with perfectly written romantic lines, so I’ll just assume that they spent a lot of time alone together (which is made clear in the story) that was not shown on-screen.
When you think about it, Star Wars has never really been great at romance, except of course for the ESB classic exchange:
Leia: “I love you”
Han: “I know”
As for Jar Jar, the character itself probably wouldn’t have been that bad in tmp, if it hadn’t been for the annoying voice. Lucas significantly cut back his role in Ep. 2 and now obviously even moreso in 3 due to fan criticism. The episode 2 scene where Jar Jar is pressured into making the motion in the senate was important in the chain of events, and it’s probably the only reason he was even kept in for episode 2. That whole part did seem a little glossed over, and it wasn’t (IMO) portrayed with the weight that it should have been, probably due to the restructuring to cut out as much Jar Jar as possible. As for his lack of lines in ep 3, I can’t say I missed him.
About the romance stuff: I think that George Lucas made the right decision and stuck to what he does best (sci-fi) instead of trying his hand out with elaborate romantic story lines. I’d rather have had him leave it to our imagination. I’d have to agree with you, Jared. If I want cutesy tootsey romance crap I’ll whip out the Reese Witherspoon or something. Episodes I and II gave us enough to go with without making us all sick in the theatre.
As for all the other stuff above about the movie, I have no clue and I still am having Randy pause the movies when we watch them in order to explain stuff to me. Annoying, yes, but I have had to catch up on years of missed Star Wars.
i’m refering to a specific deleted scene on the aotc dvd where in the two of them have a nice dinner with padme’s family. it was cut because nothing happens, but that’s why i think it’s so important, because he’s actually being a nice guy. i’d never suggest that there be an outright romantic scene. in fact, i would even cut the aotc rolling in the grass bs. i think that’s cheesy romance movie crap, whereas the dinner scene is subtle and realistic.
similarly there’s a deleted scene from ep1 where he gets in a fight with some other kids and you get a glimpse of dark side potential, which i think is important.
oh, and i forgot to comment on the balancing the force thing. the balance to the force comes after vador dies. anakin’s life isn’t what balances the force, it’s what causes the force to be put into balance. i think the jedi dialog in rots plays into that.
Maybe Padme doesn’t like nice guys? You don’t see her rolling around in the grass with Jar Jar, do you!
I guess I need to watch the deleted scenes on those DVDs again, though; I must have watched them before at some point, but I’m not remembering those.
I’m still holding with my theory that the balancing is a negative correction accomplished by eliminating most of the Jedi. When Mace and Obi-Wan were talking about him bringing an end to the Sith, Yoda corrected them, and told them that it may have been misread to mean that. To me, I think Yoda had realized that it wasn’t a positive prophecy. Of course, I could be wrong on this - I haven’t seen any quotes from Lucas on this subject, and he would certainly be the definitive answer for what he meant by it.
The other reason I believe this is that it just makes sense in the context of the movie. You could tell that the Jedi order had become so powerful that they were overconfident, even arrogant. This is pointed out many times in the movie. Not only in the way they allowed themselves to be spread too thin on the outer rim, and were therefore vulnerable to being overtaken by the clone troops, but primarily in both of the final battle scenes, between Anakin and Obi-Wan, and between Yoda and Palpatine.
When Yoda enters to confront Palp, he says something to the effect of “you’re going down” and the emperor warns him that his arrogance has blinded him. Eventually, by the end of the fight, Yoda does realize that he couldn’t finish that battle at that time, as he originally believed he could, and he is wise enough to recognize his error and escape.
Anakin is also warned by Obi-Wan right before their battle ends not to try what he’s going to try - that he’s too confident in his power. Anakin (unlike Yoda) doesn’t heed the warning and loses the battle because of his arrogance.
When the movie wraps up, they are on the track towards a balance in the force. The pendulum has swung slightly to the dark side, after being dominated by the light side for so long, but as the original series (4,5,6) progresses, the balance is leveled out. But, it’s important to remember that the balance never would have come without what Anakin did in this movie, so in effect, that was the primary act that started the pendulum swinging again.
Also, I’m taking care to only discuss the “canonical” story of the two movie trilogy series. The story definitely does not end after Return of the Jedi, and the pendulum continues to swing, as told in the books. The emperor even comes back, when they discover that he had a stash of clone bodies waiting for his “essence” to inhabit, and Luke continues to battle with him, etc.
wow all you talk about is computers and starwars! you guys are such nerds! poor martha…
For all you doubters out there, that don’t believe that Anakin is the chosen one:
There are some other quotes by Lucas that I also found that, while still indicating that Anakin is unquestionably the one intended to be “the chosen one” in the films, that his final good act is the “balance” that is being referenced, so I’ll leave those out, since they kind of discount my theory also.
I may be over my head in commenting about the movie with you guys but here it goes.
E1-2 were cool. I am glad Jared said that the cheese factor, that some call it, can be contributed by age of the early viewers. You notice all the people complaining about 1&2 are around 30 making them kids or young adults when they watched the first series; over and over again. The only complaint that I have about the first two movies is, yes, JarJar and his voice, that’s it. I think this character was not only necessary for the plot of the next film(E2) but the fact they didn’t have a cute cuddly character. After all, the movies are still all about the younglings.
About the ghost blue glowing stuff: I am not for sure but it seemed like Yoda was talking about Qui-Gon teaching them how to do the ’showing’. Meaning Q- has found out how to do it and he will teach them how to do it so they can communicate to each other, either through Q-G or by themselves, I don’t know which, but it seemed to me like it was about the spiritual video conference then when you die you can communicate through the force. But I do think it was about the learning and growing stronger in the force.
I think you guys are ‘reading’ into the balance way to much. Ani- brought balance to the force right after he killed Mace. Realizing the true meaning of the prophecy he says, “What have I done” and Palp, most likely knowing the prophecy he says, “this is your destiny”. His destiny was to balance the force, or make it even. I do agree with what Jared was talking about with the Jedi being cocky, but that would not have happened if the Jedi hadn’t been on the “higher ground” for so long. So bringing balance was not a good or bad thing, the good for the Jedi was the fact that they were humbled and no learned the fact that they could be wrong, like Master Yoda said, “I have failed”. And the good for the Dark side was the fact they are now on the same level as the Jedi.
Another thing that I didn’t like about what you guys were talking about above is the ’swaying’ of the balance. The quote is, “he will bring balance to the force”, not he will bring a somewhat balance to the force that will bring the pendulum closer to the center while swaying back and forth. Think of it mathematically and pure strength. After Mace was killed by Ani-, the point that I believe was the defining “balance point”, because he made it two on two. And if you take it a little farther, strengthwise Palp- was stronger then Yoda, Obi- was stronger then Darth-. BALANCE. Making it perfectly balanced. So balanced that neither side could could be defeated. I think you guys are wrapped up in the politics of things and who controls what, so I am just saying that the force does not include power, or the power to rule the galaxy. The force is the force nothing more. So if the empire is ruling the galaxy the f’ing podium is not swaying in there direction. Politics swayed the people but it will never sway the force. Ha Ha! And if you want to take it further, I did not think it was cheesy when Darth found out Padme died, it showed that he was getting stronger because of his hatred, that hatred that for himself made him “stronger then any-other”; and if you think about it, he has to be stronger since his children brought more good to the force. Maybe I should do a graph of the force throughout the movie to convey what I am trying to say.
Everyone get pissed off when I said F’ing? or what?
No, I’ve just heard so much about Star Wars lately that I was done with it for a while.
mesa no understand why yousa no likey like da voice of jar jar. itsa fun way to talk for all da people. yoda be speaking in da annoying ways too!
you’ll have to check the sw site to find out for sure, cuz i don’t feel like it. at one point in time (before ep2 i think), the sw site had an “ask a jedi librarian” thing. one of the questions was why do some jedi disappear and others don’t, the answer said that it involves a jedi trick which enables you become one with the force just before death. that’s what the “afterlife teleconference” is. apparently every jedi can/does do this at some point based on yoda’s words (we celebrate when people become one with the force) and with the final scenes of rotj.
i don’t know what the heck you’re talking about with your balance theory. i’m not doubting you, i just don’t understand what you’re getting at.
oh, and the scene with yoda and anakin is longer in the script and i assume longer in the book. the jedi librarian said that the process of becoming one with the force would be further explained in episode three, but i guess lucas decided to back off on that angle a little bit. too bad…
I’m sorry but _Revenge_of_the_Sith_ sucked. As much as I wanted it to redeem the _Star_Wars_ saga and even though I was told by various people that it was good I have to admit that it was a disgrace. Here are three reasons why I disliked it.
1. The Jedi’s are a bunch of tools, especially Anakin. (I’m sure Anakin would respond to this critique in a whiny voice: “That’s not fair”).
2. Obi Wan trips onto a control console of that mining station fortress thingy and throws it into self destruct mode, conveniently allow him and Anakin to have a light saber battle atop debris hovering over a lava river.
3. Yoda is a quitter.
This list is by no means exhaustive as there were many things in _Revenge_of_the_Sith that were stupid. Some that were carried over from the previous pitiful prequels and some that were new. I really did want to like this movie. I love the old trilogy so much, but you have to admit that it just does not measure up. I was done after Anakin rammed the buzz saw robots off of Obi Wan’s space ship in the opening scene.
As I said above, I’m kind of tired of talking about Star Wars for now, but even if I wasn’t, I don’t think I’d try to convince someone to like a movie that they didn’t like. It’s like any other artistic expression (painting, music, etc.) if you like it, then enjoy it - who cares what everyone else thinks.
I had to keep that in mind especially after Episodes 1 and 2 (which I enjoyed); after the first couple days (during which *some* people who now ‘don’t like them’ saw them several times) people started bagging on them, but I just decided that the fact that I enjoyed them is independent of whether or not anyone else did.
i think it’s funny that people don’t want to admit just how “bad” the original three movies were. cynicism must die.
Mr Stryker posted that the movie left him slightly down and the above sounds like it could have that effect.
My daughter said it was really sad. I dont know if I really have all that much peace right now to have my entertainment pull me down too.
So… why see it?
Also, just a comment - you guys seem really into the spiritual message of the movie( not saying that’s bad or good ). I guess it is a more than a quick shallow movie if the discussions can go on like this everywhere. I saw that effect ( or affect ) after the first movie came out. Christians were not out in the open then and found something to break into the culture with and they started saying God was kind of like the force.
God is like the what?!
If anything, I would say that “the force” is more analagous to an impersonal religion/philosophy such as Buddhism. Relating it to Christianity could lead to the kind of confusion found in “TV Christianity”, where it’s all about what God can do for you, reversing the roles of who is serving who.
oh, and the vader learns of padme scene was great up until the “nooooo,” which was way cheesy. the explosions were awesome, but he should’ve just colapsed on the floor. woulda been much more natural than the cliche “noooooo”
Is it worth seeing? Is it a depressing movie?
Yes, they were out there and I bet you will hear it again - God is like the force, and the Holy Spirit is really like the force.
The christians were and still are in many cases outside the culture and have tried to make the connection.
Janis Joplin in response to the Jesus movement of the 70’s had the song ” oh Lord wont you buy me a mercedes benz, all my friends drive porche’s, I must make a ammends ”
I agree with you JB, but you have a biblical foundation, that the force is really more related to panthesim and is not christianity.
That impersonal spirit idea is popular and rampant throughout our culture: Sin is only a problem of being in the wrong band of energy. Be good and get good, be bad and get power. Good and evil are equal and constantly winning and losing against each other as shown in the ying yang symbol.
The aliens know about the spiritual flow and will someday show us how to do it and then we can fly to other galaxies, yipee!!
I know it’s crazy and for those who dont
have a solid foundation in the bible will latch onto it, that the force or whatever you want to call it is in everything idea - check into the philosophy of the radical environmentalists - trees have a spirit and soul so we shouldn’t cut them down. I am for trees and love nature but I think God created it not the happenstance or expression of the ” force “.
Bottom line for me in this is that will instantly dispel all of these ideas:
One day God is going to rip back the sky - how great and terrifying.
Should it be seen as entertainment or will I want to go live in a cave for a week after?
It is good entertainment, as long as you enjoy it in the context of the other movies on either side of it. It’s probably not for everyone.
I heard several reviews on the radio by people who probably consider themselves ‘elite’ film critics who didn’t like it at all, which isn’t surprising.
One of the gripes they mentioned and I somewhat agree with is that Lucas is getting a little too caught up in his digital world. The opening space battle scene, for example was definitely impressive, but at the same time the multitude of ships didn’t carry the same weight as the ominous single destroyer at the beginning of the original (a new hope). The huge crowds of droids and vehicles battling is also certainly technically superior as battle scenes go, but if I were a kid, I don’t know if I’d be as excited about or impressed by any of those machines as we were with the huge (and relatively simple) AT-AT walkers of Empire Strikes Back.
All in all, it’s the third chapter in a story, not meant to stand on its own. I appreciate the whole series for what it is, and this was certainly a key portion of the saga.
There are some valid points about cheesiness (as mentioned above by me and others) and just overall poor script writing, acting, etc., but I still think it’s worthwhile.
thanks,
I did see the others and am mildly interested.
The computer stuff where they add so much is boring. An example is that battle scene with jar jar in the last movie. Or that one movie where everyone had to fight those spider like aliens with the beige goo inside.
It’s funny that they picked a german looking guy to play that really bad dude with the cape in one of the last movies. Looks like an uncle.
If my memory is correct didn’t Lucas team with Apple on some of the first movies somehow?
Wonder if Lucas will start another legend?
I sure hope he doesn’t start another legend. He is washed upped, dulled by success, and probably unable to harness the creative powers that allowed him to create the original trilogy.
Interesting, so are you saying Lucas was/is a kind of corporate hack wringing every last dollar from Star Wars.
i doubt it. otherwise he wouldn’t have bothered to explain all that he did with the first three. anyone can piece together the prequil situations necessary to advance the characters to 4-6, but lucas brilliantly did everything right. he’s an enormously tallented and detailed story teller, just bad script writer and director.
janis joplin recorded that song in 1970, three days before she died. it has nothing to do with the Jesus movement and everything to do with materialism.
i thought rots did a great job (much better than lotr) of taking advantage of the computers to make a complete scene while not pretending that that’s impressive. i think the main action was what was impressive in the first 30 minutes, not the fleet of star cruisers and subsequent battles. the hoth scenes had plenty of background goodies, with multiple walker/fighter battles.
Mr Stryker, I stand corrected as to the exact dates. Yes, 1970 for Janis Joplin, the year I graduated high school. Hendrix died that fall, I saw his last concert in NY at the fillmore east new year’s ever 69 - 70.
Having actually been alive then and not reading about it in a blog that is the way I remember the song when I first heard it and when it first played on the radio. That is the way everyone talked about it.
The Jesus movement started in San Francisco in 1967 ish ( http://one-way.org/jesusmovement/ ) .Janis Jopin lived in San francisco at that time. I disagree that Joplin’s song was not in response to that movement. Yes , she’s poking fun at materialism, but materialism of the church at that time.
It’s a free country think what you want.
I wouldn’t go so far as to call him a hack. It just got to easy for him to make a movie that would gross the big bucks. He became, like almost anyone would, lazy. I’m sure he wanted to have good intentions, he just lost his edge.
I’m not sure you could necessarily call him lazy, in the sense that I would bet he put more total work hours into 1-3 than 4-6. As for the story and/or script, as Nathan said above it seems like he put quite a bit of time into that as well.
I think that perhaps the main differences were just the era that they were made in, the actors involved, and the age of the observers. I think that if you put the film-making technology aside, the two trilogies are very similar in most ways.
Also, to be fair, Lucas never wanted to make a revolutionary new Hollywood blockbuster, he has said that he wanted to get back to the days of the Flash Gordon sci-fi serials, just with better cool movie making tricks to work with. Same with Indiana Jones, a return to the classic treasure hunting adventure genre rather than trying to compete for new ground (other than in technology).
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the first trilogy was great, but I wouldn’t put it on too high of a pedestal above the current one. You are a more sophisticated movie critic now than you were then, and also you grew up being inundated with the first three movies, so they understandably have a greater meaning to you.
Yes, Lucas did Indiana Jones. That was very good movie making for strictly entertainment value.
My boys are too old to watch them again and the granddaughters are too young.
Isn’t weird that Star Wars started 30 years ago.
That doesn’t seem posible to have happened in the 60’s or 70’s due to the massive social changes.
i didn’t hear about janis from a blog, i learned about her from my wacked out parents. duh!
duh, far out and groovy, right on bro, take it to the street.
your parente seem nice, didnt I see them at the last reunion, the different high schools will all combine into one due to atrition rates.
I don’t follow the life of George Lucas so I am not talking about man hours he put into the movies when I say he is lazy. It appears to me his imagination is lazy and he has failed miserably to create in the the new movies a realistic, believable fantasy world like he did in the old ones.
I am not trying to be a sophisticated a movie critic. I looked over Christian’s shoulder this weekend while he was watching _The_Empire_Strikes_Back_ and from what little I saw I can with confidence say that the old trilogy is much better. When did Lucas decide that spaceships flying at hundreds, perhaps thousands of miles an hour could easily bump into each other without damage. Why does he think that a giant lizard/dog/bird creature would be cool to ride on while you chase down a cyborg with a cold. It’s just lame.
When I went to see each one of the new movies I did not go to see a revolutionary film. I wanted to see the world I knew and loved so much brought back to life in an even more spectacular way. What I got is something completely incompatible, unbelievable, even laughable and it has been a major disappointment. He even managed to make a few of Yoda’s lines corny. Sacrilege!
That’s my point; all the corniness and “unbelievable” aspects were there in the first trilogy as well, I think you’re just overlooking them.
Yoda (and others) had corny lines, and the “whine” factor was there as well, with Luke. None of the actors (except Harrison Ford) were really that good, just like the current movies (with the exception of Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor).
Most sci-fi movies that involve space travel of any kind are scientifically flawed, including both Star Wars trilogies - so what?
I don’t really see what makes the original universe any more believable than the prequel depiction.
Thinking back on them, I’m not sure what they could have done better with the prequels, but like I said before, it’s certainly your right not to like them.
honey, you are so diplomatic. Maybe you shoild join the UN…ha ha! Love ya!
Jared, in response to your post about the $ 100 + light sabers. Two people made their own using fluorescent light tubes filled with some liguid fuel which exploded when they decided to have a sword fight and burned them both.
News -
“Sith” Fans Maimed in Lightsaber Mishap
By Charlie Amter 2 hours, 6 minutes ago
Two British Star Wars fans sustained critical injuries after constructing their own lightsabers from fluorescent light tubes filled with liquid fuel.
I don’t really want to ask anyone to do to much work but if you can pick some things off the top of your head, what would consider the lamest parts of the old trilogy?
By the way thanks for letting me vent. It’s been therapeutic. I haven’t been able to tell any blinded Star Wars fans to there face how much the the movie sucked and since I’m generally a confrontational person I had to find an outlet.
I also affirm your right to like these lousy movies. I just have a sinking feeling you’re lying to yourselves.
wookies,I think, were pure velveeta
There weren’t a lot of “lame” parts (in my opinion) in the original trilogy; I liked it a lot.
If there were any criticisms to be made, I would say that they are generally the same as those for the prequels: poor acting and script (the lines themselves, not the story). Also, I never really liked the whole cutesy Ewok thing, which is why I see a big correlation between that and the Jar Jar fiasco of episode 1. Both were done for probably the same purpose, and I won’t let them ruin the rest of the movie(s) for me, even if I personally didn’t like that part very much.
“but i was going to toshi station to get some power converters”
also, jawas…even at the time those costumes were outdated by 40 years!
At least Luke was a whiner long before he was ever trained as a Jedi. It was typical teenage behavior. Note the marked change in demeanor from 4 to 6. Anakin was a whiny fool while being accepted into the Jedi Counsel, hard to believe coming from a young man with his skill and power. I would of expected a more brooding, conniving reaction.
That probably wouldn’t have worked since they were showing that Anakin was unable to control his emotions as well as Luke eventually learned to, that was a big part of the plot.
P.S. - I think your comment got caught in the moderation filter because you said “teenage”. heh
exactly, luke truly learned the ways of the force, instead of just being talented and thinking that’s enough. i might be totally buff, but that doesn’t mean i can fight.
Was Mark Hamil in any of the first three prequells?
I think they needed to get someone else besides Samuel L. Jackson. The guy is in too many movies and his characters get overridden by him. It’s like watching Harrison Ford in a movie.
BTW my daughter was working at Longs on Ashwood and this man asked her if she could take the video back and she looked up and it was Harrison Ford.