[OT, Starwars] He has seen the light... maybe...

[Mialee]

Y'know, Wulf, I'm sure you're right. The man is only interested in scrabbling up as many merchandising dollars as he can, and isn't capable of showing any love for quality adventure cinema.

Jaded cynics. Pelor love 'em.

 

[King_Stannis]

Lucas is a marketer first and foremost, not a filmmaker. If you think otherwise, you are fooling yourself...

george lucas has done a hell of a lot for the movie industry in general. how many of your favorite movies have used the cutting edge technology of ILM or skywalker sound? probably quite a bit.

george lucas owes me, you and average SW fan - NOTHING! he is free to make good star wars movies, bad star wars movies, or no star wars movies. if anyone feels robbed by him or slighted, don't go and see the movie. it's your best form of protest. i actually feel sorry for the guy, he's trying to live up to three movies that are viewed with rose-colored glasses by many people, and he has to listen to nerds around the world to try to tell him how to make movies - something he's done for over 30 years.

man, i never knew i'd turn into such a lucas-defender, but some of you really need to stop harboring such hatred for a man who has brought such joy to so many.

 

[Dr Midnight]

King_Stannis... bravo. Well done, sir.

I can't agree more. The poor man brought us arguably THE best sci-fi/adventure mythos ever, and here his trying to do it again- his every move is being second-guessed by legions of cruel, snide "fans" who never really were in danger of actually LIKING the new movies at all.

I poke fun at Uncle George now and then, but really, I'd love to shake that man's hand with a tear in my eye.

 

[Florin]

All I know is that I was so excited when the movie started up for Ep. I that I nearly puked. I left the theater euphoric. Sure, after I sat down and let the magic fade, some things about it bothered me, but I saw a Star Wars movie, and I got what I expected.

 

[omedon]

American Graffiti, was definitely made by a film maker, not a marketing mogul. And what a masterpiece it is.

 

[Rinndalir]

Henry:

What I've been hearing from friends who have spoiled themselves ... is that it will "redeem" the Star Wars franchise from Episode I.

Sure. I'll believe it when I see it. Which will NOT be opening week, and I'd encourage everyone here to do the same and join the opening week boycott.

Mialee:

The man is only interested in scrabbling up as many merchandising dollars as he can, and isn't capable of showing any love for quality adventure cinema.

Why, I think that sums it up quite nicely...

 

[Wolfen Priest]

I poke fun at Uncle George now and then, but really, I'd love to shake that man's hand with a tear in my eye.

I agree. The tear in the eye might be a little overzealous, but the point was well made.

I too was not expecting much from Episode I. And that being the case, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. And, probably just like so many other fans, after a while I started seeing all the weeknesses (although I had braced myself, being forewarned, for the idiocy of Jar Jar).

After seeing the Episode II Trailer on Fox that one night, I'm actually pretty disappointed and not expecting much from Episode II either. I mean let's face it; Star Wars, the original saga, was a moment in time, and that moment is gone.

Here's an analogy: I loved Alien and Aliens. But if they tried to continue that saga (which they did with disastrous results) I would recognize that those movies cannot be remade, because half the reason for their glory (and the glory of SW, and Blade Runner for that matter) was that they were in the 80's.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: the 80's rocqued.

 

[WizarDru]

I'm curious, do you think he really acknowledges the mistakes he made in Ep I, or is he simply reacting to market pressure? Do you think he gets it?

Does it make a difference to you that this "acknowledgement" of his was an internal memo addressed to licensees (I'll say it again, LICENSEES), and not to the fans.

Really, what do you think?

Honestly? I'm of two minds. On the one hand, I think he's been hard pressed to truly read his fans for a long time, and with good reason. Fans can be a fickle, difficult lot, often maligning something they enjoy, even as they continue to enjoy it. I heard an awful lot of folks bad-mouth episode I (and for the record, I enjoyed it, but didn't think it was anything as amazing as the first film...but then, there was no way it could be), but many still went to see it two, three and four times....even as they were complaining about it.

I think Lucas took a lot of the criticism of Episode I to heart, and set out to make a better film, not just a better Star Wars film. Parts of Episode I are fantastic...the problem is that the whole was less than the sum of it's parts. Pod Races, Light Saber battles and Jedi Councils do not a whole film make.

One should also point out that Lucas has never been considered a great director, to begin with. Yes, 'American Graffiti' is an excellent film. But 'Star Wars' is actually somewhat herky-jerky in it's direction. I consider Empire to be a much better film, the best of the entire series, in point of fact...and Lucas didn't direct that one.

I also think that Lucas is a pragmatist and an excellent businessman. He wants to make a film people will want to see over and over again, and listens to his audience about what works and what didn't. Hopefully, he's learned his lesson.

Only time will tell.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Y'know, Wulf, I'm sure you're right. The man is only interested in scrabbling up as many merchandising dollars as he can, and isn't capable of showing any love for quality adventure cinema.

Perhaps you should read what I said again. Being a marketer first and foremost does not preclude a love for adventure cinema. It's not an all or nothing situation, I have nothing against him making money from his movies. I buy the merchandise, and, after all, much of it pays my salary. But given the choice of a marketing ploy with story as the afterthought, or a brilliant movie with marketing as the afterthought, it's an easy choice.

... he has to listen to nerds around the world to try to tell him how to make movies - something he's done for over 30 years.

That comment might hold some merit if it were only nerds who observed the low quality of the first movie.

The poor man brought us arguably THE best sci-fi/adventure mythos ever...

No argument. It's the best.

... and here his trying to do it again- his every move is being second-guessed by legions of cruel, snide "fans" who never really were in danger of actually LIKING the new movies at all.

Now that's just silly, Doc. The fans didn't want TPM to suck. Don't call my fandom into question because I call a spade a spade. The writing is on the wall. It is Lucas' attitude (parroted above by Stannis) that he doesn't owe the fans anything that has alienated fans and made them angry, cruel, and snide.

American Graffiti, was definitely made by a film maker, not a marketing mogul. And what a masterpiece it is.

I only wish it were the same man.

Sure. I'll believe it when I see it. Which will NOT be opening week, and I'd encourage everyone here to do the same and join the opening week boycott.

That's my plan as well. I have seen enough first-hand to recognize that there will be a lot of parts I will love: the action sequences and the special effects, and there will be plenty of both. (Coincidentally, these are the parts that sell action figures.)

But it won't stand as a good story. The plot is thin (stretched already to the breaking point, by the damage done in TPM), the dialogue is terrible, and I don't expect much from the acting.

Unfortunately, as a wise man once said, "A special effect without a story is a pretty boring thing."

Wish I could remember who that was.


Wulf

 

[King_Stannis]

Originally posted by King_Stannis
... he has to listen to nerds around the world to try to tell him how to make movies - something he's done for over 30 years.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



That comment might hold some merit if it were only nerds who observed the low quality of the first movie.

==============================================

yeah, but it's only nerds who are obsessing on it. other people either thought that the phantom menace was pretty good, not great (i put myself in this category), or it was a little lackluster. but you don't hear them crying for an idiotic one-week boycott, either. nor calling for lucas' head on message boards around the internet. and most likely, they're pretty pumped up for this movie - quietly so.

ahh, the one-week boycott. the nerd's ultimate masturbatory excercise. delude yourself into thinking that you'll "teach lucas a lesson" because you were disappointed in the last movie (yet still partake of his latest movie 7 days later - apparently without restriction). even though that last movie was done 3 years earlier, i might add. if you like episode 3, do you plan on writing lucas a personal check in 2008? thank god the internet fanatics are a small percentage. AotC will be the biggest movie of the year, and there's really nothing you can do to stop it.