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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Willie the Duck" data-source="post: 9837953" data-attributes="member: 6799660">The primary purpose of the other thread was to keep people from interjecting their Star Wars gripes into other-subject threads. That said, I don't understand Morris' problem either with that threads existence being pointed out, nor using it.That said, since this thread exists: The SW prequels are very much like the 'Free Han' component of Return of the Jedi -- much of it is overly convoluted, could be accomplished in-universe by someone doing something much more practical than whatever happened in shot, and much of the activity exists exclusively so we could see interesting visuals. That said, there are some very nice visuals (some of which now look dated, but that is to be expected with three decade old films). My takeaway on rewatch is that most of the complaints I had about the sequels (nonsense plot, wild upgrade in competence from the original trilogy, etc.), I can see in this. And most of the complaints I have for these, I can see in the original trilogy (nonsense set pieces, characters being handed the idiot ball, etc.). I mean, the original had OSHA-free bottomless pits and trash compactors (why? They jettison their trash into space) on the prison level and Leia letting the guys take the ship she knows is being tracked back to the rebel hideout and Boba Fett getting taken out like a putz. Likewise, for all the grief the sequels get for Rey being instant badass jedi, this one shows 880 y.o. Yoda and 38 year old Obi Wan kicking ass and taking names while 20 years of aging turn them both into limping old men.Everything we complain about in the sequels is here, but at the same time, everything we complain about in the prequels are also in the holy trinity. We just accept them because they are, overall, better made, better written/edited (all hail Marcia Lucas), and the practical effects are less prone to showing their aging (although let's be clear, there are parts of the original 3 that we also just overlook -- the original death star explosion, planets in general, etc.).Or Obi Wan Kenobi hiding out where his nemesis grew up, hiding said nemesis's son with his brother, wearing jedi robes as his disguise, and calling himself 'Old Ben Kenobi.' Question: did we know that Queen Amidala's first name was Padme at that point?I think the idea is that it means that people (the civilian, law enforcement, and military populace) buy in to the clones as legitimate parts of the governing military, stopping any resistance to them being in power until it is too late. It works for the Jedi. It's just that we aren't really shown any sign that the Jedi or any other force at play could really take on the clones and robots together (when it takes the clones and Jedi to take on the robots). FWIW, that (the XP background) is a real place in Sonoma County, California, not far from ILM. Lucas probably had the same skyline looking out over his breakfast table.Why they do not look cool is a real question for me as well. Why they can't actually use swords is more answerable. Realism in cinematic combat really surged as a priority kinda right after these and the LotR movies -- perhaps as a response to nitpicking of them by the perpetually online pedantry (hello fellow nerds). At the time, the stage fighting from Highlander or Princess Bride was the go-to movie combat of the time. The director's response to 'your combat isn't realistic' would have been 'of course not, it's stage fighting.' Mind you, it could have been good stage fighting...I think we've all also kinda re-remembered that most sci-fi/fantasy movies aren't perfect, Star Wars itself has had a lot of stinkers amongst the greatness, and that they were (at the end of the day) kids movies we just happened to fall in love with the first three of.</blockquote>

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