If the OT was released in today’s climate, it would receive the exact same level of ridicule as the prequels and sequels.
Sorry, but this isn’t a sentiment that makes sense to me. To focus just on the original film; it was like nothing people had ever seen in '77 with special effects that were invented for the movie and made by a group of world-class talents at the pinnacle of their skills, and which tapped into the zeitgeist so deeply that most of the people in the US had seen the movie, mostly through word-of-mouth, by the time it left theaters.
To extract the film from its historical context and compare it to something released today is ludicrous, especially since it would undoubtedly suffer John Carter issues where it is seen as predictable due to the multitude of films that had been made in emulation of the elements which made Star Wars great. It’s like saying the moon landing wasn’t actually that great because we know how to make better spaceships and would do that differently today.
Finally, you say ‘in today’s climate’, but I assume you mean in the climate of the Star Wars fandom or movie fans in general. People are always comparing new movies in a franchise to the originals, so these films couldn’t be released ‘in today’s climate’, because that same climate has been built out of expectations set by…the originals.
Here’s an acid test - if the originals were objectively no better than the prequels or sequels, with rudimentary and sometimes embarrassingly dated effects, then I guarantee that there would be talks to remake them. Robocop, The Thing, Final Recall…they all got the remake treatment. But films like Blade Runner, 2001, Indiana Jones…nobody even considers a remake even though they would have massive name recognition, and I think we all know the reason for that isn’t some arcane legal one.
Read my comment just before this one where I said I like the originals more than the prequels or sequels. I also said my comment was more of a critique of movie reviews in general.
I like your NASA analogy. Yes the OT was a groundbreaking achievement, certainly more so than the prequels or sequels. I’m a fan of the Saturn V rocket. I have a model of it displayed in my movie room. The moon landing was an incredible achievement. But to use your same analogy, would be like saying the Space Shuttle or Falcon 9 are inferior to the Saturn V, even though technologically superior, just because they weren’t around for the moon landing. I’m sure the SR-71 is superior to what the Wright brothers flew. I’m just saying if you evaluate them on their own, side by side. But I see your point about being groundbreaking for their time.
Again though, my comment was more of a critique of the mudslinging reviews that are popular now. How people go on a seek and destroy mission with a hate-for-clicks revenue stream. I’m not one who thinks movie making has significantly declined. I think reviews have become too critical. I love the Original Trilogy. But when I look at them objectively, I see similar flaws in them that people lambaste other movies for. If social media was around back then, the contrarians would have had plenty to say about the OT.
Not so sure your comment about remakes will stand the test of time though. I think everything will be remade eventually. Interstellar is extremely similar to 2001. They wouldn’t remake Blade Runner because slow brooding noir isn’t known for box office results. Look at BR 2049. Blade Runner is another of my favorites by the way. I think Indiana Jones will get rebooted with another actor very soon actually.
I love the OT, but I don’t think it’s irreproachable, and I also think other movies, especially those in the Star Wars franchise, get critiqued on a whole other level.