logo Sign In

Anything? Anything At All? (that is remotely positive or good about the SE and PT?)

Author
Date
Author
Time
 (Edited)
Post link

Is there anything, in your opinion, that is remotely positive or good about the SE and PT? Understand that I have done much Lucas, SE, and PT “bashing” in the past; however, I must admit that there are some okay-to-brilliant moments in the PT (such as the lightsaber duels and much of John Williams’ score), and some not-so-bad moments in the SE (some of the crisper special effects). Does anyone else have an opinion on this?

Author
Time
Post link
The redone "Wedge to the rescue" tie fighter cockpit POV shot during the Battle of Yavin is pretty much the first thing that comes to mind.
Author
Time
Post link
Yes, I have an opinion. (LOL)

I liked the Biggs/Luke scene in the SW SE (although I wish they'd used the whole scene rather than an edited version)........and that's about it. It's the only addition that actually enhanced the film, IMO. All of the other changes either pissed me off, or were so subtle that I didn't notice them at all.

As far as the PT goes, I liked seeing Liam Neeson in TPM, though I feel his talents were totally wasted. I didn't really care for any of the music in the PT. It sounded uninspired to me (probably because it was- and who could blame him). There were so many great themes in the OT, and there was nothing really comparable in the PT. I can't say that I really enjoyed any of the saber-fights in the PT, either. They came across as being very fake and boring to me. I saw TPM twice, and AOTC and ROTS once each, and I can honestly say that I have no desire to see any of them again.

Author
Time
Post link
SE

    - Cleaned up effects in the ESB snowbattle (ie matte lines and transparency issues)

    - I do like the biggs scene in SW

    - The shot of the ships taking off from Yavin

    - The falcon taking off from the Mos Eisley hanger

    - I don't mind the bantha herd in ROTJ and the extended sandtrooper sequence "look sir droids"

Keep in mind that some of the points listed above are fine in the SE as long as they aren't the only version available.

PT

    - Liam Neeson/Qui Gon Jinn. Although that role should of totally have been Obi Wan. Obi Wan was always "you can't do this, you can't do that" and Qui Gon was more "you can do anything", which seemed to me more in keeping with the Obi Wan of the OT.

    - Darth Maul. Stupid name though and double lightsaber is kinda gimmicky.

    - TPM lightsaber battle when Qui Gon dies and Obi Wan lets loose on Maul.

    - The idea of the droid factory sequence and arena sequence. These ideas seemed to me very reminiscent of the sense of adventure of the original SW and the arena sequence is very Ben Hur-esque and Jason and the Argonauts.... just handled very poorly. It was good to see the heroes in peril.

    - The idea of a detective story in AOTC. Very film noir. Which I like.

    - The idea of Grevious' ship in the beginning of ROTS. Again very reminiscent of the sense of adventure of SW and sneeking around the Death Star. Unfortuantely edited down to a few nothing sequences and bad writting/plotting.

    - Planet designs. Naboo was awe inspiring. Water planet was cool where the clones were made, can't remember the name. Volcano planet and the sink hole planet in ROTS were great also. Visually awesome.

That's all I can say to keep things positive and not turn it into another hate topic.

"Well here's a big bag of rock salt" - Patton Oswalt

Author
Time
Post link
The inclusion of 'monomix' elements was pretty cool.

I did like how they attempted to clean up some of the original effects. Too bad the matte lines were still there on a lot of space shots and some of the snowspeeder cockpits were still transparent.

The Falcon blasting out of Docking bay 94 was something I enjoyed. The new sandcrawler footage was cool too.
I liked seeing a bit more of the Slave 1 in Empire.
And I was thrilled to hear no more of the 'yub-nub' song in Jedi. The end of the coolest movies ever and we get singing teddy bears. I've always hated that.

The rest of the changes were either a distraction or just different (and therefore unnecessary) from the original.
Author
Time
Post link
I will be honest with you. I really do not have much negative things to say about the PT. I have seen them all in the theater and I really liked them. Yes I do have a problem with stuff like Jar Jar's bad slapstick, Midichlorians, etc, but I tend to overlook them (and the problems are mainly in TPM anyway) and see the PT as Star Wars in general. Are they as great as the originals? Of course not, they will never be. Do I find them enjoyable films. Yes. I will not push my opinions on anyone, nor will I go on and on about how I liked them. And if you dislike the PT I will respect your opinion, for we all have our own. Because we are all different.

But the SE! Here is where my big problems are with. This is where I have my resentment toward Lucas. Man, he should have left the originals completely alone. Or if he had to modify them, he should have stuck with menial changes. And he should have released both versions on DVD in great quality. I loved how he corrected errors like the cell block corridor. I somewhat like changes like the alternate shots of spaceships, some dialog changes, and interesting additions like the insertion of the Luke and Biggs scene. But I can absolutely not stand Greedo firing at all, droid + Jawa slapstick, Jabba scene, Jedi rocks, and of course, that really crappy change. That stupid stupid stupid Hayden force spirit that always miffs me off whenever I see it or even think about it! I have always detested these blatant scaring and defacing changes that are a total disrespect to the best trilogy of all time, and I also detest Lucas for doing them.
Author
Time
Post link
Whoa! Maybe skyjedi's constant anti-Lucas rants are not his fault, perhaps that Luke avatar festers with Lucas hatred, seems like it is affecting Lan Hakari too

"Every time Warb sighs, an angel falls into a vat of mapel syrup." - Gaffer Tape

Author
Time
Post link
I think the best things to come out of the PT and SE is the validation of digital media and increased to all digital workflows. I'm not talking special effects, I mean the fact that the digital domain came of age and all that high-end tech does trickle down to your desktop. Great news for indie moviemakers and amateurs who refuse to give up.

In terms of the content of the movies - the SE, I would have preferred if it was just a neg and composite clean-up and more subtle like the THX1138 SE.

The PT, well Williams is still ace. The lightsabre stuff is full-on and I did personally like the second half of Clones where the fighting starts. Sith was a big disappointment with too much slapstick, and even the opening sequence which when I read about it sounded awesome just completely failed to impress me on the big screen - it should've been a wide-angle rollercoaster ride but instead it was a depthless wankathon. Sorry, ranting already.
Author
Time
Post link
I'm with those who quite like the PT for what it is. A set of Star Wars films that is ok, just not up to the original.
What do I like in particular? Dunno.
But one thing I do like (a lot) is the last 10 mins of Sith. Vader and Papls looking at the Death Star (I know the timeline is shagged...but it's just a film man) but I especially love the scene where Obi Wan hands Luke over to Beru. Love that scene...The music, colours..the fact that it's so sad, but we know what is to come. Perfect.

See, if the PT was more like that.....more visual - less dialog.... I think they could have been fantastic to watch.

SE..Meh...But who cares when we have such good Fan edits on here.

http://www.facebook.com/DirtyWookie

Author
Time
Post link
Originally posted by: Lan Hikari
I somewhat like changes like the expansion of Mos Eisley, ...

Brrrr... nooo!!! Mos Eisley was a dingy, dusty, and above all realistic hell hole of a dead desert truck stop with musty corridors and danger, and the SE turned it into Disneyland.

"Close the blast doors!"
Puggo’s website | Rescuing Star Wars

Author
Time
Post link
Originally posted by: Puggo - Jar Jar's "Yoda"

Brrrr... nooo!!! Mos Eisley was a dingy, dusty, and above all realistic hell hole of a dead desert truck stop with musty corridors and danger, and the SE turned it into Disneyland.



I totally agree, the OOT version of SW'77 was not suppose to be lavish or cheesy it was suppose to be gritty, and the SE takes you right out of the movie. All of the additions to the SE give the movie that PT feel, meaning there always has to be something going on in every part of the screen.

Most gritty films really stand the test of time, as they hold true to the story they are telling and there is no wink-wink jokes in them either. Lucas came from an era of gritty films in the 1970's of Scorcese, DePalma, Coppola, Kubrick, and I really don't know where he lost that edge.
Author
Time
Post link
Originally posted by: Puggo - Jar Jar's "Yoda"
Originally posted by: Lan Hikari
I somewhat like changes like the expansion of Mos Eisley, ...

Brrrr... nooo!!! Mos Eisley was a dingy, dusty, and above all realistic hell hole of a dead desert truck stop with musty corridors and danger, and the SE turned it into Disneyland.


Some of us consider Disneyland to be a dingy, dusty, realistic hell hole of a dead tourist trap with musty corridors and danger
"It's the stoned movie you don't have to be stoned for." -- Tom Shales on Star Wars
Scruffy's gonna die the way he lived.
Author
Time
Post link
since the special editions and the prequels are the death of the oot as we know it i have nothing good to say about them. pieces of shit and garbage bastardizations of the original trilogy and the death of star wars thanks to Lucass.

“Always loved Vader’s wordless self sacrifice. Another shitty, clueless, revision like Greedo and young Anakin’s ghost. What a fucking shame.” -Simon Pegg.

Author
Time
Post link
Oops, yeah, I forgot about that CO. I forgot about how better off the film was without the expansion. Sorry about it. I fixed my post. To be honest, the originals should have been left alone and never tampered with in the first place. You know, let the originals be 70s-80s films and let the prequels be 90s-early 2000s films. Let what is there stay the same. And Hotrod, I like your post, for you speak true. The fan edits here are way better than what Lucas did with his SE edits.
Author
Time
Post link
I actually don't "detest" Lucas for messing up the films. How can I detest someone that created my favorite movie ever, "Star Wars"? I simply think that he is misguided, and is too close to his own films to see the big picture. That's normal. What I "detest" is the fact that nobody around him seems to be making any effort to convince him to do what is obviously right - that nobody is screaming in opposition except us little folk. This is not all GL's fault... sure he's the one with the power, but everyone around him seems too wimpy (or inept) to speak out about it. People do strange things in the absence of normal peer feedback. I guess what I detest are all the "yes men" that are obviously going along with this.

"Close the blast doors!"
Puggo’s website | Rescuing Star Wars

Author
Time
Post link
I'm not saying you're wrong Puggo nor do I want to start a GL hate-fest but it's also entirely possible that GL shuts out those people in his life that don't agree with him. Resulting in the current state of affairs at Lucasfilm.

"Well here's a big bag of rock salt" - Patton Oswalt

Author
Time
Post link
I've just remembered the best thing about the PT.
Watching the first trailer for TPM for the very first time. Wow!! Luckily I taped it on VHS. I must have watched it about 30 times in a row. It just looked bloody fantastic.
Jedi kicking ass, funny looking Stormtrooper things, The devil with a double bladed lighsaber!!!! Obi-Wan doing the spinny thing with his lighsaber...you could even forgive the fucked up looking Yoda because his "Fear leads to anger" speech was so good.
Who would have thought eh?! What a shame.....A real, real shame!!



http://www.facebook.com/DirtyWookie

Author
Time
Post link
That's a good point about the PT trailers - I enjoyed the trailers for TPM and ROTS more than the films themselves. Ah, sweet anticipa .....