You guys seem to think that the movie would've been so much better if they had just used old fashion models instead of CGI. Uh, the story would be the same. If that were the only difference then I think it would simply look like crap. Just because someone uses models instead of CGI doesn't automatically make the movie look any better. It makes the movie cost more, but that's about it. As long as the story is good, it doesn't matter how much or how little CGI there is. Conversely, if the story sucks, no amount of models will suddenly make it great.
You're right, the quality of effects has little if any impact on the quality of the story. That's not what i hate about cgi. I think the "lucas fingerprints" thread over in the general star wars discussion has done a good job listing the reasons i prefer models, puppets, & real on set/location stunts over cgi & green screen.
& i think over reliance on cgi CAN have at least a small impact on the quality of the narrative. in my opinion, it allows the filmmakers to be lazy by having TOO much freedom. they can pretty much get exactly what they imagine everytime, whereas practical effects & stunts force them to face physical challenges in the real world that they have to overcome. Facing challenges forces us to think creatively & grow as people. This, in turn, makes better art.
Finally, cgi has also led to the advent of "digital editing" (is that what it's called?) where filmmakers can literally splice two seperate takes together to get the performance they desire. I remember seeing this on some "making of" for one of the prequels. Lucas maybe liked take 2 for Anakin, but liked take 6 for Obi-wan. Instead of trying to coax each actor into giving the desired results together in one take by giving them good direction & feedback, Lucas was able to just splice those two takes together in editing. IMO, this just KILLS any chance of getting good chemistry between the actors. It's not something I think Speilberg would or has used, but it is something cgi has brought about & it's a concept I utterly detest.
And i admit i'm a bit biased against cgi because i feel it's killing many of the arts i love. traditional matte painting, model building, & the many other things that cgi is slowly replacing are all things that i love & appreciate for the craftsmanship & skill required of the artists. not that cgi doesn't take skill to do well, it just doesn't appeal to me as an art form the way these older techniques do.