Is it weird that I enjoy RLM's thrashing reviews more than the actual prequel movies?
One thing I hadn't really noticed, not on a conscious level anyway, was how poor the directing really was. I always thought there was something off about the prequels, the way the felt and how the story flowed. Everyone is walking or sitting down. And the reverse camera...
Argh! I completely agree. The three prequels are so still and lifeless and the camera work so uninspired during dialogue sequences it's ridiculous. 20-minute episodic comedy shows have better camera angles and pacing.
I remember a topic on TheForce.net a few years back, something like "Visual Storytelling" where people posted screenshots of an actor or two over a CGI composition shot and explained how powerful the imagery is and that it's a story all in itself.
Can't remember a single visual iconic stand-out scene out of the entire trilogy. Not one. And I can immediately think of at least one visually inspired scene by any other popular (even if not that great) movie trilogy, let alone something like LotR.