JawsTDS said:
Having watched the entire Star Wars saga multiple times, I still seem to not understand what exactly is going on in the prequel trilogy (apparently no one else does either). For those who have decoded it, can you explain some things for me? I want to better understand the entire Star Wars saga for my next viewing (December 2015 ;-))
Let's start from TPM and go on: what the hell is Palpatine (Sidious) trying to do with Nute Gunray? Why is this war going on? Why does Dooku inform Obi-wan of Palpatine's evilness, but still work along side Palpatine? Why did everyone suddenly realize that Palpatine is bad right at the end? How does this all connect?
tl;dr - I'm confused about the entire storyline of the PT. The only part I really understand is that Palpatine is trying to lure Anakin to the dark side and that he succeeds, until Luke comes around.
Help me OT, you're my only hope.
That's the problem with the PT, because they try to have this serious/dramatic story, when Lucas has always said they are essentially serial type movies.
What makes the OT great is its basic at its core, but they don't take themselves too seriously. The PT takes itself way too seriously, and that just doesn't work in the type of movies Lucas makes. If Lucas wanted to craft a serious story of a Jedi gone bad, he would have had to make it much more adult, and in a sense something that doesn't appeal to kids. Which would mean the whole 'merchandise' end would go out the door.
I think there are some fun parts to the PT, but when it tries to get all dramatic/serious, that is when they completely fall apart. The Love Story in AOTC is cringeworthy, and that is why it sticks out like a sore thumb in the movie. Anakin's turn to the darkside is the low point of the PT, because it tries to be Shakespeara-esque, where that just doesn't mix in the SW world.
What kept the OT grounded is it got dramatic at times, it got funny at times, and it got mythological at times. But it never took itself too seriously to the point where it was trying to be this Shakespearan Novel.
What Lucas was trying to do with Anakin's fall to the darkside was what Coppola did with Michael Corleone and his ascent to hell. The difference is The Godfather movies are a drama made for adults, whereas SW movies are made for everyone, but geared for kids. The bottom line is the 2 don't mix.