The Prequel Radical Redux Ideas Thread — Page 121

I think with all the cutting out of scenes in AOTC (as I've seen in my own edit) there's need for some filler. Maybe in the form of the republic troops and mace and co fighting through a blockade of Seperatist ships to get to Geonosis.

Would require filming some models shots, which would be an opportunity to include some more appropriate republic ships.

I can see someone like Ady replacing the CGI of the opening space battle in ROTS with model shots, so animating a whole new battle wouldn't be that farfetched.

Going back to ROTS, those Arc-170 Xwing look alikes absolutely went through me, and detract from the iconic moment in A New Hope where the Xwings open their S foils.

I would have far preferred them to have been z-95 headhunters as this at least looks like a precursor to the Xwing. Or even Y wings with all their panels intact, suggesting that the Ywings in ANH are salvaged.

Or, seeing as these are to become the empire, replace them all with something that looks more like a "good" precursor of the tie fighter. They did have the V wing in some part of the film, but these look too much like A wings with Tie style wings strapped on.

Regarding the romance in AOTC, I really like what some of the faneditors have done with this.  Slumberland and JasonN come to mind immediately but there are others as well.  The scene at Padme's house, having dinner with her parents, was something I really thought belonged in the movie.  Other things I've seen that I liked included keeping the balcony kiss but cutting before Padme pulls away, keeping the meadow scene but cutting before we switch to the animal riding bit, cutting the fireplace scene entirely, and moving around the order of the scenes a bit.  If I remember correctly, Slumberland even color corrected the balcony scene darker to make it look like dusk, and moved it towards the end of the Naboo scenes.  I should mention that the one deleted scene that I absolutely hated was the Padme bedroom scene.  Horrible.

Just a reminder that you can check out all the changes in these edits by looking at my cutlist scripts.  Just follow the link in my sig.

I agree. The scene at Padme's house with her family was probably better than every other scene with those two. It actually feels natural. No cheesyness or creepyness either. And it sets up Padme having feelings for Anakin better than it does currently - which is pretty much because the plot needs her to.

I agree too. It's best to reflect feelings of developing love through other characters and dialogue, not contrive it in romantic scenes that just don't play with audiences anymore. Well, not when they're done like Lucas does them.

EyeShotFirst said:

The biggest problem with making a prequel is when the casting director goes for who looks the most like the character in the original. They don't care at all as long as they look enough like the character. In the beginning of the movie Braveheart there was a young actor playing William Wallace. He didn't look at all like Mel Gibson but he practiced his mannerisms and got them down perfect so the seams met in a way that made the film seamless. Then you have a movie like Star Trek with that horrible Chris Pine. He didn't even bother to try to be William Shatner. He had the look fairly close but really didn't capture the essence of William Shatner's performance (it isn't that hard LOL). 

Most people would prefer seeing somebody who looks like the original character, but a true fan of any original film would like to see somebody who convinces them that they are the same character without looking extremely close to the original.

 

My biggest problem with the dialogue in the prequels is they say some of the same shit they do in the originals. Amidala talking about "discussing this in a committee" a classic Han line. All the damn aliens call people Bantha Fodder.

And why does every sith say "Search your feelings and you will know it to be true." Darth Vader said it first in ESB then after that everybody says it.

It was like George Lucas had a hat full of lines. He pulls one out every time a character says something and sticks it in the script.

The Godfather Part II, Robert De Niro looks nothing like Marlon Brando, but he sure as hell was Vito Corleone. I think that might be the ur-example.

I disagree with you on Pine. I thought he was very good, and why should he do an impression of William Shatner? He's playing Kirk, not Shatner. And a young Kirk at that.

Darth Venal said:

We can make the romance work more by CUTTING two-thirds of it out. Really.

I agree with that to an extent. Removing all wanna-be shakespear lines helps a great deal....And any line dealing with sand, and how soft naboo is... Oh and tap dancing on Naboo cows.... Ugh....

By comparison, let's look at a better example. How about, oh, let's say... The Empire Strikes Back. Exactly how much romantic dialogue is there between Han and Leia? Hans seduction of Leia, and her resistance, are so much more succinct than Episode II, and that much more bearable. After Lucas' notoriously over-restrained emotions in Episode I, he went and gushed it up in the next one. Balance, George, balance!

So I say cut it. Even montage it to an abbreviated Across the Stars. Something.

Less dialogue, the stronger it becomes. It's true. It's been proven by the phantom editor and several others who have edited AOTC

Darth Venal said:

By comparison, let's look at a better example. How about, oh, let's say... The Empire Strikes Back. Exactly how much romantic dialogue is there between Han and Leia? Hans seduction of Leia, and her resistance, are so much more succinct than Episode II, and that much more bearable. After Lucas' notoriously over-restrained emotions in Episode I, he went and gushed it up in the next one. Balance, George, balance!

So I say cut it. Even montage it to an abbreviated Across the Stars. Something.

I really like that idea. No dialogue. Just visuals and music.

Well, I wouldn't say no dialogue at all. You need to convey a few things with words.

mrbenja0618:

"Well, I wouldn't say no dialogue at all. You need to convey a few things with words."

Actually, you don't. There isn't a single bit of dialogue in those scenes on Naboo that isn't conveyed by their actions.

Anyway, I didn't mean every scene between them, I mean the waterfall picnic, the hay ride (gah), even the stuff by Lake Como. It needs reducing substantially, and a montage could achieve that if done correctly.

Darth Venal said:

mrbenja0618:

"Well, I wouldn't say no dialogue at all. You need to convey a few things with words."

Actually, you don't. There isn't a single bit of dialogue in those scenes on Naboo that isn't conveyed by their actions.

Anyway, I didn't mean every scene between them, I mean the waterfall picnic, the hay ride (gah), even the stuff by Lake Como. It needs reducing substantially, and a montage could achieve that if done correctly.

I'm on the fence on this one, but I will say that the look that Padme gives Anakin at the waterfall picnic, just before they cut to the riding-the-animal-crap, is a perfect example of not needing words.  That look she gives him was the first time (and possibly only time) that we actually get the feeling that she might like him.  Until she's suddenly in love, of course.

I'm not sure if a montage would work, but I think it could.  Certainly it could work better than too many words, which is what we got.

mrbenja0618 said:

Well, I wouldn't say no dialogue at all. You need to convey a few things with words.

Damn straight.

TV's Frink:

"Certainly it could work better than too many words, which is what we got."

That's what I was saying. I didn't actually say no words at all, although that or a substantial reduction can only be an improvement if done correctly.

Darth Venal said:

TV's Frink:

"Certainly it could work better than too many words, which is what we got."

That's what I was saying. I didn't actually say no words at all, although that or a substantial reduction can only be an improvement if done correctly.

Don't disagree with that at all.. I'm actually tinkering with AOTC at the moment. And the moment in the field where she looks down, was actually some of the best acting I've seen out of her in the prequel trilogy. I honestly didn't have a problem with the conversation they had in the scene either... I did cut the line, "I'd be much too frightened to tease a Senator."  Sheesh.

In a sense I don't have a problem with the basic mechanics of the romance.

He can see the future (to some extent) he knows they will be together and it's been an obsession of his since he was a boy, he doesn't have the emotional maturity to cope with the fact she doesn't feel the same way yet (largely because the Jedi don't let him develop it) so he tries to force it to happen.

She has probably not given him much more than a nostalgic thought once in a while since they first met and suddenly there's this young man coming on really strong and it's making her understandably uncomfortable.

But why did they have to make it so bloody obvious?

Ric, did you write those scenes?

In this instance the incidental music seems to be telling a different story from the dialogue.

It's all romantic pastoral sweeps when the scenes themselves are edgy and uncomfortable (like teenage romance angst should be I guess but the miss-match is jarring in a bad way) though the actors themselves add to screw up by turning and edgy angsty scenerio into something rather embarrassing.

Bingowings said:

In a sense I don't have a problem with the basic mechanics of the romance.

 

(snip)

 

But why did they have to make it so bloody obvious?

Ric, did you write those scenes?

If I had, I would have been in those scenes.  The romance would have been much better with me explaining it to those two.

Interesting... Any ideas on how to make that happen?

mrbenja0618 said:

Interesting... Any ideas on how to make that happen?

 Redubbing the dialogue and altering the statues in the Gungan sacred place would do the trick :

Bingowings said:

mrbenja0618 said:

Interesting... Any ideas on how to make that happen?

 Redubbing the dialogue and altering the statues in the Gungan sacred place would do the trick :

The miniature and digimatte work in TPM was the best of the PT. There was some other great stuff in the other films but TPM was most consistent.

Ripplin said:

Kinda sad, really, considering how much older it is. But really, it just proves that newer is not always improved. All of the CGI in AOTC has aged horribly!

Fix'd.

shanerjedi said:

Bingowings said:

mrbenja0618 said:

Interesting... Any ideas on how to make that happen?

 Redubbing the dialogue and altering the statues in the Gungan sacred place would do the trick :

 

The miniature and digimatte work in TPM was the best of the PT. There was some other great stuff in the other films but TPM was most consistent.

That first picture looks a bit bad, though, Anakin doesn't look convincing at all. Easily fixable, though, I'm sure.