He should just leave them alone, but we all know that even the prequels aren't safe from tinkering. Funny how "everyone" wants him to match the old movies to the prequels, but he's already changing the prequels. Then he'll have to change the OT to match the changes to the PT. And it's a never-ending cycle for some people's wallets. Not mine. His tinkering with the classic trilogy wasn't just to tie things up to the prequels (all I can think of is Hayden at the end of Jedi) most of the other things he has done (like replacing the monkey woman with the real Emperor) was done to make the classic trilogy match up to -itself-.
If you don't think it's worth your money, then you don't have to buy anything else he ever puts out (unless he releases a better transfer of the O-OT, but I think Lucas is going to save your wallet that particular strain). As always, you don't have to buy anything Lucas makes if you don't want to.
Originally posted by: cadorI find myself amused that there is a George Lucas apologist in this thread, it brings back memories of those flame wars back in 1999...heh.
I'm not a Lucas hater per se, I take the good with the bad. I think that he redeemed himself with "Sith", showing some of the flashes of brilliance he displayed in eps 4-5. A case can be made that ep 3 is a better film than ROTJ, actually. If you think about it, ROTJ is closer to TPM and AOTC in terms of quality except that it has Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Alec Guinness and Darth Vader in it, thus preventing it from being hated as much as the first two films of the prequels.
Maybe one day I'll get eps 1 & 2 on DVD on the premise that they're "so bad that they're actually good", lol. Or maybe there will be a "Special Edition" hack job of the PT that is so horrible that it will create the rationale for a www.originalprequeltrilogy.com petition site and I'll rush to the stores to get the DVDs before they're recalled by Lucasfilm. I was there for the great basher/gusher war of 1999, man those days were "turbulent".
I appreciate that some people don't like these films, and again if you don't like them, I implore you to not support them. But there were plenty of people who didn't think any of the Star Wars films were good, and that didn't matter to any of us when it came to the classic trilogy. Is there some reason I should care more about the people who don't like the prequels or some of the prequels as much? I respect it, but it doesn't change what these films mean to me as an individual, just as my loving them probably won't do much to change your opinions if you feel otherwise.
Originally posted by: Sokudo NingyouDude, just....what? Thank the gods CGI didn't exist when George made the OT, or we wouldn't be here arguing for them against the PT, because he would have been so busy spending the meager budget on a planet being blown up. CGI is shit; CGI is overused and a fucking overused technical achievement. At least puppets are
solid and real, and far more realistic than an obvious graphic that the actors aren't focusing on properly. They should have asked Bob Hoskins to give them a few pointers. I agree the eyelines weren't all there, and that is an unfortunate side effect of working with effects to be put in later. But it happened all the time even in the classic trilogy. Carrie Fisher was only looking at a peice of tape when she was reacting to her planet being blown up. When they were in the falcon's cockpit, they had to pretend they were looking at the same ships outside the cockpit, so they were all agreeing ahead of time where they should be looking. Some people are better at it than others, but I think for the most part they did a decent enough job that it works out if you are willing to work with the movie. To me, the puppets all looked like puppets. The biggest complaint about ROTJ was that it turned into the freaking muppet show. Of course I didn't complain about it, I just worked with the film and suspended my disbeleif for the sake of enjoying the story. Just like I did with the not so perfect eyelines and imperfectly lit CG characters. For my money, it was a whole lot easier to roll along with the CG aliens than the puppets, because they looked like they might actually be alive. But again, that's just me apparantly.
Originally posted by: Sokudo NingyouAnd yeah, so the OT had bad reviews. So did the PT, yes. But if you read reviews for any movie, they all have some in their closets somewhere. But I'll guarantee the PT's reviews are far more consistantly negative, if not downright critical of how shitty the movies became, whereas the OT was at least a moderately original movie with no prior storyline to ruin.
The Prequels were actually better reviewed than the classic trilogy.Originally posted by: Sokudo NingyouAnd whereas the acting can also be blamed in part on a director who can't direct his way out of a paper bag, George really seemed to hit rock bottom with the PT. There's no subtlety. For shit's sake, Episode I is a weak copy of Episode IV! It isn't a trilogy, it's a cash cow with pretty pictures. Lucas had an excuse for his actors not always hitting their marks during a time when he was a less influential (and therefore less likely to haul in the big names for every role), but he doesn't have one when the PT is full of seasoned, well-known actors.
It's interesting that Lucas wrote and directed your apparant favorite in the series then. The reason the two trilogys mirror each other the way they do is to build up suspense for Luke. You see an example of the hero failing, so when you get to Luke's hero's story you aren't quite as sure he will prevail. Before the prequels, none of us ever had any doubt, because that's how most movies work. The hero has some tough times, but pulls it out of his ass in the end. With the prequels, we have a hero that literally goes over the edge. So when you see Luke on that same jounrey, being presented with the same kinds of problems, we aren't so sure he will lay down his saber by the end of the saga. He enters Jabba's palace looking like Anakin as he slaughtered the Jedi and the Separatist leaders. The whole climax of the series ends up packing a much greater dramatic punch as a result.
Originally posted by: Sokudo NingyouThe day I saw Phantom Menace in the theatre, I sat during the credits absolutely stunned, wondering what the hell I had just seen. There was no meat to the story; there was no heart. Instead, I had wasted my money on a special effects masturbation when I had been expecting the equivalent of a heartfelt lovemaking session. A piece of shit that had contradicted the three movies before it within the first ten minutes that left me completely shocked. I wanted to cry.
I found plenty of meat to the story (more than the classic trilogy I might add) plenty of heart, and didn't think the special effects were anything more than a means to telling that great story.
But again, that's just me apparantly.
Originally posted by: Sokudo NingyouInstead, I saved my money. I've watched I once, II twice, and III twice. And I never bought the DVDs. Perhaps if this big mondo super boxset comes out with the options of OOT versus OT (I mean, if Apocalypse effing Now can do it....) plus the PT, I'll finally buy them.
It's no skin off my back if you don't.
I hate it when people strongly make assertions that can barely be supported with logic. There's no way you can know that, Go-Mer.
