I honesty don’t understand why Blade Runner was rated R.
The instances of violence are very few and pretty tame. The only instance of strong swearing is when Roy Batty calls Tyrell “fucker”, which in other versions has been changed to “father”. Joanna Cassidy’s topless scene isn’t titilating at all, just a woman getting dressed.
I naively still had hope going into seeing ROTS, even after TPM and AOTC, but ROTS gutted me as a fan. Interesting the contrast for you with TROS after TFA, and maybe with TLJ too? Or it being directed by JJ again, or something else?
For a while after seeing TFA, I was unsure whether it was actually a bad movie or if it was just me. I wondered whether I might just not be able to enjoy Star Wars anymore. Rogue One proved that wrong, though.
Going into TLJ, I was very doubtful but still had a sliver of hope, and while TLJ was marginally better than TFA, it wasn’t better enough to make me care about the trilogy story. And it firmly cemented to me that the ST didn’t know where it was going and was damaging to the original films. (That’s a big part of why I got into the EU. I wanted some sort of alternative outcome for the OT characters. I didn’t want the ST to be the only possible future for those characters.)
Besides that, my main reason for having no hopes for TRoS was that I’d read the plot leaks and heard early word-of-mouth about the movie, so I knew what I was in for.
TFA and TROS being such creatively bankrupt messes is why I believe TLJ works best as a standalone coda to the saga.
I just wonder if the whole concept of ‘cute 9 year-old transitioning into evil warlord’ was too much for Star Wars to handle whilst keeping things family friendly. It’s one thing to have it all implied in the OT, but it’s another thing to actually attempt to depict it.
For example my other favourite movie, Conan the Barbarian, does it perfectly. Conan, as a 9 year-old, sees his parents and kin slaughtered by an evil cult, is thrown into slavery (real slavery, not the suburban TPM version!), then sold into gladiatorial combat before being freed as an adult. Throughout this experience he is entirely driven by vengeance. There’s your Anakin. There’s a guy who legitimately could become Darth Vader. If Obi Wan had met that guy on Tatooine and they’d established a friendship, and then Anakin had been forced to choose between revenge and Jedi pacifism (maybe the guy who had slaughtered his parents had seen the light and become a Jedi Master for example), right there you’d have the perfect catalyst for a clash of ideals between legitimate friends/allies. But it would be dark stuff…Making a movie aimed at children with dark elements is something nobody seems willing to do these days. The Neverending Story and The Dark Crystal are examples that come to mind. Those movies wouldn’t get made today.
What you get when the Helen Lovejoys of the world make the rules. Which is why I’m adamant on introducing any kids I have to horror and softcore porn before they hit double-digits.
I like your style.
I just wonder if the whole concept of ‘cute 9 year-old transitioning into evil warlord’ was too much for Star Wars to handle whilst keeping things family friendly. It’s one thing to have it all implied in the OT, but it’s another thing to actually attempt to depict it.
For example my other favourite movie, Conan the Barbarian, does it perfectly. Conan, as a 9 year-old, sees his parents and kin slaughtered by an evil cult, is thrown into slavery (real slavery, not the suburban TPM version!), then sold into gladiatorial combat before being freed as an adult. Throughout this experience he is entirely driven by vengeance. There’s your Anakin. There’s a guy who legitimately could become Darth Vader. If Obi Wan had met that guy on Tatooine and they’d established a friendship, and then Anakin had been forced to choose between revenge and Jedi pacifism (maybe the guy who had slaughtered his parents had seen the light and become a Jedi Master for example), right there you’d have the perfect catalyst for a clash of ideals between legitimate friends/allies. But it would be dark stuff…
Making a movie aimed at children with dark elements is something nobody seems willing to do these days. The Neverending Story and The Dark Crystal are examples that come to mind. Those movies wouldn’t get made today.
I always assumed Bo-Katan to be in her late teens during the Clone Wars.
Wow. That is hardcore, good for you. Out of interest, have you read the DOTF fan comic, or have been tempted to watch any of the more heavily modified TROS fan edits?
No, I haven’t, but I am aware of the outline of DOTF which I believe with some adjustments would have made a better finale than whatever Abrams directs.
In case you’d like to know my ranking of the Star Wars movies here it is:
I didn’t like movies directed by J.J. Abrams to begin with, and TFA left such a bad taste in my mouth it’s the reason I will never watch TROS or any other Abrams-directed movie for that matter. It’s why TROS will never be included in my ranking of SW films.
I remember reading Kubrick always intened his movies shot in standard 35mm film to be broadcast on TV in full open matte.
Back when it originally aired I thought it was kinda bland, and had a few interesting ideas, but was royally pissed off when the first two seasons hinted at Ezra’s darker tendencies only to completely ditch that subplot after the season 3 premiere, and Ezra remains a goody-two-shoes for the remainder of the series. Creatively speaking I found that to be a cowardly move. I also hated how it was always Mission Accomplished with almost no casualties for the Rebels, retroactively cheapening the victories of the OT and painting the Empire as absurdly incompetent, the ultimate insult being how Thrawn is thwarted in the series finale by a whiny teenager.
If it wasn’t obvious by now, I thoroughly dislike Star Wars Rebels because it presents the franchise at its most sanitized, play-it-safe version where everything is smooth sailing fo the good guys.
Rian Johnson’s trilogy looks like the only thing that was going to do something completely untethered from the main saga and would’ve probably avoided fan service as well, but such a project seems to be quietly shelved.
Does anyone think that making Vader a tragic figure was a big mistake? I feel like beyond the lack of camaraderie between Anakin and Obiwan, they should have shown him liking power, or liking throwing people around. It would fit more with his attitude in SW towards the Admiral Motti for example. It would be more believable, and any idea of regret or sadness could be much more subtle.
“A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defence, never to attack.” - Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back.
Anakin should been portrayed as relishing in combat as opposed to other Jedi like Obi-Wan who only fight to protect the innocent, and feeling clearly restrained by his Jedi training, a clear indicator that he’s on a darker path. I always felt his falling to the Dark Side due to a desire to protect Padme was stupid.
I’ve noticed over the years on these forums many dislike the added scenes in TPM. I personally find nothing wrong with them and like them a lot.
A random thought just popped into my head.
It amazes me that Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sigourney Weaver, two of James Cameron’s most pronminent collaborators, have never starred in a movie together.
I don’t have FOMO. More like I’m so fucking tired of always missing out.
Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood is Quentin Tarantino’s best film.
Sorry, that movie bored the shit out of me. I don’t get the praise for it.
Yeah it’s some combination of
- The humans are racist
- The Gungans purposefully hide their level of tech from the humans
Inglorious Basterds is Quentin Tarantino’s best film.
Yes it is. On that note Kill Bill Volumes 1 and 2 are Tarantino on autopilot, which is why I don’t like them, and Once Upon A Time in Hollywood is nothing but a three-hour long borefest.
Rewatching TPM I’ve noticed everyone dismisses the Gungans as a primitive race.
What’s so primitive about them? They have built an underwater city on their own and energy shields strong enough to withstand all sorts of blaster shots and lightsaber strikes.
Maybe someone else posted this before.
Din using the heavily modified Naboo N-1 Starfighter as his personal ship doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. If anything it would have worked better as a shuttle attached to his new freighter for reconaissance, as the N1 only has room for himself and a Yoda species at the back. Where would he fit anyone or anything else, be that cargo or a captured person for bounty? I also doubt the crammed cockpit of the N1 would make for a comfortable nap during long flights.
Michael Corleone from The Godfather is a better young Darth Vader then the actual young Darth Vader.
The Prequels miss so much of the nuance that made Vader so great in the OT. His sadistic humor, his boldness, his cold, domineering presence, how calculating he was. In the Prequels, he’s a hot-head that flies off the handle. OT Vader got mad, but he wielded it like a blunt weapon. OT Vader is like Michael Corleone, but PT Anakin is like Sonny Corleone (at least in terms of temper; Sonny was never intolerably whiny). And that doesn’t mix. They’re two different characters.
I posted elsewhere that when writing the PT George Lucas should have used Michael Corleone as the basis for young Anakin Skywalker.
LOL at the screenshot of Kirsten Dunst.
The concept of a digital only console is one of the worst ideas that the modern gaming industry has done, and that’s saying something. Once the servers are shut down, the manufacturers turn every copy of that system into non-recyclable waste. This has already happened with the Ouya and PSP Go, and it’s going to become a massive problem further down the road.
As someone who spent three years without any internet access I agree.
The way I see it, Disney will only contemplate releasing official versions of the GOUT after George Lucas dies, and even then it might be a longshot.
This YouTuber does a really good job at impersonating Vader and somewhat Palpatine
Which YouTuber?
Back on topic.
I wonder if this season we will finally see the live action debut of Fenn Rau. I’m pretty sure that’s been the plan all along seeing as the character bears a strong physical resemblance to Kevin McKidd, his voice actor.