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Star Wars: Prequel Discussion Thread (aka: wtf were you thinking George?)

rubberducker

By rubberducker,
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makkuwata

makkuwata

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When I was in NYC a few weeks ago, they had a full size X-wing in Time square along with a whole squadron of Stormtroopers to publicise the M&Ms dark chocolate/milk chocolate Star Wars tie in.

I didn't see much of what was going on as I was driving past in a bus.

http://www.x-entertainment.com/articles/0930/

Some sort of promotional event to attract the geek elite of NYC for the launch of the ROTS toys.

I've just finished watching the 20minutes of footage from the game, some key scenes in there. In addition to the clips Ulala described:

Part of the Ob1/Grievous chase - probably the most cartoony the CGI has looked in any of the clips so far, but still, fun stuff.

The very end of the Mace/Palpatine fight, with Mace and Anakin argueing over what to do as Mace holds his lightsabre to palpatines throat. It then skips Anakin cutting off Mace's hand (the game understandably uses the opportunity for a boss battle) but shows Anakin's remorse at having killed him. Hayden's "What have I done" is actually pretty believable/powerful.

Anakins march to the temple, with a longer version of Palpatine's "do what must be done" dialogue from the trailer.

Palpatine giving "order 66" to clone troopers

The end of Obi-Wans escape and his holo-conversation with Organa

Anakin arriving on Mustafar

Anakin telling Palpatine that he has done away with the separatists.

Ob1/Yoda/Organa discussing what to do next while walking down that infamous white corridor.

Ob1 and Yoda looking at and reacting to the footage of Anakin kneeling before Palpatine.

Obi Wan and Anakin meet on Mustafar - complete with some terrible dialogue.

Darth Vader rises

Obi Wan gives Luke to Beru and Owen. Yes, the final shot of the movie

The game's score doesn't match what will be in the movie as it wasn't finished at the time, so the game's music is made up of music from previous films. Hopefully ADR hadn't finished at that point either, some of the delivery - not just from Hayden! - seems way off. But overall: OMFGZ

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Nick R

Nick R

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The latest issue of Empire is recommended for y'all - shitloads of interviews/facts/never-before-seen stuff/geekfest with Shaun Pegg, Edgar Wright and Kevin Smith (who I thought was Nick Frost until closer inspection) - plus the mag breathes like Darth Vader when you open it.

That bit probably sold it to me.  ;)

The Empire website has the full conversation:

http://www.empireonline.co.uk/starwars/transcript.asp

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Vemsie

Vemsie

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Hey look,another clip

And Time Magazine's other critic, Richard Schickel, was on CNN's Showbiz Today, and he called ROTS "a very good film", and said some of it is very emotional and moving. He also said that fans of the OT are probably going to like this one a lot more than the other two prequels.

So yeah, more positive word.

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anewman

anewman

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Ace, isn't it? Compared to these fights the OT seems to play in slow motion.

Wow. That's a nice clip. I remember coming back from seeing Phantom Menace when it first came out, and the first thing I said to my flatmate of the time was 'They're much better Jedis than Luke ever was...'.

Cool stuff.

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Space Renegade Ulala

Space Renegade Ulala

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Comic book writer (and prequel hater) Mark Millar has seen it and says it's ace, though it's later revealed in the thread that he views the mighty Predator as rubbish 'macho gay porn' so take his words with a pinch of salt.

Rubbish, indeed. No one disses 80s Arnie. NO ONE.

(okay, Raw Deal and Red Heat are less than stellar, I'll grant you but still...)

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Vemsie

Vemsie

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Comic book writer (and prequel hater) Mark Millar has seen it and says it's ace, though it's later revealed in the thread that he views the mighty Predator as rubbish 'macho gay porn' so take his words with a pinch of salt.

Rubbish, indeed. No one disses 80s Arnie. NO ONE.

(okay, Raw Deal and Red Heat are less than stellar, I'll grant you but still...)

Everybody who's seen it says it ace. Even Time Magazine's Richard Schickel who is more of an arthouse guy.

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Vemsie

Vemsie

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Comic book writer (and prequel hater) Mark Millar has seen it and says it's ace, though it's later revealed in the thread that he views the mighty Predator as rubbish 'macho gay porn' so take his words with a pinch of salt.

Rubbish, indeed. No one disses 80s Arnie. NO ONE.

(okay, Raw Deal and Red Heat are less than stellar, I'll grant you but still...)

Here's his opinion for those who want it:

The verdict is...

..that it's absolutely fucking amazing.

This is up there with Star Wars and Empire and BEATS Jedi. It really is that good and I say this as someone who's eyes watered up during the opening credits to Phantom Menace, but who left the cinema in a blind rage. I LOATHED the first two prequels, but this is Star Wars goodness like I thought Lucas could no longer deliver.

I cannot say where or how I saw it because two people linked to this would get in serious shit, but I was seriously impressed and only wish in some ways I had waited to see it with a big audience. You will love this movie. Carlos will never leave the cinema. It's what we wanted from the first two and Lucas has redeemed himself.

Sith, Batman Begins, FF and WOTW? It's a geek-tacular summer.

BTW, other movies this boy loves, in case you want to measure this with a yardstick, are Jaws, Unforgiven, Superman The Movie, Godfather 1 and 2, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, King Kong, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Truman Show, Unbreakable, Signs, Fight Club, all the Tarantino flicks, The Incredibles, They Live, Shawshank, The Omen and, of course, the original Star Wars trilogy.

Yay for the mainstream. Fuck the pretence; sometimes things are big because they're just really, really good.

MM

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Vemsie

Vemsie

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Variety:

"The Force returns with most of its original power regained in "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith." Concluding entry in George Lucas' second three-pack of space epics teems with action, drama and spectacle, and even supplies the odd surge of emotion, as young Anakin Skywalker goes over to the Dark Side and the stage is set for the generation of stories launched by the original "Star Wars" 28 years ago. Whatever one thought of the previous two installments, this dynamic picture irons out most of the problems, and emerges as the best in the overall series since "The Empire Strikes Back." Stratospheric B.O. is a given."

"Given the general awareness of what's going to happen, it's up to Lucas to make it exciting. Despite fans' varying degrees of loss of faith that set in with "Menace" and "Clones," most will be inspired enough to believe again."

"Entertaining from start to finish and even enthralling at times, "Sith" has some acting worth writing home about, specifically McDiarmid's dominant turn as the mastermind of the evil empire. McGregor remains a steady presence, and both Portman and Christensen have loosened up since "Clones" to acceptable, if hardly inspired, levels. Expressiveness of the digitally animated Yoda, voiced as always by Frank Oz, is amazing."

Hollywood Reporter:

"The final episode of George Lucas' cinematic epic "Star Wars" ends the six-movie series on such a high note that one feels like yelling out, "Rewind!" Yes, rewind through more than 13 hours of bravery, treachery, new worlds, odd creatures and human frailty. The first two episodes of Lucas' second trilogy -- "The Phantom Menace" (1999) and "Attack of the Clones" (2002) -- caused more than a few fans of the original trilogy to wonder whether this prequel was worth it. The answer is a qualified yes. It did take a lot of weighty exposition, stiffly played scenes and less-than-magical creatures to get to "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith." But what a ride Lucas and Co. have in store!

Needless to say, international boxoffice will register in the hundreds of millions. The real question is how much money the entire series, now ready for packaging and repackaging for all sorts of formats and media, will eventually take in. Let's just say a lot.

What seems like the biggest drawback to "Episode III" turns out to be its strongest element. Even casual moviegoers know what is in store for the characters, who will wind up at the point where the original "Star Wars" -- now dubbed "Episode IV -- A New Hope" -- began the whole saga nearly 30 years ago. We know how Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker will turn to the dark side of the Force, how his twin children will be separated at birth and how his former master Obi-Wan Kenobi and the tiny Jedi Master Yoda will turn into mortal enemies. Yet watching these fates unfold with such tragic inevitability, watching each piece fall into place, is genuinely thrilling. In fact, knowing that these strong characters cannot and will not escape their fate is what moves us."

The Force is definitely stronger in this one.

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Graham S

Graham S

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I hate it when people who post in threads without reading them, but I hope this time, in my desire to avoid finding out anything at all about this movie I'll be forgiven.

Despite thinking Eps 1 & II were largely dull rubbish, the Ep 3 trailer screened before HHGTTG makes it look ace! And I thought I'd successfully Jedi mind-tricked myself into having expectations so low my hopes couldn't be dashed. And now I can't wait!

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Prine

Prine

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Hey look,another clip

And Time Magazine's other critic, Richard Schickel, was on CNN's Showbiz Today, and he called ROTS "a very good film", and said some of it is very emotional and moving. He also said that fans of the OT are probably going to like this one a lot more than the other two prequels.

So yeah, more positive word.

Fucking hell! GOt goosebumps watching that clip!! Got my tckets booked may 19th 8pm :)

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rubberducker

rubberducker

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From Harry on Aint It Cool News:

STAR WARS EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH review

I have watched my last new STAR WARS film.

Really don’t know what to say. I’ve wanted to see Obi-Wan fight Vader on that Lava Planet since that issue of Starlog in 1978. My 6 year old reading comprehension grasping for every word of every article I could get my grubby little hands on. For me, the origin of Vader has been the Holy Grail of my geek soul. That story most coveted, but yet untold. I’m 33 years old now. 27 years lay between me and that boy that dreamt of that fight – but right now, he’s on my shoulders and we’re slapping high-fives.

The imagery in REVENGE OF THE SITH -- The turning of Anakin, the annihilation of the Jedi, the expulsion of Yoda, Obi-Wan vs Anakin, Palpatine revealed, the birth of the twins, Alderran, the adoption of Luke, what became of the droids… These are all near religious iconography in the minds of children raised in the ways of the Force. I’ve spent a quarter of a century discussing these things, speculating on what it’d look like, how it’d play out… I’ve seen it in countless dreams, but never with my eyes open. Never George’s dream of what it was. Till now.

As I sat at the Regal Metropolitan Theater in South Austin watching the film – I couldn’t help but get caught up in it. Dad was there with me, we’ve spent countless years talking STAR WARS – through STAR WARS – I learnt of the source material George was smashing and grabbing from – B serials, Pulp sci-fantasy adventure romances, Asian cinema – all of it. Before STAR WARS – I was well on my way – after STAR WARS the road was poured. I would be a geek for the rest of my life.

That would mean, I’d be primed to openly weep as Yoda crawled through that damn crawlspace to escape, during the whole of Obi-Wan and Anakin’s fight and the death of Luke & Leia’s mother. It is a very powerful thing to see the dreams one has spent a quarter of a century pondering. It might be cheese ball of me, but dammit – this is exactly what I wanted out of this last STAR WARS film… closure.

I’m having a really hard time writing about this one. It’s just so damn big. So full of literally everything that I wanted to see in all the prequels – but crammed all into this one. This really is the big Michael Corleone episode of STAR WARS… It’s where all the traps are sprung, all the cards are laid on the table, where everybody dies, all is lost and evil rules the galaxy.

That’s what makes the film so damn hard to talk about, at least off a first viewing. Let me see if I can explain this.

We all know how dark this film is intended to be. We all know how incredibly dire things will turn out in this film. However, the first 40 minutes are so light… as to be completely disconcerting. There’s just a feeling that THEY shouldn’t be having fun. Don’t they know this is the last smiles they’ll share? That when Obi Wan goes on that last mission and Anakin wishes him well… that that’s the last time they would be friends… Don’t they know that? WE DO, why can’t they see what’s coming? WAKE UP!

The film makes you powerless to change things. It’s like sitting still for a fucking tragedy right from the get go, but unlike TITANIC, you don’t have it all spelt out yet. Unless you’ve read all the spoilers – and I don’t really know what you spoiler-lovers will think. Just because for me… I knew, basically, what was going to happen. The broad strokes. I’ve gone out of my way to ignore as many spoilers as possible – which is a near impossible thing to do when you’re being emailed by everyone on Earth 300 images a day, 40 reviews a day now and were sent all the books, comics, score, everything from Publicity firms… shit… I bought that Talking Yoda toy – and next thing I know the little Green Bastard is trying to tell me the story of REVENGE OF THE SITH. It’s so hard to be pure on this – there’s just so much information out there. Everywhere.

The most shocking or surprising emotion I felt during this film experience is that… I don’t want Anakin to become Darth Vader. I just… Despite 27 years to the contrary, as I sat in that theater watching the last act of a good Jedi that turned evil… I just found myself wanting to scream at him to stop. I wanted desperately to send him on that mission with Obi Wan. I wanted Mace Windu to put his hand on Anakin’s shoulder and say, “Come on Kid, Let’s finish this!” and march off as brother Jedi to kill the fucking Emperor. I wanted Anakin to let go of his hate, fear, ambition, jealousy and self-centered egotism and just be the knight in shining armor… FOR THE GOOD GUYS!

You can tell… Anakin so wants to do what is right. He even does the right things, it’s just everyone around him doesn’t treat him as an equal… save for Palpatine. That when push comes to shove, the only fucking rat bastard in the galaxy that is going to call him son, tell him ‘fairy tales’ and really listen to his problems enough to find out what is REALLY troubling him is the bad guy!

Why?

Because the whole damn galaxy is at war, because to everyone else, Anakin’s existential crisis doesn’t amount to a hill of beans, they’ve got bigger fish to fry. They’ve got to Protect Wookies and the mushroom people and Hellraiser’s home planet and kill lots of robots and General Grievous and police the fucking universe… and… and… well, their damn domestic policy sucks!

The Bad Guy has his priorities right. He’s controlling the robots, the clones and to a large extent the Jedi… yet still manages to multi-task enough to listen to Anakin and help him deal with his premonitions of personal tragedy. He'll take the time, to ignore an amazing science fiction zero G Esther Williams number, to tell young Skywalker a SITH LEGEND. A story, an anecdote. And he tells it, like a father would to a son. And the story is directly related to the problem Anakin is facing, it gives him hope, direction and the first glimmer of a happy ending to his concern. He doesn’t tell Anakin bullshit like… learn to not give a shit, detachment is the key to inner peace… What sort of bullshit is that? Ignore your problems, betray those you love, watch everyone you care about die – and just be happy cuz they’re food for the force, which you manipulate… and everyone’s death will just make you more powerful. WHAT SORT OF FUCKING JEDI WISDOM IS THAT SHIT YODA??? THAT'S NOT REALLY HELPFUL YOU NEGATIVE GREEN TURD!

My god. The Jedi really are a bunch of goody two shoe clueless fucks. They’re so concerned with fixing the galaxy’s problems that they don’t have time for their own… and due to their unrealistic and inhumane rules about not loving or caring about anything other than the almighty “force” they created an air of fear for Skywalker. How could he level with them? How could he share with them? By the time Obi Wan finds out Anakin and Padme have kids on the way… it’s too late. That ship has sailed. Everyone is so busy being good little soldiers, that they just are not communicating.

Obi Wan never takes Anakin out for drinks and just levels with him. Sits him down and explains fascist totalitarianism. He doesn’t explain why sacrificing the most marginal freedoms to create a false sense of security enables those taking on those additional powers to create a greater evil than that which they fear. Hell, nobody really explains to Anakin why Democracy is better than Absolute Rule. Instead it is all this, “Search your feelings” bullshit. Turn to your ancient religion. This is why ultimately Luke Skywalker kicks ass. Because he doesn’t have all this dogmatic bullshit. Because he’s got a buddy like Han Solo that’d be willing to bust ass across the galaxy to save his ass. Somebody that has his back. FRIENDS! Because when the Sith hits the fan, it’s the love of your friends that’ll help you push through and kick ass. Because Luke believes in twin sunsets, the good guys and saving his dad.

What does Anakin have? Who cares about Anakin? Well Obi Wan, but he doesn’t know how to show it. Yoda? He’s too busy being disturbed about the cosmic meaning of shit to even form a no bullshit non fortune cookie sentence. Mace Windu? He’s got his head so far up his ass it ain’t funny. Padme? She’s more concerned with her hair, her image, everybody’s standing and well being. And then Anakin himself? He’s told he’s the chosen one, the key that will make the galaxy unified. Yet, the only one empowering him to do that is the fucking Emperor.

I love how together Palpatine is. He’s just one of the greatest bad guys in the history of bad guys. He absolutely must be Karl Rove’s hero. Look at this. Palpatine has engineered so many things. The creation of the Droid armies, the creation of the Clone armies, his various Sith apprentices, Fall guys for Fall guys… all with the direct purpose of spreading his enemy so thin, that no matter their powers, when he calls ORDER 66… they’ll never see it coming. It’s like inviting your friends over for an all night session of game play and spreading cyanide on the fucking pizza. They’re all gonna eat it, cuz… dude… it’s what you do when you play games. The Jedi are fighting their war, doing Jedi shit. Kill the droids, tons of them. This shit is fun for them. They eat it up. This is their Frosted Flakes with Bananas. They finally got their Holy Crusade, woo hoo, a sense of purpose. They never think twice about all them fucking Boba Fetts watching their backs.

It’s so beautifully laid out. It’s fucking immaculate. This is literally how you rule the universe. It is to be admired. And learnt from. Cuz as Padme says, “This is how Democracy ends, with Thunderous Applause.” Exactly. Distractions, a clear and concise innocent front and cutthroat evil behind the scenes.

REVENGE OF THE SITH is a masterpiece. The final piece of the puzzle Lucas first presented me at age 6. 27 years later, the Jigsaw is complete and damn if it isn't just damn near the most tragically cool thing I’ve ever seen put to film. We won’t see another like this. This is it.

We’ll see enormous sci-fantasy told, with more focus and even grander visions in our lifetime… but we’ll never care as much about a story like this one. For our generation, Star Wars is our mythology. The big story we lived to see told the first time. For those of you that were kids in lines in 1977 through to the coming weeks… I have to say, it has been an absolute fucking honor to do this with y’all.

We all know where we each were at the opening of all these films. In two weeks… this is your last story. I’ll never see a new Star Wars movie with my father again. I’ll see many more movies – but this is the last Star Wars, I’ll ever see for the first time with my dad. I’ve seen all 6 with him. All on either the first day – or before. It’s the mythology he’s grown old with and helped me grow up with. This one counts, this one is beautiful. This is the last one.

I can’t possibly express how profoundly odd that is to type. How weird it makes me feel. I went out after the film – I went to find a toy to sit on my desk to look at while I typed this. I went through aisle after aisle of Star Wars stuff, and I couldn’t pick something out. I think the one I most thought was cool – was this Lego play set of Anakin and Obi Wan on Mustafa. You pressed down the Lego character’s head and the light sabers lit up. Gosh that’s cool. I’ll probably buy it for my nephew… Instead I came home, played the score to REVENGE OF THE SITH and wrote this.

Remember – this isn’t a Star Wars movie to cheer for, to erupt into applause and call cool. If you really love STAR WARS – this one is heart ache. Not only is it the end of a nearly 30 year journey for us… It really is the story of how things got so bad, that the good guys had to be a rebellion, where the Jedi had to hide and how evil ruled the galaxy. Wow, I’ve seen my last new Star Wars film. Fuck.

this review makes me feel kinda sad. 15 years of waiting will be over really soon. :)

does anyone else get the impression Lucas will have the last laugh.

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Vemsie

Vemsie

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You think Harry is positie? This guy from the Gazette begins his review with the following:

"Believe the hype. “Star Wars: Episode III – The Revenge of the Sith” is the crowning achievement of the Star Wars mythos. This is the Star Wars movie that everyone has been waiting on.

The special effects, characters, etc. are great but “Sith” is really the definitive Star Wars movie (sorry “Empire Strikes Back”) because Director/Writer George Lucas doesn’t try to cater to anyone – fans, critics or even kids – he has a story to tell and he tells it on his terms. The results are undeniably brilliant.

Lucas turns his lighthearted swashbuckling space epic into a dark, Shakespearean tragedy with a gripping tale of a hero’s fall."

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superfunk

superfunk

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I think by the time 8.15pm on thursday the 19th arrives I may have exploded with excitement.

I watched A New Hope the other day and found myself geeking out when Obi-Wan tells Luke about Darth vader helping to exterminate the Jedi. I know Lucas made lots of it up as he went along but lines like those make it sound like it all fits together perfectly - like he had it all planned when he was filming in the Tunisian desert in 1976

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