Okay... I was a big Star Wars fan back when... back when there were 3 movies... back when there was no digital manipulation. They were some of the first, and probably only, sci-fi films that I had seen, and I was entranced, captivated. I was never a big Star Trek fan, although I like some of the films now. Star Wars was like a Western in space, a throwback to the serials of the 50's...
Then came the Second Coming of Star Wars... or at least that was what they billed it. I stood in line to get tickets and then again to get in to the re-release of the original films. I had some problems with the "Jabba the Hut" scene that was added, but other than that it was fine, the additions were great. I was pumped for the Second Coming...
And then we all saw Jake Lloyd. How he got that part is beyond me. There was the whole Pod Race sequence, which should have been shorter or non existent or at the end of the movie. It just... killed the pacing, it was the climax and left no room for anything else. There was Natalie Portman, who I have been impressed with in other films (Cold Mountain, which wasn't that great, but she did well) but her acting in The Second Coming was HORRID, vapid, emotionless.
But we all thought, oh well, not bad, the light saber stuff was cool... maybe George hasn't gotten his groove back, and heck, Liam and Ewan did well, and the story wasn't that bad... just the script, but it was okay...
Then came the Second Coming part II... and we all were pumped up again! I heard the score (John Williams is the greatest film composer ever...) and it was great! We saw the trailers, and thought, this will KICK BUTT!!!
And then we saw Hayden Christiansen. On par with Natalie in that one... Natalie was the same as before... S.L. Jackson was okay, better than in Part I (he was... not great in it). There was no Liam, but Christopher Lee was there... I liked the film better in some ways, worse in others, but... it wasn't the Second Coming.
And we were all now ready to say, Lucas... you let us down.
I think the problem with these films is the same thing that is hinted at in the problem with Star Wars IV (the original) i.e. that Lucas is not a great director.
Certainly as a director of actors he is terrible. The best performances in the series are from Alec Guinness (who had been around forever, Oscar winner, just great) Peter Cushing (same thing) Liam Neeson (older, great actor) Ewan McGregor (who wasn't as brilliant as in other movies, but did well). Notice, these men are all experienced. Harrison Ford was also pretty experienced at the time he did Star Wars, though not well known. Carrie Fisher came from great stock on both sides, acting wise. Even Mark Hammill was pretty good.
The problem is, you can see something of the problem with Natalie in Carrie in Star Wars IV. Opposite ends of the spectrum (Carrie was to harsh, Natalie to boring) but the same problem, not enough direction to find the balance. Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi had different directors, and it shows in Carrie's performances.
Bottom line, George Lucas is a great producer. He is a fairly good writer, and a great story writer (he comes up with great ideas). But he is not a director. He can see great visuals, he has a good sense of pacing, but he cannot direct actors who aren't brilliant. He gives them to much leeway. It works with Alec Guinnes, but not with Jake Lloyed or Natalie Portman. Had Steven Speilberg been directing, Lloyd would have turned out a great performance, Steven can work with kids, but George can't. Had it been Joel Schummacher directing Hayden Christiansen, it would have been great, he is great with newcomers, but George isn't.
George should have left the directing to others, to Irving Kirshner who put out the best Star Wars film (Empire). But he didn't... and now he has tarnished his reputation.
So... now that we are seeing the trailer to the Second Coming Part III... I approach it with caution. Will it be as good as it looks, or will it be the same as the rest of the Second Coming? Only time will tell. I will probably not be at the midnight showing... I will probably not stand in line like I would have...
But I might. You never know...
... if you would like to see the trailer, check out Mod Blog... they have some (COUGH) info.
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3 comments:
hmm... I actually thought the pod racing scene was one of the high points. It was jar jar that was one of the problems.
From what I've heard, Fox and Lucas make the most money week 1 and then about 50-80 percent of ticket sales the second week. Also, opening weekend is the thing important to Lucas' ego. I plan on waiting at least a week to try to send a message to Lucas. I suggest others do the same.
-Dan
Dan - I liked the Pod Race... just thought it was the climax. It built up to that point, then it just kind of petered on till the end battle. He needed to rethink the structure.
We could wait till a week later, but from the look of the trailer... I may be in line at midnight:) We shall see.
From what I've gathered, Lucas and Fox make the most money the first two weeks (about 70% is standard, but I've heard rumors that Lucas and Fox work their own deals). After that it starts dropping off. By waiting two weeks, we should be able to be part of the movement looking to send the financial message. By not going opening weekend, we are sending the pride message - if enough people don't, it won't get the record for largest opening weekend. Why does it matter? The rumors are already flying that Lucas will be making episodes 7, 8, and 9. Rumors have been off and on for years, but when I think about Lucas' love of fame and fortune, I can't think of him not doing them.
-Dan
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