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The Prequal Trilogy - neccessary or indulgence?
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by The Mighty Monkey of Mim: [QB] My somewhat-rambling thoughts on the matter: George Lucas is a brilliant and innovative guy, he's had a hand in tons of great projects throughout the past three decades. That being said, he's a much better "idea man" (ie, producer and story-writer, though not necessarily screenwriter) than a director. I think his weaknesses as a director are a lack of experience (since finishing film school, he's only directed six films in more than thirty years, and four of those have been [i]Star Wars[/i] movies) and a tendency to get a little too wrapped up in the very particular way he sees things. (I feel that [i]Empire[/i] was the best of the OT because Lucas wrote the story but let Kasdan write the script and Kershner do the directing while he took a more supervisory role.) And of course, there's the over-reliance on special effects, more specifically on CGI. [i]THX-1138[/i] and [i]American Graffiti[/i] had rather little in the way of [i]Star Wars[/i]-type SFX, and thus allowed for Lucas' directing talents to come through better. But since [i]Star Wars[/i] it seems Lucas feels more comfortable working with SFX than with actors. I think it is because he has very specific visions in his head about how he wants something to look and feel, and having 70% of the scene being created on the computer allows for greater accuracy to that. Unfortunately, it can take too much focus away from the characters. Now, you have to remember that the SW saga was supposed to evoke a certain kind of feeling, that of the old [i]Flash Gordon[/i] serials and their ilk. This is a big part of the reason the characters are so one-dimensional and the plots and dialogue are so simple and, at times, cliched. It's [i]intended[/i] to be that way, make no mistake. The problem (for me) is that all the CGI ruins the "homage" feeling, and I suspect that others have the same issue. The thing is, it's also like the old saying about lightning in a bottle. Lucas literally changed the world of cinema with [i]Star Wars[/i], and it's really hard to trump that. You can only make history once. I don't think Lucas should be bashed for making the story he wants. Nevertheless, there is much to be criticized about the prequels. My own personal gripe is that, in (I presume) trying to be more complex/sophisticated than the OT, there are introduced a number of interweaving plot threads (Sifo Dyas, etc.) that are ultimately left unresolved. My view is that if something isn't necessary to the story then it should be left out. Don't raise a question/mystery for the audience to fixate on now if you're not going to resolve it it later. (The [i]Matrix[/i] sequels are another irritating example of this.) Stick with the essential characters and plotline. That's part of what made the OT so good. -[b]MMoM[/b] :D [/QB][/QUOTE]
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