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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

PT A question for the oldtimers - did anyone actually enjoy the prequel trilogy?

Discussion in 'Prequel Trilogy' started by Krivlos_Arkh, Feb 6, 2013.

?

I loved the OT and I think the prequels are

  1. Great

    37 vote(s)
    58.7%
  2. Awful

    5 vote(s)
    7.9%
  3. Ok

    21 vote(s)
    33.3%
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  1. Iron_lord

    Iron_lord Chosen One star 10

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    Sep 2, 2012
    It might be that I'm used to that author's writing style- but I'm not seeing it.
     
  2. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

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    Jul 2, 2004
    Many years ago I liked a D&D tie-in novel he wrote. Then he continued on with the characters in follow-up books, but by the third one I read I couldn't motivate myself to finish it for some reason. I haven't read any of his later work including SW.
     
  3. Iron_lord

    Iron_lord Chosen One star 10

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    Sep 2, 2012
    You haven't read Vector Prime?
     
  4. Iron_lord

    Iron_lord Chosen One star 10

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    Sep 2, 2012
  5. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

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    Jul 2, 2004
    No, I haven't read the NJO at all.
     
  6. Iron_lord

    Iron_lord Chosen One star 10

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    Sep 2, 2012
    I see. It has its ups and downs- but some of the books (Traitor springs to mind) have earned a pretty good reputation among NJO fans.
     
  7. Slowpokeking

    Slowpokeking Jedi Master star 5

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    Sep 21, 2012
    They should let Stover write all 3 PT novels.
     
  8. Jedi_Ford_Prefect

    Jedi_Ford_Prefect Jedi Master star 4

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    Jun 9, 2003
    I already said this in another thread back on the old forums, but I'm a fan who grew up with the OT on VHS, and frankly I was pretty much done with "Star Wars" after the Special Editions came out. I still loved the movies sure, but seeing them on the big screen finally gave me a sense of closure with them, allowed me to process them as films like any other, and not just be obsessive over them. By that time I was more interested in Lucas' films as a whole, and in the films that inspired him as a filmmaker. I was getting into Kurosawa, Fellini, Godard and others big time, and following current international directors like Von Trier and Almodovar as much as possible. And on the geek front, I was really pouring myself into anime big-time-- how much time can you have for 20 year old movies when new stuff like "Neon Genesis Evangelion" and "Cowboy Bebop" were out?

    Then TPM came out and it won me over to get back into the "Star Wars" films with its gorgeous visual design and cinematography, its gamechanging action sequences, its more complex plotting. Suffice to say, without the Prequels, I would've outgrown "Star Wars" long ago.
     
  9. fett 4

    fett 4 Chosen One star 5

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    Jan 2, 2000
    Interesting, may I asj what was it after the 45 min arc specifically that you disliked the most and what was it about the first 45 mins you did like?

    As for repeat viewings, I did rent them on DVD once if only to listen to the episode commentaries and behind the scenes stuff which I always found interesting.

    Have to be honest the commentary was depressing, Lucas didn't seem to make sense with what he was saying and what was on screen that it almost seemed a different film he was talking about. McCallum was just nauseating toadying to Lucas and I can see where his yes man rep came from, while the effects guys talking on how they basically sucked the life out of the films just deflated me.

    For the record I have the OT on DVD only for the non-SE film bonus disks. I have no interest in buying a Blue-ray copy until an unaltered OT is put out,
     
  10. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

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    Mar 4, 2011
    The first 45 minutes showed a fun Anakin and showed his friendship with Obi-Wan. It also showed his reunion with Padme and her revelation of her pregnancy; I enjoyed that scene. And it showed the nightmare that began his downfall. The scene when he kills Dooku was painful to watch but the rest was good.

    The last half was a mix of GFFA Murphy's Law, ridiculous gullibility in Anakin and then "How many absurdly eeevil deeds can I make Anakin do so people will see that evil isn't badass?" I enjoyed Luke and Leia's births but that's the only redeeming aspect of that last half.
     
  11. V-2

    V-2 Jedi Grand Master star 5

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    Dec 10, 2012
    Not this again... ;)
     
    Darth kRud likes this.
  12. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

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    Mar 4, 2011
    Hey, I was just answering a question.
     
  13. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

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    Jul 2, 2004
    Specifics? I don't recall anything that failed to make sense. Perhaps your perception of the characters is different from his?

    You may be reading too much into it. People on commentaries don't normally cop to sucking the life out of films.
     
    Samnz likes this.
  14. Slowpokeking

    Slowpokeking Jedi Master star 5

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    Sep 21, 2012
    The Dooku scene is great, one of the few scenes that are better than the novel. Dooku should never beg for life, expression is enough, thanks to Lee.
     
  15. Game3525

    Game3525 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 25, 2008
    This.

    Watson just isn't a very good writer IMO. Anakin comes off as a blatant sociopath, while Obi-Wan comes off as a complete naive dunce in all of her novels.

    Just bad characterization.
     
    FARK2005 and Valairy Scot like this.
  16. Darth kRud

    Darth kRud Jedi Knight star 3

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    Nov 1, 2012
    Cool. Doesn't bother me one bit :)
     
  17. Jedi_Ford_Prefect

    Jedi_Ford_Prefect Jedi Master star 4

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    Jun 9, 2003
    I will say that the commentary tracks on all the films leave something to be desired for me. I wish we could just get one person's comments at a time instead of having them all mixed up like they are. Lucas' are by and large the only ones I'm terribly interested in (Ewan's fun on the PT blus, Carrie's a hoot as always on the OT, but Kershner is annoying as hell on ESB).

    I'll also say that I'm perplexed whenever I see comments a little while back from people talking about how many times they watched and continue to watch PT films, while claiming to hate them. I'm not saying they're lying, but what's the point in watching something you don't like? Either on some level you must like it somewhat, or there's something slightly crazy going on. It goes beyond the movies simply being in a series you like-- I like the Bond series overall, but I'm not about to pop in a Roger Moore flick anytime soon.

    I don't know about anyone else, but it only takes me one viewing to decide if I like a movie or not. Some films I might grow colder on over time (I can't really get into the cynicism of most Gilliam or Coen Bros. films as much as when I was in high school) but if I really don't like a film, it's not a slowly evolving misgiving. I feel the distaste right away, and won't watch it again unless it's for the sake of a friend who wants to see it, or whatever.
     
    anakinfansince1983 likes this.
  18. Valairy Scot

    Valairy Scot Manager Emeritus star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

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    Sep 16, 2005
    I don't feel up to rereading the books (JQ) in order to give a treatise on them for someone else, sorry. JA maybe, but not JQ.

    And gray hair - do as I do - color!
     
  19. fett 4

    fett 4 Chosen One star 5

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    Jan 2, 2000
    Lucas was saying things about scene's and what they were showing, and I was thinking, no they don't, but that's just me and my opinion of the commentaries. One example off the top of my head is in RTJ where he say's the Ewoks didn't win just barely holding them off, which of course in the film they do win.

    Obviously they didn't say that, but how they were going on about the effects as the be all and end all in itself I did find depressing, but hey if you liked it that's fine.
     
  20. fett 4

    fett 4 Chosen One star 5

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    Jan 2, 2000

    I agree with you on this. I think it stem's the re-writes of Anakin's fall during filming, so from thinking the Jedi were taking over the republic too about trying to save Padme and about himself, so in the mustafar duel you have a weird mis-mash of him going on about ruling the galaxy with his new Empire to outrage at the Jedi plotting to take over !

    Also having him kill kids was a bad move, and a turn off for the audience especially when you have him shed a tear of murdering Nute Guneray a bit later.
     
  21. fett 4

    fett 4 Chosen One star 5

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    Jan 2, 2000
    Well I haven't seen them thousands of time or even have them on DVD and have no interest in having them.

    As for the Roger Moore films, Live and Let Die was pretty good and the best of his lot, also his first too.
     
  22. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

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    Jul 2, 2004
    As long as we all agree that he's not crying for Gunray's sake.

    According to the DVD chapter titles they "turn the tide". From the script: the giant machine helps turn the tide of the battle in their favor. We should not overlook the contribution of Chewbacca in this area. We do see that a bunch of Ewoks are getting killed at one point. There is also a rebel commando force out there, even though the film mostly neglects to show them, and we see that those troops are integral to the capture of the bunker.
     
  23. fett 4

    fett 4 Chosen One star 5

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    Jan 2, 2000
    Yes not Gunray himself but it loses any emtional sysmpathy and resonance when you think, this little @@@@ already butchered children. Now if they had done that scene at the burning Temple and had the killings there done more like in the script and novelisation it would have worked far better.

    I think it was done that way because Lucas suddenly realised that having Obi-wan just stand and stare as his "brother who he loves" burns to death, would be a bit cold and heartless so having him kill children, makes the audience not care as seeing Anakin deserve it (which he did) .
     
  24. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

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    Mar 4, 2011
    Eh, I would have sympathized with Obi-Wan anyway. Obi-Wan's choice was to either leave Anakin that way, assuming he would be dead in a few minutes anyway, or climb down that bank and finish the job, risking the likelihood of catching himself on fire.

    As far as the younglings scene, I've only watched it once and that was more than enough so I can't go back and check on this, but I've been told that he had a tear in his eye before he entered the Council chambers; someone posted a picture of it not too long ago, maybe on the temp boards.

    The tears after the Separatist slaughter worked for me. It showed that Anakin really didn't want to go that route but as I mentioned in another thread, he was so overwhelmed by fear that the fear trumped everything else, and therefore he would do literally anything Palpatine asked.

    Doesn't make it OK, if I were on a jury that tried him, I would certainly vote to convict...but that's where Anakin was.
     
  25. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

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    Jul 2, 2004
    There's more to it than that.

    When Anakin kills the younglings it's something that must be done, something unpleasant and horrific by the standards of most, but it's not like he had a preexisting vendetta against them. It's different in Gunray's case. On Mustafar, it is more than just coldly doing the bidding of Sidious; Anakin is giving in to his hatred. Gunray tried to kill his wife. That's why we see the Sith eyes appear in that scene. Thus the effect of drawing Anakin deeper into the dark side, in essence "losing his soul", is more pronounced, and I think this is reflected in his reaction.

    I just looked it up on youtube and I'm not seeing it. He does have the scar, though.
     
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