PT CGI in Episodes I,II,III :The Appreciation Thread

Jar Jar Binks,Sebulba,Watto,Yoda,Clone Troopers,the Battle of Geonosis and
Battle of Coruscant etc.
The Prequel Trilogy featured some spectacular CGI and also did a great job with practical effects .
Here you can acknowledge what you use of CGI you LIKE .
Discuss...
(Remember this is an appreciation thread ,if you don't have anything good to say then better leave ;also no statements like (we all know this was bad) are approved)

 

aotc came out and people had no idea the clones were completely cgi. people will lie to this day and say they looked cgi but no one knew. no one.

 

I also was really shocked when I found this one out.
(Clone Troopers were CGI?!Checks it on the later bought DVD...WOW)

 

i was an adult watching the pt so i know no one was complaining about the cgi. in fact it's still mindblowingly good all these years later.

 

The Battles and the Planets benefitted the most from the CGI.

 

I think Watto might have been the most convincing CGI character in the prequels. I love his design.

 

What I like most of all the CGI is not actually the battle scenes, but all the different planets and backgrounds, mainly Coruscant. Every single shot featuring a view of Coruscant is a piece of art, and it's a beautiful and haunting scenary that is easy to take for granted.

 

I don't think there's much to appreciate.

 

Personally I have no problem with the CGI in the prequels. It is often sensational (planetscapes and space battles) and always serviceable (although a few AotC scenes in the Jedi temple are a bit ropey). What I really don't like is when they decide to save money on CGI and just shoot Obi-Wan's fighter wedged right against an unconvincing rock face in what is clearly a cramped corner of a studio. Give me CGI over that any day.

 

I think it's insane how 15 year old CGI can still convincingly hold up today and remain looking brilliant as it is. There's not a single criticism I have for it

Yoda in particular amazes me. To be so realistically integrated in.... damn. The clones, of course too. I remember looking up how expensive it would be to buy a clonetrooper costume which was used on set - only to find out that none exist!

A constant complaint I simply don't understand is that the actors look like they're interacting with air because the CG characters weren't there - I call bull. The stand-ins during filming have marks on their outfits for exactly where to look. It's seamless integration. I've in fact tried to find one moment of awkward acting like this, and yet I've failed to find anything

 

I feel that CGI Yoda holds up really well, and was a definite improvement over TPM Puppet Yoda, but not necessarily an improvement over OT puppet Yoda.

 

One of my favorite scenes in the whole saga is the opening sequence during ROTS. A close zoom up on two small fighters that slowly pans out to see the amazing fleets of the Republic against the Confederate fleets. This opening scene would not have been the same had CGI not been used.

 

Then why are you here?

Anyway I loved how Lucas and ILM tried to do something new and expand the films with the help of CGI .
I fear that in the Sequel Trilogy J.J. and Lucasfilm will play it safe and we don't see anything revolutionary and that the films will have a smaller scale like in Episodes IV-VI.
(where everything what was available was used for the best of the movies)
Coruscant ,Kamino and Mustafar wouldn't have been so visually impressive without the CGI.
For exemaple The Order 66 scenes heavily featured CGI and the conversation in Dex's Diner features CGI characters. In both instances it works really good.

 

Stop getting personal.

 

I don't have great eyes ,huh?That is really mature,isn't it ?
To each their own.I think the effects are beyond great and if you don't think so then we have to agree to disagree.(Oh and you're too are one of the guys who thinks that J.J. will go all practical and "restore Star Wars' glory ")

 

To each their own.

 

A LOT OF people didn´t have a clue that the Clones were CGI until Lucas said it himself a couple of years later.

 

.
Some CGI characters (these scans might look polished(in the films it looks better))
Jar Jar and Watto were ones of the first CGI characters ever created.
The Phantom Menace was the first film to extensively use CGI.
The designs of the Gungans and Watto (whether you like them or not) were quiet original and they looked very good in 1999.I find that they still look very good today.
Regardless Dexter Jettster also shows how good CGI can be incorporated into a film.
Yoda is a true masterpiece and if he will return in Live-Action Spin-Offs ,CGI is a must.
(The puppet from ESB & ROTJ is still great ,but you can surely do more with the CGI(as presented in Episode II and Episode III and in Episode I where CGI replaced the original puppet from TPM)

 

I don't have a problem with the CGI in the PT, and in fact enjoy it (of course I've never understood the CGI complaint). The CGI isn't over the top, and I love what they did with it. New beautiful planets and new interesting species.

 

Some things I thought were physical props/settings turned out CGI and vice versa. I can never be absolutely certain that what I'm admiring is CGI and not scale models, which I think is the highest compliment I can give to the filmmakers really. I do prefer the CGI Yoda to the puppet in TPM though.

 

I own the 3 solo PT DVDs, ive read that the cgi in the 2011 Blu Ray looks better and more realistic than the DVDs, is there anyone here who has both the Dvds and Blu Ray of the PT?

 

I have both versions and can clearly say that through the correction of the quality and the video,it sorta looks better.

This is my opinion of course .(Maybe someone can explain it better than me honestly,if I haven't told you enough,sorry.)

 

I love the aesthetic look and feel of the CGI in the prequels (yes, even the sometimes waxy AotC). Visuals are a very important part of Star Wars and I'm particularly fond of wide scenery shots. Which reminds me ... Check out this site which contains some beautiful scenery that is incorporated in the PT.

As for the CGI characters, I think they work perfectly fine in the Star Wars universe. As do the puppets. But I'm sorry for all those people who are totally pro-puppets. I ain't, and I am afraid to say that a lot of the younger folk (that I know) is on the same boat. I can identify every single alien in Star Wars and say whether it's a real breathing creature or not. It doesn't matter if it's a puppet or a CGI character. Does that hurt my viewing pleasure? Absolutely not. I've said many times that I can swallow pretty much anything out of the ordinary in these films (sound in space, artificial gravity, puppets, it's freaking Star Wars). Now of course, some people simply prefer the gritty feel and realism of puppets and costumes. Fine by me, it's an aesthetic preference. I will take CGI Yoda over puppet Yoda any day of the week. Doesn't make my opinion any less valid than of those who say the reverse.

 

Great post !
I have to say I love all techniques of filmmaking when they're done right.
Star Wars pushed the limits in years like 1977-1983 and in years like 1999-2005.
Hope that the same will happen with the Sequel Trilogy.
Visuals are really important because among other things they really bring you in this world.(Coruscant,Naboo,Tatooine,Geonosis,Mustafar,Bespin etc.)

 

General Grievous is by far IMO the greatest looking creation CGI I've ever seen