Too much plot for one movie...?

After seeing Episode 2, I can recall thinking that Episode 3 was going to have to be one huge, jam-packed movie to fit everything in that still has to happen. In some ways it feels like the critical plot pieces of TPM and AotC could have been condensed into one film, which introduces Anakin, Amidala and the young Kenobi. The second and third films could then concentrate on the story left to tell.

There is still so much left to tell in one episode - how Anakin falls to the dark side, how the twins are born and seperated, how the jedi get wiped out, how the clone wars end, how Palpatine becomes Emporer. I get the scary feeling its all going to get rushed over...this last episode is really the one that contains all the plot we've been waiting for...the first two have only been prologues to the real juicy stuff that serve to introduce characters and lay the groundwork for the episode that really matters.

Do you think all of this can be covered adequately in the last movie?

 

Yes because what cannot be shown in the space of the 145-148 minutes that I think Episode 3 will cover can be implied or mentioned. I am confident that GL will fit everything that is neccessary just as he said he would.

 

I share the exact same fears that you do.

We can only hope that he's able to explain everything, or at least enough so we're not left questioning.

"We must have faith in the Republic." Er...George Lucas.

I predict that this Episode will have the longest running time of them all though...

 

Let´s make a comparison between the number of big plot points in EpIII and ROTJ:

EpIII

1. End of the clone wars
2. Destruction of the Jedi order
3. Palpatine becoming Emperor
4. Anakin´s turn
5. Twins born and hidden

Possible sub-plot: The racism of the Empire


ROTJ

1. Rescuing Han
2. "There is another"
3. End of the civil war
4. Anakin´s turning back
5. Destruction of the Sith order

Sub-plot: Nature vs machine


ROTJ didn´t feel rushed to me and some of the plot points in EpIII will probably be intertwined, like the ones in ROTJ. It´s gonna be great!

 

i agree. there is way too much left to be dealt with in the depth we want. so expect more of the same...long chase secuences and no time left for the charater relationships and emotional core that the originals had.

the seduction of Anikin to the dark side should have been given more exloration in the second film. the hint of his political views and a brief chat with the chancellor were not enough to justify a total switch in the next film.

the evolution of chancellor with a grand army to Galactic emperor will also take time.

also more time spent on the relationship between OB1 and Anikin. In the OT OB1 seems so haunted by his 'failure' with Akikin and guilt that he couldnt save him. his speach to luke in ANH and in ROTJ show so much in his eyes that we felt it must have been so terrible. Yet we see that it wasnt his decision to defy yoda and teach anikn, neither was anakin "a great friend" their relationship had so little chemistry that there will be very little emotion from the audience when this friendship is tested and comes to blows.

only more screen time to this relationship will make this as dramatic and touching as when Luke fights VAder in ROTJ.


when i think of it, i just cant see how the gap between epp II and IV can be bridged without a 4 hour epic movie? when you look at what we still need to see:

1) Siduos is still a bit part - his rise and unveiling as Emperor is goint to be complex

2) Anakin's fall from grace, seduction. Duel and Rebirth in 'The Suit'

3) The development of Bail Organa's relationship with Padme to the extent that it justifies him taking her into his care.

4) the fall of the jedi - Yoda's flight to degobah

5) the formation of the rebellion

there is bound to be more that i have missed, but i cant help thinking we need two more eppisodes to bridge this gap.

the yellow scroll can cover some stuff, but much of the above are major plot developments that justify the whole prequel trilogy in the first place.

Lucus has a great story ark with this trillogy, but EP1 &2 should have been joined into one film, leaving plenty of time in the remaining two films to let the story flow rather than the frantic pace hi is left with to tie up this story and set up the OT.

i fear that Epp3 will be the same as the last two...elemnts of brilliance, but a sad hint at what could have been if we had a director that can relate to actors, a script with some heart and a production team with a clear target audience in mind.

 

In my opinion two episodes are needed to fully explore and cover the plot that remains to be told in Episode 3. So below, just for fun, is a "re-imagining" of how Episode One could have introduced the characters and key plot points, leaving two more movies to cover everything else...

Episode One.

The republic is in turmoil. We are introduced to the characters of Obi-Wan Kenobi and his jedi master. They are on a diplomatic mission to Naboo during which they cross paths with Anakin Skywalker, a 15 year old boy roaming the galaxy as a pilot. Anakin saves the life of Kenobi and young Queen Amidala during an assassination attempt on Amidala's life, ordered by an unseen Darth Sidious. Tragically Kenobi's master is killed by the assassin, Darth Maul. Amidala and Anakin immediately recognise a flicker of mutual attraction despite this horror. They all return to Coruscant. The Jedi Council suspect the Sith have returned, and that there is a larger plan afoot. Yoda senses the strength of the Force in Anakin, and thinks it safer for Kenobi to be his guardian for the time being. They despatch Kenobi to investigate the assassin and the Sith, while Amidala remains on Coruscant; there is a seperatist vote brewing that theatens to split the Republic in two. A senator, Palpatine, is a strong supporter of one side of the vote, and Amidala's voice of dissent could help him lose his bid for Chancellorship. Anakin accompanies Kenobi to follow a lead, to the planet of Kamino. They are tracked by a bounty hounter, Jango Fett, sent by Sidious. Kenobi discovers a cloning facility, and narrowly survives an attack by Fett, who is injured and escapes. During the fight Anakin assists Kenobi, who is astounded by the boy's natural skills with a lightsaber and an innate ability to use the Force. Kenobi is troubled however by the boy's ferocity and anger. They return to Coruscant, where Anakin again meets Amidala. Kenobi reports his findings to the council, who are anxious. Palpatine has assumed control of the Senate and is threatening war with the Seperatists. It is revealed that Palpatine is in fact Darth Sidious, and everything has been according to his design so he can rise to power. Having sent the bounty hounter after Kenobi, Palpatine has also been responsible for the secret creation of the clone army. The movie climaxes with a space battle for control of Kamino, while Kenobi and Anakin face and defeat an old foe on Coruscant - Darth Maul. Anakin is injured in the conflict, having lost his temper (and concentration), but Amidala nurses his injuries, and it is obvious their romance is strong. Meanwhile, the Clone Wars have begun...

Episode Two could then start five years later. The galaxy is at war. Palpatine controls an ever-growing army of clones, and is slowly eroding the resistance of the republic and the senate. The Jedi are the warriors behind which the seperatists' systems rally, and also behind the political figureheads of Amidala and Bail Organa. General Kenobi has been training Anakin as a jedi, whose romance with Amidala has grown. The movie opens with a huge ground battle, the definitive battle of the Clone Wars...

...and from there, the remaining story unfolds.

 

It will be just fine. TPM dragged a bit, I agree. But as an overture to a 6-part saga, it works well. AOTC is action-packed and has a pretty darn quick pace. A lot of story is covered in that movie - how Palpatine rose to ultimate power and created the Empire, how Anakin starts his descent to the dark side, how Anakin and Amidala fall in love and wed, how the Jedi Knights are discredited and set up for extermination,how Anakin and Obi-Wan are about to fall out, and how Palpatine has started the tradition of turning Jedi to his cause. There is so much more here than some of you acknowledge! Episode III is possibly the best set up movie of all time!

Anakin is not simply shown in a brief chat with Palpatine and with a hint of his political views, which will make a "complete switch" in Episode III unrealistic. What did we see in AOTC? Anakin is reckless and aggressive. His master fears for him. Anakin is on friendly terms with Palpatine, even taking advice from the great Chancellor. Anakin is having nightmares about the fate of his mother. Anakin is not allowed by the Jedi Order to accept and indulge in his feelings for Padme. Anakin is tormented by thoughts of his mother and returns to Tatooine. There he finds Shmi tortured by Tusken Raiders. Shmi dies minutes after their reunion. Anakin slaughters the Tusken tribe - men, women, and children - in dark rage. His rage is not sated by the genocide - his hate still burns in him. After this, Anakin doesn't think twice about killing Geonosians needlessly. He is wounded badly in a duel with a Sith. And finally he marries the woman he is not allowed to love.

Come on, this is a lot of ground! What Episode III needs to do is believably push Anakin over the edge. There is no 2-hours long exposition needed to explain why he does what he does, because we have so much explained in AOTC. It just feels incomplete at the moment because it is.

Let's recap.

1) Palpatine declaring himself Emperor. The unveiling of the Sidious plot.
2) The Empire destroys the Jedi Order.
3) Anakin falls to the Dark Side and becomes Darth Vader. The Duel etc.
4) The Skywalker twins are born and hidden.
5) Kenobi and Yoda into exile.

It's not too much for one movie. And I do want this movie to be packed. Not rushed, but packed. It needs to have a more intense pace than either I or II, and the way Lucas upped the pace between those I feel safe that he will once again up it for III. Just think, if there is one of these movies that old Lucas has really been psyched and prepared for it must be this one. He is not about to let this one fall on its bum, I assure you.

 

I really don´t understand people´s concern about this. There are films out there with twice as many important plot points as any Star Wars episode, yet they are no more than 2-2,5 hours long!

 

I hope GL doesn't has to live the way Peter Jackson has to.
The last part of LOTR is full of wars and stuff. And the movie can only endure 3 hours, or else the people will get bored or flat asses. It willbe in fastspeed. Really a shame for the art.

I don't hope GL is doing it the same way with Ep3. That would be a shame! right?

 

I'll ask you to please take the discussion to an older thread on this topic. It generated over 100 replies, and is a very interesting find. Take a look:Do you think GL has dug himself into a very big hole?





Mace Windy,
this signature blows!