What was Alec Guiness's Problem w/ Star Wars?

Any1 know if Alec saw TPM and what he thought of it. JW

 

This makes me think about other older actors such as Ian Mckellen and Christopher Lee. They've had long and distinguished careers as well, now a whole generation only knows them as Gandalf (from LotR) and Magneto (from X-men); and Saruman (from LotR) and Dooku (from Star Wars) respectively. They seem pleased rather than bitter though. I mean, if it wasn't for those roles the younger generation wouldn't know them for anything, and their older fans of course still remember their older work.

 

Yeah that's a shame he(alec)felt that way because he set up a major portion of the appeal of the entire saga. He and ford were the back bone of the OT as far as acting, much like neeson and mcdiarmid are for the PT. I understand he felt that his earlier work was overshadowed but he should've been more proud of what he did for this saga. The thing looked like it would be ridiculous on paper, everyone was thinking "what the hell is this, a 7 foot ape, jawa's"!! He took a chance being in the first film and lifted the entire thing, and he was right for being involved.

 

This makes me think about other older actors such as Ian Mckellen and Christopher Lee. They've had long and distinguished careers as well, now a whole generation only knows them as Gandalf (from LotR) and Magneto (from X-men); and Saruman (from LotR) and Dooku (from Star Wars) respectively. They seem pleased rather than bitter though.

Well, Christopher Lee actually knew Tolkien and is well-versed in the Rings lore. Also, his good friend Peter Cushing from the old horror movie days played a role that Lee himself was offered, that being Tarkin, and so I wouldn't be surprised if he wanted to make his mark on the series at some point. As for Ian McKellen and X-Men, this is from IMDB:

"While being a guest on Jay Leno (December 26, 2003). Ian said that he had not seen X2 when it opened in theaters, he only saw it when the DVD hit the stores. He then called up Bryan Singer and asked "Is there going to be X-Men 3?" Bryan replied "Yes". In excitement Ian got Bryan Singer 6 movie tickets to go see Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King....

He said that appeal of the X-Men films to him was the concept of mutants being shunned, something he says he identifies with as he was repeatedly shunned as an open homosexual."

I can't imagine he would have a problem with being known for Magneto, and probably not for Gandalf either since he's such a classic character.

Guinness, well, he never really regarded Star Wars as serious movies, and let's face it, compared to his other films like The Bridge on the River Kwai they really aren't. He wanted to be remembered for what he considered his great works, not his popcorn flicks, and I don't fault him for that.

 

In reference to Christopher Lee, as has already been said he is an incredible Tolkein fan and he has said himself that out of all the roles he's plaid over the years the role of Saruman is by far the one he has felt the most honored and priviliged to be a part of. I think the fact that he is identified as Saruman gives him an enormous sense of pride, because it shows that he played the part well. But in his case there's something else to keep in mind.
I think as happy as he is of the above, he's probably just as happy that he's no longer identified as Dracula. Unless i'm mistaken, that one stuck with him for a while.

As for Ian Mckellen, I find that very interesting. I always wondered what the appeal he felt for X-men was, cool.

 

I've read all of Alec's memoirs & autobiog's & tons more about him in books about David Lean & other directors. I think it comes down to Alec being an unpleasant person.

By the end of his life he had *nothing* good to say about *anyone* he had *ever* worked with apart from a few Catholic luminaries such as T.S. Eliot (Alec was in an early production of "Murder In The Cathedral").

Alec could be (and was) ungenerous in his criticism of others, particularly directors. His memoirs are *not* fun to read. I read them mostly cause I'm obsessed with films & filmmaking but they get pretty mean spirited as they go on.

I just think it was Alec - he thought SW was dumb & the fans sick & obsessed. He was vocal about it. In my book, that's bad form. But what can you do? He was a truly great actor, from comedy to epics to dramas. He *was* Obi-Wan Kenobi!

But he wasn't a 90's Lad from Scotland with a sense of humor & an admiration for the artistry of SW - we have Ewan for that

 

Wow. That was a great post Lord_of_Sith. Now were gettin' somewhere!

 

It's really a shame since he's such a great actor and he was the one that really carried Star Wars. What's funny is that everything I've heard tells me that he was the most professional on the Star Wars set while everyone else was pretty much making fun of it and calling it a "kiddie movie." I might have to read some of those memoirs just out of curiosity.