Initial ROTS Reviews Hit the Internet 475
Trunks writes "The first reviews of Episode III: Revenge of the Sith have started to trickle onto the Net. Reviews are posted at ComingSoon.net, Ain't It Cool News, Variety, and there are three separate reviews at TheForce.net. The current issue of Time magazine has a review as well. The reviews have all been positive so far, and the consensus appears to be that this is the best film of the prequels and it should satisfy fans who were unhappy with the first two."
Looks great.. (Score:0, Insightful)
But please, spare us the "Lucas raped my childhood" or "digital actors are the sux0rs" comments. We've seen them a million times and they still aren't clever. Come up with something new, please.
How can you not see it? (Score:5, Insightful)
But They Say That Every Time (Score:5, Insightful)
Every time one of these comes out, they say that it's better than the previous one. And each time, I'm sorely disappointed. This one will be no different, I suspect. The hype machine is in full spin mode.
Jedi Master: "This IS the film you are looking for."
Former Fan: Your Jedi mind tricks won't work on me this time. Sure, you got me to see the Phantom Menace, and I regretted it. You coaxed me into seeing Attack of the Clones and I swore revenge. This time, NO WAY. My mind is too strong!
Re:Bittorrent (Score:5, Insightful)
This would prove once and for all to 'the powers that be' on a legal level that P2p CAN lose money for people. Especially considering the lack of tanking reviews, if this movie fails or is even disappointing for ANY reason econommically, there is 0 chance that if there is a torrent out there it will not get blamed.
From what I've seen, the pre-teen crowd might be not going to this movie, which could hurt its success. The question is whether this loss is enough. But really, if this movie fails and there's a torrent out there, there will be a witch hunt. Lucas might not even do it. In fact, I can't see him doing it, seeing as he's not that much of a luddite. But really, the WORST thing I can think of happening to Digital Copyright Stuff is this movie getting leaked.
Re:How can you not see it? (Score:3, Insightful)
Easy. I just wont see it.
Re:Dissapointed... (Score:5, Insightful)
Jar Jar dies in a hideous 5 min torture scene where Annie cuts him slowly into kebabs with his lightsaber.
That scene alone would have made the movie. Hopefully, someone will add it later.
Lucas couldn't kill Jar-jar, even if he wanted to. Even if he had intended, since the very introduction of the character, that he should be killed by Darth Vader, there is no way he could have done it now. Why? Because the audience would have applauded!
I can see it now - dramactic scene where Anakin draws his light saber and decapitates Jar-Jar with one single swipe. Obi-Wan screams "Nooooooooo" in ones of those Lucasesque I-would-not-know-emotion-if-it-hit-me-on-the-head pieces of dialogue. Dramatic camera cut to Jar-Jar's body. Meanwhile, the audience cheers and applauds.
Re:Bittorrent (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Looks great.. (Score:5, Insightful)
The problem with the first two prequels was not the digital actors. The problem was the real ones.
Jar-jar may have grated on a lot of people, but at least it wasn't a dull, wooden performance by a performer who's obvioulsy capable of far better work.
Portman, Jackson, Neeson, McGregor, Stamp, and yes even Christiansen... all have proven in other films that they are perfectly capable actors, yet Lucas seems to have a unique ability as a director to take these extremely talented people and suck all signs of life and soul out of their performances. It's really quite remarkable.
Re:But They Say That Every Time (Score:3, Insightful)
What the hell are you talking about? That's only happened once! There's been _ONE_ sequel to a prequel so far.
No need to worry (Score:1, Insightful)
Re:Best film of the prequels (Score:3, Insightful)
The more influence he has over the directing, the crappier the blocking and acting it.
Lucas reminds me of an old programmer. He's great at painting the big picture, but keep his hands off the source code, he'll just fuck it up. Lucas is an architect, not a carpenter.
Obi Wan and the droids (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:How can you not see it? (Score:1, Insightful)
The definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over, and expecting a different result.
If somebody makes two crappy films, then I'm not going to see the third in the trilogy, because I am not insane enough to expect anything different. I didn't see the third Matrix film either.
When are you drooling idiot fanboys going to STOP REWARDING PEOPLE FOR MAKING CRAP FILMS? You do realise this only encourages Hollywood to keep doing it? You fuckwits are the reason the film industry is as dire as it is!
Harrison Ford? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:SW:ROTS reviews (Score:5, Insightful)
What should have happend was AOTC as Ep 1. Then Ep 2 can cover the Clone Wars, with ROTS still being Ep 3. That would have been a more effective story because it would have built Anakin up as a hero more, making his Fall greater. As it stands, he is a whiny jerk who wants power. What it should have been is a War Hero who saved the Galaxy. THEN he got hungry with power.
Dear Slashdot (Score:5, Insightful)
As I near the big 30 I look back at Star Wars with embarrasment. Somewhere along the line I learned about life and that silly things like "What was the 4th stormtroopers middle inital" were in fact trivial. I also look back at Motley Crue, Poison, and most of the 80s with a sense of distrurbed horror.
I realize that movies I liked as a child suck. I had emotion attached to the older shows but if a new one came out in a similar fashion, without the emotional attachment, I would say that the new one sucks. I loved Looney Toons, I loved Spiderman and Friends, but I sure as hell don't like the new stuff. But when I see an old one that I liked as a kid the nostalgic attachment alters how I see it. I can watch an old re-run and not gasp at how horrible the animtion is because the old emotion and perception of the show softens the blow. Come on, watch a few episodes of Thundercats and you'll know what I mean....
But also dealing with children I realize that they "get" that emotional attachment to the prequals because they're new to them. The fact is that all these Star Wars dorks (75.43% of
Think I'm wrong? Put in that Whinnie the Pooh tape you used to watch as a kid 50 times a day and see if you can watch it twice in a row... didn't think so...
Re:I & II weren't that bad (Score:2, Insightful)
Longer version of the same thing on my blog:
http://www.opinionatedbastard.com/archives/000379
Jar Jar is supposed to be an idiot, its his job to stand in for all the people deluded by the Chancellor. (i.e. Hindenberg in pre-Nazi Germany...)
Re:I & II weren't that bad (Score:3, Insightful)
Erm. Yes they did.
Honestly though, I like esp 4,5 and 6 (roughly in that order of appreciation as well) but I struggle to find anything good to say about 1&2. The acting, script, editing and special effects were all dire... what did I miss? I'd honestly have left the cinema in episode 2, except that I was in the middle of a row. And I'm not even that fussy - I like Daredevil!
Re:SW:ROTS reviews (Score:4, Insightful)
This is actually rather insightful. If Episode 1 had featured Anakin being roughly Luke's age or a little younger then, for instance, the love story with whoever was going to be Luke's mother could have been introduced or strongly hinted at in Ep1, properly developed in an unhurried way in Ep2, then suitably tragically broken in Ep3.
The impression I had gotten from Ep4-6 was that Obi Wan had found himself out in the ass end of space, mostly out of touch with the Jedi council, and had encountered this great pilot with a lot of natural ability with the force. Unable to discuss the matter with the Jedi council Obi wan took it upon himself (still young and inexperienced at the time) to train Anakin, fucked it up, and fell right into the hands of the empire. That would have made some sense to me, and would have offered, as you say, a great chance to really develop Anakin as a heor, to really develop the love story over a couple of films, and to contrast the way in which Obi Wan teaches Luke with the way he teaches Anakin. Ah well, too late now.
Jedidiah.
Re:SW:ROTS reviews (Score:4, Insightful)
Actually thinking about this part a little more, I think you are again on to something. One could easily develop a story a little akin to say Red Son [superman.ws] which does a fine job of turning the all powerful hero into something of a villain in an elegant and believable way. Just add some material about Anakin's rage at not being able to control everything the way he feels he should/deserves to (perhaps the death of his wife could come in here somewhere) and thus falling to the dark side and you would have a much more compeeling story.
Jedidiah.
Simple answer: wait (Score:3, Insightful)
That is exactly what Lucas counts on. My simple answer: wait. Wait and rent it. Why the impatience? You know it will come out on video/DVD eventually. I waited for Episode II, and I don't regret it one bit. I watched that entire movie in about an hour. FFWD is your friend. Remember those excruciating dialogue scenes in EPII? I don't.
I don't get why people have to line up to see a movie, or even why they have to see it opening weekend. I hate crowds 100x and the impatient (or ambivalent) people who are there are opening weekend. I'll wait 3-4 weeks, sometimes longer, to see a movie I want to see. The theatre is less crowded, and as long as I stick to that schedule, there will always be something new to see. You don't miss out on the movie experience at all. If it is something you want to be able to pause/FFWD/etc then just wait for the DVD.
And if it doesn't do well at the box office, it might send a message to Lucas. If you are into that. I know a movie hasn't made me quite as angry as Episode I. Fool me once, shame... shame on you.... can't get fooled again.
Re:Dear Slashdot (Score:5, Insightful)
When TPM came out and I was able to take my child age 6 to see the show (I was 6 when I first saw Star Wars with my father.)
And you know what -- When she fell in love with Jar-Jar, and had to have the Jar-Jar Shirt, the Jar-Jar action figure, the Jar-Jar Bowl and Plate set with matching fork and spoon....I understood things a whole lot better than most of the people who where "original star wars" fans that despised TPM....
Well George I got it. You were giving to my kids the same thing you gave to me. (My Dad thought C3-PO and Chewbacca were strange role models...)
What sucks is that most of you "fanboys" did not "get it". You wanted TPM to be Star Wars mixed with Blade Runner and The Matrix. You wanted George to cater to the original fans after 20+ years of hard liven'. George catered to the same crowd he did before.....Just you were no longer in it.
Re:No it won't (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Harrison Ford? (Score:4, Insightful)