Re: The Star Wars Franchise Thread

[James Stocks]

Yeah, his sensibilities have always been more aligned with STAR WARS than TREK, and if this is how he leaves the latter that's fine by me.

[thecolorsblend]

Our favorite director makes an appearance. He stipulates that he could only get involved in "someone else's franchise" if "it's the right story". Gotta hand it to Jason Statham (A) for honesty and (B) for having a preference (C) not being a careerist douchebag who kisses ass whenever and wherever. "Not my thing, mate, sorry". Melissa McCarthy's remarks at the end are funny too.

[thecolorsblend]

More.

Exclusive: Star Wars Episode VII Takes Place 30 Years After; Disciple of Palpatine; Plot Info

Posted by: Matt McGloin, Editor/Publisher
March 17, 2013 12:17 | Updated: 1 week 1 day Ago

Our DC Entertainment source who has been providing us information on Man of Steel, the Justice League Movie and Batman reboot, has sent over a batch of Star Wars Episode VII news.

Our source says he had the luxury of talking with someone from Lucasfilm who sent over the following details.

Our source does state to take it as a rumor, though.

• Star Wars Episode VII will be set 30 years after Episode VI: Return of the Jedi

• It will indeed feature the Skywalker/Solo children coming to the peak of their powers

• The Jedi Order has been rebuilt with Luke Skywalker as Grand Master

• A disciple of Emperor Palpatine aims to rebuild the Sith Armies of the Old Republic and destroy the Jedi where the Skywalker children will be thrust into battle and face their inner demons of their Skywalker lineage.

Again, this is what our source heard and notes to definitely take it as a rumor.

Our source previously provided us information on the first news about the Man of Steel spearingheading a DC shared universe, the first news about the Justice League 2015 film and Batman 2016 reboot as well as some scenes from both the Green Lantern movie and the new Superman movie, and more.

Star Wars Episode VII has a 2015 release date directed by J.J. Abrams.

Head on over to the Cosmic Book News Star Wars hub for more news.

http://www.cosmicbooknews.com/content/exclusive-star-wars-episode-vii-takes-place-30-years-after-disciple-palpatine-plot-info

Okay, for the moment let's just assume that this "report" isn't complete bullshit from start to finish. I think it absolutely is but let's assume it isn't. These idiots just unmasked their source. Oh sure, they didn't name names but come the fuck on, how much effort is it going to take find the guilty parties just on what's provided here?

Anyway. Again, assuming this isn't all crap... I'm not convinced by this plot line. Oh sure, there's juice to be had from exploring Darth Vader's legacy. Shit, forget about the kids for a minute. How the hell have Luke and Leia managed to live with Vader haunting them? How could that not affect every decision they make every day of their lives?

But that's the more compelling stuff for me. I never cared about "the next generation" when their idiotic adventures were forced on me by Bantam, Del Rey and others. Jacen, Jaina and (to a lesser degree) Anakin Solo were all vapid, dull, flat characters. I don't care to read stories about the Skywalker and Solo children. Not. Interested.

Yeah, Hamill, Fisher and Ford are all old but I want to see their continued adventures rather than some CW reject pretend to be a Jedi.

[James Stocks]

I'd be fine if it truly is Chloe Mortez, otherwise I'll be cautious about snot nosed kids swinging light sabers and such.

[Apologist Puncher]

I already figured that they would go the kids route, so this is no surprise to me. But they NEED to cast better than some Twi-Hard twink and skinny, big-headed teenage girls.

Chris Hemsworth would be a good start for one of Luke's kids....

[thecolorsblend]

-- Top Five Star Wars Predictions
Qualifiers- Over the next five or so years;
Sequence- unranked;

Original/unaltered movies- All six movies will be released in their unaltered forms sooner rather than later. Lucas already did the big Blu-Ray release. Disney doesn't have much to exploit with yet another re-release. Plus, they know the demand is out there.

Original/unaltered fans- Abrams and Disney will go far out of their way to appeal to fans of the oh-riginal trilogy. They want them back in the camp. Because of that, I'd be surprised if there's much reference to the prequels in the new movies apart from big picture stuff.

Casting- Hamill, Fisher, Ford, (Billy Dee) Williams, Mayhew and Daniels are all coming back. John Williams? Your guess is as good as anybody's. As to Episode 7, people will probably enjoy it but it likely won't become the new Empire. It won't become the new Phantom Menace either though.

Expanded universe reboot- This is shakier. Could be wrong here but all the games, novels, comics and other things are too unwieldy. Plus, Disney will want to rebuild Star Wars from the ground up. Why wouldn't they? My bet is Disney will rebuild the EU from scratch using the original versions of all six movies as their base canon. It's kind of inevitable if Episode 7 includes Chewie (who's dead in current continuity).

Fan Edits- Disney will eventually drop the hammer of God on people producing fan edits and other derivative works. It's how they've always rolled in the past. If you dig alternative cuts of Star Wars, my advice is to get 'em while you can.

- Runners-Up
Qualifiers- Even less likely than the above;

Scorched earth reboot- Delete the prequels too. Disney may think (with some justification) that they could do a better job of telling Vader's history. Modern audiences are very well acquainted with the idea of reboots. This could be a sellable concept. If it comes to this... yeah, I would actually expect the Disney prequels to be better than George's.

Holiday Special- Lucas only reluctantly acknowledged that the Holiday Special exists. Anybody care to wager Disney is more willing to laugh about it? After all, it's another Blu-Ray to sell and it's not like it's *THEIR* screw up...

[James Stocks]

Would be nice to see the original/unaltered version version of THE PHANTOM MENACE in good quality. I only have that theatrical cut in letterbox VHS (the limited release that came with a small strip of film, booklet, ect). While it wasn't altered to the extent that the original film was, there were enough changes on the DVD release that I thought ruined some aspects. The original version's pod race was much better paced, while in the DVD version Lucas added deleted sections that just slowed it down and looked out of place (the resolution looks cheap in the added parts, not integrating well with the original parts that were produced for film release).

Also, as much as I thought the TMP Yoda looked ugly, the CGI replacement was no better. The great Frank Oz's fantastic puppet work comes off expressive and vital, while the CGI version looks more restrained. I don't mind the idea of replacing the ugly puppet with a more accurate Yoda closer to ESB, but the CGI puppetry is really lacking. It could have been done better.

[thecolorsblend]

Your mouth to God's ear... and I would have agreed a lot more vociferously a year'ish ago before the Episode 1 re-release. I was a prequel defender from way back until then. But rewatching it in a theater really exposed a lot of the movie's weaknesses to me. It has all the action and pacing of a Star Wars movie but when people say it lacks the heart and soul of the original films, for the first time I saw that argument.

Anyway, I support a DVD or Blu-Ray or whatever release of all the films in their original form. Warts and all. And I think it's inevitable. Sooner or later, someone at Disney will realize that's the only truly unique thing they can bring to the table.

[James Stocks]

As weak as TPM is, I find the two that came after to be weaker, with AOTC being the worst just for the nonsensical romance story alone. Of all the prequels, TPM succeeds better where it aims (though that may just be by default). I could list a whole lot of points I think it gets more right than the other two, but I'm pressed for time and might just save that for later.

[thecolorsblend]

As weak as TPM is, I find the two that came after to be weaker, with AOTC being the worst just for the nonsensical romance story alone. Of all the prequels, TPM succeeds better where it aims (though that may just be by default). I could list a whole lot of points I think it gets more right than the other two, but I'm pressed for time and might just save that for later.

I can see that argument. The other movies lacked focus. One big weakness for all three movies is that they were written separately rather than being at least outlined in advance. He wrote each script before production of it began. The lack of balance hurt each movie. The sentiment has long been that if Lucas had stayed hands on with designs, action scenes, effects and that stuff and let writers and directors do the heavy-lifting for the trilogy, the films would've turned out much better. It always annoyed me because it had become such a cliche... and now it really annoys me because for the first time I agree with it.

*sigh*

[James Stocks]

Maybe a simple outline was needed, but I don't see anything wrong with approaching the films one at a time. That allows you to be more flexible and more often than not that really helps. That's how it worked with the original three films and that was mainly because they tried to be consistent as much as possible in spirit and tone.

I remember the original plan being that Lucas would direct the first prequel and with that establish what the universe of Star Wars was like 30 years before the Empire, and then another director would step in and take over while Lucas focused on production. I'm not sure why he changed his mind on that exactly, maybe he became too much of a control freak or something. The digital camera and heavy greenscreen likely made him realize he could still make these films without doing any location shooting. He could just easily sit in his chair with his coffee and shoot the whole film in controlled environment. Probably sounded like a dream to him, especially after having a sandstorm trash the Tattooine TMP sets.

[thecolorsblend]

Maybe a simple outline was needed, but I don't see anything wrong with approaching the films one at a time. That allows you to be more flexible and more often than not that really helps. That's how it worked with the original three films and that was mainly because they tried to be consistent as much as possible in spirit and tone.

I remember the original plan being that Lucas would direct the first prequel and with that establish what the universe of Star Wars was like 30 years before the Empire, and then another director would step in and take over while Lucas focused on production. I'm not sure why he changed his mind on that exactly, maybe he became too much of a control freak or something. The digital camera and heavy greenscreen likely made him realize he could still make these films without doing any location shooting. He could just easily sit in his chair with his coffee and shoot the whole film in controlled environment. Probably sounded like a dream to him, especially after having a sandstorm trash the Tattooine TMP sets.

You know, I don't usually recommend reference books about this kind of stuff because I trust my own perceptions and common sense above anybody else's (which is probably why it took such a damn long time for me to change my mind about the prequels). But a dude wrote a book about this very subject that outlines how he thinks the Star Wars saga evolved with each passing film. You can download the book in PDF format for free at http://secrethistoryofstarwars.com/index.html . The guy basically suggests the same thing you do. The storyline was in constant flux. Nothing was as set in stone as Lucas wanted us to believe. Interesting read.

Anyway, I say all of this to suggest that the original trilogy benefited from being improvised (I don't care what anybody says, Lucas didn't start this thing off knowing that Luke and Leia were related to each or that they were Darth Vader's children) but the prequels had a set end point. Lucas crammed a lot of shit into Episode III that might've had more life and believability if it had been set up in the first two. It doesn't help that a lot this stuff relates to taxation and trade routes and other things nobody first thinks of as fodder for a Star Wars plot.

[James Stocks]

Yup, I've read some of the articles on that site. Very insightful, especially the road to the special editions being so thorough over how the original negatives were altered, which really explained why Lucas keeps saying that the originals "no longer exist". The evolution of Star Wars article really hammers in how the films only work as a whole if you watch them in release order, as opposed to Lucas' suggestion of watching them in chapter order.4

Schumacher got lots of criticism for the toyetic aspect of B&R, but for me it came off a lot more in Lucas' prequels. Let's be honest, he kept cramming in new characters so that they could have new toys to sell. General Grievous being the most obvious for me, as Count Dooku could have easily served the same role and that final confrontation with him and Obi-Wan would have had more weight to it. Heck, Count Dooku probably should have been in the Darth Maul role in TPM, that he would have added even more weight to the drama with Obi-Wan trying to balance justice and vengeance when going after Dooku, mirroring Anakin's troubles but in the end he comes up on top while Anakin falls and he didn't notice because he was too busy over his search for Dooku.

[thecolorsblend]

Yup, I've read some of the articles on that site. Very insightful, especially the road to the special editions being so thorough over how the original negatives were altered, which really explained why Lucas keeps saying that the originals "no longer exist". The evolution of Star Wars article really hammers in how the films only work as a whole if you watch them in release order, as opposed to Lucas' suggestion of watching them in chapter order.

Yep, although I often recommend people introduce others to them by going 4, 5, 1, 2, 3, 6. It presents you with Vader's side of the story after he gives Luke the bad news while still ending the saga with the original trilogy. Plus, it keeps most of the revelations and stuff a surprise.

Schumacher got lots of criticism for the toyetic aspect of B&R, but for me it came off a lot more in Lucas' prequels. Let's be honest, he kept cramming in new characters so that they could have new toys to sell. General Grievous being the most obvious for me, as Count Dooku could have easily served the same role and that final confrontation with him and Obi-Wan would have had more weight to it. Heck, Count Dooku probably should have been in the Darth Maul role in TPM, that he would have added even more weight to the drama with Obi-Wan trying to balance justice and vengeance when going after Dooku, mirroring Anakin's troubles but in the end he comes up on top while Anakin falls and he didn't notice because he was too busy over his search for Dooku.

I think a lot of that owes back to not planning the shit out ahead of time. If he'd known where he was going, he could've developed stronger villains. I don't think Dooku was meant to be as disposable as Lucas ultimately made him.

As revisions go, the breaking point for me was the Blu-Ray. To me, it proves Lucas had stopped caring. The THX logo used to be a guarantee of quality but it's become a joke. There's no way THX should have approved that horrible video transfer on the Blu-Ray. Period. It's crap and there's no excuse anybody can make that won't make it crap. It's just awful. Wacky, oversaturated colors, fucked up black level, the whole thing. It's a mess.

[James Stocks]

I can't watch the 2004 versions anymore precisely because of the tinkering of colors and such. I'm glad I got the DVDs that came with the original versions. It may be Laserdisc quality, but that's the best they'll ever be seen on home video until Disney decides to do a restoration project and sell their own Disney Era Lucasfilm product.

It just amazes me how daft Lucas is about his original films. When the blu-ray releases of Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Blade Runner were released, with all different versions available in each package, that really set the bar for me and that if Lucas didn't reach it I would never bother with the blu-ray. Unsurprisingly, he stuck with his altered versions (from which I hear more tinkering like adding "NOOOO" in ROTJ just brought it over the top).

I made this video awhile back when the blu-ray version of Obi-Wan's dragon call was leaked (the one where he sounds like he got a pinecone shoved up his ass). It sounded so hilariously similar to a film where James Bond stuck a bomb up a man's ass.

[thecolorsblend]

I can't watch the 2004 versions anymore precisely because of the tinkering of colors and such. I'm glad I got the DVDs that came with the original versions. It may be Laserdisc quality, but that's the best they'll ever be seen on home video until Disney decides to do a restoration project and sell their own Disney Era Lucasfilm product.

This is going to sound weird but I intend to keep those laserdisk-derived DVD's even when (yes, I'm making a prediction here) Disney releases the oh-riginal, unaltered trilogy. No, they may not look as sharp as fancy-shmancy Blu-Rays but somehow that adds to their authenticity in my eyes. It somehow looks "more nostalgic" to me.

It just amazes me how daft Lucas is about his original films. When the blu-ray releases of Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Blade Runner were released, with all different versions available in each package, that really set the bar for me and that if Lucas didn't reach it I would never bother with the blu-ray. Unsurprisingly, he stuck with his altered versions (from which I hear more tinkering like adding "NOOOO" in ROTJ just brought it over the top).

It's one of those things that reminds me the guy isn't completely motivated by money. The fuckin guy had to know that he was sitting on a goldmine all those years. If he was only out for the bottom line, common sense says release whatever people want to buy, charge top dollar for it and milk the thing for all it's worth. Works for Paramount and Star Trek to this day.

Plus, an OUT Blu-Ray set can be as simple or as intricate as you want it to be. Take A New Hope for example. You can release that with the 70mm split-surround soundmix, the stereo soundmix and the mono soundmix. The completist in me wants ALL of those, particularly the mono mix. And for just shits and grins, you can also include a modern 6.1 mix as well. Hey, why the hell not, right? It's not like you have to worry about "sound designer" Matt Wood going in there and fucking it all up like he did the 2004 and Blu-Ray mixes. Get whoever did the Lion King DVD from a few years back to rejigger the soundtracks. That guy deserves an award or something.

And while you're at it, why not include an alternative/companion disc? The original version as the first disc and then a second disc with the 1997, 2004, 2011 and whatever upgraded version you care to mention as well?

Skip the commentaries, trailers, deleted scenes, documentaries and all that other shit. We have it already. And even if we don't, hey, that's what YouTube and keepvid.com respectively are for, yes? Do a set with just the movies and let that be your statement; all thrilla, no filla.

The way that it is now, I have to load my iPod up with those laserdisk originals up there plus the 2004 and Blu-ray versions, not to mention the one or two fan edits I find vaguely interesting. Don't you think I'd love to throw the 1997 Special Edition in there too for the sake of completeness if nothing else? There's room for everything if they'd just get with the damned program already!

And if you must have a commentary track, find a disgruntled fan to do it. Shit, I bet me and Puncher could probably work something out. Let us comment on the "upgraded" editions.

Puncher- "Jesus Jumped-Up Christ, what in the name of all the fucks there have ever been was Lucas thinking here? Greedo shooting first? Seriously?"

colors- "Maybe we can chalk it up to senility?"

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, nobody likes an ageist, you dick. Look, when A New Hope came out, it was common place for the hero of the movie to be a rough, tough guy who shot first and asked questions later. Go back and check out Chinatown, the French Connection, all the rest. The hero didn't put up with any bullshit and you were lucky if he'd let you escape with your miserable life. This here is Lucas softening a character to mollify today's pussified audiences."

---

Puncher- "Holy shit on a cracker, Hayden Christensen's ghost? What the fuck, when did THAT happen?

colors- "It was introduced in the 2004 edition."

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, I was being rhetorical, you asshole. The point is that the scrawny sack of shit never belonged in the prequel trilogy, much less the original trilogy. Yo, this movie was made before that lanky mangina was even BORN!"

colors- "The story logic is supposed to be that Anakin's ghost-visage is derived from the last time he was 'pure' in the Force."

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, take your goddamn 'story logic' and cram it up your ass, you stupid Mick. Ewoks that can blink are bad enough but this is an idiotic change that ruins the entire fucking movie. Even SATAN looks at this and thinks 'damn, now THAT is an abomination!' That wooden son of a bitch should never have been inserted into Return of the Jedi and whoever authorized this bullshit can fuck off and die in a goddamn fire as far as I'm concerned. I need to calm down, I haven't been this pissed off since Singerman premiered."

And probably other Puncher profanities and profundities, you know he doesn't care. I could probably work the poor guy into a stroke by the time credits roll for Jedi. "The first audio commentary where somebody died". How's that for marketing? It'd sell a mint!

And I think they will release the trilogy. And soon. Something tells me that by this time next year, we'll have heard an announcement about Disney doing an original trilogy release. It'd be the perfect way to build anticipation for Episode VII, yes? "The REAL Star Wars trilogy... back by popular demand!"

I truly did laugh out loud. Good job!

[James Stocks]

It's one of those things that reminds me the guy isn't completely motivated by money. The fuckin guy had to know that he was sitting on a goldmine all those years. If he was only out for the bottom line, common sense says release whatever people want to buy, charge top dollar for it and milk the thing for all it's worth. Works for Paramount and Star Trek to this day.

That could be true, but on the flip side he might have known that a top quality release of the unaltered OT was his trump card, and that after he released those it would be hard to ever sell newer reissues again. Another reason could be that assembling all the original elements back and rescanning them would cost a lot of money, and why spend money on a version you personally consider obsolete, when you could just make easy money with the current versions you already have that most audiences besides fans couldn't care less if they had Jar Jar inserted? However, at least he was self-aware enough to realize he had been looking back at Star Wars too much that he agreed to sell it so he'll go off and finally do all those indies he had been bragging about for years. Might be the best thing he has done as a filmmaker in awhile. Wouldn't be surprise if his friend Coppola talked him into that, as that guy pretty much does movies on his own dollar now.

Plus, an OUT Blu-Ray set can be as simple or as intricate as you want it to be. Take A New Hope for example. You can release that with the 70mm split-surround soundmix, the stereo soundmix and the mono soundmix. The completist in me wants ALL of those, particularly the mono mix. And for just shits and grins, you can also include a modern 6.1 mix as well. Hey, why the hell not, right? It's not like you have to worry about "sound designer" Matt Wood going in there and fucking it all up like he did the 2004 and Blu-Ray mixes. Get whoever did the Lion King DVD from a few years back to rejigger the soundtracks. That guy deserves an award or something.

And while you're at it, why not include an alternative/companion disc? The original version as the first disc and then a second disc with the 1997, 2004, 2011 and whatever upgraded version you care to mention as well?

Skip the commentaries, trailers, deleted scenes, documentaries and all that other shit. We have it already. And even if we don't, hey, that's what YouTube and keepvid.com respectively are for, yes? Do a set with just the movies and let that be your statement; all thrilla, no filla.

Yes. At this point, the originals are all I want. I've seen enough docs and I can find the deleted scenes online. If I had to include some featurettes I would just use anything produced from the era the films were made. FROM STAR WARS TO JEDI is a great example, something Lucas has refused to include in the blu-rays precisely because in that doc he makes statements that would contradict what he says these days.

The way that it is now, I have to load my iPod up with those laserdisk originals up there plus the 2004 and Blu-ray versions, not to mention the one or two fan edits I find vaguely interesting. Don't you think I'd love to throw the 1997 Special Edition in there too for the sake of completeness if nothing else? There's room for everything if they'd just get with the damned program already!

And if you must have a commentary track, find a disgruntled fan to do it. Shit, I bet me and Puncher could probably work something out. Let us comment on the "upgraded" editions.

Puncher- "Jesus Jumped-Up Christ, what in the name of all the fucks there have ever been was Lucas thinking here? Greedo shooting first? Seriously?"

colors- "Maybe we can chalk it up to senility?"

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, nobody likes an ageist, you dick. Look, when A New Hope came out, it was common place for the hero of the movie to be a rough, tough guy who shot first and asked questions later. Go back and check out Chinatown, the French Connection, all the rest. The hero didn't put up with any bullshit and you were lucky if he'd let you escape with your miserable life. This here is Lucas softening a character to mollify today's pussified audiences."

---

Puncher- "Holy shit on a cracker, Hayden Christensen's ghost? What the fuck, when did THAT happen?

colors- "It was introduced in the 2004 edition."

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, I was being rhetorical, you asshole. The point is that the scrawny sack of shit never belonged in the prequel trilogy, much less the original trilogy. Yo, this movie was made before that lanky mangina was even BORN!"

colors- "The story logic is supposed to be that Anakin's ghost-visage is derived from the last time he was 'pure' in the Force."

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, take your goddamn 'story logic' and cram it up your ass, you stupid Mick. Ewoks that can blink are bad enough but this is an idiotic change that ruins the entire fucking movie. Even SATAN looks at this and thinks 'damn, now THAT is an abomination!' That wooden son of a bitch should never have been inserted into Return of the Jedi and whoever authorized this bullshit can fuck off and die in a goddamn fire as far as I'm concerned. I need to calm down, I haven't been this pissed off since Singerman premiered."

And probably other Puncher profanities and profundities, you know he doesn't care. I could probably work the poor guy into a stroke by the time credits roll for Jedi. "The first audio commentary where somebody died". How's that for marketing? It'd sell a mint!

You might as well these days, as fan-made audio commentaries have become a huge thing once someone realized all they had to do was sell an MP3 with just their commentary and let consumers sync it up themselves. That's how those RiffTrax guys are finally getting away with riffing today's popular movies after so many years of riffing on public domain films on MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000.

And I think they will release the trilogy. And soon. Something tells me that by this time next year, we'll have heard an announcement about Disney doing an original trilogy release. It'd be the perfect way to build anticipation for Episode VII, yes? "The REAL Star Wars trilogy... back by popular demand!"

I don't doubt it for a minute. Disney won't be too concerned over what version Lucas prefers, they now have the "fully restored limited edition" headliner they'll stamp on every ad.

I truly did laugh out loud. Good job!

Much appreciated. Also just remembered this video too by someone else, it's perfect.

[thecolorsblend]

Since there's so much Star Wars stuff going on here...



I'm not usually one for fanedits. My usual attitude is that would be editors and filmmakers are better off developing their own material rather than chopping up other peoples stuff. On top of that, I've obviously changed my mind about revisions by Lucas himself; give me the original unaltered trilogy any day.

But all that kind of has to be suspended for Adywan's SW Revisited. He put more effort and thought into his revisions than Lucas ever thought about. The changes he makes are substantive, high quality and often improvements. This doesn't water down my preference for the original versions. Far from it. But it does make a couple of interesting arguments by way of demonstration- Lucas has the completely wrong philosophy for the Special Edition ("throw a bunch of extra CG shit in but leave existing errors alone") and Lucas harmed the films by trying to bang the Special Editions out quickly and for cheap rather than taking time with them. His end result suffers in a way that Adywan's never will.

If you can find Ady's version, it well worth the effort to obtain it. His cuts of Empire, Jedi and the prequels are coming... eventually.

[thecolorsblend]

Obviously I'm on a serious Star Wars kick right now. So. Lost a lot of my original enthusiasm for the prequels. Fanedits attempting to "redeem" them seem like a waste. So, what then? Well, the whole reason the prequels let a lot of people down is because the original trilogy hinted at all this cool shit that went on back then that the prequels may or may not have delivered on. But... maybe it's better that way? Maybe it's best if we only get a taste of what the prequel story without being burdened by midichlorians* and Jar Jar?

Well, remember that Star Wars- A Musical Journey DVD that came with the Revenge of the Sith score? What if portions of that served as your prequel stuff?

Dark Forces Conspire- Couldn't find a YouTube video for it but it's basically Duel of the Fates and a lot of battle stuff.

-- A Hero Rises/A Fateful Love


-- A Hero Falls


On the whole, there are worse compromises.

* To be fair though, midichlorians never bothered me. I thought the Force as a hereditary thing was implicit in A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back and explicit in Return of the Jedi.

[James Stocks]

Never was bothered by the midichlorians either. Of course I watched a lot of STAR TREK where godlike beings are simply powerful aliens, so it wasn't too much of a jolt for me when Lucas tried to incorporate a scientific explanation of how someone can grasp the force. Maybe it was odd timing to throw that in there 22 years after the first movie came out and a lot of fans simply preferred a more fantastical perspective.

Same goes for the more emphasis on politics. It was bound to happen given that the fall of the Republic was a big part of the backstory. Of course I was also used to STAR TREK doing political allegories too. I think it could have been handled better, they sometimes came off too much like exposition and were passionless. Having Padme talk in monotone and digitally altering her voice certainly didn't help.

As for the music, it's truly amazing how much weightlifting John Williams had to do with the prequels. Listening to them on their own, you get a lot more out of his music than what Lucas brought. Like the music for the Jedi Council being full of atmosphere and power, it really sounds like something you'd associate with a scene that has a group of the wisest Jedi in the universe together in one room.

[thecolorsblend]

As for the music,

That's really the point, I suppose. The scores for the films tell the story better than the films themselves.

it's truly amazing how much weightlifting John Williams had to do with the prequels. Listening to them on their own, you get a lot more out of his music than what Lucas brought.

Yes. Very much so.

Williams had his work cut out for him too. First, there's the fact that the prequels are weak in so many ways. But the other thing, and this could piss some people off but I have to be honest, the biggest obstacle Williams had in the prequels was named Ben Burtt. There are times when the score is almost completely drowned out (parts of that really long space battle shot in Revenge of the Sith) or else old music gets tracked in even though Williams scored new music (the arena battle in Ep II). Lucas was hardly on his A-game for the prequels but he was further hobbled by Ben Burtt's sound design and editing. In fact, anything Burtt handled personally is a mess.

Like the music for the Jedi Council being full of atmosphere and power, it really sounds like something you'd associate with a scene that has a group of the wisest Jedi in the universe together in one room.

I've always loved that track. And, again, if you watch the scene, the music is more powerful and expressive than anything happening on the screen.

[Apologist Puncher]

And if you must have a commentary track, find a disgruntled fan to do it. Shit, I bet me and Puncher could probably work something out. Let us comment on the "upgraded" editions.

Puncher- "Jesus Jumped-Up Christ, what in the name of all the fucks there have ever been was Lucas thinking here? Greedo shooting first? Seriously?"

colors- "Maybe we can chalk it up to senility?"

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, nobody likes an ageist, you dick. Look, when A New Hope came out, it was common place for the hero of the movie to be a rough, tough guy who shot first and asked questions later. Go back and check out Chinatown, the French Connection, all the rest. The hero didn't put up with any bullshit and you were lucky if he'd let you escape with your miserable life. This here is Lucas softening a character to mollify today's pussified audiences."

---

Puncher- "Holy shit on a cracker, Hayden Christensen's ghost? What the fuck, when did THAT happen?

colors- "It was introduced in the 2004 edition."

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, I was being rhetorical, you asshole. The point is that the scrawny sack of shit never belonged in the prequel trilogy, much less the original trilogy. Yo, this movie was made before that lanky mangina was even BORN!"

colors- "The story logic is supposed to be that Anakin's ghost-visage is derived from the last time he was 'pure' in the Force."

Puncher- "Shut the fuck up, take your goddamn 'story logic' and cram it up your ass, you stupid Mick. Ewoks that can blink are bad enough but this is an idiotic change that ruins the entire fucking movie. Even SATAN looks at this and thinks 'damn, now THAT is an abomination!' That wooden son of a bitch should never have been inserted into Return of the Jedi and whoever authorized this bullshit can fuck off and die in a goddamn fire as far as I'm concerned. I need to calm down, I haven't been this pissed off since Singerman premiered."

And probably other Puncher profanities and profundities, you know he doesn't care. I could probably work the poor guy into a stroke by the time credits roll for Jedi. "The first audio commentary where somebody died". How's that for marketing? It'd sell a mint!

Nice.

But I wouldn't die from it. If Singerman couldn't kill me, 'Star Wars' has NO chance...

[thecolorsblend]

Nice.

But I wouldn't die from it. If Singerman couldn't kill me, 'Star Wars' has NO chance...

Very true. And I have to agree. It'd be fair to say my "relationship" with WB is a lot more rocky and complicated because of Superman than my "relationship" with Lucasfilm could ever be because of Star Wars.

[thecolorsblend]

Speaking hypothetically, a standalone Yoda movie directed by Frank Oz... it's got potential.

[thecolorsblend]

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-03-07/how-disney-bought-lucasfilm-and-its-plans-for-star-wars

This is a little old now but it's about Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm from a more technical standpoint. Oh yeah, and Lucas pretty much confirms that Ford, Hamill and Fisher were either signed on or close to it before the merger took place. Stands to reason Ford is the only wild card. Lucas apparently had Fisher at "hello" and Hamill has implied he felt more or less the same way.

Heavy stuff though. Dude said goodbye to his entire corporate empire and life's work. And nobody will convince me it's not at least partly because he's sick of being called a rapist. Or depicted as a rapist by those jerkwit hacks from South Park. They can fuck off. Seriously. And they can take their overrated puke of a TV series with them. When either of those two living arguments for the merits of abortion come up with something half as inventive as any given twenty minutes of Empire, I'll care what they think. Until then, they should back off, shut up and leave cinema to their betters.

In general, I would like to add that if you've ever said Lucas has somehow sexually violated your childhood (even in jest), feel free to die in a fire. Asshole.

Does make you a little cynical about Episode 7 though. Those who think Lucas started the new Star Wars trilogy strictly to make Lucasfilm more attractive for a Disney buyout have a leg to stand on.

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