How Star Wars Episode 1 SHOULD have been (NSF:sf:)

[morsdraconis]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgICnbC2-_Y

[JeffHCross]

NSF:sf: ... best subject tag, ever.

[ram29jackson]

I just heard the guy who did the original art work to give the director the idea of what Darth Vader would originally look like past away recently

[jaymo76]

That was actually pretty good.

[JeffHCross]

I just heard the guy who did the original art work to give the director the idea of what Darth Vader would originally look like past away recentlyRalph McQuarrie? He did a lot more than just Darth Vader; he did all (or at least most) of the concept art for the entire trilogy, plus ET and the original Battlestar Galactica. He passed on March 3. RIP.


That was actually pretty good.Agreed. Though I think there would have been a fan backlash if they had followed the themes quite as literally as the video suggested. I agree that tying the new trilogy to the original trilogy, thematically, would have been good, but maybe not quite so literally. He is right overall though: No Jar Jar; improved audience investment in the Jedi Order; and a battle that's not so disjointed.

[Rudy]

A lot of truth in that video. Darth Maul was the coolest new character in the trilogy and they wasted him.

[jaymo76]

It's kind of sad because I look back on the original three star wars (4-6) as a huge part of my childhood yet when I view episodes 1 and 2 (I actually liked 3) I just find them so dissapointing. Number 1 just makes me cringe when it's on TV. I get the idea of trying to give viewers the full story, but here's a novel thought... try having a point and focus as it makes it so much more enjoyable for the viewer. Episode 1 just has too much breadth but not enough depth. I also would have loved to see Darth Maul in 2 and 3.

[JeffHCross]

A lot of truth in that video. Darth Maul was the coolest new character in the trilogy and they wasted him.As well, it is surreal to me that Christopher Lee (he of nearly 90 years of age) played the major antagonist of Part 2 of two trilogies, yet in both he's killed off within the first few minutes of Part 3.

After finishing yet another Star Wars novel series this weekend, I remain convinced that the prequels would have been significantly better if George Lucas had merely been executive producer. Let someone else write it, and let someone else direct it.

[Rudy]

After finishing yet another Star Wars novel series this weekend, I remain convinced that the prequels would have been significantly better if George Lucas had merely been executive producer. Let someone else write it, and let someone else direct it.

Amen! He got so focused on the new technology available to make all kinds of creatures and ships that he forgot about the story and characters.

As for the prequels I find them all hard to watch but the second was the worst for me. Hayden Christenson was so bad he's just unwatchable. I think the first movie was the closest to the original movies in terms of focus on character. Annakin was great imo, Liam Neeson was good as Qui-Gon and Darth Maul was cool. The story just didn't have a lot of point. It should have been a 20 minute back story. Political arguments over trade disputes are nowhere near as interesting as the classic big battle between good and evil.

I find it interesting that the video posted suggested the movie should have revolved around Obi-Wan. I loved Obi-Wan in the originals but the smart ass role version played by Ewen McGregor did not appeal to me at all. He should have been more straight-laced and a hard ass to drive Annakin away.

[JeffHCross]

Political arguments over trade disputes are nowhere near as interesting as the classic big battle between good and evil.It is if you look at it from the bigger picture of the story. It shows how something small (the blockade) can morph into something massive (the Empire) over time, and how seemingly independent events can be part of the bigger plan.

That said, there was no subtlety to it, so it was more like "eh, why do we care about this?" Sideous was so obviously the Emperor from the first minute on the screen that it made no sense to hide it. Palpatine was, of course, obvious. The only real value of Naboo is that Padme is the future mother of Luke and Leia. And that we got to blame Jar Jar for creating the Empire. Beyond that, Episode I was pretty much useless.

Yes, it was Act I in a 3 act play (which, when looking at it from the 50,000 foot view, the prequels together were not bad), so there is going to be a lot of background and extra stuff. The problem is that A New Hope was essentially a standalone movie. If the series had started and ended there, we still would probably love it today, almost as much as we do anyway. Episode I was so clearly not a standalone movie, and that is incredibly frustrating to movie-goers.


He should have been more straight-laced and a hard ass to drive Annakin away.Well, first and foremost I love smartasses, so I'm going to disagree with you on principle. Secondly, Obi-Wan couldn't look like he drove Anakin to the dark side. Is that probably more likely in reality? Yes. No one has that level of a fall from grace on their own. But if Obi-Wan looked like the bad guy, even remotely, that would have been quite a risk to take.

[Rudy]

I do like smart asses too but not for Obi-Wan. Seemed completely out of character and I'm not a big fan of Ewen McGregor.