Movies In the last few days I have watched all the Star Wars movies (minus Rogue One). I haven't seen most of them in over 10+ years.

[SaysWho?]

This is a great example of everything wrong with RLM; they're clueless and serve only to get laughs and be edgy, with their, "Haha, get it? There's a woman tied in the basement," shtick but they genuinely don't know much. I just finished watching this video, which was made by someone who was lukewarm at best to TLJ but has seen how rich and fantastic it is the more they watch it. I timestamped the part where he takes on RLM (30:42 if it doesn't come up):

 

 

RLM also had some funny jokes about Phantom Menace but completely misses the point of Lucas' reaction to the first rough cut of the film. Plinkett talks about how everyone is stunned with the bad work on the screen, shows Lucas pulling out his hair and admitting, "I may have gone too far in a few places."

 

You can think Phantom Menace isn't that good a film, and it really isn't, but that scene is not revelatory. I work in news and have constructed stories that were 2 - 3 minutes long. In the span of that story, you can create a sequence that works very well, and another, and another, but then you watch the whole thing and the pacing is off, there are too many good sequences that work better alone than together, and you have to cut it down. Take that 2 - 3 minutes and extend it to 2 and a half fucking hours. Yes, there is some tonal inconsistency, but of course there could be even if the film was great. The guy doesn't understand what happens when you take a long movie and look at how it works together as a sum of its parts.

 

But he does a funny voice and makes a joke that he kidnaps women, so he's edgy and hard to impress, which makes him good. BORING! I've no idea who this guy was as early as this morning, but a more measured take is far better than the, "It has no worth," takes that things like RLM and CinemaSins pretend some movies are.

 

Not many things are 100% terrible, and TLJ ain't one of those things, sorry.

[Guest]

This thread, man.

[ARZ]

Enough S.A.T. shit and more Star Wars :P

[Bacon]

I watched the Plinkett reviews of the PT before making this thread(which means after I watched the PT) but that didn't change my opinion. In general, I don't like to adding someone else criticism to my opinions. Even if I agree, I think it is wrong to include any criticism I don't think of. I can't critique which is why I don't even, with video games. Which is why most of my game "reviews" are a bunch of complaints, even when the game is something I really liked. 

[5timechamp]

my take (as if it matters):

 

-I enjoyed all the stuff created for the prequels.. the dropship (troop transport), destroyer droids.... even the overall stories themselves are fine... the real problem is the dialog, the dialog provides what could be interesting information in the dullest way possible... I have no desire to watch the prequels from beginning to end... ever.

but the stuff that came out of them (clone wars series, republic commando game etc.) is mostly good

 

-original trilogy.. no major gripes for the first 2 films.. the dialog and characters is mostly spot on.. Empire is top level sci-fi. ROTJ is less enjoyable as time goes on but the spectacle of the battle of endor still carries the load

 

force awakens is fine... i cant help but contrast it with the other trilogies and in that sense its much closer to original trilogies so that is a positive.. havent watched last jedi since the theater, but i again feel no urge to watch again

 

I liked Rogue One, its more militaristic and boots on the ground conflict.. 

 

 

[Mercury33]

5 minutes ago, 5timechamp said:

my take (as if it matters):

 

-I enjoyed all the stuff created for the prequels.. the dropship (troop transport), destroyer droids.... even the overall stories themselves are fine... the real problem is the dialog, the dialog provides what could be interesting information in the dullest way possible... I have no desire to watch the prequels from beginning to end... ever.

but the stuff that came out of them (clone wars series, republic commando game etc.) is mostly good

 

-original trilogy.. no major gripes for the first 2 films.. the dialog and characters is mostly spot on.. Empire is top level sci-fi. ROTJ is less enjoyable as time goes on but the spectacle of the battle of endor still carries the load

 

force awakens is fine... i cant help but contrast it with the other trilogies and in that sense its much closer to original trilogies so that is a positive.. havent watched last jedi since the theater, but i again feel no urge to watch again

 

I liked Rogue One, its more militaristic and boots on the ground conflict.. 

 

 

 

Agree 100%.  I just rewatched the first 6 movies since some channel has been running them all non stop for the last couple days.  At their core I really enjoy the PT.  The story and the arcs they're trying to tell are, for the most part very interesting.  There are some really very very good things in those movies.  But the major issue is its Dialogue.  Its soooooo damn corny and not in a fun way like the OT.  It just comes off like some crap student film at times.  Whats even more odd is the delivery.  I think some of the most cringeworthy lines COULD have been saved given the tremendous talent of the actors but its like Lucas told all of them "ok for shits and giggles lets do this last take as if you don't know how to act" then he used all those takes to make the movie. And IMO they really do enhance the OT.  When I watch the original 3 I can't help but think of everything from the PT when I see Vader or Obi Wan and it adds so much more depth to whats going on.

 

I still think Return of the Jedi is awesome though haha.  I think it has the highest highs of the entire OT.  Also rewatch the entire final encounter with Luke, Vader and the Emperor.  You can find every cue you could possibly need to forecaset the development of Luke into who we see in TLJ.

[SaysWho?]

1 hour ago, 5timechamp said:

my take (as if it matters):

 

-I enjoyed all the stuff created for the prequels.. the dropship (troop transport), destroyer droids.... even the overall stories themselves are fine... the real problem is the dialog, the dialog provides what could be interesting information in the dullest way possible... I have no desire to watch the prequels from beginning to end... ever.

but the stuff that came out of them (clone wars series, republic commando game etc.) is mostly good

 

-original trilogy.. no major gripes for the first 2 films.. the dialog and characters is mostly spot on.. Empire is top level sci-fi. ROTJ is less enjoyable as time goes on but the spectacle of the battle of endor still carries the load

 

force awakens is fine... i cant help but contrast it with the other trilogies and in that sense its much closer to original trilogies so that is a positive.. havent watched last jedi since the theater, but i again feel no urge to watch again

 

I liked Rogue One, its more militaristic and boots on the ground conflict.. 

 

 

 

1 hour ago, Mercury33 said:

 

Agree 100%.  I just rewatched the first 6 movies since some channel has been running them all non stop for the last couple days.  At their core I really enjoy the PT.  The story and the arcs they're trying to tell are, for the most part very interesting.  There are some really very very good things in those movies.  But the major issue is its Dialogue.  Its soooooo damn corny and not in a fun way like the OT.  It just comes off like some crap student film at times.  Whats even more odd is the delivery.  I think some of the most cringeworthy lines COULD have been saved given the tremendous talent of the actors but its like Lucas told all of them "ok for shits and giggles lets do this last take as if you don't know how to act" then he used all those takes to make the movie. And IMO they really do enhance the OT.  When I watch the original 3 I can't help but think of everything from the PT when I see Vader or Obi Wan and it adds so much more depth to whats going on.

 

I still think Return of the Jedi is awesome though haha.  I think it has the highest highs of the entire OT.  Also rewatch the entire final encounter with Luke, Vader and the Emperor.  You can find every cue you could possibly need to forecaset the development of Luke into who we see in TLJ.

 

I'm of the opinion that, just for story potential, the prequels could have been balls to walls awesome.

 

Here's a Republic that was overtaken by a dark, powerful Sith Lord who infiltrated its apparatus as a Senator and manipulated his way to Emperor. Unrest was caused by the system itself which was slow to respond to any conflict. The Jedi Order, which preserved peace in this Republic, was destroyed by one of its own, who was slowly turned to the Dark Side by the future Emperor. 

 

Like, shiiiiiiiiiit.

[SuperSpreader]

Oh wow I didn't even see this thread! Right on 100%

 

Rogue One is the best star wars movie tho.

[SuperSpreader]

On 12/12/2019 at 8:41 AM, TheLeon said:

Apathy in general actually has been a problem for me for most of my adult life, but I'm in therapy and slowly working through it. My new job has helped a lot, giving me some momentum towards gradually improving my overall situation. 

 

But here, I'm mostly talking about these uber-nerd debates. 

I'm pretty apathetic and love it. 

[TwinIon]

Got through a few more over the weekend. 

 

Episode 3 is easily the best of the prequels, but it's still a bad movie. That last lightsaber fight is great though.

 

Solo is not good, but it's not terrible. If it wasn't a Star Wars movie it would be perfectly fine, but every pandering wink and nod still bugs me more than it should.

 

Rogue One was a bit of a surprise. It's really solid. My wife told me half way through "it's nice to be watching a good movie again," and she wasn't wrong. It also might still be the prettiest Star Wars film. The one thing that doesn't really work is CG Tarkin. They do an admirable job, but it's still a good half step or more into the uncanny valley. I might have to revisit this one more often.

 

A New Hope is still the best Star Wars movie. It's a masterclass in world building and adventure filmmaking. It's a wonder from start to finish.

 

Empire is also great, and I love where it diverges from the story you expect it to tell. Rewatching it now made me think that if it had come out today, I can easily imagine it getting a very TLJ response.

 

Return of the Jedi is fine. It's obviously the worst of the OT, but leagues better than the PT.

 

I do have to say that the OT looks great in 4K HDR. They did a mostly wonderful job on the transfer, even when it so clearly shows it's edges. The added CG is just bad, and there are times when the matte backgrounds are distractingly fake. It also seemed to me like there was a pretty high variance in how much they could get out of certain shots, especially in 4. I felt like some shots were so clean they could have been shot yesterday, and then it would cut to another that had obviously aged a bit. It probably helps that most of my viewing of these movies has been on old VHS tapes, but I really appreciated the restoration work done. The production design and model work still holds up. Give em all another honorary Oscar or something.

 

Current rewatch rankings: 4,5,RO,6,Solo,3,1,2

[SaysWho?]

57 minutes ago, TwinIon said:

Empire is also great, and I love where it diverges from the story you expect it to tell. Rewatching it now made me think that if it had come out today, I can easily imagine it getting a very TLJ response.

 

I'd like to hear you elaborate on this.

 

Also, if I introduce my g/f to Star Wars, I'm starting with Rogue One. I want her to see something recent first, and I'd love it if she saw Rogue One and then freaked out seeing Tarkin in Episode 4.  

[Kal-El814]

5 hours ago, SaysWho? said:

I'd like to hear you elaborate on this.

Yeah I'd like to know more about this, too. I'd guess people would bitch about how "nothing happens and the plot doesn't move," but maybe I'm wrong. Also Han comes off way rougher in 2019 than he must have in 1980... there are some negging / "no is a speedbump on the road to 'yes'' vibes he puts out.

 

Also... for everyone bitching about Han's dice in TLJ / Solo... they were in A New Hope this whole time and I never noticed them until the 4K versions. The more you know.

[EternallDarkness]

On 12/15/2019 at 5:05 PM, 5timechamp said:

 the real problem is the dialog, the dialog provides what could be interesting information in the dullest way possible... I have no desire to watch the prequels from beginning to end... ever.

but the stuff that came out of them (clone wars series, republic commando game etc.) is mostly good

 

 

 

the dialogue and more specifically the acting. How in the hell do you take Oscar winning and Oscar nominated actors and make them sounds like the cast of a 4th grade play? And the series having a love story between two characters with less than zero on screen chemistry?? Yes perhaps some of the ideas aren't bad, but the execution was beyond painful and then some. 

[SaysWho?]

1 hour ago, Kal-El814 said:

Yeah I'd like to know more about this, too. I'd guess people would bitch about how "nothing happens and the plot doesn't move," but maybe I'm wrong. Also Han comes off way rougher in 2019 than he must have in 1980... there are some negging / "no is a speedbump on the road to 'yes'' vibes he puts out.

 

Also... for everyone bitching about Han's dice in TLJ / Solo... they were in A New Hope this whole time and I never noticed them until the 4K versions. The more you know.

 

I could imagine people complaining that half the movie was a chase in ESB lol. I'm sure people did, actually.

[skillzdadirecta]

5 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

I could imagine people complaining that half the movie was a chase in ESB lol. I'm sure people did, actually.

People would also bitch that the whole gang wasn't together like they were in the first movie. And how COULD Leah chose Han over Luke... even I was pissed about that as a kid  This was before we realized they were brother and sister.

[SaysWho?]

2 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

People would also bitch that the whole gang wasn't together like they were in the first movie. And how COULD Leah chose Han over Luke... even I was pissed about that as a kid  This was before we realized they were brother and sister.

 

There was a great find someone made from one of the most-read sci-fi magazines at the time, and people complained exactly about the bold.  

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

4 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

People would also bitch that the whole gang wasn't together like they were in the first movie. And how COULD Leah chose Han over Luke... even I was pissed about that as a kid  This was before we realized they were brother and sister.

Women always go for the bad boys. That was the whole point of ESB. Be a pussy, and you’ll only be used by women to make their actual boyfriends jealous. 
 

and I guess the force ... stuff. 

[Guest]

12 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

People would also bitch that the whole gang wasn't together like they were in the first movie. And how COULD Leah chose Han over Luke... even I was pissed about that as a kid  This was before we realized they were brother and sister.

This part for sure, “they split the whole team up after 30 minutes!”. I know people would complain about Han wanting to leave the rebellion, saying it completely reversed his character development in ANH.

[Kal-El814]

43 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

This part for sure, “they split the whole team up after 30 minutes!”. I know people would complain about Han wanting to leave the rebellion, saying it completely reversed his character development in ANH.

I mean it's a fair criticism that he says he has to leave at almost literally the same moment that they establish nobody in the galaxy knows their location.  But yes, people absolutely would say that.

[stepee]

I haven’t ever seen the prequels before and somehow never had them spoiled, also haven’t seen the original trilogy since I was a kid.

 

Im also doing a marathon and I guess I’ll end it by seeing ep9 in the theater just because I’m in this now. I did see force awakens in the theater but don’t remember it much so I’ll watch that again before I watch TLJ.

 

So far I’m nearing the end of Empire Strikes Back and it’s the most boring one for me.

 

So far my ranking is ep2 > ep 4 > ep 3> ep1 > ep5

 

I haven’t seen Rouge or Solo, I’ll watch those after the in order episode run.

 

Im not just trying to be contrarian it’s just the original trilogy is seriously just as corny as the prequels and yeah JarJar is offensive but so is Han Solo kind of being a creeper. There is a lot of world building and sci fi politics in the prequel series so if I’m ignoring the corny parts I find that more interesting than what’s in the original trilogy so far.

 

KOTOR is obviously by far the best star wars story in a visual media ofc.

[Keyser_Soze]

47 minutes ago, stepee said:

I haven’t seen Rouge

 

[ARZ]

Wait, you think Ep2 is the best Star Wars movie @stepee ?

 

Just making sore i'm not misinterpreting

 

[skillzdadirecta]

10 hours ago, ARZ said:

Wait, you think Ep2 is the best Star Wars movie @stepee ?

 

Just making sore i'm not misinterpreting

 

Maybe he's counting Empire as episode 2 because it was the second one to come out?

[Jason]

On 12/11/2019 at 7:54 PM, sblfilms said:

My kids have found new interest in Star Wars since they started watching Mandalorian. They got about half way into TPM and turned it off.

 

I love them so much.

 

I first watched TPM around 10 years after it came out so I went in prepared for Jar Jar. What I'd never heard about, though, was that there was an entire race of Jar Jars. I still remember, 10 years on, the feeling of my heart sinking when I got to the part where there was a whole race of them. 

[Guest]

35 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Maybe he's counting Empire as episode 2 because it was the second one to come out?

Directly before his ranking, he says Empire is the most boring one and lists it last.

 

He has...interesting taste.

[skillzdadirecta]

2 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

Directly before his ranking, he says Empire is the most boring one and lists it last.

 

He has...interesting taste.

Oooookaaaaaay.

[SimpleG]

On 12/21/2019 at 10:34 PM, stepee said:

So far my ranking is ep2 > ep 4 > ep 3> ep1 > ep5

What is it about EP2 that makes it take the number 1 spot?

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

8 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

Directly before his ranking, he says Empire is the most boring one and lists it last.

 

He has...interesting taste.

He’s not alone

 

https://www.slashfilm.com/geroge-lucas-says-empire-strikes-back-was-the-worst-star-wars-movie/

[skillzdadirecta]

9 minutes ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

He’s not alone

 

https://www.slashfilm.com/geroge-lucas-says-empire-strikes-back-was-the-worst-star-wars-movie/

Nobody cares what George thinks anymore. Anywho, I'm kinda over the whole "debate" everyone is free to like what they want. There are some arguments to be made about which films are "technically" better than the others but that's about it. Enjoy what you enjoy. 

[Joe]

Stepee does make a valid point about Han, tbh. That's some Aziz Ansari shit right there.

[SuperSpreader]

Empire strikes back does suck as a whole, it had important iconic moments, but overall it's like two, maybe three different movies that don't belong together. You could cut the entire first 3rd on Hoth and nothing would change.

[Guest]

6 minutes ago, 2user1cup said:

Empire strikes back does suck as a whole, it had important iconic moments, but overall it's like two, maybe three different movies that don't belong together. You could cut the entire first 3rd on Hoth and nothing would change.

The Hoth stuff sets up the rest of the character development. You need setups for payoffs.

[SuperSpreader]

12 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

The Hoth stuff sets up the rest of the character development. You need setups for payoffs.

Naw

[johnny]

3 hours ago, Jason said:

 

I first watched TPM around 10 years after it came out so I went in prepared for Jar Jar. What I'd never heard about, though, was that there was an entire race of Jar Jars. I still remember, 10 years on, the feeling of my heart sinking when I got to the part where there was a whole race of them. 

Yousa in biiiiiiig doodoo

 

MEEEEEEESA TINK 

[Keyser_Soze]

5 hours ago, Jason said:

 

I first watched TPM around 10 years after it came out so I went in prepared for Jar Jar. What I'd never heard about, though, was that there was an entire race of Jar Jars. I still remember, 10 years on, the feeling of my heart sinking when I got to the part where there was a whole race of them.