Totally want to see this!
http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/03/11/george-lucas-documentary/
I’ll have to say that as a fan of Star Wars since I was a little kid, I do not believe George Lucas raped our childhood (dang funny song though – thumbs up!)
If the large number of bad (in my personal opinion that is) artists in this world can get away with making the complete schlock they spew out at Cannes, Sundance and other arty-farty film festivals, then George is allowed to do whatever he wants to these movies – they are his movies. They were his idea, his images, his characters. We don’t have to like them all. Of course…I will still wear my Han Shot First t-shirt proudly and with utter conviction :)
But calling out the latest trilogy as trash is an untrue statement to me. Were they as good as the first trilogy (to me) – no. Not at all. There are parts of each of them that I thought were really good but when I think “Star Wars” I will always think of Han, Leia, Chewie, the Cantina, Hoth, Endor, Ewoks and Darth Vader will always be a big menacing breathing apparatus. But the new trilogy did introduce Star Wars to a whole new generation of kids and this allowed them all to venture into our world(s). So you can look at The Phantom Menace and Jar-Jar Binks as the gateway drug… :) Plus the final 30 minutes of Revenge of the Sith kicked serious ass.
I view George Lucas as a genius really. He created some of my most favorite films of all time, pioneered special effects into previously unknown and unthinkable territory, is a marketing genius (bastard has taken a lot of my money – I think I should get my own room, or at least my own closet, at Skywalker Ranch!) and has stayed pretty private and quiet – away from all of the Hollywood crap. I love that about him.
I will buy the (hopefully planned) new Indiana Jones 4-movie set even though I already have the trilogy boxed set, much like I own the first trilogy on VHS, then the special edition on VHS, then the remastered anniversary DVDs, then the boxed DVD set of 6……and I will likely go see whatever movie he does next solely because he did it.
2:53 pm on March 11th, 2010
It’s all subjective and I thought when he announced the prequels that he took the easy route rather than take the story further out, but like you say, it was his idea and he made to me, two of the greatest films of all time – with Empire being the best of those two.
Of the last three, only Revenge was ok in my opinion and ranking the six – I would order them like this-
1) Empire Strikes Back;
2) Star Wars (refuse to call it new hope);
3) Revenge of the Sith;
4) Attack of the Clones (or send in the clones);
5) Phanton Menace (or as us products liability lawyers at the time called the Phen-Fen menace);
6) Return of the Jedi (totally sucked – muppets in space)
Han absolutely shot first.
2:59 pm on March 11th, 2010
I agree – I think he could have made the first 3 (certainly the first 1) much better had we had more story and less CGI. But I still prefer it over most other movies pumped out these days :)
And I DEFINITELY refuse to call it A New Hope!!! Whenever I see it called ANH or Episode 4 at Comic Con or online somewhere. I’m like “Huh? Oh yeah…” It doesn’t stick in the brain and there is a reason for that ;) It will forever be simply Star Wars!!
I’d have to put ROTJ as my #4 and AOTC and PM as my #’s 5 and 6 because…well…no Chewbacca :)
5:29 pm on March 11th, 2010
As someone who saw the Holiday Special first, all this is kind of amusing. The technological advances which sprang from the support of Mr. Lucas is something no one can take away. Who could have expected that there’d be projects like People vs George (http://www.peoplevsgeorge.com), Star Wars Uncut (http://starwarsuncut.com/) or Thee Backslacpkping With Media. (http://www.noneinc.com/tBSWM/tBSWM_Video.html) But with these type of projects around, the next generation will proceed to build something even better.