I finally caved into the Geek Side of the Force and pre-ordered my tickets for Star Wars: Episode III.
Yes, I know, I’m putting more cash in George Lucas’ hands in exchange for watching what could be yet another cinematic trainwreck. On the other hand, I went to both Episode I and Episode II on opening day, so I might as well bow to tradition one last time. And besides, if nothing else, it can’t be as bad as Episode I — can it?
Jay, if you didn’t know that EP 4, 5, and 6 existed, you would have gone to EP1 and thought the movie was fantastic. I have a feeling that once you see EP3, you’ll appreciate EP1 and EP2 a lot more.
By the way, my buddies and I caved yesterday and pre-ordered tickets as well. I have forseen my destiny – it is 3 weeks of geeking out leading up to May 19th!
I have to agree with Murali, and I think both Ep 1 and 2 have gotten a bad wrap. But I think they are better than many think if you view 4, 5 and 6 as something more than just plot-driven action pictures – but if you are tapped into the myth behind each of the originals, then you’ll get 1 and 2. After viewing 2, I enjoyed 1 even more because I could see better where it was all going. And 3 will heighten your enjoyment of 1 and 2. (I think you’ll see that Qui-Gon is more important than you realized). It’s like seeing the first 20 mintues of a movie without the context of the middle and end.
Check out this site (http://www.lardbiscuit.com/starwars.html) a spirited – and well-written – defense of Eps I and II.
I didn’t think Ep. 1 and 2 were awful, either- sure, they were bad by Star Wars standards, which still makes them more watchable than 3/4 of the crap Hollywood puts out these days.
Count me as eagerly looking forward to Revenge of the Sith as well- just as with the last two, I’ll have to go opening day, if only so I don’t have to listen to everyone and their dog review the movie before I get a chance to see it…
(And, in the meantime, check this out… http://www.panicstruckpro.com/revelations/ … while the acting is Mark Hamil-ish at best, and averages out closer to Haydn Christensen, it’s pretty damn good for a Star Wars fan film…)
Revolutions really floored me. The acting is passable with the main characters (although Zhanna and the Emperor are both terribly done), but the FX are at least as good as TV effects, and the plotting isn’t bad at all.
Definitely worth checking out.
As for Episodes I and II, I thought Episode I was atrocious, but Episode II was much better. My big issues with Episode I was A:) Jar-Jar (blech!), B:) a slow and shoddy plot and C:) George Lucas has issues directing real actors. Episode II had a better plot, the dialog was less hokey, and the acting was better. (Thanks in large part to Frank Darabont helping polish the script) If Episode III can turn Anakin from a whiny little shit into a true bad-ass, then maybe, just maybe, the whole prequel trilogy will work better as a whole.