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To me it seems like american culture would eventually grind to a halt if a new star wars didn't eventually come out. Seems like it is inevitable for it to basically become the only never ending series for the movie theaters.
To me it seems like american culture would eventually grind to a halt if a new star wars didn't eventually come out. Seems like it is inevitable for it to basically become the only never ending series for the movie theaters.
I think the first thing to do would be to define - or at least put limits to - the phrase American culture. I tend to think of popular culture as Show Biz writ large - special effects, low history content, beautiful people (nice hair, skin, teeth, good figure, disproportionately blond-over-blue). The typical POV is grade school civics as rewritten by the Chamber of Commerce - civilization in the New World came from the East. & each state's particular history is also rewritten, so as not to cast blame anywhere.
Given that the original Star Wars trilogy seems to be a gloss on the Japanese movie "The Hidden Fortress", with samurai, royal families, empire and revolt - see The Hidden Fortress - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - it's hard to argue that US culture depends upon some new fast-food Hollywood iteration of the same. I thought the original SW trilogy had heart - the characters were engaging, and the SFX didn't overwhelm the foreground. By the second trilogy, the SFX were the star of the project, and it feels too much like a contractual obligation scheme. Whether Disney can put new air into the proceedings is an iffy question, my opinion.
Just as TV's MASH should have ended years before they took it off life-support, I think the SW saga should have ended with the first trilogy. That way, you'd have something to shoot for, a paragon of movie-making, instead of endless marketing deals for PJs, lunchboxes, sheets, Happy Meals, ad nauseum.
No, Star Wars isn't - fortunately - the high-water mark for US culture, not even US popular culture. Disney will test the waters soon and I wish them well. But movies require more than mere commercial considerations, and I'm not sure that the Disney Blob can successful assimilate the Star Wars universe and deliver a commercial product that sells tickets and makes the fans happy. It's usually one or the other.
Thank You!!! They then proceeded to make that horrible movie with Jar Jar Binks
Jar Jar was the least offensive when you consider the acting skills, or better yet, the utter lack of skills on the part of Hayden Christensen by far the worst thing out of Canada since Rob Ford.
As for Lucas, he should have gone into permanent retirement after Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Jar Jar was the least offensive when you consider the acting skills, or better yet, the utter lack of skills on the part of Hayden Christensen by far the worst thing out of Canada since Rob Ford.
Christensen's acting wasn't the problem. There are scenes in the prequels where fantastic actors like Natalie Portman, Christopher Lee, and Ewan MacGregor are coming across as talking wood. The problem is the writing. There are lines in those movies that Lawrence Olivier couldn't have pulled off. An actor's job is to take material and bring it alive. But there is some writing that ... well, no matter how much you polish a turd, all you end up with is a polished turd.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ovcatto
As for Lucas, he should have gone into permanent retirement after Raiders of the Lost Ark.
George Lucas is a genius when it comes to ideas. One of the true visionaries of his generation. He's a great director. He is a really, really, really, REEEEEALLY bad writer. The lacklustreness of the prequels can be largely explained by:
1.) George Lucas wrote the script.
2.) "Yes Men" polished the script rather than truly talented writers like happened in the original trilogy.
3.) The original trilogy had producers that were not afraid to tell Lucas no and fight for good ideas. The prequels had Rick McCallum, who was another "Yes Man."
George Lucas is a really smart man. The problem is that apparent no one ever told him this good advice: "If you're dumb, surround yourself with smart people. If you're smart, surround yourself with smart people who disagree with you."
Lucas wrote a script with cutesy "aw shucks" slavery, Jar Jar Binks, and heroes saving the day by accident. And not a single person ever slapped his wrist and said, "No, George! Bad, George! Bad, bad, George! Now go to your room and fix this!"
Yes they should have stopped after the original trilogy.
I agree! Those 3 last ones were as fun as watching an infomercial. All CGI, no substance.
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Now if it were the Borg ...
*
(Finding 2 was quite a surprise for me..... Now im looking for a clean PURE copy of 3)
