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Attack of the Clones Leaked
dgris writes "ain't it cool is running a purported review of Epidsode II. Harry Knowles is claiming to have gotten a secret screening of the film while at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, TX. Short story: he loves it." Like the department sez: I'll believe it when I see it. After Phantom, I'm willing to wait a bit to see it.
And the publicity from this review is accidental too.
) Human Kind Vs Human Creation
) It'd be interesting to see how many humans would survive to serve us.
What? You say this guy saw the new Star Wars movie well before it was supposed to be displayed publically? And he has proof of this?
Wait, you mean he has no proof? You mean he gives no sources for his information? You mean everything he says is peripheral information about the film that could have been gleaned from the trailers? You mean that there's no reason to believe that this is real?
I'll also wager that tomorrow, we'll see a Slashdot story detailing how the review was "forcably removed" from the site by Lucasarts (who will deny any involvement, because they're not involved) and "pirated" copies of the text will circulate around the 'net, hyping up an already overhyped movie.
This is not the review you are looking for. You can go about your business. Move along.
A lot of weird shit happens at SXSW. While at first I'd be quick to dismiss something like this, stranger stuff has happened at SXSW (i.e. big name bands like REM and Green Day playing cameo shows in no-name bars) and pretty much all the big movie execs are in town to check out some of the new talent. I've lived in Austin for 3 years, and SXSW is when all the really strange "I can't believe that happened" stuff happens. Now, this guy could just be talking out his ass, but I wouldn't dismiss him totally. Lots of under-the-table stuff happens at SXSW, so even if someone said Jesus Christ had come to earth to play a show at Emo's, I wouldn't flat out dismiss it. Anyway, I'm curious to see how Ep 2 turns out, so I guess the only way we can know if he's telling the truth is to wait for the damn movie. ;)
Yeah, I was just browsing through the film-schedule looking for interesting stuff when I found this
5:15 PM - Counterfeit Film
hmmm. Maybe it's a hint, or maybe it was just
7:30 PM - Made-Up
anyway I'm real sad that I don't get to see
2:00 PM - Sean Connery Golf Project
If that's not a box-office hit, I don't know what is (and I don't).
sigfault. comment dumped.
TBH the review sounds like it's been written by a 15 year-old script kiddie. Just look at all those BUZZWORDS that he's put in there. It's probably me, but it all sounds like so much bulls*** :/
---
"An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind" - Gandhi
I've been a follower of Harry for many years. When he was an unknown, he was a fantastic source for Episode I rumors. Now that he is 'famous' his connections have increased exponentially, and I find their reviews and rumors to be pretty reliable. I don't doubt he got to see it. A months ago they had a full script review and, surprise, the newest trailer confirms what they wrote. As to whether its any good, I have to agree with a previous poster that many reviews are more fanboy slobbering than reviews, but I'm a fanboy so I usually aggree with what they say!
did you even read the article??? the person clearly states several times that they are *not* claiming to have seen the final cut...only a rough cut... that said, i still don't believe it...
"Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true." - Homer Simpson
150 Opening BINARY mode data connection for slashdot.sig (129323052 bytes).
Yoda Says: Optimise JAVA code by inlining methods you can. Optimising slashdot karma by inlining article you cannot.
sigfault. comment dumped.
...that said allot of review sites don't have time to watch all th movies and review all the products, so they will sometimes just grab some basic info on the product/movie and completely bullshit the review just for the sake of having a review published on that particular product. I am not saying every review site/group does this, just that it happens more than most would expect.
Saying Java is nice because it works on all OS's is like saying that anal sex is nice because it works on all genders.
"Leaked copy" my cowardly yellow anonymous ass. "Planted copy" is more like it. Lucas is obviously scared by the success of the LOTR and Matrix franchises, and is desperate to drive up those opening weekend grosses (since that's all the big-budget movies really care about anymore), so he's pandering to the fans he drove away with "Phantom Menace" by having Knowles rave about "Clones" on the internet. Don't forget that Knowles is the same guy that raved over Phantom Menace, raved over the Emmerich/Devlin debacle Godzilla, raved over Armageddon and even admitted liking Battlefield Earth before later retracting the positive review. He's the go-to guy for studios that want to target the geek demographic, because he's the Mikey of the cinematic world.
(He'll also print anything on his tabloid website without bothering to fact-check in any capacity. I tested this once by making up the most outrageous thing possible and sending it to him in a drunken fit - do a search on aintitcool.com for "mammoth".)
I don't know Harry personally, but I'm a long-time reader of AICN. IMO, Harry's got a lot more integrity than that. I would find it very hard to believe that Harry faked a review.
People still pay attention to that site? I thought they'd been completely discredited when Harry admitted to accepting gifts in exchange for pre-release hyping of crappy movies.
When it first started gaining popularity (or at least when I first noticed it) circa 1998, I found it to be juvenile, fan boy garbage and almost entirely apocryphal or at least wildly innaccurate (to quote D Adams). I'm glad to see it hasn't changed. I'll stick with hollywoodbitchslap.com, myself.
this is getting old and so are you
blog
He probably saw it. I won't argue that.
But his opinion is crap ever since he claimed that he "cried at the end of Armagedeon". What a sell out. They were his site's biggest sponsor at the time.
I shit you not.
Sad to tell, anyone who's followed Harry's fortunes over the years has seen him metamorphosise from a rebel outsider into a minor celebrity, feted by both individual directors and (gasp) Big Bad Studios just like any other influential mainstream reviewer. Even now, Harry still (very occasionally) gripes about mainstream reviewers, while at the same time accepting the exact same special access to sets and screenings. The only difference is that Harry explains exactly how the whole sordid business works, with reviewers buying themselves celebrity status by giving good review-bites that guarantee that their name will go up on a poster or trailer, thereby elevating them into more expensive and high class whores. And yet despite receiving the rewards, Harry would like us to believe that he is still untainted by the influence and can be trusted. This idea seems to flow from the fact that Harry explains the context behind each viewing (whether you want to hear it or not) and writes informally. It's superfically convincing, but the style of presentation is irrelevant other than for entertainment value, it's the substance that matters for a reviewer.
I am simply unwilling to believe the spy-games circumstances that Harry claims. If he has seen this film, it is with the full sanction of Lucasarts, on the implicit or explicit understanding that he would give it a rave review, and that he would imply that it was a rogue showing. And note carefully, he leaves us to infer that by describing his feelings (which nobody can prove or disprove), but never actually makes a factual statement to support it. You have a think about that.
Don't get me wrong. Perhaps it is a good movie and an honest review. But Harry can simply no longer be trusted. There are just too many examples of him raving about movies to which he has received special access for him to be a credible independent reviewer any more. I won't claim he has sold out, because he never claimed to want to be outside the system. In fact, he has made every effort to insinuate himself into the whole sorry cycle of review-reward, and I think this may very well be his crowning glory.
Sorry Harry, you used to be someone I could trust. Now you're just a shallow parody of Comic Book Guy. The circle is complete; now you are the studios' bitch. Ain't it ironic?
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
It seems like something, once upon a time, someone would have said about Sony.
--Jimmy has fancy plans; and pants to match.
Guess the first and even the second weren't enough for him.
Fuck Slashdot
OK, people, reality check:
There is no doubt that some people have seen the movie. But this was just a rough cut. If Harry said that he was screened a rough cut, maybe I would believe him. The fact of the matter is, there is nothing is his review that hasn't been leaked in the spy reports on TheForce.Net, or in the "scriptament" that is floating on the Web.
For the book says, "We may be through with the past, but the past ain't through with us."
There are many simple reasons why, if Ocaam's Razor were applied (and without any lubrication whatsoever) to this.
While I suspect that Harry has read of things from the movie (of that, things are leaked like crazy: visit http://theforce.net for lots of stuff), it is HIGHLY unlikely that he's seen the movie in its final form. Why?
Because, according to LFL, the movie still has a lot of post-production work (the CGI) to be done. In fact, the latest preview is missing a few key pieces...watch the last scene where 14 Jedi are on their last stand, surrounded by a lot of aliens and battle droids. Funny that the Jedi are reflecting blaster shots which come from nowhere.
The movie isn't complete. I checked my ass--it seems that someone has been trying to blow smoke up it.
Vos teneo officium eram periculosus ut vos recipero is.
Consider the conglomeration of 'Force' and 'Fate' that surrounds the events in these movies. Think about 'Destiny' and 'Prophecy.'
Now consider that moment in Episode 1 where Qui Gon Jinn says that he will gamble the racing pod against the freedom of Anakin and his mom. Watto will only gamble against one of their freedoms and rolls the chance cube to see which. Qui Gon uses the force to ensure that it is Anakin whose freedom is gambled (and won) in the pod race.
Now think about the results of Anakin being taken from Tatooine and going with Obi Wan. Think in the scope of all 6 movies.
You see, the whole string of events that unfolded (will unfold) in episodes 2 and 3 plus ep4-6 that we've already seen are a result of this. But was it 'Fate' or 'Destiny' that made resulted in the chance cube rolling the way it did, or was it those things that made Qui Gon use the Force to free Anakin? Did Destiny guide the Force, or did the Force guide Destiny?
I think George Lucas in brilliant in this, as sooner or later, we will all realise that only because of Destiny and the roll of a chance cube was an Empire built and defeated, the way of the Jedi preserved, and Evil defeated once more. That, my friends, is what can only be produced from the mind of a master storyteller.
George Lucas, I applaud you.
We have countless stories proclaiming that the MPAA is destroying Fair Use, that they're devil spawn, that thousands of loyal Slashdot readers are boycotting the MPAA....
But then, Star Wars comes out. Lord of the Rings comes out. Resident Evil comes out. And all of the sudden, you're forking over your hard-earned money to these devils.
I have not seen a movie (aside from free TV movies) in the past year and a half. And I won't. I have scruples.
Well, I know why I sometimes make an extra effort to see a showing on the first day.
Watching a movie on your tv and in a theater are obviously different experiences. But there is one really key difference. Seeing it in a theater is a community experience. When you know a movie is really good and will just rock you, it is a very different experience seeing it last show of the first night and a week or so later. Out in seattle there's a bunch of cinemas, maybe not the most by land area or population, but there are a lot. Most of them are near good, and occasionally cheap restaraunts and even near by. Some, like the most excellent Cinerama are not. The better the movie, especially on a friday night the parking can be brutal. And standing outside in the crisp night air, possibly getting rained on, for hours on end looses its charm just as quickly as one might imagine. But it's worth it. The people who are there understand that it is an event and they are invested in it. A setting like that is almost enough to make you cry during Pearl Harbor. No, not for that reason, stop being so cynical.
Basically, it's the same reason people put chocolate sauce on ice cream.
--Jimmy has fancy plans; and pants to match.
He said in the movie that a drug dealer approached Obi Wan and tried to sell him some Death sticks... I find it difficult to belive that George Lucas couldn't come up with a better name for a drug than DEATH STICKS! What did those annoying people at truth.com or whatever that play those anti smoking ads sponser this movie? Come on. That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever read.
"Da ist ein Technölüst in mein Unterpanten!"
Possibly different people. Believe it or not, slashdot users are allowed to have different opinions from one another, even if it's rare to see them expressed.
One reason to see a film early in its run is the quality of the print. The print degrades with each showing due to scratches, wear and breakage.
Mea navis aericumbens anguillis abundat
You conveniently forget about the hundreds of reviews he's done of big studio movies where he complains about how awful they are.
Oftentimes basing this solely on the script (Scooby Doo, anyone?).
"And like that
The language used in this review is reminiscent of the anarchy t-philes that kids used to write back in the heyday of the BBS scene. For me at least, that in itself is enough to cast doubt upon the review. It comes across as juvenile and written to whet the appetites of fans, and not much else. If it were written in a more erudite manner, I might give it a bit more creedence.
I also wonder exactly how far along Lucarfilm is in the post-production process. Would it be in a sufficiently complete state to watch easily (like the Buckaroo Banzai workprint that's made its rounds for almost twenty years now)? I don't know for certain, it's complete enough to have a trailer. How much more I don't know.
I don't know.. this seems a bit too pat. It's at the right time to cause a fervor, the timing's too neat.
Proteus' Child
Doko ni datte; hito wa, tsunagette iru.
It never ceases to amaze me how quickly Slashdot visitors forget their animosity towards the MPAA.
And it never ceases to amaze me how a reader of slashdot can assume there is no plurality here, amongst at least half a million others. We don't all harbor a blinding hate of the MPAA.
I wish the MPAA would drop their stance on a lot of issues. They wish I would stop using DeCSS to view DVD's on alternate OS's. They wish I would stop using Morpheus to view certain things.
But that doesn't mean I won't go and entertain myself for $8.
I have not seen a movie (aside from free TV movies) in the past year and a half. And I won't. I have scruples.
You are free to protest it, just don't expect EVERYONE on slashdot to do the same. And because one part of slashdot is like you and complains loudly, don't expect another part of slashdot not to like and discuss upcoming movies.
"And like that
Listen to yourselves. You really think Lucasfilm aren't aware that the majority of the fan community has decided this film will suck? That Lucasfilm doesn't care what the mass of fans thinks about this upcoming film? That Lucasfilm isn't terrified that they won't break box office records opening weekend?
The ONLY way they can make the impact they want is to do everything in their power to make people see that the film isn't going to be crap. To that end - the latest trailer is an action packed monster that gives away the entire plot; they dragged Harry Knowles into a room and showed him a copy of the rough cut; they are willing to leak the entire plot if it will persuade the average Star Wars punter that he will see Star Wars regain its status as quality entertainment.
And you know what - I bet it'll have some effect. I'm more inclined to go see the film after the last trailer than I was after 'Forbidden Love'. I'm even more inclined to go see it after reading Harry's review. I'm probably not alone.
Why assume that Harry hasn't seen the film when it makes perfect sense for Lucasfilm to want him to see it? They just upped their box office receipts...
After being flown to New York City to see a sneak extravaganza premiere of "Godzilla," Knowles ranted and raved about how it was the greatest thing he'd ever seen.
A week later, he saw it again, on his own dime, and proceeded to trash the hell out of it.
AICN has ZERO integrity. Always had, always will.
It doesn't mean much now, it's built for the future.
Judging by the quaility of the site, and what I know about SXSW, I'm not buying it. I'm not sure I understand how anyone at SXSW would have acquired a copy, and I'm further uncertain why this guy was so cool he got to see it. If you look at the comments after the review, I understand why he threw this together. The people who read his site often are all applauding him. So he's riding on a cloud right now because he is "so cool." Ain't that cool.
And if by the 1,000,000th of a percent of a chance that I'm wrong, oh well. The guy still needs to learn to use a smaller font.
Of course Palpatine is evil, doesn't anyone remember Return of the Jedi anymore? (whas it *that* bad?) Who's that dude zapping Luke with the magic bolts of lightening at the end of the film? Could it be.. "Emperor Palpatine"!?
Humph, I guess humor is a lost cause here on Slashdot, either that or Harry just doesn't like to be made fun of.
Well, it's not like I don't have Karma to burn...
III.IIVIVIXIIVIVIIIVVIIIIXVIIIXIIIIIIIIVIIIIVVIII
Not to say that it's going to be bad, but let's put it all in perspective. True, Harry Knowles says that Episode II is great. But keep in mind that He said the same thing about Episode I.
What's worse, he likes Jar-Jar too. In quoting from his review of Episode I, "Meesa luvs him!".
So you can put me in the "I'll believe it when I see it" camp as well.
Oh...a worse name than Death Sticks? How about ATTACK OF THE CLONES?
In Soviet Russia, hot grits put YOU down THEIR pants.
Personally, I think unless the theater screen have things like THX sound certification and the new Kodak projector certification, not to mention more comfortable seats with better sightlines, the theatergoing experience is not exactly going to be popular--not when evening shows are hitting the US$10 per person ticket price. Now you know why Syufy Enterprises built the Century 25 Union Landing complex in Union City, CA and the Century 20 Great Mall 20 complex in Milpitas, CA, with more coming over the next few years in the San Francisco Bay Area.
:-)
Now, I'm hoping that Syufy will close and completely remodel the Century 16 Mountain View complex is that too becomes THX-certified.
Raymond in Mountain View, CA
A co-worker of mine who's seen the film twice at Skywalker Ranch said the reviewer must have seen the film because it's very accurate.
For those who didnt notice before, AICN had a review of the most recently released trailer a good while before it was ever aired on TV. While then i was very skeptical, once the trailer finally aired and i saw it for myself. AICN was right on the money, and even included word for word quotations that appeared in the trailer.
While that doesnt exactly confirm the SW2 review to be accurate, it surely shows that their news about SW2 has been accurate so far. And Im pretty confident that they wouldnt post made up stuff concerning star wars.
Of course Palpatine is evil, doesn't anyone remember Return of the Jedi anymore? (whas it *that* bad?) Who's that dude zapping Luke with the magic bolts of lightening at the end of the film? Could it be.. "Emperor Palpatine"!?
I'm afraid you're the one who doesn't remember Return of the Jedi anymore. The word "Palpatine" is never uttered in any of the classic trilogy movies. The Emperor is referred to only as "The Emperor."
The novelizations, comics, and RPGs are a different story, however.
unless you are going to kiss the ass of the studio.
Don't you wonder why all of these no-name critics that you see on TV trailers get to review movies before Roger Ebert?
SW
But the Cinerama is by far the best I've ever had the pleasure of visiting. It was Seattle's best older theater; bought, remodeled and brought into the THX age by Paul Allen. The screen is huge, the seats are comfy, the sound great, and inbetween what are usually the biggest, if not best, movies out at the time, you'll get the odd Kubrick film festival. In short, there is no better place to see a movie in Seattle. Hell between Vancouver BC and Portland. Seattle to Portland being the farthest I've ever driven to see a movie. In general, the vast majority of theaters in the seattle area are THX, DTS or SDDS certified. Most are relatively nice, but few have the nice nice stadium seating. Things have gone somewhat downhill after Regal and Lowes acquired Act III and Cineplexodeon (though the difference between them and Lowes isn't that great). At least they stopped forcing the poor Lowes empolyees to beg for money to help cure Terry Bradshaw's baldness or something.
And in any case, I'm sure that Cinerama will add one of the digital projectors to their entertainment aresenal. But anything I'm desperately anticipating and expecting to be a sublime movie viewing experience I go through the extra hassel and expense to see it there, and insure it's as good as possible. As good as it could ever be.
--Jimmy has fancy plans; and pants to match.
Is it just me or are Knowles' reviews truly bizarre?
I know he's a real cheerleader for film, and that's great. But after reading his review of Blade 2, I'm sure not sure what to think of Knowles.
I mean, I'm all for enthusiasm. That's fine. And I know he's somewhat of a celebrity -- he's got a new book out, appeared a couple times with Ebert on Ebert's show -- but his reviews are repulsive in a way that sorta defies any explanation.
But not all his reviews of repulsive. Blade 2 maybe is the oddball. And I'm not sure even why the Blade 2 review bothers me so much. After all, it's sorta the power of the everyman-reviewer-on-the-internet encapsulated.
But there's something sorta off-putting about Knowles. Like he's a bit *too* enthusiastic -- and oftentimes about the weirdest things.
More power to him, I guess. No one is forcing me to read the reviews, right?
I guess they're not really reviews. That's the part that gets me. Maybe I'm taking them too seriously. I just gotta chill, read it, and roll with it. But they sorta expose stuff that sorta makes you scratch your head (or, as Harry might say, your ass) and say, "Hmmmmmm...."
*shrug*
I'm not so sure that it's a matter of people acting like fanboys of the movie, but most of us at Slashdot probably have something riding on Star Wars success. I'm willing to bet most of the people frequenting here have some interest in Sci-Fi. Star Wars has a way of expanding Sci-Fi to a greater audience, provided it doesn't suck. A greater appeal for sci-fi would certainly make a lot of our lives easier. If Star Wars ep 4 hadn't opened the doors to sci-fi, we'd all have to hide in shadows just to watch Doctor Who ;). If Episode II stinks, we won't be able to take our significant others to see the next one, or possibly any other sci-fi movie.
As for the computer industry, Ep2 could give it a serious boost. Digital artists would be more in demand and we may start to see more movies done entirely digital. If this happens, we could see a serious upgrade to theaters aka digital projectors. My hope is that one day movie theaters upgrade to the new projectors, it might mean an increase of frame rate (smoother motion...) is possible, and for viewing on a big screen that'd really be nice. Ep2 could help usher that in, but not if it sucks.
You don't have to be a Star Wars fan to feel the benefit of a good Star Wars movie. I have virtually no interest in seeing this movie, but I do hope for its succees anyway. It could mean a rather lucrative career for me.
"Derp de derp."
This discussion reminds me of David Brin's theory that Anakin "bringing balance to the force" is a means of defeating the two great evils terrorizing the Galaxy: The Sith and The Jedi Order. Essentially, the Jedi are elitist fascists that disrespect the inferior populace as much as the Sith - it's just that they have an attitude of nobliese oblige rather and aspirations of exploitation.
I hope this is developed, because in this context, Darth Vader is a hero - defeating both the Palpatine and Yoda and replacing the corrupt Jedi Order (I wonder if these celibates have as much problems as the Catholic Priesthood?) with something that's a bit more humanistic.
Perhaps in this context the Jedi Science of mitocholorians (sp?) is just another example of their internal corruption - they should be training everyone in the use of the force who show potential, and not attempting to exclude people like young Anakin who was considered too old to begin training.
144l. ph34r my 133t l3g4l 5k1lz!
I can't read the review right now, I guess Slashdot killed the server heh. I just wanted to mention that the effects aren't done yet. If Ep1 was any indication, they'll be working on effects up until 3 weeks before the launch of the movie. If that's the case, then the reviewer likely saw an 'animatic version' of the movie, without everything in place. Normally this would be a good sign, except Lucas is the kind of guy to keep tweaking the movie in post production.
I'll give you an example, long after the principal photography was done, Lucas decided to add a line for C3PO. They had an artist digitally recreate the left side of the picture so it could scroll over to the right, because 3PO wasn't originally in the shot. Then they had to composite C3PO in via bluescreen. All so he could say this very important, plot pivotal line "You'll never get me onto one of those starships."
In other words, Lucas still has time to change it. A tweak here and a tweak there could potentially damage the movie. On the other hand, though, this technique could be used to improve the movie too. Who knows... In any case, as long as the movie has time to evolve, I wouldn't back any reviews of it right now.
"Derp de derp."
$5 / month hosted VPS on linux = awesome!
Check out the Palpatine bio on starwars.com. The relevant quote is: "In the Death Star, high above the Battle of Endor, Luke refused the Emperor's newfound dark side power, and so Palpatine used his deadly Force lightning to attack the young Jedi."
Next are you going to suggest that the Anakin Skywalker from Phantom Menace isn't the same Anakin Skywalker who became Darth Vader?!
My guess is that this was orchestrated by the studios to get those 'opinion leaders' disappointed by Ep 1 excited about Ep 2. Most of the nutjobs that talk about movies all day long probably flock to his site and participate in the forums, so they figure a positive review by Harry is good enough to get the word of mouth hype machine moving. Any entry level PR class teaches this tactic to get people talking about a particular issue, starting with the opinion leaders.
There is also a distinct possibility that Harry is in fact on the payroll of the movie makers. We've heard about the studios creating a number of 'fan sites' to build up momentum for various flicks, so we should at least entertain the idea that Harry is a more permanent shadow marketing tactic. In the end a bulk of the ads on his site are from the studios, so they are paying him one way or the other :).
If there was a legititmate 'leaked' version of the film (i.e. not an orchestrated leak), there'd be a VCD traveling throughout the vast expanse of cyberspace this morning. This sort of stuff doesn't happen 'by accident.' George Lucas had to approve this or it wouldn't have happened.
www.lonseidman.com
I waited almost a month to see Star Wars Episode I, and you know what? It still sucked. I'll go see the new one because I am a fan of the series, but I'll allow probably 2 weeks and go to a matinee.
My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.
When I went to see Phantom Menace for the second time, my friends I saw the movie with didn't know Palpatine was the Emperor. They were surprised when I mentioned it in passing.
I only knew because I had picked it up through fanboy channels around the time Jedi came out.
Jon Acheson
All opinions expressed herein are my own, and not those of my employers, who are appalled.
This guys says he's seen a rough cut of episode 2.
Big deal.
I've seen final cuts of episode 4, 5 and 6!
And guess what? (SPOILER ALERT:) Vador is Luke's father!!
No, not at all. What I'm saying is that it isn't mentioned in the movie, and thus the fact that Palpatine == Emperor would not be obvious to people who don't take their Star Wars experience beyond the movies (which, granted, doesn't include many /.ers, but is quite a few people nonetheless).
The above poster was chastising people for not remembering Return of the Jedi well enough to remember that the Emperor's name was Palpatine, when in fact that's not mentioned in the trilogy.
Harry has seen A LOT of movies. He lives to watch movies. I think this makes him as much an expert on movies as any other film critic out there. His style of reviews is a bit unorthidox, but that does not mean he is a bad reviewer.
Actually, the initial preview copy for investors and market tests has been 'in the can' for over a month. It's not the final cut, but all the effects and scenes are completed, music and voice overs done, and final rough cut made.
As to the review... well, who knows. I don't like the guy much, though he certainly has done me no wrong. I hate it when people bash someone they don't know personally, as alot of you have done today. His review is to kneejerk and possibly full of spoilers if to be believed.
If he saw it, it was probably a cut out for the Lucas company(s) trying to build some hype, which they have done judging from the two or three other early leak reviews on the web today.
My only problem is your inference that if Anakin had been left behind or not become involved in later events, that the whole of the univers would be different. Do you think that Sidious would just stop and fail without Vader? Wouldn't he find another apprentice and go on about his business of conquering the galaxy?
Sure, it would be a major change for the particular people and events of this series of stories, but probably not a big shift in the overall history of the timeline.
I think of Asimov / Harry Seldon and Psychohistory. Small groups of people may affect small events, but the greater line of history has at most a minor perterbation and most likely no real change at all.
I always think of this when I here people talk about how one little thing would change the world. They usually think in terms of "all other things remaining the same, but this little change". It doesn't happen that way. If you change one thing, then everyone around it is also changed and adjusts to the new situation, and then persues it on new terms.
There is nothing so silly as other peoples traditions, and nothing so sacred as our own.
When I read this review, I screamed like a little girl. I mean it was like Uncle Tony grabbed my pantied ass. I jumped about 12 feet up in the air and squealed.
"Reactionaries must be deprived of the right to voice their opinions; only the people have that right." - Mao