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Kevin Smith Previews Revenge of the Sith

Eugenia writes "Kevin Smith, the well-known actor/director, was invited by George Lucas to a special advanced screening of the upcoming 'Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith' film and he wrote down his take on the movie. There are some serious spoilers in his article but it's interesting to see his reaction, as a director and Star Wars fan."

105 of 621 comments (clear)

  1. His biggest problem with the film by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Is that Lucas serves his popcorn without butter. I mean... what the hell?

    1. Re:His biggest problem with the film by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Actually, nobody serves popcorn with butter. The popcorn "butter" is a vegatable oil(Usually soy bean oil). Some theatres mix in a little butter for flavor but many don't use any butter at all. Real butter cannot be kept at a high enough temperature to comply with health codes without separating.

    2. Re:His biggest problem with the film by sacherjj · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It can't with the milk solids as part of it. Clarified butter is made for this purpose. It contains only the fats and none of the water or milk solids. This is often used in pan frying for flavor and CAN stay at the temperatures required. The reason it isn't used is cost. And the fact that the movie going public doesn't care about quality.

    3. Re:His biggest problem with the film by throughthewire · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Actually, nobody serves popcorn with butter.

      Alamo Drafthouse Theater serves real butter on their popcorn - one of several reasons why I prefer to see movies there.

  2. READ IT!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    If you didn't want to read the review..

    I would. It starts:

    "Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome."

    1. Re:READ IT!!! by stupidfoo · · Score: 2, Funny

      You are the C.L.I.T. commander!

    2. Re:READ IT!!! by s20451 · · Score: 2, Informative

      And it ends with "Look, this is a movie I was genetically predisposed to love." Not really an objective review. But worth reading nonetheless.

      --
      Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
    3. Re:READ IT!!! by Dark+Nexus · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Nor were most reviews of Episodes I & II...

      I get the feeling the review was more directed at the existing fans that were disappointed by those 2 movies, saying they probably won't be disappointed this time.

      --
      Dark Nexus
      "Sanity is calming, but madness is more interesting."
    4. Re:READ IT!!! by Golias · · Score: 5, Informative

      Lucas knew what stories he wanted to tell when he first wrote Star Wars...

      Bullshit.

      He's been making it up as he goes along from the beginning. For example: Leah being Luke's sister was an idea which came to him when he was 2/3 done writing "Return of the Jedi." He needed something to piss off Luke enough to tempt him with The Dark Side during his duel with Vader, and making Leah his sister (and having Vader threaten to go after her) seemed to him like the perfect way to get there, so the cryptic "there is another" line from "Empire" becomes a line about Luke's sister.

      Even Star Wars itself was revised several times during the storyboard phase. He certainly did not think at the time he would ever go back and make the prequels. He just wanted to start with an episode 4 so it would have the feel of the old Flash Gordon serials he grew up on.

      --

      Information wants to be anthropomorphized.

    5. Re:READ IT!!! by AshFan · · Score: 5, Funny

      Good luck reading it, seems the site was "slashdotted" and is struggling to stay up. If only Kevin Smith used IIS 6... On a side note, does anyone know if Jar Jar bites it in this one? I for one am a big fan of Jar Jar biting it. And by "Biting it" I am not making an improper oral inference, I mean does he get eliminated? And by Eliminated, I do not mean excreted, I mean made to stop functioning, and not like a conjunction junction, for he has no function.

    6. Re:READ IT!!! by connorbd · · Score: 2, Informative

      Actually, there are hints in Empire that he was at least considering something like it.

    7. Re:READ IT!!! by CoffeeJedi · · Score: 4, Funny

      yeah! i totally walked out of the third Lord of the Rings movie, when it opened in the middle of the story, i was like all "who the hell are these people? fuck this movie!"
      i mean, god, why did it have to have the same characters and plot and from the other movies, i saw The Two Towers, like, a whole YEAR before it came out, why did i have to remember every single little detail, like, who the short guy was, or why that ring was important, or who the long haired scruffy guy was? that's retarded!!!!

      --
      May you be touched by His Noodly Appendage. RAmen.
    8. Re:READ IT!!! by Golias · · Score: 2, Informative

      Well, Lucas is famous for revising the history of his films, but he did claim that "Epidose IV" was a tag that he wanted there all along, even if it was going to only ever be one movie, in order to evoke the feeling of Saturday matinee serials. He claims the studio insisted it would confuse audiences.

      Personally, I find it a little hard to believe that, after violating Director's Guild rules by not opening with production and director credits, he would cave on something like this, but it's possible. He did, however, start telling people long before even releasing Empire that it was Star Wars was supposed to be considered Episode 4 of a much longer saga. (9 or 12, depending on when he was asked... Although it now looks like he intends to stop at six.)

      --

      Information wants to be anthropomorphized.

    9. Re:READ IT!!! by jmb-d · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Even Star Wars itself was revised several times during the storyboard phase.

      And this is a bad thing why? Are you saying that once something reaches the storyboard phase that the storyline must be set in stone at that point?

      What if somebody has A Great Idea that changes something for the better while shooting a scene? According to your logic, the director's obligated to say, "Sorry, but the storyboard says it's gotta be like this. Your suggestion would make it 100% better, but the storyboard..."

      *harumph*

      --
      In walking, just walk. In sitting, just sit. Above all, don't wobble.
      -- Yun-Men
    10. Re:READ IT!!! by TheWanderingHermit · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Maybe you're too young to remember, or just didn't care, but I remember when Empire came out, in 1980, Lucas talked about it in interviews. He had said he had an entire backstory, but he started in the middle because the other story wasn't as exciting, and was more about spying and plotting, so it would not be as good or interesting. (Yes! He really said all that as early as 1980 or so -- I remember reading it while in high school, in something like Time or Starlog.)

      He also said, after Return was released, that he had a prequal storyline, but he wasn't going to do it for years because there were a lot of things he wanted to do that the fx of the day couldn't do, and that he wouldn't do the prequal until the start of the art fx work caught up to what he wanted to do.

      Yes, I know it's fun to bash and denigrate and trash an icon. If you don't believe me, see how much fun you had doing it in your post. But it doesn't work when there are people who remember his original comments in interviews that are pre-web, so theyr'e not likely to be found in Google, and those comments basically say a lot about the two movies we've already seen.

      Yes, Star Wars was revised. How many plot points were changed (other than Han not firing first)? How many of the changes were adding shots and scenes that were too expensive to include when it was originally shot -- or, in the case of the Jabba/Han scene in the first one, a scene that didn't contribute directly to the storyline of the particular film it was in (that scene, in it self, should show you that Lucas had planned more than we originally saw).

  3. Spoiler by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 4, Funny

    Anakin becomes Darth Vader! (GASP)

    1. Re:Spoiler by thatnerdguy · · Score: 2, Informative

      Where exactly were you going to see it tomorrow night? tomorrow's h2g2 night anyways

      --
      I saw the Sign, and it opened up my eyes
    2. Re:Spoiler by HTH+NE1 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Wow, what an ending! Who would have thought Han Solo was Luke Skywalker's half-brother.

      --
      Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner entwine / The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine?
    3. Re:Spoiler by JWW · · Score: 3, Funny

      Yeah, its not coming out tommorow, so Don't Panic.

    4. Re:Spoiler by keraneuology · · Score: 4, Funny

      Alternate ending: Luke's brother is Chewbacca...

      --
      If the g'vt kept the data on you that google does you'd better believe you'd be calling it "doing evil"
    5. Re:Spoiler by Ctrl-Z · · Score: 2, Informative

      I believe that H2G2 = Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Cf. h2g2).

      I've never seen HG2G used before.

      --
      www.timcoleman.com is a total waste of your time. Never go there.
  4. First Jedi mind trick by worst_name_ever · · Score: 3, Funny

    This is not the story you're looking for. Move along.

    --

    In Soviet Rush, today's Tom Sawyer gets high on you.
    1. Re:First Jedi mind trick by technothrasher · · Score: 4, Funny
      This is not the story you're looking for. Move along.

      Slightly off topic, but I know people reading this thread would be the only ones to understand. I swear I actually had somebody try a Jedi Mind Trick on me in real life. I had a guy come into my liquor store and when I asked for ID, he said in a perfect dismissive way, "You don't need to see an ID. You can just take this money for the beer." It was so close to Obi-Wan in Mos Eisley that I couldn't help laughing. Unfortunately for him though, it didn't work.

  5. Didn't we see this already by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Didn't we see this astroturfing "reviews" when the latest episode came out? It was supposed to the best episode ever and when I went to see it, it was fucking crap aimed at 13-year old.

    1. Re:Didn't we see this already by ackthpt · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Didn't we see this astroturfing "reviews" when the latest episode came out? It was supposed to the best episode ever and when I went to see it, it was fucking crap aimed at 13-year old.

      Well, based upon what you're likely to see if you go to this film, you'll see what depths Anakin and Palpatine sink for evil. I mean, this isn't rub your hands and cackle maniacally evil, this is turn on anyone and everyone to settle your scores, while having your strings pulled by a Mighty Evil Master(TM) evil. Darth Vader is supposed to be sinister and all we've really seen up to this point is a kid with some promise, growing up and getting angrier and angrier, sort of like the dark clouds gathering before a good old fashion midwestern thunderstorm which will probably be proceded by some devastating tornadoes. Revenge of the Sith will probably make some people very uneasy and produce some raving reviews 'won't someone please think of the children (yeah, get them GTA:SA instead.)

      Sounds like Lucas did a fine job and I'm looking forward to my artery-clogging bucket of popcorn and half gallon of carbonated sugar water while gazing at the screen in total fascination.

      --

      A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
  6. I don't trust him by slungsolow · · Score: 5, Funny

    I can't trust a review from someone who constantly casts Ben Affleck.

    1. Re:I don't trust him by mcg1969 · · Score: 3, Funny

      Nor one who constantly casts Hayden Christiansen.

    2. Re:I don't trust him by MooseByte · · Score: 2, Funny

      Seriously though, even if RotS is every bit as dark and well-written (and freakin' well-acted please!) as one could hope, am I the only one who is beyond giving a damn?

      Looking at the last 2 from Lucas, it would be like having a 3-course meal where the final dish was fantastic but the first 2 gave you projectile-vomiting food poisoning. No real way to salvage the meal.

      If I do see it, it'll be the DVD rental. A $5 rental for the entire family is all I'm willing to risk.

    3. Re:I don't trust him by dr_dank · · Score: 2, Funny

      He was the bomb in Phantoms.

      --
      Where does the school board find them and why do they keep sending them to ME?
    4. Re:I don't trust him by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Werd, Phantoms like a motha fucka

    5. Re:I don't trust him by Omega1045 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Have you seen the director's version? Seriously, it is a completely different movie. It is about 30 minutes longer, has an entire sub-plot that makes much of the stuff in the movie actually make sense ie there are reasons behind Matt Murdoch's actions. I would recommend buying it up or renting it.

      --

      Great ideas often receive violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein

    6. Re:I don't trust him by n0-0p · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I'd switch that one around. Kevin Smith may be the one of the few directors who can cast Affleck well. Honestly, I've really liked the majority roles he's played in Smith's movies.

      In general though, I think I can trust Smith's take on Episode 3. The guys a died in the wool geek who's work includes writing on comics like Green Arrow and Daredevil. I'm not saying I like everything he's done, but I respect his geek cred and feel that this review is genuine. That's more than I can say for most reviews I read.

    7. Re:I don't trust him by supmylO · · Score: 2, Interesting

      If you have seen Chasing Amy then you would know that Ben Affleck is actually _really_ good in that movie. He's also in Mallrats and is also good, although his part is far less significant. I haven't seen Jersey Girl but I know for fact that he has played some quality parts for Kevin Smith in the past.

    8. Re:I don't trust him by Herr_Nightingale · · Score: 4, Funny

      I'm on the verge of not downloading it... after the Phantom Plot, and Attack of the Cloned Wooden Actors, there's no faint spark of hope that RotS won't suck donkey balls.
      Expect a total letdown.
      Jar Jar? Check.
      Hayden Cristensen? Check.
      Cartoon Yoda? Check.
      Yup, it's gonna suck. I pity tha fools.

    9. Re:I don't trust him by weslocke · · Score: 3, Funny

      Looking at the last 2 from Lucas, it would be like having a 3-course meal where the final dish was fantastic but the first 2 gave you projectile-vomiting food poisoning. No real way to salvage the meal.

      He got the idea from the Enterprise run. .snicker.

      --

      'Life is like a spoonful of Drain-O, it feels good on the way down but leaves you feeling hollow inside'
  7. Kevin says..over and over by cOdEgUru · · Score: 3, Funny

    That the movie is dark, Dark, darK, DARK..DARK..DARK!!

    I hope it aint so dark as not to see its flaws!

    *ducks*

  8. Here you go by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    "SITH" SPOILERS

    You've been warned...

    - "Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome.

    [Spoilers removed]

    "Sith" doesn't happen; "Sith" rules.

  9. Slashdotting Clerks-style by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    The poor View Askew web server. I bet it's probably thinking to itself, "I'm not even supposed to be here today."

    1. Re:Slashdotting Clerks-style by TheoGB · · Score: 2, Interesting

      So the real question is: If Slashdot provides a portal to websites that then instantly fall over from all the traffic: What's so good about Slashdot that it never falls over from too much traffic.

      And: Why doesn't everyone just host with Slashdot.

      It's like the old "Why don't they make planes out of the stuff they make the black box recorder out of?" question.

  10. Re:WTF? by kettleoffish · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome." Is the first line of the review really that hard to read?

  11. Biased review by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I get the gist that kevin loved ROTS...

    Isn't he slated in a production role for the upcoming TV series?

    I would take the review with a few grains...

    1. Re:Biased review by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful
      I would take the review with a few grains...

      My thoughts exactly. I'd treat this review with as much credit as if Lucas had written it himself.

      Hey, I got an idea! Let's get the director of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy to write a review of his movie! I wonder what he'd think of it?

  12. Spoiler that eases the mind... by riptide_dot · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Warning - this is a spoiler. Don't read the italics if you really don't want to know what happens:

    At flick's end, Threepio and Artoo are given to Captain Antilles (with the caveat that the Protocol's memory be wiped).

    Count me as one fan that's really glad that this little detail was included - I was wondering how they were going to deal with Threepio and R2D2 not recognizing Obi-Wan and others they had met in the prequels. Kind of makes Obi's reaction to seeing the droids in EP4 seem a little more mysterious too, even though that probably wasn't the intention when EP4 was shot ("I don't recall owning any droids").

    --
    I was in the park the other day wondering why frisbees get bigger and bigger the closer they get - and then it hit me.
    1. Re:Spoiler that eases the mind... by nizo · · Score: 5, Funny

      So do they remove R2D2's thrusters that allow him to fly around too?

    2. Re:Spoiler that eases the mind... by kin_korn_karn · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Or, Obi-Wan could have been lying to Luke when he said he didn't know the droids. Or if you're into psychobabble, maybe it's a represssed memory, since the droids were associated in obi-wan's mind with a horrible tragic event.

    3. Re:Spoiler that eases the mind... by Lord+Kano · · Score: 2, Funny

      No silly, the Imperial Senate signs on to the Kyoto Protocol and fuel for the thrusters becomes too expensive.

      LK

      --
      "Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
  13. spoilers by illtron · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Sometimes I wish I hadn't read every spoiler on millenniumfalcon.com. I know way more about this one going in than any of the previous prequels, but I'm still excited.

    Personally, I think most of the hate directed at the previous two, Jar-Jar comments aside, was a media invention. Things get repeated enough and people start to believe it. I'm sure the same thing will happen this time around to some degree, but this is seriously the movie that fans have been waiting for. The previous two were sort of procedural. Sure, it's great to see where Anakin comes from, but admit it -- what you really want is to see him kill children.

    --
    Slashdot: 24 hours behind every other site or your money back!
    1. Re:spoilers by mekkab · · Score: 2, Informative

      Personally, I think most of the hate directed at the previous two, Jar-Jar comments aside, was a media invention.

      Well, chalk up another piece of anecdotal evidence; I thought those movies blew. They were weak; they were derivative; I didn't care about any of the characters; the acting was stilted and unbelievable.

      --
      In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
  14. mirror and comment by winkydink · · Score: 2, Informative

    The article is loaded with spoilers, but nice to hear that the reviewer is positive about the movie.

    The mirror is here.

    --

    "I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey

  15. Re:Spoiler Free summary? by mobiux · · Score: 3, Informative

    Um, he said it was dark, dark, dark.
    1000x darker than Empire.
    Way dark.

    He also said this is the movie the haters have been waiting for since Phantom.

  16. TFA text (spoilers and all) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    "SITH" SPOILERS

    You've been warned...

    - "Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome. This is the "Star Wars" prequel the haters have been bitching for since "Menace" came out, and if they don't cop to that when they finally see it, they're lying. As dark as "Empire" was, this movie goes a thousand times darker - from the triggering of Order 66 (which has all the Shock Troopers turning on the Jedi Knights they've been fighting beside throughout the Clone Wars and gunning them down), to the jaw-dropping Anakin/Obi Wan fight on Mustafar (where - after cutting his legs and arm off, Ben leaves Skywalker burning alive on the shores of a lava river, with Anakin spitting venomous sentiments at his departing mentor), this flick is so satisfyingly tragic, you'll think you're watching "Othello" or "Hamlet".

    I saw a gorgeous digitally projected version of the flick, and lemme tell ya': this is a beautiful looking film. The opening space battle sequence is the best in any of the six "Star Wars" movies. Grievous and Kenobi's lightsaber duel is bad-ass, with Grievous rocking four sabers. The Clone Wars end rather early in the flick (about the halfway point), leaving the rest of the film to concentrate on Anakin's turn to the Dark Side, and the resulting slaughter of the Jedi.

    Perfect example of how dark shit gets: remember the Younglings - the kid Jedis in training from "Clones"? As a result of Order 66, when Anakin invades the Jedi Temple with an army of Clone Troopers, he enters the Council room to find a gaggle of said younglings hiding behind the seats. They see Anakin and emerge, asking "What should we do, Master Anakin?" The query's met with a stone-cold Anakin firing up his lightsaber. The next time you see the kids, Yoda's sifting through their corpses on the floor.

    Yes, it's just that dark - and rightfully so. This is the birth of Darth Vader we're talking about. The only comic moments in the flick are given to R2D2, and while good, they're all pretty few and far between; the order of the day is dark, dark, dark.

    Ian McDiarmid and Ewan McGregor steal the show, but Hayden Christensen silences any naysayers who wrote him off as too whiney in "Clones". This is the flick that feels closest to Episodes 4, 5, and 6, because - for the first time since "Return of the Jedi" - there is a clear villain. And for all the shadow-play Palpatine has been upto in the last two flicks, his treachery is about as subtle as John Williams' score in "Sith." Whether he's slowly drawing Anakin toward the Dark Side during an opera/performance art piece with his promise of the Sith's power of life over death, or he's engaged in a balls-to-the-wall lightsaber duel in the Senate with Yoda, his "Little, green friend" (his words, not mine - which I kinda dug, because, interestingly, I think it's the first time anyone's acknowledged that Yoda is green in any of the "Star Wars" flicks), this is the Emperor's movie.

    The last fifteen minutes dovetail nicely into Episode 4 (or just plain "Star Wars" for you non-geeks), and the movie is full of link-up moments as well.

    - At flick's end, Threepio and Artoo are given to Captain Antilles (with the caveat that the Protocol's memory be wiped).

    - The twins, natch, are split up. Leia heads to Alderann with Bail Organa, and Obi Wan hands Luke over to Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru (indeed, the closing shot is Owen holding Luke while looking out over the setting suns of Tatooine - mimicking the shot of the adult Luke doing the same in "Star Wars", complete with callback cue from Williams).

    - After he succumbs to the Dark Side, Anakin tries to convine Padme that he can overthrow Palpatine, and together, he and Padme can rule the galaxy as husband and wife.

    - Vader and the Emperor stand beside a younger Grand Moff Tarkin on the bridge of a Star Destroyer, overlooking the earliest construction stage of the Death Star.

    - Yoda telling Obi Wan that, as he heads to Tatooine to hand over Luke an

  17. Part of the article by Ezel · · Score: 2, Informative

    Since the real article is slashdotted I went out looking on google for a mirror.

    Well, this is what I found.
    It's just the beginning of the full article but atleast it confirms wether Kevin likes or dislikes the movie.

    http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=20046

    Hopefully someone will have a real mirror up soon.

    Mvh: Ezel ... Malmoe, Sweden

    --
    Prosp long and liver.
  18. Summary without Spoiler by Jaguar777 · · Score: 5, Informative

    This is for those of you that want to know what Kevin said, but don't want to read the spoilers. Here is a brief and concise quote from the beginning.

    "Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome. This is the "Star Wars" prequel the haters have been bitching for since "Menace" came out, and if they don't cop to that when they finally see it, they're lying. As dark as "Empire" was, this movie goes a thousand times darker...

    --
    Maybe you should educate the morons of tomorrow so they'll stop believing the leaders of tomorrow. - Dogbert
  19. For those who don't want spoilers... by Paradox · · Score: 4, Informative

    Kevin Smith liked it. He said he really liked it.

    Not only is the production quality really high, but apparently they also go retro in a few scenes so as to provide a tie in to Episode 4.

    Evidently the action and dialog run much less awkwardly than in previous movies, and the plot is extremely dark. There is less comedy and more drama. They deal with some pretty heavy subject matter.

    But let me reiterate. Kevin Smith is raving and drooling about this movie. My hopes have been suitably elevated. Now, I'm off to preorder a ticket.

    --
    Slashdot. It's Not For Common Sense
  20. Spoiler Free Version . . . by Goobermunch · · Score: 3, Informative

    "SITH" SPOILERS
    You've been warned...
    - "Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome. This is the "Star Wars" prequel the haters have been bitching for since "Menace" came out, and if they don't cop to that when they finally see it, they're lying. As dark as "Empire" was, this movie goes a thousand times darker (spoilers removed), this flick is so satisfyingly tragic, you'll think you're watching "Othello" or "Hamlet".

    I saw a gorgeous digitally projected version of the flick, and lemme tell ya': this is a beautiful looking film. The opening space battle sequence is the best in any of the six "Star Wars" movies. (General Spoilers Removed)

    Perfect example of how dark shit gets: (very cool, very dark spoiler removed).

    Yes, it's just that dark - and rightfully so. This is the birth of Darth Vader we're talking about. The only comic moments in the flick are given to R2D2, and while good, they're all pretty few and far between; the order of the day is dark, dark, dark.

    Ian McDiarmid and Ewan McGregor steal the show, but Hayden Christensen silences any naysayers who wrote him off as too whiney in "Clones". This is the flick that feels closest to Episodes 4, 5, and 6, because - for the first time since "Return of the Jedi" - there is a clear villain. And for all the shadow-play Palpatine has been upto in the last two flicks, his treachery is about as subtle as John Williams' score in "Sith." (Spoilers Removed)

    The last fifteen minutes dovetail nicely into Episode 4 (or just plain "Star Wars" for you non-geeks), and the movie is full of link-up moments as well.

    (Spoilers Removed)

    Look, this is a movie I was genetically predisposed to love. (spoiler removed). Now, twenty six years later, I finally got to see that long-promised battle - and it lived up to any expectation I still held. I was sad to see the flick end, but happy to know it's not the end of the "Star Wars" universe entirely (I've read stuff about a TV show...).

    "Sith" doesn't happen; "Sith" rules.

  21. Re:article text by uujjj · · Score: 3, Informative

    Mod parent down! Way down! Fast!

  22. Re:Spoiler Free summary? by metlin · · Score: 4, Funny


    Somebody should turn up the gamma, then.

  23. Bah, Kevin Smith by realmolo · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I like the guy, but everyone knows he's a raving Star Wars fan-boy.

    Plus, Episode I and II were so bad, if this is even halfway-decent, it's going to seem like a fucking masterpiece.

    I'm still expecting it to suck. I don't see how it can't.

  24. I AM INVINCIBLE! by Zakabog · · Score: 5, Funny

    after cutting his legs and arm off, Ben leaves Skywalker burning alive on the shores of a lava river, with Anakin spitting venomous sentiments at his departing mentor

    Anakin: None shall pass.
    Obi Wan: What?
    Anakin: None shall pass.
    Obi Wan: I have no quarrel with you, young padiwan, but I must cross this bridge.
    Anakin: Then you shall die.
    Obi Wan: I command you as your teacher to stand aside!
    Anakin: I move for no man.
    Obi Wan: So be it!

    Obi Wan cuts off Anakin's left arm.

    Obi Wan: Now stand aside, worthy adversary.
    Anakin: 'Tis but a scratch.
    Obi Wan: A scratch? Your arm's off!
    Anakin: No, it isn't.
    Obi Wan: Well, what's that then?
    Anakin: I've had worse.
    Obi Wan: You liar!
    Anakin: Come on you pansy!

    Obi Wan cuts off Anakin's right arm.

    Obi Wan: Victory is mine! We thank thee Force, that in thy mercy...
    Anakin: Come on then.
    Obi Wan: What?
    Anakin: Have at you!
    Obi Wan: You are indeed brave, Sir Knight, but the fight is mine.
    Anakin: Oh, had enough, eh?
    Obi Wan: Look, you stupid bastard, you've got no arms left.
    Anakin: Yes I have.
    Obi Wan: Look!
    Anakin: Just a flesh wound.
    Obi Wan: Look, stop that.
    Anakin: Chicken! Chicken!
    Obi Wan: Look, I'll have your leg. Right!

    Obi Wan cuts off Anakin's leg.

    Anakin: Right, I'll do you for that!
    Obi Wan: You'll what?
    Anakin: Come 'ere!
    Obi Wan: What are you going to do, bleed on me?
    Anakin: I'm invincible!
    Obi Wan: You're a loony.
    Anakin: The Dark Side always triumphs! Have at you! Come on then.

    Obi Wan cuts off Anakin's other leg.

    Anakin: All right; we'll call it a draw.
    Obi Wan: Come, Patsy.
    Anakin: Oh, oh, I see, running away then. You yellow bastard! Come back here and take what's coming to you. I'll bite your legs off!

  25. hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by gevmage · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Personally, I think most of the hate directed at the previous two, Jar-Jar comments aside, was a media invention. Things get repeated enough and people start to believe it.

    True in general, but in this case, it's because those films kind of stank.

    I'll list a few specifics

    • The podrace sequence that took up the middle half of the first movie. That should have been about 15 minutes.
    • Amidahla, who in Ep 1 was "queen", talking in Ep 2 about how wonderful democracy is
    • The "evil trade empire" made up of aliens with pronounced asian accents
    • The Jedi, who are supposed to be very very smart, attacking into what is completely obviously a trap
    • The dialog between Annakin and Amidalhla that left me wanting to puke.

    I'm sorry, the Geoge Lucas of the 70's knew about pacing. Episodes IV, V, and VI were very fast and snappy. Episodes I and II just dragged terribly. I'm hoping that III picks up the pace a bit.

    --
    Craig Steffen
    http://www.craigsteffen.net
    1. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by illtron · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I'll take bad acting and dialog as a valid criticism, but most of the other stuff you just listed are personal gripes.

      And for what it's worth, the Trade Federation accent is a mix of Japanese and French, but I don't see why that's so awful. Would a subtitled alien language that everybody magically understands have been better? What if they spoke the alien language with an accent?

      --
      Slashdot: 24 hours behind every other site or your money back!
    2. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by dr_dank · · Score: 5, Funny

      The Jedi, who are supposed to be very very smart, attacking into what is completely obviously a trap

      Remember, that was before the introduction of Admiral Akbar.

      --
      Where does the school board find them and why do they keep sending them to ME?
    3. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by TheCabal · · Score: 2, Informative

      I'm sorry, the Geoge Lucas of the 70's knew about pacing. Episodes IV, V, and VI were very fast and snappy.

      But Lucas only directed Episode IV. V and VI were only produced by him.

    4. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by zomper514 · · Score: 2, Informative

      You forgot when Obi Wan refers tries to use north as a direction in space.

    5. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by geekwithsoul · · Score: 4, Interesting
      the Geoge Lucas of the 70's knew about pacing

      I've often thought the same thing. In fact in many of the "Making of Star Wars" documentaries it was pointed out how unusual it was for so much attention to detail be paid to models and special effects and then have them fly across the screen in an eye-blink. He wanted it to look cool, but not get wrapped up in pointing out how cool it looked. This definitely changed with the prequels.

      Also, I think it was a function of money and timing. There was never enough of either (until ROTJ) to really give Lucas full reign on "implementing his vision" and for the most part that actually worked in favor of the films being tight, fast-paced and exciting. Just look at what he's done with the re-releases and you'll see why sometimes being creative under tremendous pressure gets better results.

    6. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      To hell with that, what about the biggest fucking "drive a semi through it" plot hole of all?

      Annakin saves the queen's ass twice (first with the pod racer, then by blowing up the droid control ship). She's a god-damned queen and she never sends anyone back to Tatooine to buy Annakin's mother out of slavery? And Annakin still loves her. WTF?!

    7. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by Coryoth · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Fair enough, but they have to fall in love somehow and without turning the whole movie into a romance it had to be rushed. It's unfortunate that their love is so pivotal to the story, yet not interesting enough to be its own movie so it can be properly told.

      They had the better part of an hour to tell the love story (half of the film was devoted to that story arc) that's not a small amount of time. The real question is why was it not interesting enough to be the better part of the film? Surely if they bothered to write an interesting love story instead of ther hackneyed and forced one that they did, they could have devoted more time to it without issue.

      What you're really saying is: it is a shame that the love story was so badly concieved and written that even the limited time they spent on it seemed like a waste.

      Jedidiah.

    8. Re:hate of eps I and II was quite genuine by SpryGuy · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Would a subtitled alien language that everybody magically understands have been better?

      Yes. Emphatically yes.

      The main thing I hated about the first episode (and the second) is that it's just so rife with unnecessary anachronisms from OUR world... ones completely lacking from the first trilogy. Phantom was filled with bad Jackie Chan b-movie accents, racist overtones and accents both middle-eastern and carribean, a stupid two-headed pod-race announcer that practically screamed "SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY!", and worse.

      The original trilogy did nothing of the kind. Alien races were truly alien, speaking alien tongues and having *created* cultures... not lame parodies of racist stereotypes as in the first two episodes.

      Phantom Menace would have been vastly improved by putting as much time and effort in creating the new aliens and their languages and cultures, as they put into Padme's gowns.

      Additionally it would have been nice to see any sign that Darth Maul was really evil. Oh sure, he LOOKED evil enough, but other than fighting when Obi Wan and Qui Gon attacked him, he really didn't do much that showed us who he was... unlike how the character of Darth Vader was built in the first movie.

      --

      - Spryguy
      There are three kinds of people in this world: those that can count and those that can't
  26. Spoilers? by PeterChenoweth · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Why is everyone so worried about spoilers? What spoilers? Is there someone here who *hasn't* seen Episodes 4-6? Everyone knows what is supposed to happen in Episode 3.

    Let's see, what do we know from 4-6. Darth Vader is Luke's father, and Leia is his sister. Obi Wan took Luke to Tatooine to live with Uncle Owen after Darth Vader took out the Jedi. The Emperor is bad, and he's the one who turns Anakin into Darth Vader via the Dark Side.

    So that means in Episode 3, that there's going to be a pair of twins born, Obi Wan's going to take one of them to Tatooine, lots of Jedi will be killed, and Anakin's going to be put back together to become Darth Vader by the Emperor.

    And that pretty much sums up exactly what the review says. Basically, it would appear to completely connect what has happened in 1 and 2 with 4-6. The review does point out a couple of plot elements to show just how dark Ep3 is going to be, and how much he liked it, but I don't think they'd ruin it for anyone.

  27. Re:The Baby might have to wait! by PortHaven · · Score: 3, Funny

    Tell her to give birth in the theatre and then she'll give birth to a jedi....

    (mind you, the green skin coloring, pointy ears and dimunitive side will be rather permanent unlike most infants he shall not grow much taller)

  28. The biggest surprise... by slapout · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...was when George turned to Kevin and said "I am your father."

    --
    Coder's Stone: The programming language quick ref for iPad
  29. Tribute to Kevin... by readgs · · Score: 2, Funny

    In "Site", I hear they added some new dialog after Kevin saw it... "Yo, Anakin...show your metal face." ...and BAM, he turns to the darkside... Then he sings to Padme..."Your love is like a bleeding heart, Darth VA-DER!" Bet it'll still suck.

  30. Re:Spoiler Free summary? by MrAnnoyanceToYou · · Score: 5, Informative

    Summary: Kevin Smith admits he is predisposed to like a Star Wars movie, but still calls it great because it is not as cheesy as the first two. He says that if you complained about the first two being kiddie, you now have no excuses. He then goes into rather gory detail about all the little tie-ins and close-ups and endings that you thought could never be put together in one movie. He raves about the space and saber battles.

    All in all, I think the review was okay, but don't trust Kevin Smith after Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. I saw that movie and wanted my money back. Haven't seen anything new of his since.

  31. Re:The Baby might have to wait! by hoggoth · · Score: 2, Funny

    > My wife is due
    Your wife is due? Is the a pre-arranged marriage or something? Arranged WAY in advance!

    Oh, you mean your baby is due...
    never mind...

    --
    - For the complete works of Shakespeare: cat /dev/random (may take some time)
  32. Re:Reading the book... by fireduck · · Score: 3, Interesting

    a friend of mine did this as well. His reasoning was that he wanted to experience a (hopefully) decent version of the story prior to the movie, so that he could go into the movie with a sense of whether it was a crap story or just that Lucas was a crap director with some crappy actors. I think its a case of Lucas just setting the bar so low on the first two prequels, that some fans want to raise it up, and if they find it in a novelization, so be it...

  33. Nnnnnnnneeeeeeeeerrrrrrrdddssss!!!!!! by nightsweat · · Score: 2, Funny

    And god love you for it. I'm right there with you.

    --

    the major advances in civilization are processes which all but wreck the societies in which they occur - A.N. White
  34. Re:The Baby might have to wait! by sdsichero · · Score: 2, Funny

    Will you name the baby Luke or Leia?

  35. Absolutely Right -- Lucas Media created the Hate by FreeUser · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Personally, I think most of the hate directed at the previous two, Jar-Jar comments aside, was a media invention.

    Absolutely right, it is a media invention, invented by none other than Lucas when he created the two abominations that are Star Wars Episodes I and II.

    I own the Ep I DVD (stupid me for buying the thing sight-unseen despite the negative comments here and elsewhere). I was spared spending money on the second one by watching the first half hour or so on a friend's box (that person had downloaded it about a week before SW came out in theaters). It was so bad, that by the time we got to the wooden Natilie Portman talks to Annikan scene we quit watching and deleted the file.

    Last night, after watching SW Revelations, I tried watching Episode I again just for the FX eye candy. Again, the writing, acting, and storyline were so bad, I couldn't finish it. I'd forgotten how truly awful it is.

    I liked Star Wars--but not anymore. This isn't some "Liberal Media Conspiracy" any more than the exposure of Tom Delay's congressional corruption is. The hatred for the new Star Wars movies (Jar Jar included) is derived solely from the absolute feces George Lucas has chosen to foist upon his fans in place of an actual Star Wars movie. It's a shame so many fans are willing to accept such drivel, for that lowers the bar on any future SW creations (and truth be told, even at its best the bar was never THAT high to begin with)...which means we can only expect the same or worse. Fan Fiction films like Revelations excepted--that was truly remarkable: a low budget film with a better storyline, better acting, and better execution than the last two Lucas movies (FX excepted, and even there they did an excellent job).

    --
    The Future of Human Evolution: Autonomy
  36. The Truth of the Matter by bubba_ry · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The truth of the matter is this:

    We're all going to go see the damn movie! Some of us will go because we like Star Wars, no matter what the plot (or lack thereof); we like shit blowing up and sword fights. And FX. Lot's of 'em. Some of us will go to see if the movie is good. Others to see if the movie sucks.

    Either way, we're all seeing the movie and Lucas hears the bells of cash registers ringing in his head.

  37. An alternative review by gmuslera · · Score: 3, Funny
    The movie was great, very very dark, excellent, at least for the few seconds it lasted. Then a ligth comes from a big square in the front of the room, and some bad actors started to play an star wars parody, i assume to lighten a bit up how much dark was the real movie.

    My evaluation? The movie excellent, the post-parody so so, I have better dialogs as Silent Bob.

    -Kevin Smith

  38. boycotting by The+Queen · · Score: 3, Funny

    I'm with you.

    If one day my curiosity gets the better of me, I'm sure someone I know will have it on DVD.

    I'll have to be pretty drunk though. It's hard to watch Lucas continually bludgeon the already-dead body of my childhood fantasies. Episode 1 had way too much CG, and Episode 2 was like watching a warthog romancing a peacock.

    --

    The House Between - Original Sci-Fi Series
  39. Re:WTF? by angle_slam · · Score: 2

    The first line is "SITH SPOILERS". Some people really don't want to go past that part.

  40. Re:It's R2D2's story isn't it? by Mr.+No+Skills · · Score: 3, Informative

    I hate being such a nerd here, but R2D2 isn't the protocol droid, C-3PO is.

    --
    Sleep is for the Weak
  41. Re:Are they really spoilers? by victor_the_cleaner · · Score: 3, Funny

    I hadn't seen Titanic and my buddy ruined it for me. Who knew that ship could sink?

  42. Re:Would he have said it sucked? by jazman_777 · · Score: 2, Insightful
    I'm not going to this one. Lucas keeps putting crappy movies out there, and I keep going. If I go to this one, it's over, and Lucas wins every time. This is my last chance not to fall for the same old con.

    I remain skeptical. I was around when Star Wars first came out, a long time ago. The critics ripped it up one side down the other, on plot; they _did_ love the effects. Given Episodes IV, VI, I and II, does anyone really think Lucas has profoundly changed?

    Smith sounds like he's channeling George Peppard: "I love it when a plan comes together!" He's thrilled about the tie-ins to Episode IV ("ooh, that's so cool how they used the same corridor!") and the darkness. Darkness as a good thing is the sign of someone who was _seriously_ damaged by Jar-Jar.

    --
    Slashdot: Failed Car Analogies. Amateur Lawyering. Anecdote Battles.
  43. A little Jedi humor by Mr.Progressive · · Score: 5, Funny

    where - after cutting his legs and arm off, Ben leaves Skywalker burning alive on the shores of a lava river

    On a bright sunny day on Mustafar, Obi-Wan Kenobi was taking a pleasant stroll around the lava river. He spots an armless and legless Anakin Skywalker and, moved with pity, he asks young Skywalker if there's anything he can do for him. Skywalker replies, 'well, I've never been hugged before'. In response, Kenobi gives Anakin a big ol' bear hug and satisfied with his good deed, continues on his pleasant stroll around the river. He come back around to the place where Anakin lay and decided to ask him if there was anything else he needed. To this, Anakin replies, 'well, I've never been kissed before'. Kenobi thinks for second, and though a little hesitant, gives Anakin a peck on the forehead. He leaves again, satisfied. He comes back around a third time and again, asks Anakin if there's anything he wants. Anakin says "well, I've never been fucked before!" and so Kenobi picks him up, throws him in the lava river and shouts 'now you're fucked!'

    --
    Okay, so a philosopher, a philologist, and a philatelist walk into a bar...
  44. Re:It's R2D2's story isn't it? by PriceIke · · Score: 5, Funny

    This also explains why Threepio was never hit by a laser bolt in the opening battle aboard the blockade runner .. Vader was like, "if you see a gold protocol droid, DON'T SHOOT IT .. it's mine!"

    --
    It's not a lie. It's the truth with lossy compression.
  45. Re:Spoiler Free summary? by flyingsquid · · Score: 5, Funny
    Um, he said it was dark, dark, dark. 1000x darker than Empire. Way dark.

    Sounds like instead of going into the theater, Kevin Smith accidentally wandered into a broom closet with a burnt-out light bulb and hung out eating a big tub of popcorn for two hours.

  46. Re:Spoilers? by Zoso20 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Ease off the pipe there dave.......you might be a little confused.....the other books were never ever written or published......they were just notes in one of Lucas's notebooks....... Yes he had originnaly planned 9 movies......he never planned a book series..........

  47. Re:Who is Kevin Smith by gstoddart · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Is he someone who'se opinion we trust.

    Whose opinions you trust is up to you. I trust him to have an opinion and be intelligent about it.

    here you can decide if you would trust his opinions or not from seeing what his other works are.

    Cheers
    --
    Lost at C:>. Found at C.
  48. A long time ago, in an incestuous galaxy by Scrameustache · · Score: 5, Funny

    Leah being Luke's sister was an idea which came to him when he was 2/3 done writing "Return of the Jedi."

    I especially like when Luke tells her and she says she always knew.

    Yeah? Even when you were frenching him!? You sick weirdo!

    --

    You can't take the sky from me...

  49. This is why I love Smith (sort of spoilers) by jayhawk88 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    ...or he's engaged in a balls-to-the-wall lightsaber duel in the Senate with Yoda, his "Little, green friend" (his words, not mine - which I kinda dug, because, interestingly, I think it's the first time anyone's acknowledged that Yoda is green in any of the "Star Wars" flicks)...

    Love his work or hate it, the man is unquestionably a true geek.

  50. Re:So they wipe the minds of C3PO and R2D2... by geekwithsoul · · Score: 3, Insightful

    He never says that he doesn't remember them, he says something to the effect of "I don't remember ever owning any droids." And that is technically true, as he never owned them (or any others as far as the films show).

    I was initially bothered by this as well, but I've decided it was just Ben being coy about what was happening. After all, last he had heard (being on the furthest point from the bright center of the universe) the Jedi Knights were being hunted down and killed. Couldn't be possible that he might have some reservations about whether or not Luke was being used (without him knowing it) to track him down?

    As for the home-testing kit, I suspect those were made under the auspices of the Jedi Council, and with the destruction of the Jedi, they weren't available anymore.

    Whew . . . that's enough geek for today!

  51. For those who want sarcasm... by Scrameustache · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Kevin Smith liked it. He said he really liked it. [...] But let me reiterate. Kevin Smith is raving and drooling about this movie. My hopes have been suitably elevated.

    So Kevin Smith, known fanboy, and in line to get the TV series writing job from Lucas, reviewed it and liked it? Well, I'm satisfied.

    I'm sure if it sucked he would have objectively told us so, without fear of reprisal from his dark master!

    --

    You can't take the sky from me...

  52. A blowjob from one has-been to another by Edmund+Blackadder · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Imagine two people waist deep in a swamp. One of them tries to lift the other by the hair hoping that the other will eventually be able to lift him off. Meanwhile both of them tragically and comically keep sinking. This is what this review is like.

    Both Smith and Lucas once made decent movies and then were completely destroyed by their egos which were much bigger than their talents. The moment of destruction for each of them came when they thought they knew marketing.

    Lucas made some decent action flicks but then he reaslized that he made more money on toys than movies, so he decided "gee, why don't I substitute a three hour toy and video game commercial for my next movie". Never did he realize that people don't enjoy paying $10 to see a commercial.

    I used to like Smith a lot because he made good movies about teenagers, something that is very rare. But then he too decided he knew about marketing. He decided to make "grown up" movies that are more "serious" and "intelligent" so he can target a bigger demographic and get more respect in hollywood. And then, when everybody told him point blanc that his movies suck, he said : "you are so immature, why don't you like my deep intelligent movies". SOrry Kevin your movies are not intelligent, they are fucking stupid. All he does is bring up controvercial subjects (lesbians!, race !, bitchy women !, that are lesbians!) that are guaranteed to get him press without having anything remotely intelligent to say about them. Don't get me started about the whole Ben-JLo thing. Smith pretended he was an innocent victim of that disaster (counting of course on Americanss' notoriously short memories). Well I am one American that remembers shit and let me tell Smith engineered the whole fucking thing himself and then scheduled 2 movies in a way so he can take advantage of it. (afterwards when the scope of the disaster was obvious to everyone, he rescheduled the movies so they don't open within the same two month period). There he goes again thinking he knows about marketing. Thinking that he can make a huge blockbuster movie by manipulating the public perception.

    There is one thing about modern marketing -- if you are into it you must hate people. It is a requirement for the job. The premise of modern marketing is that people are dumb sheep whoose opinions can be molded like slabs of clay. And you can easily see from their movies how both Smith and Lucas hate their fans. Just watching their movies you see them talking down to you. Well George, Kevin people are sometimes not as stupid as you take them to be, and we tend to notice these things.

    And now Lucas has very little credibility left (Smith essentially has none)so now Smith tries to make himself look better by attempting to lift Lucas out of the swamp. Ain't gonna happen -- I will never see either of your movies again. There are too many good movies nowadays to waste my time on you two.

  53. Here's where I play Devil's advocate. by game+kid · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I think Lucas really did aim it at said 13-year-olds. The Episodes were childish and mediocre, yes, but now that those 13-year-olds have seen Ep. I (at 10) and Ep. II (at, of course, 13) they are now about 16 and are a bit ready to see what finally happens to the little blond kid just before he went all James Earl Jones on us.

    I think Ep. III will profit from a nice convergence of the older fans (of the originals) with the younger guys who haven't seen Eps. IV-VI.

    That is why (IMO) Lucas put in Jar Jar and started from Anakin's little-boy days. Not to appease the adults who wanted to know about Vader's past, but to attract new, much younger fans. Now that he's attracted an extra demographic and they have grown, he can tell all of us about the Anakin->Vader metamorphosis. He didn't aim Episode I or even II at you or anyone remotely similar. He wanted an extra fanbase/profit source. This time, I think, us older fans shall be pleased, since we have lower expectations from I and II. He'd better; it's his last decent chance to. That's what I see.

    --
    You can hold down the "B" button for continuous firing.
    1. Re:Here's where I play Devil's advocate. by H0ek · · Score: 3, Insightful

      ...and when Anakin whacks Jar Jar's head off with a light saber, not only will all the adults in the room cheer with gusto, all the kids can finally say:

      "Lucas! That bastard! He killed my childhood!"

      Now that's art.

      --
      H0ek
      Think you're smart? Prove you've got brains!
  54. Calibrate the reviewer by Sloppy · · Score: 2, Funny
    "Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome.
    That's encouraging. Now, please answer another question, Kevin: What did you think of The Phantom Menace? Was that fucking awesome too?
    --
    As copyright owner of this comment, I authorize everyone to defeat any technological measure which limits access to it.
  55. None Shall Pass... by fuzznutz · · Score: 3, Insightful


    the jaw-dropping Anakin/Obi Wan fight on Mustafar (where - after cutting his legs and arm off, Ben leaves Skywalker

    Did he mention anything about it being merely a flesh wound?

  56. Re:Spoilers? by Nastard · · Score: 2

    From StarWars.com (emphasis mine):

    Asked which idea came first... Anakin or Luke, Lucas explained the genesis of the series, " There was originally to be one film , I wanted it to be Episode IV of a serial (maybe out of 12 or something) that you would never see the first or last episodes of. That's what happened in the '30s, you had trailers, and a short cartoon, and then a cliffhanger. That serial-style is what Star Wars is based on."

    "I started with Anakin Starkiller and his two kids, then I got to a draft that's kind of what we know now, but it was 200 pages. Then that became three films.
    I never thought I'd go back and do the original stories, regardless of what the press says or what's out there. But then the necessary film technology came along and I came to grips with being known forever as George 'Star Wars' Lucas."

  57. No he doesn't... by raehl · · Score: 2, Funny

    Lucas brought in Rick Berman. Obi Wan's ship gets stuck in a temporal rift and gets hurled into the future, where he learns what Annakin turns into. Fortunately, Han Solo is able to rig R2D2's memory system to Obi Wan's ship's power drive and generate a relnaran field, sending the ship back in time so that Obi Wan can make sure to finish off Anakin, altering the timeline so that he never becomes Darth Vader at all.

  58. There still are spoilers... by MixmastaKooz · · Score: 3, Insightful

    But the spoiler is explaining HOW (and WHY) those events you described happens! We know WHAT happens and now we will see a lot of the HOW and WHY in ROTS. And Kevin reveals a lot about the HOW (like command 66 or something) and WHY: in my book, that's a spoiler!

  59. Your confusing "acting" with "story hole". by khasim · · Score: 5, Insightful
    He never says that he doesn't remember them, he says something to the effect of "I don't remember ever owning any droids." And that is technically true, as he never owned them (or any others as far as the films show).
    And that would be acceptable if the story somehow depended upon him hiding the facts in a technical truth.

    But it doesn't.

    Ben (Annie's old MENTOR) rescues Annie's SON who is accompanied by the droid that Annie BUILT and another droid from Ben's past when he fought and almost KILLED Annie.

    And the only reaction Ben shows is ... none.

    No interest in HOW that particular droid got there.

    No concern that a droid built by a planet destroying maniac with a personal grudge against him just showed up on his doorstep.

    Seeing the kid isn't something new. Ben knew that Luke was there and why.

    Seeing C3PO AND R2D2 show up SHOULD have caused a reaction.

    EVERY
    JEDI
    KILLED (except 2)

    Yet no reaction. None at all.

    Here, let me give you a movie scenario and you can fill in the emotion.

    Back in our hero's past, he had fought against the bad guy and the bad guy had killed all of our hero's family. Our hero knows the car the bad guy drives. Our hero rescued the bad guy's kid and hid him away in another city.

    Then, one day, the kid shows up at our hero's apartment in the city. Our hero looks outside and sees ... THAT VERY SAME CAR ...

    Our hero says ....

    ==========

    Right. The ENTIRE dialogue sequence is wrong in ep#4 when you've seen ep #1-3.

    That's just like the old "parsec" non-explanation.
    1. Re:Your confusing "acting" with "story hole". by Londovir · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I can certainly read and understand what you're thinking about that, but it does fit in quite a bit with the characterization of Obi-Wan from the novelization.

      Yes, I read the novelization before seeing the movie. To me, I didn't feel that I was spoiling anything as another poster upthread said because we all know what happens. Plus, I like going in to the movie ahead of time with a rough outline of the story because I can keep an eye out of the artistic differences between the two versions. (Not to mention that, in the inevitable case of having to relieve myself of the Uber-Big Gulp soda, I know exactly when boring conversation will be onscreen that I can dispense with.)

      Anyway, the book goes to great lengths illustrating that Obi-Wan's Jedi training and nature allow him to remain emotionally distant from things that occur around him. There are plenty of cases in the book when a "normal" person would be stricken with grief, despair, terror, surprise, etc, and Obi-Wan takes it in stride, confident in the Force and his ability to serve as a channel for the Force. (Chapter 15 comes to mind, particularly)

      Given that, I don't think it's so amazing to see Obi-Wan fail to react to the droids presence in Ep4. Obi-Wan's deep faith in the Force is enough that, as Yoda hints in the novel, the Force will bring them all together when the time is right. He probably looked at both droids and thought, "Welp, it's a sign from the Force, let's roll." I mean, seriously, think about the confluence of coincidence that brought the droids to Tatooine in the first place. Shoot, the droids were with Leia (there's more detail there in the book which has been already mentioned elsewhere on here, but I won't repeat, which explains Threepio's memory loss), on the other side of the galaxy practically, and just happened to be flying over Tatooine when the ship was attacked, just happened to crash on Tatooine, just happened to be collected by the Jawas, just happened to be sold to Luke when the original droid he bought just happened to crap out on delivery, etc. If that's not the Force orchestrating everything (in Obi-Wan's mind) I don't know what is.

      And, just so you know, the one time that Obi-Wan did have a major emotional reaction was when he discovered how many and how some of the Jedi were killed. And even then, Yoda bitch-slaps him a bit for his reaction, and he recovers.

      It's all good. Admittedly to our common sense it seems like crap, but it's covered with a reasonable backstory once you read the novel.

      Best,
      Londovir

      PS All the "This is xxxxx at this moment" in the novel get a little old, though...read it and you'll see what I mean...

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      Londovir
  60. Major Spoiler Alert! by WillAffleckUW · · Score: 4, Funny


    Anakin becomes Darth Vader!

    Leia and Luke are twin babies of Anakin and are snuck away to separate locations far far from home.

    Anakin falls into a volcano - but lives - barely.

    And Yoda gets arthritis.

    Ok, I made that last one up ...

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    -- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --