Episode 1 on TV tonight

[Omedarcus]

I haven't seen Episode 1 since it was out in the movies the 2nd time, I'm definately looking forward to it.

 

Btw, I want to know something that bugs me. Why did so many people not like Episode 1? I thought it was cool and really liked it, eventhough storywise it seems far away from Episode 4,5,6

[beeurd]

i havn't seen it since...........an hour ago

[Lion Heart]

Ep1 was boring.

[Mafia_Jabba]

loved it...don't see the problem...wierd I guess I would think you can't really dislike and like one movie to the other since they are a collective story eh?

[StormHammer]

Originally posted by Omedarcus:

Btw, I want to know something that bugs me. Why did so many people not like Episode 1? I thought it was cool and really liked it, eventhough storywise it seems far away from Episode 4,5,6

 

Speaking strictly from my own point of view, I think Episode I was a bit over-hyped. I saw the trailers, and thought to myself, 'This is going to be amazing'.

 

Yet when I saw the film, it seemed to lack something...

 

Right from the opening sequence, I started to have qualms. It didn't seem to have the enormous scale, or the tension and excitement, of ANH, ESB or even ROTJ. I mean, ANH had a space battle, ESB had a titanic Super-Star Destroyer hunting it's prey. Hmmm...ROTJ had a mega Deathstar under construction, with Vader's shuttle flying toward it. TPM had a ship flying sedately towards a big TF ship that had the distinct ball shape. ROTJ rehash?

 

The context of TPM seemed a little dull too. A Trade Federation blockade? It didn't seem all that threatening to me. Perhaps if we had seen a battle from the beginning, it might have helped. I don't know.

 

I know a lot of people liked Jar-Jar, but I'm afraid I'm one of those who just found him annoying. I've never really been a fan of slapstick comedy (except when executed by those who made it an art, such as Laurel and Hardy, et al), and seeing an alien do it doesn't make it any better.

 

TPM made a move away from the acid wit found in the Classic trilogy, which I thought helped to gel the characters together, and kept the ball rolling even in the quiet parts of the films.

 

The main characters just weren't larger than life, and didn't seem to gel well together. I mean, in the Classic trilogy you've got Han the Rogue, Chewie the Bigfoot, Luke the Innocent, Leia the Feisty One, Vader the Impaler, and two robots in a love/hate relationship. Whenever I ask people which is their favourite character from TPM, they all tell me Darth Maul. Didn't any of the other characters have any endearing qualities? Hmmm...

 

Much of the film seemed to be a bit of a rehash of ROTJ, IMHO. They wind up on Tatooine (supposedly an extremely remote and insignificant planet). You have a Pod race in the desert...in ROTJ you have Speeder Bikes in a forest. At the end you have 3 battles going on simultaneously (like ROTJ), with Gungans throwing the equivalent of big rocks at their opponents (like the Ewoks did in ROTJ). Instead of driving the film forward, 3 simultaneous battles sort of kills the momentum. You're just starting to get your teeth into one fight...and then you're snatched away. Needless to say, ROTJ is my least favourite of the Classic trilogy, and seeing the same formula repeated in TPM didn't do much to impress me. It was all a bit familiar, but not in a good way.

 

I'm not saying the whole film is bad, BTW. It had many memorable (and enjoyable) moments, and a few good one-liners. The design and CGI work, as usual, was excellent. The saber duels were very well choreographed (in spite of some of the frilly moves). But taken as a whole, for me it did not have the necessary meat on the bone.

 

I'm glad that a lot of people enjoyed TPM. I enjoyed it to a certain extent, but perhaps there was a little bit too much reliance on the effects, and not enough character development.

 

So I'm pinning my hopes on Episode II, which should be darker in tone (like ESB), although the title itself does not bode very well.

[Kwup]

Originally posted by Lion Heart:

<STRONG>Ep1 was boring.</STRONG>

 

 

 

Originally posted by Mafia_Jabba:

<STRONG>loved it...don't see the problem...wierd I guess I would think you can't really dislike and like one movie to the other since they are a collective story eh?</STRONG>

 

[Mafia_Jabba]

i have the same feelings..almost like they used too much effects...but this is like a long time before the classics and the time is more technologically advanced i think..if you ever read 1984 you know what I'm talking about...I agree w/ everything that you said though StormHammer..just didn't realize what was wrong w/ TPM untill you said it, all I knew is that it was missing something.

 

My fav is Padme and btw a lot of people liked ol boba too and he wasn't hudge.

 

[ November 25, 2001: Message edited by: Mafia_Jabba ]

[Omedarcus]

I think you're right, they did get too carried away. I do think though that Episode I was setting the stage for the rest of the series, but the movie could've had more important things happening. I mean did was reeeeeeeallly need the pod race? Episode I should've been like this: the trade federation blockcade starts, then Obi-Wan & Qui-Gon show up, end up escaping, they meet Jar Jar & the Gungans all at the same time, then they go straight to the queen, leave Naboo, land on Tatoonine, Anakin helps them out in a less dramatic way, then they go to Coruscant, back to Naboo, then the rest of the movie be the way it is.

 

Also why is Darth Maul so popular? The guy speaks like 5 times, picks a fight with Obi-Wan & Qui-Gon without saying anything to them, and dies. It'd be as if George Lucas had made the whole story about Luke and made Darth Vader a minor character like Admiral Piet or some stormtrooper.

 

Also Jar Jar was kinda funny, but they got too carried away with him. They should've just saved him for the end where he ends up kicking butt just by tripping over everything.

 

I also didn't like the going back & forth between battles. Each scene should've been longer.

 

Basically I like the movie but more major things should have happened and the main story should've been more emphasized, instead of stressing minor events.

[wardz]

I thought it was good to set the scene for these. If these aren't good I will be a tad annoyed.

 

The fact is IMO, that it could have been exactly what we wanted but it still wouldn't have been enough.

 

Perhaps our expectations were too high?

 

Although he could have done a better job of Jar jar.

 

wardz

[Guest Kurgan]

I actually liked ROTJ best (maybe it was the kid in me?) and I didn't find the ewoks as annoying as Jar Jar either. Yeah Wicket screwed up a few times, but he wasn't in every scene and he didn't run his mouth constantly (or speak a goofy pidgeon dialect of english, er, I mean "basic").

 

But maybe if it was done in ROTJ, ONCE WAS ENOUGH. You're right, stilted dialouge and jerky plot, although it had its moments.

 

But to sum it up for TPM and my feelings:

 

Jar Jar,

Nemodians,

Anakin

 

Nuff said...

 

[ November 26, 2001: Message edited by: Kurgan ]

[Mafia_Jabba]

i like Ep1...just it doesn't give you that overall feeling of the star wars universe and the power of the force as ep5 ESB...what was it about that movie..fantastic acting..excellent cinamatography...and dialogue to die for..

[Wacky_Baccy]

Originally posted by Mafia_Jabba:

<STRONG>i like Ep1...just it doesn't give you that overall feeling of the star wars universe and the power of the force as ep5 ESB...what was it about that movie..fantastic acting..excellent cinamatography...and dialogue to die for..</STRONG>

 

Exactly!

 

That's the same way I feel about it, especially "it doesn't give you that overall feeling of the star wars universe and the power of the force as ep5 ESB..."

 

EP1 is a good film by many standards, but it's just not in the same class as the original trilogy, IMO.

 

W_B