I haven’t written much here about how my love affair with George Lucas dried up. Feelings turned sour somewhere between Episode II and III. Yeah, yeah yeah, I know that as a self-proclaimed geek, I should have reverence for the guy who created “Star Wars.” But when it comes to things George Lucas, there hasn’t been much to celebrate in a while.
In an article from USA Today, Lucas spoke about the new Indy movie.
"When you do a movie like this, a sequel that's very, very anticipated, people anticipate ultimately that it's going to be the Second Coming," Lucas says. "And it's not. It's just a movie. Just like the other movies. You probably have fond memories of the other movies. But if you went back and looked at them, they might not hold up the same way your memory holds up."
Um, George? I’ve watched the Indy movies a lot. They hold up. They’re freakin’ awesome. I’m pretty sure that when my kid is old enough to watch them, he’ll think they’re awesome too.
This statement comes from a guy who felt that the original “Star Wars” movies didn’t hold up to today’s demanding audiences. So what did he do? He “fixed” them. He made Greedo shoot first. He added truly horrible musical numbers. He inserted computer effects that felt out of place mixed into the original. In short, he did the truly unthinkable—he f’d up the original “Star Wars” movies.
The story continues…
Lucas says he learned his lesson about unrealistic expectations when he revived the Star Wars franchise in 1999. "When people approach the new (Indiana Jones), much like they did with Phantom Menace, they have a tendency to be a little harder on it," he says. "You're not going to get a lot of accolades doing a movie like this. All you can do is lose."
Again George, you need to take a long hard look in the mirror. People were hard on “Phantom Menace” because it sucked. The new movies sucked. Your controlling nature and ego got in the way and you made three crappy movies. The only reason why some people are soft on them is because they are called “Star Wars.”
I know I sound bitter, but really my anger stems from disappointment. George Lucas was a hero to us and now he's become more like Grandpa whose forgotten to take his medication. George Lucas is no longer one of us. He lives in a crystal palace with hundreds of millions of dollars and little connection to the real world. In all of his success, Lucas has let go of the childlike excitement that went into his movies in the first place.
I’m still way excited for Indy 4 this summer and the real reason is Spielberg. While not every movie he’s made has been great, Spielberg can still be an exciting filmmaker. If there’s any chance that Indy 4 is going to work it’s because of him.
The countdown to May 22nd continues.
5 comments:
Really? Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was good?
And, no fair, you still haven't seen Revenge of the Sith. I'd prefer the rephrasing "Two crappy movies and a third that I must assume is crappy because the other two were crappy."
Yes Temple of Doom is good.
There isn't a single person that I've spoken to who says that "Sith" is a good movie. The best people can muster up for it is, "Well, it's better than the other two." In the annals of cinematic history, "Sith" will not be remembered as a good movie. It doesn't matter if I've seen it or not.
This is what I will say for Sith -- it contains the only sequence that we all already knew about from legend (the fight between Obi-Wan and Anakin by the lava, in which Anakin becomes disfigured). I thought that scene was terrifically violent for a Star Wars movie and makes the movie sort of worth seeing. But I forgive all the Star Wars movies more easily than you do -- I guess I just find it to be less emotionally complicated to be on good terms with them and just call it a day.
>>> So what did he do? He “fixed” them. He made Greedo shoot first. He added truly horrible musical numbers.
Musical numbers always suck. Always.
Doom was good, and Sith blew. I finally rented it a few years ago and the movie actually made me angry. Angry for the potential that was wasted on the three films, angry that almost none of what made the first three unique and special made it into the new films.
Grrrrr.
I won't even play Lego Star Wars from the newer films.
Post a Comment