aquacrayfish (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} aquacrayfish) wrote,@ 2005-05-19 06:55:00 |
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Is There Anything Going on Today?
In a pathetic way it feels part of my life's work will be completed today when I make it to my afternoon viewing of Revenge of the Sith. Is it even worth trying to explain? You got a sense of how dark this movie would be the second Attack of the Clones ended and the previews seem to paint a similar picture.
Preparation for this movie has included watching the old movies again this week. Not that I couldn't recall every line or musical score that was about to march through my home theatre, but just to revel in the moment and go in 'ready' for the last piece of the puzzle. What's more is that the movies are still a lot of fun- even Episodes I and II.
You see I am not one of those programmed whiners that spit out cliché remarks like my childhood was raped (if 10 years of your life get destroyed by 30 minutes of film being edited you have more problems that you want to admit), Jar Jar is the worst movie character (loud stupidity is okay for Jim Carrey and Chris Farley and nobody else), Lucas is out for money (and no other producers are- really!), and so on. I can stil enjoy the movies. Do I disagree with some of the changes that have been made? Sure I do, but it doesn't cause me to whine incessantly about it.
Oh, and one thing that has really bugged me is that everyone thinks Jedi are these incredibly invincible characters because they can use the Force. It's an amusing argument. Like any group of warriors people latch onto the leaders and believe everyone has those abilities. Not everybody is as attuned with the Force as much as Yoda, Kenobi, Windu, Maul, Dooku, and so on. Not everybody in our Armed Forces is a Navy Seal. Not every Navy Seal has the same prowess either. The Jedi are a relatively small group of warriors with a gift to manipulate the living Force.
In short they have fast reflexes, have some magical powers, and can wield the coolest weapon ever thought of in any science fiction arena (Star Wars may not be best defined as science fiction, but the weapons in the universe certainly have to be of that element). Fast reflexes and varying strengths in manipulating the Force mean that thousands of droids will probably wipe out the majority of 50 or so Jedi. It's still impressive fighting and there's no problem here as I'm not naive enough the believe that Jedi are invincible. It just bothers me that Padme was the first to notice Yoda arriving in the last movie.
But this isn't a critique- this is notice that for the rest of the day I'll be in a trance getting ready for this movie. I will not be expecting a masterpiece or anything close to being nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. I expect John Williams' score to accentuate the films sequences, the space battles and lightsaber duels to be fluent and gripping, the acting to be relatively par for the course (with Kenobi being the only role I can get into along with perhaps Windu and Palpatine), the story to mostly come together with only minor loose ends (we need to leave room for authors to write interesting side stories and games), to have one scene completely blow my mind (such as Yoda's fight scene in Attack of the Clones), and to not be able to take my eyes of the screen.
Anything more than that is a bonus, anything less and I may be extremely disappointed. If I get essentially what has made me enjoy the previous films that means the DVD will be purchased and I can hold it in the face of everyone who still clings to the Matrix trilogy. Sure, the first Matrix was a landscape movie that was the best of any movie from either series by far, but the last one was so awful it's now unbearable to watch without busting into MST3K mode.
Until tomorrow...
In a pathetic way it feels part of my life's work will be completed today when I make it to my afternoon viewing of Revenge of the Sith. Is it even worth trying to explain? You got a sense of how dark this movie would be the second Attack of the Clones ended and the previews seem to paint a similar picture.
Preparation for this movie has included watching the old movies again this week. Not that I couldn't recall every line or musical score that was about to march through my home theatre, but just to revel in the moment and go in 'ready' for the last piece of the puzzle. What's more is that the movies are still a lot of fun- even Episodes I and II.
You see I am not one of those programmed whiners that spit out cliché remarks like my childhood was raped (if 10 years of your life get destroyed by 30 minutes of film being edited you have more problems that you want to admit), Jar Jar is the worst movie character (loud stupidity is okay for Jim Carrey and Chris Farley and nobody else), Lucas is out for money (and no other producers are- really!), and so on. I can stil enjoy the movies. Do I disagree with some of the changes that have been made? Sure I do, but it doesn't cause me to whine incessantly about it.
Oh, and one thing that has really bugged me is that everyone thinks Jedi are these incredibly invincible characters because they can use the Force. It's an amusing argument. Like any group of warriors people latch onto the leaders and believe everyone has those abilities. Not everybody is as attuned with the Force as much as Yoda, Kenobi, Windu, Maul, Dooku, and so on. Not everybody in our Armed Forces is a Navy Seal. Not every Navy Seal has the same prowess either. The Jedi are a relatively small group of warriors with a gift to manipulate the living Force.
In short they have fast reflexes, have some magical powers, and can wield the coolest weapon ever thought of in any science fiction arena (Star Wars may not be best defined as science fiction, but the weapons in the universe certainly have to be of that element). Fast reflexes and varying strengths in manipulating the Force mean that thousands of droids will probably wipe out the majority of 50 or so Jedi. It's still impressive fighting and there's no problem here as I'm not naive enough the believe that Jedi are invincible. It just bothers me that Padme was the first to notice Yoda arriving in the last movie.
But this isn't a critique- this is notice that for the rest of the day I'll be in a trance getting ready for this movie. I will not be expecting a masterpiece or anything close to being nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. I expect John Williams' score to accentuate the films sequences, the space battles and lightsaber duels to be fluent and gripping, the acting to be relatively par for the course (with Kenobi being the only role I can get into along with perhaps Windu and Palpatine), the story to mostly come together with only minor loose ends (we need to leave room for authors to write interesting side stories and games), to have one scene completely blow my mind (such as Yoda's fight scene in Attack of the Clones), and to not be able to take my eyes of the screen.
Anything more than that is a bonus, anything less and I may be extremely disappointed. If I get essentially what has made me enjoy the previous films that means the DVD will be purchased and I can hold it in the face of everyone who still clings to the Matrix trilogy. Sure, the first Matrix was a landscape movie that was the best of any movie from either series by far, but the last one was so awful it's now unbearable to watch without busting into MST3K mode.
Until tomorrow...
