Any one seen stars wars yet?

smashr2k · 05-16-2002, 08:55 AM

subject says it all! anyone seen it?

Falcon62Travis · 05-16-2002, 10:07 AM

I'm leaving in about 5 minutes to see the 9:00 AM show!
I'll let you know how it is!

CrazyLittle · 05-16-2002, 10:24 AM

Saw the VCD - definately not what all the hype is about, but fun nonetheless. Equally devoid of a decent storyline, but action-packed and lots of pretty effects.

jol · 05-16-2002, 11:06 AM

I'll go see it tomorrow!

Gutter · 05-16-2002, 11:38 AM

I caught the bootlegged version too, and I loved Ep. 2. Anakin needs a good kickin' in the teeth, but the rest was great.

I didn't realize till yesterday that Boba Fett as a child and his father Jonga are in the movie. Keep an eye out if you're as dense as me.

The battle scenes which took up the last quarter of the movie are incredible. Georgie-boy done did good.

I'll catch it in a theatre in a few weeks and watch it in all its glory.

CrazyLittle · 05-16-2002, 12:35 PM

Well now that it's out, here's a little more. If you're sensitive to this kind of stuff, don't read on. There aren't any direct spoilers, but any information on this movie is enough to give away the whole thing (as if the previews haven't already!)

Anakin doesn't just need a kick in the teeth, he needs a good anal raping. The acting was HORRID, and the interaction btw Amidala and Anakin is non-existant.

There's no discernable plot to the entire thing. It drags on like reading 2 pages out of War & Peace, and covers just about as much ground. They would have done a lot better if they had focused on 1 or 2 characters instead of jumping around between 50. It almost feels as if there's going to be a SW Part 2.5, then 2.75, then 2.99, and THEN part 3 (followed by parts 3.3, 3.5, 3.6, 3.61 etc...)

And the last scene? Sure, it's cool, but it's ripped from Gladiator like a 2nd term abortion. I found myself scratching my head during parts of that scene and saying "Damn, if they were -so- badass, why didn't they just kill the guy and be done with it?"

Also, the bad guy is poorly played too. He aries no sense of presense to himself - no aire of being a "badass" which he so desperately needed. A movie reviewer here likened his to Colonel Sanders (of KFC fame) just itching to ask, "Would you like Spicy or Extra Crispy?"

Gutter · 05-16-2002, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by CrazyLittle
Anakin doesn't just need a kick in the teeth, he needs a good anal raping. The acting was HORRID, and the interaction btw Amidala and Anakin is non-existant.

Agreed. During the first part of the movie, she hates Anakin as much as the rest of us, but when Anakin's mother dies, she's got her panties off sitting on his face in no time.

Quote:

Originally posted by CrazyLittle
There's no discernable plot to the entire thing. It drags on like reading 2 pages out of War & Peace, and covers just about as much ground.

The first half is a little slow, but it was mostly character development. It's been 10 years since we last saw Anakin, so we need to know exactly what a little ****head he has become.

Quote:

Originally posted by CrazyLittle
And the last scene? Sure, it's cool, but it's ripped from Gladiator like a 2nd term abortion.

Because they were in a coliseum?!? That's the only similarity I can think of. If that's it, that's like saying that filming a movie in New York is ripping off Woody Allen movies.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't recall lightsabers, blasters, or flying jedis in Gladiator.

Quote:

Originally posted by CrazyLittle
I found myself scratching my head during parts of that scene and saying "Damn, if they were -so- badass, why didn't they just kill the guy and be done with it?"

Would you pay to see a movie of guys walking around waving their hand over every foe and killing them? Sounds pretty boring to me.

Quote:

Originally posted by CrazyLittle
Also, the bad guy is poorly played too. He aries no sense of presense to himself - no aire of being a "badass" which he so desperately needed.

Agreed, but I don't think it took away from the movie as much as the name "Count Dooku". Sounds like a character from Sesame Street.

Meatballman · 05-16-2002, 10:35 PM

I saw the 5 o'clock showing tonight (EST).

gripes:

I felt like they spent the first 45 minutes trying to recover from the disappointing episode one. I agree the acting was rather wooden. Occasionally there would be a bright spot where they nailed a scene. That is the most disappointing, because you realize at those times what the movie COULD have been. There were also a few times where the digital effects stole from the movie a little. Even with another screenwriter added on, for some reason the dialog suffered.

pleased about:

The last 45 minutes was worth the whole admission price. There was some great action scenes and the acting actually improved a little. I thought Christopher Lee did a good job with Count Dooku. He had to remain somewhat emotionless...he's been formally trained as a Jedi. I loved his fight with Yoda -- Yoda kicked some serious arse. The scenes with Jango Fett fighting were good...the cgi didn't interfere.

All in all I came out a little encouraged that the entire series isn't shot to hell. They're starting to drift back on track. If they can get some decent line delivery and a good dialog script for Ep III, I think it'll be a good movie.

wizardPC · 05-17-2002, 02:34 AM

Does anybody else seem a little confused that the storm troopers are the bad guys at the beginning and the good guys at the end, with nothing changing other than Yoda going to pick them up from the factory?

Storm Troopers as the good guys? WTF?

I may have to see it again just to get a little less confused.

CrazyLittle · 05-17-2002, 03:10 AM

Actually gutter - I'm not saying the last scenes from both movies are the same. I'm saying that the last scene from SW2 is basically Gladiator, lather/rinse/repeat. Chained monsters, chained heros, middle of a coliseum, amazingly surreal victory over the opressors (Oh, did I forget to mention the severe slash wounds that miraculously disappear from Amidala's back?)

Slow or not, they didn't need to spend 45 minutes doing what everyother movie seems to accomplish in the opening credits.

And must I pull out the Big Guns(R)?? What the hell is with the Jar-Jar substitute? (Aka C-3PO's head on a droid's body?!?! GHEY!)

MikeHunt79 · 05-17-2002, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by wizardPC
Does anybody else seem a little confused that the storm troopers are the bad guys at the beginning and the good guys at the end, with nothing changing other than Yoda going to pick them up from the factory?

Storm Troopers as the good guys? WTF?

I may have to see it again just to get a little less confused.

I was also wondering the same thing... Anyway, i enjoyed most of it, but the whole romance thing got on my nerves... it seemed a bit pointless to me.

Mind you, i loved the way yoda done some serious arse kicking, then a few minutes later he was hobbling along on his walking stick

smashr2k · 05-18-2002, 11:38 AM

Ok, i saw it, and i got to say that i thought it was great! First of all, incredible acting has never been a major strong suit of the star wars series, but i did not think it took away from movie except of the ten minutes on naboo where anakin is hitting on padme. That was the only definable "bad" part of the movie. Everything else was good. The beginings chase sequence after the female bounty hunter was well executed, and added some action to the begining. Like I said, the naboo love sequences sucked, by that was only 10 minutes. The ending by FAR made up for it.

The ending was not at all like gladiator. Just because they are in a colliseum and have to escape does not make it exactly the same. The fact that they are in a colliseum is not nessecary to the movie in SW, but it is a central part of Gladiator.

Storm Troopers: You have to remember that the Jedi do not know that Palpatine is the dark lord of the sith. They are interested in protecting the republic. Perhaps from the previews we think that the clones are bad, but we learn in the movie that the clone army is FOR the republic. The jedi who died ten years ago requested the army be built for the republic. Obi-wan simply reports this to the council, he doesnt announce the clones are bad. Once the senate votes palpatine emergency powers, then the army for the republic is completley legit. It makes sense that yoda will use them. The clone army is never called "bad" by the jedis or anyone for that matter. They are all just sorta confused. It is our own misconceptions that cause them to be bad.

Yes, the plot is discernable and very well crafted in my opinion. You must look at the entire picture. Lucas has crafted a situation where the sith have taken controll of the republic, then the sith create a splinter 'sepratist' group to cause enough of a crisis to gain more power in the republic. While the various guilds and federations obviously DO want to break away, it is quite clear when Dooku goes back to corruscant to see Sidious, that the sole purpose of the sepratists is to create a war to give palpatine more power.

Finally, about anakin, he is supposed to need a good slap or two. He is supposed to be arrogant, whiney, and akward. The fact that he acted the way he did was intentional. Next movie he will become vader. He MUST have the torrent of emotions. Plus, remember, he is supposed to be 18. Do all 18 year olds you know have a massive amount of 'coolness' when dealing with natalie portman. To an extent the love scenes are supposed to be that way.

Overall, i was impressed.

CrazyLittle · 05-19-2002, 02:50 AM

That would be a fine review if you're looking at the series as a whole, but whether or not SW:ep2 is a good movie on its own merrits is a completely different issue.

Think of it from the perspective of a person who doesn't know that Ep4-6 exist. If you look at it as just a sequel (which basically means for everyone who wasn't born pre-1970) then its storyline is another Pulp Fiction WITHOUT a strong tie between each act. The whole movie jumps around what, 18 different places? Where's the immersion in their world? It's almost like watching a "Cities of the world" screen saver.

Bad parts of the movie:
-The movie is LONG. It doesn't need to be.
-We don't want to kick in Anakin's teeth for his attitude... We want to kick them in for his unconvincing portrayal of that attitude.
-Poor acting on Anakin's part. Supposed to be arrogant, cocky, "badass and he knows it", yet comes off as whiny and generally lame.
-Another poor show from Natalie Portman. Unconvincing. No aire of royalty, nor real sense of responsibility. She's supposed to be the ruler of the republic practically and yet still comes across like the little girl from "The Professional"
-No "Massacre" scene. He chops down two of the slave traders and calls THAT a "massacre"??? Come on Lucas! Show your audience that it's truly a travesty that he commited genocide!
-Colonel Sanders doesn't make for a impressionable "bad guy". You want BAD? Look up any of Jack Nicholson's villain roles. That guy KNOWS how to give you the creeps.
- I'm still waiting for Samuel L. Jackson to bust out his "Bad ************" wallet... :-)
- C-3PO as the butt of the dumbass jokes. If Jar-Jar wasn't bad enough already!

Good Parts:
-Yoda.
-Excellent SFX show from Lucas again. I'm sure the whole "Digital Theatre" fiasco for Ep3 will create an uproar, but will be well worth it.
-Great choriographed fight/war scenes... oh wait... it's all CGI.
-Yoda.
-Obiwan gets his *** beat down. (Wow, a hero that really -does- lose a fight in a movie... It's about time America!)
-Boba/Jonga Fett. The scene where Boba picks up his father's helmet is very well done, but would have been more effective if the kid had actually teared a bit.
-Yoda.
-R2D2 loses the "midget inside" sticker thanks to some great puppetry & CGI.
-Did I mention Yoda?

As for the Gladiator reference, it's pointing out that (just like gladiator) the ending scene has some miraculous escape. You would think that a evil masterminded superpower like the Sith would have a better method of executing their feared enemies than "throwing them to the lions" a la Gladiator.

And nobody's even TRIED to rebuke my statement about Amidala's disappearing back wounds.

magnetik · 05-19-2002, 03:43 AM

I will keep this short, god know from the above that enough of the story has been disected already by you guys!

Anyway, I LOVED it... saw it yesterday. Its fair to say that George Lucas has redeemed himself from Episode 1....

as most ppl/commentators have said, slow to start.... but once it kicks in WOW... the fight scenes were really impressive... especially the arena clone battle and the Yoda fight scene (gotta love that little guy!~). to Crazylittle, how could you ruin it by watching it on VCD!!!!! definately a movie to be experenced on the big screen at least the first viewing.... has anyone seen it in DIGITAL? since I read alot \about the whole movie being done on digital cameras 100% but sadly only around 60 digital cinemas exist in the world (im guessing most in the US) - and none in OZ, even tho alot of the movie was filmed in Sydney!!!! (where is the logic?) if you have seen it in DIGITAL, is it worth the hype? im hoping its like the difference between VHS and DVD......

I still feel that star wars episodes 4-6 are the best, and always will be I think for alot of ppl....

I will most likely check it out again on the big screen, its got that 'gotta see it again' feel to it

it will be interesting to see Episode three how they cover all the story to tie things into 'A New Hope'........

... so much for a short rant... !

magnetik · 05-19-2002, 03:53 AM

... just reading over some of Gutters disection (very good BTW!) and had a few points - not really movie related!

The Samuel L Jackson 'bad mother****a' line... is a good one! I got a great email the other day 'top 10 lines Samuel L. Jackson didnt get to say in ESP2'.... its a classic... left me in tears will send it thru when im back at work....

Natalie Portman.... now, I was never a fan of her at all.... but she is very easy on the eye IMHO in this movie. nice to see they took steps will all her costumes to confirm for the viewing public that she does have a fair amount of cleavage....

its the makings of a good movie 9 times out of 10!

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