I've relayed your post to a distant alien civilisation of immense power, and they've informed me that the Von Neumann Killer Probes have been dispatched. Normally, they just send one, but in your case they sent 1E+09, just to be sure.
Amphetamines??? You should try midi-chlorians instead. Much more effective and with less side effects. Not counting the risk of acquiring a narcissistic personality disorder and walking around with a lightsaber killing everyone who disagrees with you...
At the time of writing this, there are 0 votes for any of the prequel trilogy! That's what I would have hoped for, but not what I expected. Of course, then I noticed that only 19 votes had been cast... Episode 4 was amazing because it was such a well-executed, new idea. Episode 5 was amazing because of the actors' chemistry, the additional special effects, and the twists and surprises. The rest are just money-grabs...
All of the movies were money-grabs. Hope, Empire and (to a lesser extent) Jedi were good movies regardless, but they were just as money-grabby as the prequels.
All of the movies were money-grabs. Hope, Empire and (to a lesser extent) Jedi were good movies regardless, but they were just as money-grabby as the prequels.
MGM's motto notwithstanding, It is hard to find financing to make a movie purely for art's sake
Star Wars wasn't great; but it was probably the most well-executed en media res piece I've ever seen in theater. En media res is difficult: most jump right into a disconnected story, dumping you into a rolling sense of action without a sense of purpose (see: Battlefield Earth). Star Wars opened Episode 4 (and Episode 1) in a tense situation with clear, readily-understood motives.
Most of these movies don't stand up to a lot of scrutiny when it comes to military tactics. They are all about delivering a certain visual and concocting an excuse for that visual. The Death Star trench run is a great example of this.
Yeah. Why fly down the trench? It goes all around the entire death star! Just go directly to the exhaust port... It's true though, the movies are more about conveying a story than being an accurate representation of what military tactics and government would be in that setting.
Because the death stars defenses were expecting people to do that. The flaw isn't the port*, it's the minimal protect portion of the trench just before the port. There specifically show the cannon firing stopping and the pilot looking around.
*as such. A grill and a couple of bends in the exhaust port would have been nice:)
A grill and a couple of bends in the exhaust port would have been nice
This is really the fundamental problem with evil empires. The combination of endemic corruption and workers who will do every subtle thing they can get away with to sabotage you.
I found the "hidden" (but conveniently leaked ASAP) weakness built right into the Death Star really believable, almost inevitable. But then, I've worked with lots of people from former communist countries; past masters of passive aggression and sabotage when they felt exploited.
A grill and a couple of bends in the exhaust port would have been nice
This is really the fundamental problem with evil empires. The combination of endemic corruption and workers who will do every subtle thing they can get away with to sabotage you.
I found the "hidden" (but conveniently leaked ASAP) weakness built right into the Death Star really believable, almost inevitable. But then, I've worked with lots of people from former communist countries; past masters of passive aggression and sabotage when they felt exploited.
Never ascribe to malice what can easily be blamed on stupidity.
General Motors makes an Alloytec V6 that stretches timing chains... They didn't know about it until customers had done 80,000 KM and the timing chains were showing signs of wear. For those who dont know, timing chains are meant to last the lifetime of the engine, it's not uncommon to have a Honda or Toyota engine with a chain go for 600,000+ KM. There are thousands of examples like this across the automotive industry alone.
The grill was almost certainly in the blueprints. But some beancounter found out that they could save a few spacecents by not putting one there. And what for, "that can never happen".
We're not just in science fiction land, but in movie fiction land where things don't have to make sense, but...
In space, one of the most difficult things to do is dissipate heat. You can radiate, but you can't convect or conduct heat away from you. For a practical demonstration, get a vacuum flask, fill it with boiling water, put it in the freezer and see how long it takes to cool down.
The Death Star has a massive laser-of-doom weapon, which almost certainly produces a huge amount of waste heat. Dumping that heat is likely to be a priority, because you want the planet you're shooting at to be destroyed, not you. Being able to vent coolant in large amounts quickly from the middle of the station is probably very important.
The trench run limits your enemies. You have either the whole of space and infinite distance projectiles, or a small wedge and a lot of close-combat turret play. Both strategies have merit.
It's not like Luke spent hours flying through that trench. They flew towards it in open space, but you can't just fly in a straight line in the middle of a dogfight. They got as close as they reasonably could, and at that point it made more sense to fly within the trench and take cover from some of the guns. If they had been flying, say, a few kilometers above the surface, they would have been exposed to ALL of the surface guns, rather than just those that could shoot within the trench.
In a real space situation, with an enemy pointing a real laser at me, I'd prefer the trench.
The bigger the distance between me and my enemy, the slower his lasers have to move to track me and keep me lined up. The closer I get before he can shoot, the faster he would have to be able to move his laser. The problem with lasers is that a huge distance helps me rather little. Provided he gets the dissipation down, whether I'm an inch or a mile away means little. That damn thing WILL hit me and it WILL hurt. He
Why didn't they put some kind of cover over the exhaust port? They could build a spaceship the size of a moon but they couldn't build something to stop missiles flying up the dam exhaust pipe.
The gun was pointed at the base, so the exhaust would have been on the opposite side, right? Going around the planet for cover for a direct run at the port would have taken too long (they were almost in range already). So fly straight at the Death Star, and use the Death Star itself for cover to get to the far side. What altitude would you have preferred them to use to get to the far side?
The Hoth Battle has the bite of realism that takes sci-fi to the next level...
we have the external shots...future war in an ice world!
then patrol troops looking through future binoculars...tech!...what's that...through the haze of snow on the horizon...a giant waking tank! yay tech!
wait there's more of them...and little walkers too...slowly coming right for us!
then we get all kinds of relatable future-battle scenes between the short-range quick fighters and the walkers...Wedge!..."copy gold leader"...using the tow-cable to take down a walker...ingenuity in battle! super awesome!
then...the Taun Taun gets cut open and Luke put into it to save him from the bitter cold...game over...it's pretty awesome
notice there was virtually zero dialogue...and Lucas's input was mostly concept design...maybe that's part of it;)
The animated Clone Wars that preceded it was way better, and actually made the last of the prequels make some sense. Taken as a whole it was the best of all the prequel movies, by far.
I forgive the prequels to some extent because you had to see the prequels to understand the context for the Clone Wars cartoon.
I'm amazed that Jedi is rated U in the UK (universal, suitable for all ages). Leia's modesty is only slightly preserved by shadows and the poor quality of the film stock. Plus lots of people get shot, cut up and eaten. There is slavery, executions, cute furry things dying.
We seem to have become more conservative since then.
When I saw Star Wars in the theatre when it was released, it was call Star Wars. None of this "New hope" BS. And it was the one where Han shot first!
For that reason -- seen in a theater on first release -- Star Wars is my favorite Star Wars, too. Among my friends, the question was always: "How many times have you seen Star Wars?"
The Empire Strikes Back is the better movie for plenty of reasons (and the best of the franchise) but Star Wars, just Star Wars, is my favorite.
The Empire Strikes Back is the better movie for plenty of reasons (and the best of the franchise) but Star Wars, just Star Wars, is my favorite.
I disagree. Empire is superior in various aspects (SFX wise, acting wise, mood wise) but I don't think they add up to make a better movie. I think people like it because of all the cool stuff in it (AT-ATs, Yoda, Boba Fett) but if you think about it, it kinda starts in the middle of nowhere, ends in the middle of nowhere, and the heroes lose. It's just nowhere near as satisfying as the original, if you ask me.
Oh, and if you're an old crank like me, was your reaction to the big "revelation" about Darth Vader
So movie are only good if the hero's win? You must hate Rocky.
oh, spoiler.
Empire is a story, the middle of the story, so yeah, it doesn't end. It's better acted, better written, better filmed, and better choreographed then star wars.
"Why all the business about Luke's father being "the best star pilot in the galaxy" if from Empire onward he never pilots a single thing?" Because he is doing bigger things. When you grow up, some times you end up with different responsibilities
Exactly this. I will never forget 5 yr old me and my 3 yr old brother watching Star Wars with my mom and dad in the theater back in '77. It had a huge pop culture impact on our lives. It's the movie that started it all.
Empire is a better movie, but Star Wars has a special place in my heart.
Hidden fortress is nothing like star wars, and in fact isn't even worth comparing.
Well, once it became part of a multi-movie story it made sense to give it it's own name. And yes, I was in the theater the day it was released. all day, and the next, and pretty much every weekend until it left the theaters, months later, and Saw HIdden fortress that same summer, in a theater. Special showing in..Balboa I think? meh.
See, I too can make irrelevant statement showing I am old but in no way adding to an argument.
I saw Star Wars in the theater. It had run for AN ENTIRE YEAR - from opening day - in the same theater, and I have to admit it took me that long to go see it.
Mainstream theaters would never do that nowadays. The tiering system is pretty well defined.
Avatar's first run went eight months. Sort of in the ballpark. Just reinforces the idea, though, that doing this requires a top 10 all time box office winner (adjusted for inflation).
When I saw Star Wars in the theatre when it was released, it was call Star Wars. None of this "New hope" BS. And it was the one where Han shot first!
And lets also not forget Kurosawa's "Hidden Fortress" (which I never saw in theaters but I *have* seen)
So get off my lawn you young whippersnappers.
When I watched Star Wars, the first film, I was perched in a seat with a massive bucket of popcorn in my lap (as I wasn't very tall, yet, it nearly obscured the screen, such was my love of popcorn.) When that Imperial Star Destroyer cruised "overhead" the piece of popcorn on my tongue rolled out and fell back into the bucket. I was floored by the visual effect. I think I scarcely touched the popcorn throughout the rest of the film and was surprised to find I had a bucket of popcorn at the end. Gripping.
Under 20 years old youngsters don't have the same hostility for the prequels. To them, all six movies are all "old stuff". Even Episode III is almost a decade old now.
The movie started and ended in an exciting way in the middle of an ongoing story. The rebels had just dealt a mighty blow to the empire but were now fleeing from the might of the empire's retaliation. The characters and special effects were developed nicely versus A New Hope. It was a fairly dark movie, the main protagonists were on the run and not in control of things. A major character loses a hand and the big fight at the end of the movie, but lives to fight another day.
And it had AT-ATs, and no Ewoks or Jar-Jar. What's not to like?
My fave is still the original Star Wars. It was fresh, it was new, yes, it was hokey, but it worked.
Check your sophistication at the door and enjoy the ride!
I find the prequel movies unwatchable.
Some things never change: when The Empire Strikes Back was imminent, they re-released Star Wars
in the theatres to get some buzz going. It was accompanied by a short, a trip to the Moon, assembled from NASA footage. Some younger members
of the audience expressed loud displeasure at the "fake" movie. They didn't read the credits where it said
"Filmed on location by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration".
I recently watched thru all 6 episodes in the order they "should be" (started at Episode 1, went straight thru to 6), and I have to say that I have a new perspective on them all. It was NOT what I expected and remembered thru the fog of memory.
Episode 1 -- still very terrible. easily the weakest of all movies. Does a poor job setting up the story, the characters, the universe, the Force (a very vague reference to bacteria, but nothing beyond that -- what does that even mean?), everything. Not very much action; one of the "biggest" moments is the podrace which is neither in the Stars nor is it a War. Whenever a character tried to explain something, Jar Jar would appear and scream over the lines and take away focus.
Episode 2 -- much better than I remembered. Jar Jar is not a significant character. It actually does have a fair amount of intrigue/mystery (where the clones came from), and the battle of Geonosis is pretty decent. The main downside -- and probably why most think of it as lower than it actually is -- is the chemistry between Anakin and Padme. It's a little rushed and unnatural, but even that on a second viewing wasn't quite as bad as I remembered. It's more of a pacing issue than anything, and I think Episode 5 has a lot of the same problems.
Episode 3 -- I actually like what they tried to do with setting up the Jedi Council and the President/Emperor as being suspicious of each other, and tried to keep it vague who was working for who (even though we know the answer, the movie itself I think handled it well). The fighting and battles were much better, the characters finally seemed to be a lot more developed. The main part I didn't like was Anakin's turn so quickly -- again, it actually wasn't too badly done, he has a lot of good motivation if you can keep up, but its a pacing issue. Having characters like Chewbacca show up at the end didn't quite make sense with the continuity, but actually overall I thought it was a strong movie.
Episode 4 -- actually much weaker than I remember. Doesn't do a very good job of setting up the characters, or story. Just an action flick. Luke especially is extremely whiny. Leia and Han are alright characters, but they don't get enough screen time to develop. C-3P0 actually is like a toned down Jar Jar -- whenever someone is about to say something important, he blathers and worries about something. R2-D2 actually has more of a screen presence and personality than most of the characters. Another interesting thing I noticed is that apart from the first scene of the movie, Darth Vader does not make much of a presence; flying the fighter against Luke at the end doesn't really make him that special other than a commanding officer; he's not nearly as "scary" as I remembered. The Imperial officers actually argue with him a lot and don't take him that seriously. The Death Star being destroyed isn't any less ridiculous than the prequel.
Episode 5 -- After the initial battle of Hoth, which was pretty good, the action slows down a lot. This is to focus on character development, which the movie does a good job of overall. But Luke is still a whiny character (like father like son?), and Han and Leia's relationship developing is also an issue with pacing -- good presentation, but Leia suddenly liking him seemed to be just as quick as the Anakin/Padme romance. It works a little better because Leia is more expressive with her anger at Han than Padme had toward Anakin (Padme always kept composure), but otherwise I think very similar. Also, Darth Vader seems a little too much in the background of most scenes -- it's implied he does a lot, but we never see him DO it on the screen, so can't really take him seriously yet. In fact, apart from the battle of Hoth at the beginning, you kind of forget an Empire exists because the story focuses so much on following Luke and Han. That's fine to develop characters but there isn't really any sense of urgency of fighting this big empire. 3PO still annoying, R2D2 kind of bad-ass.
Yeah Lucas always sucked at writing dialog, especially romance scenes. I remember reading that his wife at the time rewrote a lot of the romance scenes because they were even worse in early drafts.
Yeah Lucas always sucked at writing dialog, especially romance scenes. I remember reading that his wife at the time rewrote a lot of the romance scenes because they were even worse in early drafts.
My favourite... "Being with you is... intoxicating"
Randal Graves: Which did you like better? "Jedi" or "The Empire Strikes Back"?
Dante Hicks: "Empire".
Randal Graves: Blasphemy.
Dante Hicks: "Empire" had the better ending. I mean, Luke gets his hand cut off, finds out Vader's his father, Han gets frozen and taken away by Boba Fett. It ends on such a down note. I mean, that's what life is, a series of down endings. All "Jedi" had was a bunch of Muppets.
The summer of '77 was awesome, and the hot ticket was this new movie called Star Wars.
I saw it from about the fourth row, looking up at a screen that was gigantic, and I was mesmerized because the special effects were so advanced for the time. The storyline wasn't awesome, but it was certainly entertaining. With Alec Guiness, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher in the cast, the story moved along nicely.
Episode V was still pretty good, but I think the movies went downhill from there.
It came out when I was 6 or 7. It was enthralling. I wish I could re-experience seeing that movie, at that age, with having only previously seen pre-1977 special effects.
I can't wait to see the creativity of this in theaters. Sadly the movie could be just like it is above and I bet there will still be some hardcore nerds who will wait until 12am in line for hours to see it.
I also voted for this one. To me it had the most amazing set pieces of any of the six movies, and for some reason I enjoyed the mystery elements of the first half of the movie. The Yoda fight wasn't bad either. The one unfortunate thing was the wooden acting during that insufferable fireplace scene.
Wowwww.... of all the trash people have to talk about Phantom Menace, I actually thought it was OK at the time. Maybe I was rationalizing. But Attack of the Clones was truly terrrrrrible, like really, really "I want my money and my time back" bad.
Looks like the poll is agreeing with you. Oh well, if I am forced to turn in my nerd badge for cultural apostasy, I suppose that might merit a fun sort of distinction in and of itself.
Phantom Menace had Jar-Jar as a great asset. Unfortunately, the fluid behavior and dynamic movement of truly good acting (even for a CGI character) clashes with the dead, lifeless prompting of modern film; Jar-Jar draws too much attention and makes something seem off about the movie.
In modern acting, people stand around holding a pose and following prompts. The prompt may be a director or another actor (LINE!), but it's still a prompt. Iron Man is talking, look at him with a cocky scowl. Finished your
I actually liked the prequels,as do a lot of fans. Some of them are so revisionist they'll try to claim they didn't like some of the *originals* now. Honestly, take out Jar Jar and the TPM is my 2nd favorite. Take out the terribly-acted romantic scenes by Christensen, and the prequels are on a par with the originals, for me.
Ep. II was one of three movies I literally fell asleep in the middle of, and I consider myself a big Star Wars fan. The other were Fantasia (I was very young and tired, and it has some slow parts), and Sense and Sensibility (chick flick, and one of the most boring movies ever made). Attack of the Clones was that bad.
People need to take off their nostalgia blinders. Seriously, go watch 4-6 as if you're watching it for the first time and evaluating them as films. They're all filled with cheesy acting, massive plot holes, and the main draw is the special effects and explosions. So when the prequels do the exact same thing, that's not something to get angry over. Just shrug your shoulders, say "well, that's Star Wars" and enjoy the explosions.
Man, Caravan of Courage... The scene where the kid gets his arm stuck in a tree, and the one later where he gets stuck under the water... *shudder* That movie teaches kids important life lessons, specifically "nature will kill you."
Complaints that the plot is too complex: leave off good stories like The Gap Cycle or Age of Misrule, then, since you wouldn't be able to keep up with some of the most amazing things ever written. The Gap Cycle particularly is probably the best sci-fi epic I have ever read, and the only story I've reread--and the reread was mandatory.
Anakin changes from a kid to a teenager, and this bothers the author because it doesn't make sense. People don't like to accept that folks change;
The first one (Hope, before it was so named) was the "best" because it was the first. None of the others would have existed, had it flopped. It did well because it was groundbreaking. As a retrospective, the second (strikes back) may better weather the test of time. But as someone old enough to see them all "in order" in the theaters in their original run as a child, I didn't like the "dark" second (vader in the tree was a haunting image), but the first was the most amazing, and the third the most fun.
oh, so if you're not explained ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING you can't infer that the fucking imperial powers allowed EMPEROR Palpatine and Darth Vader to extend their reach and rule over the whole universe completely unopposed thanks to the clones and the lack of jedis to stop them?
Yeah, we "know" the clone army is really Stormtroopers, and the Jedi fighting for the Republic are really fighting for the evil Empire. But we like to see it happen sometimes. The Jedi were wiped out, aside from Yoda, Vader, and Obiwan (and the children, of course, but they weren't jedi at the time of the cull). OR how Naboo fared, knowing it was the spark that changed the Republic into the Empire.
One would presume that the Emperor, running both sides of the war, would manipulate a cease fire with all si
It's time to boot, do your boot ROMs know where your disk controllers are?
Just to stir the pot (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Just to stir the pot (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Just to stir the pot (Score:4, Funny)
I've relayed your post to a distant alien civilisation of immense power, and they've informed me that the Von Neumann Killer Probes have been dispatched. Normally, they just send one, but in your case they sent 1E+09, just to be sure.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
I voted for Phantom Menace because I liked it more. And I saw the original in the theater back in 77 as a kid.
Re:Just to stir the pot (Score:4, Funny)
Was that that 2 hour commercial for the podracer computer game?
Re:Just to stir the pot (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Just to stir the pot (Score:4, Funny)
Re: (Score:3)
Not counting the risk of acquiring a narcissistic personality disorder and walking around with a lightsaber killing everyone who disagrees with you...
You say that like it's a bad thing.
YOU GET A LIGHTSABER!
All else is of secondary importance.
Re:Just to stir the pot (Score:4, Funny)
I sense a disturbance in the Force, as if millions of fans cried out in pain.
Episode V! (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
All of the movies were money-grabs. Hope, Empire and (to a lesser extent) Jedi were good movies regardless, but they were just as money-grabby as the prequels.
Re: (Score:3)
All of the movies were money-grabs. Hope, Empire and (to a lesser extent) Jedi were good movies regardless, but they were just as money-grabby as the prequels.
MGM's motto notwithstanding, It is hard to find financing to make a movie purely for art's sake
Re:Episode V! (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
"And Clone Wars waaay worse than all of them." :)
Well, clearly you opening can't be trusted.
Re: (Score:2)
all-media rest (Score:3)
compared to what?
I can't *disagree* that what you stated is your opinion...but I just don't see how your comparison is meaningful
How many movies have you seen that start 'en media res'? Battlefield Earth doesn't count really b/c no one defends that movie.
'en media res' is really, really easy if your "good guys" and "bad guys" are simplistically drawn characters...like Star Wars characters
I guess my point is, I don't know why what
Re:Episode V! (Score:4, Interesting)
Most of these movies don't stand up to a lot of scrutiny when it comes to military tactics. They are all about delivering a certain visual and concocting an excuse for that visual. The Death Star trench run is a great example of this.
Re:Episode V! (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Because the death stars defenses were expecting people to do that. The flaw isn't the port*, it's the minimal protect portion of the trench just before the port. There specifically show the cannon firing stopping and the pilot looking around.
*as such. A grill and a couple of bends in the exhaust port would have been nice:)
Re: (Score:3)
A grill and a couple of bends in the exhaust port would have been nice
This is really the fundamental problem with evil empires. The combination of endemic corruption and workers who will do every subtle thing they can get away with to sabotage you.
I found the "hidden" (but conveniently leaked ASAP) weakness built right into the Death Star really believable, almost inevitable. But then, I've worked with lots of people from former communist countries; past masters of passive aggression and sabotage when they felt exploited.
Re: (Score:3)
A grill and a couple of bends in the exhaust port would have been nice
This is really the fundamental problem with evil empires. The combination of endemic corruption and workers who will do every subtle thing they can get away with to sabotage you.
I found the "hidden" (but conveniently leaked ASAP) weakness built right into the Death Star really believable, almost inevitable. But then, I've worked with lots of people from former communist countries; past masters of passive aggression and sabotage when they felt exploited.
Never ascribe to malice what can easily be blamed on stupidity.
General Motors makes an Alloytec V6 that stretches timing chains... They didn't know about it until customers had done 80,000 KM and the timing chains were showing signs of wear. For those who dont know, timing chains are meant to last the lifetime of the engine, it's not uncommon to have a Honda or Toyota engine with a chain go for 600,000+ KM. There are thousands of examples like this across the automotive industry alone.
Like all large s
Re: (Score:3)
The grill was almost certainly in the blueprints. But some beancounter found out that they could save a few spacecents by not putting one there. And what for, "that can never happen".
Re:Why have an exhaust port at all? (Score:4, Insightful)
In space, one of the most difficult things to do is dissipate heat. You can radiate, but you can't convect or conduct heat away from you. For a practical demonstration, get a vacuum flask, fill it with boiling water, put it in the freezer and see how long it takes to cool down.
The Death Star has a massive laser-of-doom weapon, which almost certainly produces a huge amount of waste heat. Dumping that heat is likely to be a priority, because you want the planet you're shooting at to be destroyed, not you. Being able to vent coolant in large amounts quickly from the middle of the station is probably very important.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:3)
It's not like Luke spent hours flying through that trench. They flew towards it in open space, but you can't just fly in a straight line in the middle of a dogfight. They got as close as they reasonably could, and at that point it made more sense to fly within the trench and take cover from some of the guns. If they had been flying, say, a few kilometers above the surface, they would have been exposed to ALL of the surface guns, rather than just those that could shoot within the trench.
Re: (Score:3)
In a real space situation, with an enemy pointing a real laser at me, I'd prefer the trench.
The bigger the distance between me and my enemy, the slower his lasers have to move to track me and keep me lined up. The closer I get before he can shoot, the faster he would have to be able to move his laser. The problem with lasers is that a huge distance helps me rather little. Provided he gets the dissipation down, whether I'm an inch or a mile away means little. That damn thing WILL hit me and it WILL hurt. He
Re: (Score:2)
Why didn't they put some kind of cover over the exhaust port? They could build a spaceship the size of a moon but they couldn't build something to stop missiles flying up the dam exhaust pipe.
Re: (Score:2)
Why didn't they put some kind of cover over the exhaust port?
That was the flaw (or at least part of it). Someone messed up, or perhaps sold off the cover on the side to make a bit of extra illicit money.
Re:Episode V! (Score:5, Funny)
Why didn't they put some kind of cover over the exhaust port?
That was the flaw (or at least part of it).
Some of the other flaws:
It's no wonder it's called the Death Star.
Re:Episode V! (Score:4, Interesting)
The trench provided cover for the rebel fighters to get close to the exhaust port. Coming at it from above would have made them easy targets.
Having said that, why have a trench at all? Clearly they knew it was a potential weakness because they put gun turrets in it.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Well, considering how people get promoted, I'm not surprised that the Admirals aren't that bright.
Re:Episode V! (Score:4, Interesting)
The Hoth Battle has the bite of realism that takes sci-fi to the next level...
we have the external shots...future war in an ice world!
then patrol troops looking through future binoculars...tech!...what's that...through the haze of snow on the horizon...a giant waking tank! yay tech!
wait there's more of them...and little walkers too...slowly coming right for us!
then we get all kinds of relatable future-battle scenes between the short-range quick fighters and the walkers...Wedge!..."copy gold leader"...using the tow-cable to take down a walker...ingenuity in battle! super awesome!
then...the Taun Taun gets cut open and Luke put into it to save him from the bitter cold...game over...it's pretty awesome
notice there was virtually zero dialogue...and Lucas's input was mostly concept design...maybe that's part of it ;)
Better Clone Wars (Score:5, Interesting)
that Clone Wars CGI cartoon
The animated Clone Wars that preceded it was way better, and actually made the last of the prequels make some sense. Taken as a whole it was the best of all the prequel movies, by far.
I forgive the prequels to some extent because you had to see the prequels to understand the context for the Clone Wars cartoon.
Re:Episode V! (Score:4, Funny)
Re: (Score:3)
Hey, this is /. LibreOffice Writer!
Lawrence Kasdan... (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
{Ep 1-3} to {Ep. 7-9} isn't going to be any different with Disney bankrolling them. They're still going from suck to blow. //sorry, I had to :P
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
I'm amazed that Jedi is rated U in the UK (universal, suitable for all ages). Leia's modesty is only slightly preserved by shadows and the poor quality of the film stock. Plus lots of people get shot, cut up and eaten. There is slavery, executions, cute furry things dying.
We seem to have become more conservative since then.
Get off my effin lawn! (Score:5, Insightful)
When I saw Star Wars in the theatre when it was released, it was call Star Wars. None of this "New hope" BS. And it was the one where Han shot first!
And lets also not forget Kurosawa's "Hidden Fortress" (which I never saw in theaters but I *have* seen)
So get off my lawn you young whippersnappers.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Hidden Fortress is one of my favorite Kurosawa films. Brilliant(and funny).
Any Kurosawa film is great.
Re:Get off my effin lawn! (Score:5, Funny)
Any Kurosawa film is great.
I don't know about that. Ask 4 different fans and you'd probably get four completely different answers.
Re: (Score:2)
Any Kurosawa film is great.
I don't know about that. Ask 4 different fans and you'd probably get four completely different answers.
How about I preface that with "compared to Hollywood"?
Re:Get off my effin lawn! (Score:5, Informative)
When I saw Star Wars in the theatre when it was released, it was call Star Wars. None of this "New hope" BS. And it was the one where Han shot first!
For that reason -- seen in a theater on first release -- Star Wars is my favorite Star Wars, too. Among my friends, the question was always: "How many times have you seen Star Wars?"
The Empire Strikes Back is the better movie for plenty of reasons (and the best of the franchise) but Star Wars, just Star Wars, is my favorite.
Re: (Score:2)
The Empire Strikes Back is the better movie for plenty of reasons (and the best of the franchise) but Star Wars, just Star Wars, is my favorite.
I disagree. Empire is superior in various aspects (SFX wise, acting wise, mood wise) but I don't think they add up to make a better movie. I think people like it because of all the cool stuff in it (AT-ATs, Yoda, Boba Fett) but if you think about it, it kinda starts in the middle of nowhere, ends in the middle of nowhere, and the heroes lose. It's just nowhere near as satisfying as the original, if you ask me.
Oh, and if you're an old crank like me, was your reaction to the big "revelation" about Darth Vader
Re: (Score:3)
So movie are only good if the hero's win? You must hate Rocky.
oh, spoiler.
Empire is a story, the middle of the story, so yeah, it doesn't end. It's better acted, better written, better filmed, and better choreographed then star wars.
"Why all the business about Luke's father being "the best star pilot in the galaxy" if from Empire onward he never pilots a single thing?"
Because he is doing bigger things. When you grow up, some times you end up with different responsibilities
What's all this stuff about Neil Ar
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Exactly this. I will never forget 5 yr old me and my 3 yr old brother watching Star Wars with my mom and dad in the theater back in '77. It had a huge pop culture impact on our lives. It's the movie that started it all.
Empire is a better movie, but Star Wars has a special place in my heart.
Re: (Score:2)
Hidden fortress is nothing like star wars, and in fact isn't even worth comparing.
Well, once it became part of a multi-movie story it made sense to give it it's own name.
And yes, I was in the theater the day it was released. all day, and the next, and pretty much every weekend until it left the theaters, months later, and Saw HIdden fortress that same summer, in a theater. Special showing in..Balboa I think? meh.
See, I too can make irrelevant statement showing I am old but in no way adding to an argument.
Re: (Score:2)
I saw Star Wars in the theater. It had run for AN ENTIRE YEAR - from opening day - in the same theater, and I have to admit it took me that long to go see it.
Mainstream theaters would never do that nowadays. The tiering system is pretty well defined.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I saw star wars and empire strikes back at a drive-in. Sadly the drive-in closed before return of the jedi was released.
Re: (Score:2)
When I saw Star Wars in the theatre when it was released, it was call Star Wars. None of this "New hope" BS. And it was the one where Han shot first!
And lets also not forget Kurosawa's "Hidden Fortress" (which I never saw in theaters but I *have* seen)
So get off my lawn you young whippersnappers.
When I watched Star Wars, the first film, I was perched in a seat with a massive bucket of popcorn in my lap (as I wasn't very tall, yet, it nearly obscured the screen, such was my love of popcorn.) When that Imperial Star Destroyer cruised "overhead" the piece of popcorn on my tongue rolled out and fell back into the bucket. I was floored by the visual effect. I think I scarcely touched the popcorn throughout the rest of the film and was surprised to find I had a bucket of popcorn at the end. Gripping.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Score:2)
I liked The Clone Wars, you insensitive clod!
I can't even type that jokingly without cringing.
Star Wars Holiday Special (Score:5, Funny)
How could this not be an option?
Re: (Score:2)
It is why Boba Fett became such a cool character.
Re:Star Wars Holiday Special (Score:4, Funny)
Too bad we can't correlate these results by age gr (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
So you say that the Slashdot voters are so predictable that you always guessed wrong until now?
Empire Strikes Back was an easy choice (Score:3)
The movie started and ended in an exciting way in the middle of an ongoing story. The rebels had just dealt a mighty blow to the empire but were now fleeing from the might of the empire's retaliation. The characters and special effects were developed nicely versus A New Hope. It was a fairly dark movie, the main protagonists were on the run and not in control of things. A major character loses a hand and the big fight at the end of the movie, but lives to fight another day.
And it had AT-ATs, and no Ewoks or Jar-Jar. What's not to like?
Re: (Score:2)
It had giant robot camels [youtube.com].
Re: (Score:2)
With frickin' lasers! You really mustn't forget the frickin' lasers; they totally pull the concept together.
Re: (Score:2)
Hardware Wars. :)
Enough said.
Re: (Score:2)
Hardware Wars. :)
Enough said.
"You'll laugh. You'll cry. You'll kiss five bucks goodbye!" :)
Yeah, good times.
Spaceballs (Score:5, Funny)
Best Star Wars movie ever.
Evil will always triumph! (Score:4, Insightful)
Because good is dumb...
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
Spaceballs the slashdot comment
First and still the best (Score:5, Interesting)
My fave is still the original Star Wars. It was fresh, it was new, yes, it was hokey, but it worked. Check your sophistication at the door and enjoy the ride!
I find the prequel movies unwatchable.
Some things never change: when The Empire Strikes Back was imminent, they re-released Star Wars in the theatres to get some buzz going. It was accompanied by a short, a trip to the Moon, assembled from NASA footage. Some younger members of the audience expressed loud displeasure at the "fake" movie. They didn't read the credits where it said "Filmed on location by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration".
...laura
The Clone Wars Animated Series (Score:4, Informative)
Was pretty darn good as I remember. Not a movie I know, but worth mentioning.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S... [wikipedia.org]
New Perspective (Score:5, Interesting)
I recently watched thru all 6 episodes in the order they "should be" (started at Episode 1, went straight thru to 6), and I have to say that I have a new perspective on them all. It was NOT what I expected and remembered thru the fog of memory.
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah Lucas always sucked at writing dialog, especially romance scenes. I remember reading that his wife at the time rewrote a lot of the romance scenes because they were even worse in early drafts.
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah Lucas always sucked at writing dialog, especially romance scenes. I remember reading that his wife at the time rewrote a lot of the romance scenes because they were even worse in early drafts.
My favourite... "Being with you is ... intoxicating"
His wife must have let that one slide by...
Best (Score:3, Funny)
Wrath of Khan
Classic Line (Score:4, Funny)
Randal Graves: Which did you like better? "Jedi" or "The Empire Strikes Back"?
Dante Hicks: "Empire".
Randal Graves: Blasphemy.
Dante Hicks: "Empire" had the better ending. I mean, Luke gets his hand cut off, finds out Vader's his father, Han gets frozen and taken away by Boba Fett. It ends on such a down note. I mean, that's what life is, a series of down endings. All "Jedi" had was a bunch of Muppets.
I'm cornfoosed... (Score:2)
Loved the original (Score:3)
The summer of '77 was awesome, and the hot ticket was this new movie called Star Wars.
I saw it from about the fourth row, looking up at a screen that was gigantic, and I was mesmerized because the special effects were so advanced for the time. The storyline wasn't awesome, but it was certainly entertaining. With Alec Guiness, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher in the cast, the story moved along nicely.
Episode V was still pretty good, but I think the movies went downhill from there.
Re: (Score:2)
It came out when I was 6 or 7. It was enthralling. I wish I could re-experience seeing that movie, at that age, with having only previously seen pre-1977 special effects.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
he is actually pretty good, if you dont let him speak
Star Wars episode VII (Score:2)
Return of the with Darth Mouse and Lord Walt [youtube.com] is some epic shit.
I can't wait to see the creativity of this in theaters. Sadly the movie could be just like it is above and I bet there will still be some hardcore nerds who will wait until 12am in line for hours to see it.
Re: The Christmas Special. (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Speaking of, I happened to watch the Christmas Special as it aired, without knowing it would air. Man, was that ever Special!
It should definitely have been an option on the poll.
Ewoks for the win!
Re: Episode II (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Wowwww.... of all the trash people have to talk about Phantom Menace, I actually thought it was OK at the time. Maybe I was rationalizing. But Attack of the Clones was truly terrrrrrible, like really, really "I want my money and my time back" bad.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Phantom Menace had Jar-Jar as a great asset. Unfortunately, the fluid behavior and dynamic movement of truly good acting (even for a CGI character) clashes with the dead, lifeless prompting of modern film; Jar-Jar draws too much attention and makes something seem off about the movie.
In modern acting, people stand around holding a pose and following prompts. The prompt may be a director or another actor (LINE!), but it's still a prompt. Iron Man is talking, look at him with a cocky scowl. Finished your
Re: (Score:2)
The Yoda fight wasn't bad either.
The most inaccurate sentence.
Re:Episode II (Score:4, Insightful)
I actually liked the prequels ,as do a lot of fans. Some of them are so revisionist they'll try to claim they didn't like some of the *originals* now. Honestly, take out Jar Jar and the TPM is my 2nd favorite. Take out the terribly-acted romantic scenes by Christensen, and the prequels are on a par with the originals, for me.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Yeah, that's why I voted for that one, too.
People need to take off their nostalgia blinders. Seriously, go watch 4-6 as if you're watching it for the first time and evaluating them as films. They're all filled with cheesy acting, massive plot holes, and the main draw is the special effects and explosions. So when the prequels do the exact same thing, that's not something to get angry over. Just shrug your shoulders, say "well, that's Star Wars" and enjoy the explosions.
Phantom Menace did have the best light
Re: (Score:3)
What about The Ewok Adventure?
Man, Caravan of Courage... The scene where the kid gets his arm stuck in a tree, and the one later where he gets stuck under the water... *shudder* That movie teaches kids important life lessons, specifically "nature will kill you."
Re: (Score:2)
Machete order is stupid.
Complaints that the plot is too complex: leave off good stories like The Gap Cycle or Age of Misrule, then, since you wouldn't be able to keep up with some of the most amazing things ever written. The Gap Cycle particularly is probably the best sci-fi epic I have ever read, and the only story I've reread--and the reread was mandatory.
Anakin changes from a kid to a teenager, and this bothers the author because it doesn't make sense. People don't like to accept that folks change;
Re: (Score:2)
He didn't really direct the prequels either. He was more a supervisor and the guy doing final approvals.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
oh, so if you're not explained ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING you can't infer that the fucking imperial powers allowed EMPEROR Palpatine and Darth Vader to extend their reach and rule over the whole universe completely unopposed thanks to the clones and the lack of jedis to stop them?
Re: (Score:2)
One would presume that the Emperor, running both sides of the war, would manipulate a cease fire with all si