The Search For More Money: Part II
So I caved and saw Episode III after all. I believe I am justified though. The reviews on www.rottentomatoes.com were very positive, which I'll admit came as huge shock. I said I wouldn't go unless Lucas defeated the odds and actually put in some effort to "clean up the mess he'd made", but the reviews seemed to indicate that this may have actually happened. I am happy to announce after seeing the movie that Lucas indeed put in a lot of effort.
You can always tell when a director is really trying his best, and in Episode III you really get this impression. Maybe this is why my review below is not overly harsh. I have a soft spot for people really giving it a solid try. The movie is Lucas's attempt at redemption for publicly releasing his two previous films. While I can't say he succeeded in this, it was a noble effort and the movie itself does not suck utterly.
First, the good parts. The settings were all really visually stunning, inspiring visions of a crisp, realistic future society. The opening sequence, although a little over the top as far as quantity of spacecraft and laser fire, was pretty decent. R2 has gained the ability to leap out of aircraft (way to go R2!) and we get to see spacecraft land. In one instance, a trillion ton spacecraft is able to gently skid across a runway without tearing up the pavement, I can't wait until we have technologic wonders such as these. In another scene, we see a robotic droid let go of the fighter it was desperately grabbing onto, succumb to the harsh air resistance present at high velocities in outer space, and fall away from the spacecraft. It's details like these that really make you understand the level of thought that went into the movie.
I liked the whole ending sequence with Obi-Wan and Anakin fighting mere feet away from intensely hot dangerous lava that we know in real life could scorch non-jedi flesh from 20 feet away. I like it when we get to see nuances in the powers of the force like this, obviously the jedi's are using the force somehow to combat the heat - is there anything it can't do?! Oh, did I say force? I meant mediclorians. I have to remind myself that it's not force anymore. The movie reminded me twice.
I liked towards the very end when Anakin turns into Darth Vader and learns of Padme's death and yells "Khan!!!" oops wrong movie, I mean "Noooo!!!!".
Unfortunately, there are some bad parts that detract from the overall experience. The acting is awful. The romance, upon which the entire premise of the movie depends, is completely absurd and unbelievable. There is simply no chemistry. Palpatine's metamorphosis into the emporer was entirely ridiculous and unnecessary. Good makeup job guys. Also, all the Jedi being killed by order 66 is stupid. And how could Yoda give up so easily and voluntarily go into exile? And does anyone else feel like all the locales in Episode II and III are contrived set pieces with no interesting context except as a staging area for the next light saber battle? At least C3PO and R2 get their memory erased at the end of the movie, unfortunately, the technology exists in their world, not in ours.
You can always tell when a director is really trying his best, and in Episode III you really get this impression. Maybe this is why my review below is not overly harsh. I have a soft spot for people really giving it a solid try. The movie is Lucas's attempt at redemption for publicly releasing his two previous films. While I can't say he succeeded in this, it was a noble effort and the movie itself does not suck utterly.
First, the good parts. The settings were all really visually stunning, inspiring visions of a crisp, realistic future society. The opening sequence, although a little over the top as far as quantity of spacecraft and laser fire, was pretty decent. R2 has gained the ability to leap out of aircraft (way to go R2!) and we get to see spacecraft land. In one instance, a trillion ton spacecraft is able to gently skid across a runway without tearing up the pavement, I can't wait until we have technologic wonders such as these. In another scene, we see a robotic droid let go of the fighter it was desperately grabbing onto, succumb to the harsh air resistance present at high velocities in outer space, and fall away from the spacecraft. It's details like these that really make you understand the level of thought that went into the movie.
I liked the whole ending sequence with Obi-Wan and Anakin fighting mere feet away from intensely hot dangerous lava that we know in real life could scorch non-jedi flesh from 20 feet away. I like it when we get to see nuances in the powers of the force like this, obviously the jedi's are using the force somehow to combat the heat - is there anything it can't do?! Oh, did I say force? I meant mediclorians. I have to remind myself that it's not force anymore. The movie reminded me twice.
I liked towards the very end when Anakin turns into Darth Vader and learns of Padme's death and yells "Khan!!!" oops wrong movie, I mean "Noooo!!!!".
Unfortunately, there are some bad parts that detract from the overall experience. The acting is awful. The romance, upon which the entire premise of the movie depends, is completely absurd and unbelievable. There is simply no chemistry. Palpatine's metamorphosis into the emporer was entirely ridiculous and unnecessary. Good makeup job guys. Also, all the Jedi being killed by order 66 is stupid. And how could Yoda give up so easily and voluntarily go into exile? And does anyone else feel like all the locales in Episode II and III are contrived set pieces with no interesting context except as a staging area for the next light saber battle? At least C3PO and R2 get their memory erased at the end of the movie, unfortunately, the technology exists in their world, not in ours.
posted by flowbeus at 12:59 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home