Star Wars Day
From the age of seven until about 10th grade, I was a huge Star Wars fan. I mean, huge. Like, freakishly, unhealthily obsessed. Anyway, that's all waned in recent years, but to those who've known me for a long time, it's still a part of who I am.
My sister, being one such person, has been disturbed by my recent fangirling over the new Star Trek movie, as it is so at odds with how she's known me for, well, most of her life. As such, she decided that we needed to watch all six Star Wars movies in one day to make up for it. This past Saturday, we did so.
Upon finishing Return of the Jedi (yes, we went in numerical order), she turned to me and said, "Never. Again." Which is a pity, because I was left wanting to re-do it, only this time in the proper order (that is, the order in which the movies were released).
One interesting thing about the experience was that it made me realize for the first time just how much I view the release order as the proper order. I see the original trilogy as the backstory for the prequels. That is, the prequels are the real story, and the originals are all the stuff you have to know beforehand to fully appreciate it.
A similar realization that I came to (and this is practically heresy, but my parents agree with me) is that the prequels really are better movies than the originals. Thematically and even visually, they are more serious, more artistic, and more complex, resulting in a much more cohesive and interesting story. It's like George Lucas matured as a filmmaker in the roughly fifteen years between trilogies. You can see this within the prequel trilogy, as well. Revenge of the Sith is put together with more skill than The Phantom Menace. (And yes, RotS is my favorite.)
Anyway, here are some other realizations my sister and I came to in the course of our marathon:
- Obi-Wan is a bit of a snob. When confronted with the unwashed masses (Jar-Jar, Anakin, etc.), there is palpable distaste in his comportment. He's also quick to characterize things he doesn't like (blasters, the Empire, etc.) as "uncivilized".
- The dress Padme wears during the fireplace scene in Attack of the Clones is totally a dominatrix outfit. Make of that what you will.
- Anakin has no manners. He speaks out of turn, is overly familiar, never bows or makes any sign of respect before his superiors, and rarely expresses gratitude towards anyone but Palpatine.
- Shouting "Fail!" over all of Anakin's "pick up lines" is really fun.
- Anakin's intelligence (or lack thereof) is made fun of all the time, but the fact of the matter is that Padme's not much better. When a guy throws a tantrum and then confesses to genocide, you do not go cuddle him, you back away slowly.
- Whoever decided that Ewan McGregor should get wet in each movie is a genius.
- The second half of RotS bears suspicious similarities to Othello.
- The clones go from awesome warriors to idiot cannon fodder when Anakin takes exclusive command of them.
- The most seamless transition between RotS and A New Hope is Ewan McGregor's Obi-Wan to Alec Guinness's Obi-Wan.
- Luke's complicated plan to rescue Han in RotJ was probably the result of a sudden, random stroke of brilliance, rather than a long period of careful planning.
My sister, being one such person, has been disturbed by my recent fangirling over the new Star Trek movie, as it is so at odds with how she's known me for, well, most of her life. As such, she decided that we needed to watch all six Star Wars movies in one day to make up for it. This past Saturday, we did so.
Upon finishing Return of the Jedi (yes, we went in numerical order), she turned to me and said, "Never. Again." Which is a pity, because I was left wanting to re-do it, only this time in the proper order (that is, the order in which the movies were released).
One interesting thing about the experience was that it made me realize for the first time just how much I view the release order as the proper order. I see the original trilogy as the backstory for the prequels. That is, the prequels are the real story, and the originals are all the stuff you have to know beforehand to fully appreciate it.
A similar realization that I came to (and this is practically heresy, but my parents agree with me) is that the prequels really are better movies than the originals. Thematically and even visually, they are more serious, more artistic, and more complex, resulting in a much more cohesive and interesting story. It's like George Lucas matured as a filmmaker in the roughly fifteen years between trilogies. You can see this within the prequel trilogy, as well. Revenge of the Sith is put together with more skill than The Phantom Menace. (And yes, RotS is my favorite.)
Anyway, here are some other realizations my sister and I came to in the course of our marathon:
- Obi-Wan is a bit of a snob. When confronted with the unwashed masses (Jar-Jar, Anakin, etc.), there is palpable distaste in his comportment. He's also quick to characterize things he doesn't like (blasters, the Empire, etc.) as "uncivilized".
- The dress Padme wears during the fireplace scene in Attack of the Clones is totally a dominatrix outfit. Make of that what you will.
- Anakin has no manners. He speaks out of turn, is overly familiar, never bows or makes any sign of respect before his superiors, and rarely expresses gratitude towards anyone but Palpatine.
- Shouting "Fail!" over all of Anakin's "pick up lines" is really fun.
- Anakin's intelligence (or lack thereof) is made fun of all the time, but the fact of the matter is that Padme's not much better. When a guy throws a tantrum and then confesses to genocide, you do not go cuddle him, you back away slowly.
- Whoever decided that Ewan McGregor should get wet in each movie is a genius.
- The second half of RotS bears suspicious similarities to Othello.
- The clones go from awesome warriors to idiot cannon fodder when Anakin takes exclusive command of them.
- The most seamless transition between RotS and A New Hope is Ewan McGregor's Obi-Wan to Alec Guinness's Obi-Wan.
- Luke's complicated plan to rescue Han in RotJ was probably the result of a sudden, random stroke of brilliance, rather than a long period of careful planning.