Is the PT really all that bad?

Besides the 2nd half of ROTS and very few scenes from TPM and AOTC, I only really like two aspects of the prequels: It's world building and the fact that it has a fairly clear basic storyline as a trilogy.

 

I've posted the reasons why I enjoy the prequels in another thread on here but the animated shows, comics & novels and video games have made me appreciate the prequels a lot more now. Same with the sequel trilogy

 

Last night I watched TPM for the first time in a very long time. It's much better than I recall. Jake Lloyd, other than his "yippee" moments, wasn't bad. Whoever the Queen's decoy was was pretty bad. Most of the CGI holds up too. Though the blue screens are distracting.

Jar Jar still sucks though.

 

Watched AotC tonight. This movie seems to be much more CGI dependent. And because of that the errors/issues with it stand out way more. Dialogue was way worse in this too. Not to beat a dead horse, but I'm specifically talking about the Anakin and Padme scenes. Anyone else notice how often they've said "mindful" in the first two movies?

Dooku is a good character and Lee is a good actor. Too bad they didn't use him more. He even talks about defeating the Sith in this movie, but Kenobi refused to join him. Sounds like a true Sith even though he doesn't have those eyes.

I remember the Yoda fight scene in the theaters. I was so pumped. But now, what... 15 years+ later, it's okay. Good on Lee and his stunt double for pulling off fighting an invisible actor. The Anakin v. Dooku part wasn't so good though. Mostly close ups of the actors with lights moving about their faces.

I hate the droid factory scenes. Especially the C3P0 bits.

I think it's cool that the "bad guys" (I forget their allegiance... Trade Federation?) ships are like mini Death Stars.

Jango's jetpack was damaged by the rhino creature in the battle arena. And he tried to fly away before Windu got to him, but it didn't work thanks to the damage. I had heard this before but never actually saw the sparks on his jetpack before his decapitation.

 

I'm pretty sure that's Keira Knightley.

This film was shot in Digital where TPM was shot in 35MM. I wonder if the CGI doesn't hold up as well on Digital cause it is too clear and shiny?

 

Corridor Crew literally talks about this in a video they released yesterday. Starting at about 4:10:

Anyway, I finished watching Revenge of the Sith this morning. It's definitely the best and my favorite of the prequels. The CGI and blue screens look even better, the dialogue is better (but obviously not perfect), and the acting has also improved. I don't agree with all of the story elements, like Padme's death, but overall it's a very competent and enjoyable movie.

 

Let's be real, outside of TPM, even the action isn't good in them.

--- Double Post Merged, May 7, 2020, Original Post Date: May 7, 2020 ---

I posted this another thread where the prequels vs. sequels were being discussed, but:

The Phantom Menace has a 53% and 59% at Rotten Tomatoes.
AOTC has a 65% and 56% there.
ROTS has an 80% and 66%
The trilogy has an avg. of 66% from critics and 60% from fans.

The Force Awakens has a 93% and 86% at Rotten Tomatoes.
TLJ has a 91% and 43% there.
TROS has a 52% and 86%.
The trilogy has an avg. of 78% from critics 72% from the fans.

The Phantom Menace has scores of 51 and 6.1 at Metacritic.
AOTC has a 54 and 6.0
ROTS has a 66 and 7.7.
That's a 57 from critics and 6.6 from fans.

The Force Awakens has an 80 and 6.8 at Metacritic.
The Last Jedi has an 84 and a 4.3.
The Rise of Skywalker has 53 and 4.8.
That's a 72 from critics and 5.3.

That's an almost universal preference of the sequels to the prequels and agreement that the prequels are not good. Why are they bad? Wooden uncomfortable performances, lack of chemistry between the actors, terrible effects - I'm talking about Episodes 2 and 3 particularly - and bad action. The only action that's any good in the series is in TPM, which is a shame considering how nauseatingly childish it is. That being said, it's the only one of them that has anything I enjoy. I hate the other 2. Just plain awful movies.

 

TPM is the only one that I can enjoy, also. Is the only watchable of the prequels to me. But someday I'll take some courage and try to give another chance to the other two.

 

The last time I did that I donated my DVDs to the needy.

 

People need to watch "The People vs. George Lucas" Documentary. It gives a good idea what people thought about the PT before the internet and YouTube era.

 

I loved TPM when it came out (I was 10), but I vividly remember fast forwarding the "talky bits" when re-watching it with my friends on VHS. I didn't really think anything of it at the time, but we never ever did that when watching ANH/ESB/ROTJ. As an adult, I find it pretty difficult to re-watch...but I do still feel a bit nostalgic for all the build up and excitement that came before its release. Plus Darth Maul and the "Duel of the Fates" theme are pretty great.

I loved AOTC when it came out (I was 13)...I saw it 3 times on opening weekend, had a bootlegged VHS copy and bought the "official" copy the day it came out. I would have told anyone that listen it was the best movie ever. I remember coming home from seeing it for the first time, and my mum asking me "what's wrong, was the film not very good?". I told her it was great, but she knew before I did...I hated it. It's categorical my least favorite Star Wars movie now.

By the time ROTS came out I was 16, I'd kinda realised that TPM & AOTC maybe weren't that great by this point, but I still really enjoyed it. In retrospect, I think ROTS benefits from being part of the prequels. If I watch all three back-to-back, ROTS seems pretty good! If I just watch it stand alone, it seems pretty bad. So I guess as an adult I'm neutral on it.

 

If people think that ST was backlashed they didn't see how the PT was received by critics and fans back in those days...hehehe

 

My personal favorite was a review of AOTC in a UK newspaper, which slated Ewan McGregor (the only good thing about that movie IMO) for not being "believable" as a younger version of Alec Guinness' Kenobi. Movie critics, gotta love um!

 

Ok, since we've all had alot of time on our hands (I hope everyone is staying safe), I watched 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 for the first time in that order (since TROS came out on BluRay). I have to say that I found the PT more compelling than the ST (even though I think the ST movies are better made). The ST movies were just lacking the world building and a reason to exist as 7,8,9, as the PT really felt like a nice setup to the grand OT story. I think the PT is frustrating to watch sometimes because of the many execution problems (which we all have debated over the past 20 years), but in the end, the macro story of Palpatine, the world building regarding the politics and the Jedi Council still keeps me intrigued. The Anakin story still doesn't totally work for me on an emotional level, but it works in a sense that it connects well enough to really give ROTJ that grand finale as it's a culmination of Palpatine's plan that eventually gets upended by Vader saving Luke. That is essentially why 7,8,9 really don't need to exist because it's just a retelling of 4,5,6 with new characters (Palpatine coming back for Episode 9 just doesn't work for me at all now and the whole Trilogy sort of falls like a house of cards because of that). Again, I enjoy the ST movies, but they just aren't relevant in a storytelling sense that the PT is. It's ironic that it took the making of the ST for me to finally see the story 1-6. Maybe Lucas was The Phantom Menace and his ultimate plan was to sell to Disney and convert OT fans like me? LOL

 

I agree. Palpatine’s return feels really cheap hamhanded and lazy. Ruins the ST for me.

The only reason I watch any of the Sequels now is just for some of the beautiful scenes and music it has.

 

The prequels are amazing. People, especially those who grew up with the OT, did not want this new version of Star Wars. I grew up to the prequels, so to me they are great. And Hayden Christianson is an amazing actor.

 

Not everyone who was raised on the OT dislikes the prequels.

 

yes, you are right. But, for example, my Dad, he grew up with the OT’s and he thinks the prequels and sequels are just bad. He like the Force Awakens because it reminds him of A New Hope. But yes you are right!

 

Yeah...
I grew up on the OT.
I'm a youngin of the OT gen. ROTJ was my first SW in the theater. (I'm 41)

I do not hold this view that your Dad does.

The prequels are fine; just not what I am interested in as a story. I never really cared how Vader and Palps got there in detail. To me, there was plenty in the OT to tell me that without going into detail, but...whatever. The value they have to me, however, is narrative artistry.
They broke new ground in narrative form and method, and are fascinating to me in that way.

The ST is brilliant. It's a mix-mash of Lucasian narrative form and modern narrative form slammed together, and that gives it a whole new spin that is quite interesting and exciting.
It's exciting because I'm seeing Lucas' legacy of narrative philosophy be carried forward and interpreted. The unique method of story telling is surviving into a new generation, and I find that thrilling!

Cheers,
Jayson

 

I think I might be the only person in the universe who likes Hayden's acting. It was just the writting of the character that was bad. Now i'm probably going to get attacked for saying that...I'll start working on my will...lol.
Anyway, I love the prequels! Mainly just because of the duels and Obi Wan being hillarious, but still!
I think I'll leave it at that before I upset anyone else...