Prequel Highlights Fan Thread

a lot of naboo was actually real locations enhanced by CGI.

 

yeah i like them too because of the personality but i dont like what they did to them in TCW.

 

Yeah. In fact, I'm even more impressed by that piece of news.


Another impressive sequence for me is the Order 66 Jedi purge.

 

The biggest moment that stands out for me in each Prequel:

TPM- Darth Maul ignites the double lightsaber.

AOTC- Obiwan looks out at the Clone Factory not realizing this is the birth of the Empire (great foreshadowing).

ROTS- Anakin & Padme staring across Coruscant at each other to that haunting Williams music while Mace & Co go to arrest Palpatine.

 

As an aspiring artist myself films are the new art form and Lucas is an artist to marvel at. He admitted that the doesn't like to write scripts and it shows but other then that he is an icon among men.

 

My immediate thought when I read the title of this thread was to respond with: every single frame. Seriously, the devil is in the detail when it comes to the prequels.

But, just off the top of my head, I would list the following as personal highlights.

TPM - the battle droids. Pure comedy. And doesn't one of them exclaim "Doh!" at one point? Hilarious.
- the Neimoidians. Again, they have a lot of comedy value which carries through to AOTC ("Shoot her...or something") and it is clear that they are out of their depth in striking a deal with Sidious. I can't help but feel sorry for them when they get offed in ROTS.
- Anakin. The child every one wants. Cute and generous to a fault.
- the pod race. I love the whole scene, from the introduction of the racers right through to Sebulba crashing into last place with his exclamation of "Poodoo!". This is Wacky Racers meets Ben Hur and I love it to pieces.
- Darth Maul. At last we have a bad guy who can move. It's quite dizzying watching Ray Park perform and Peter Serafinowicz delivers his dialogue in a suitably sinister tone.
- the framing of Anakin and Palpatine during Qui Gon's funeral, separated by the two who present the greatest obstacle in his path to the dark side: Padme and Obi-wan.

AOTC - the opening shot where the camera pans up instead of down is the first clue as to what will follow in a film where very little is as it first seems.
- Padme's put-down of Anakin when they reunite. "You'll always be that little boy I knew on Tatooine." Ouch!
- Obi-wan and Anakin's bickering. This is a constant throughout the movie and proof of Obi-wan's failings as a teacher.
- the pursuit of Zam Wesell. I can watch this scene again and again and still not see every detail that ILM have thrown in.
- Obi-wan meets Jango Fett. A rivetting scene. The interplay between these two actors here is like something out of a Leone movie. In the commentary, Rob Coleman draws our attention to the "eye acting" here and it's definitely worthy of mention.
- Padme and Anakin's romance. Tackling a sub-plot that deals with a burgeoning love affair is something of a first for George Lucas and he brought in Jonathan Hales to help him. The result is dialogue which often bristles with unease (Anakin unwittingly extoling the virtues of dictatorial rule; the tension of the fireplace scene where the conversation figuratively and literally skirts around the flames; Anakin's deliberate manipulation of the Jedi code which he claims is an encouragement for Jedi to love).
- Dooku and Obi-wan. Sir Christopher Lee was a giant of cinema and will forever be remembered as one of the best performers when it came to screen villains. I especially love this scene because he tells Obi-wan the truth about everything - from realising just how out of his depth he is and admitting that he could do with Qui Gon's guidance right now to his revelation about the Sith - and yet, because Obi-wan can no longer trust him, he doesn't believe a word Dooku tells him. Doubtless the intent. And he even says "Join me" in a brilliant echo of Vader's entreaty to Luke in TESB.
- Speaking of TESB, it's in AOTC where Anakin discovers how the pain of a loved one will be felt by a Jedi on the other side of the galaxy.
- Kamino. Finally, the flying whales of TESB get their moment to shine on screen!
- the arena battle. Star Wars salutes Ray Harryhausen.

ROTS - the opening space battle. I love the continuous shot that follows Obi-wan and Anakin as they race desparately to save Palpatine.
- General Grievous.
- "You must learn to let go of everything you fear to lose." Yoda's advice - straight out of the pocket Buddhist hanbook - is sound but these are not the words Anakin wants to hear.
- the tragedy of Darth Plagueis. Ian McDiarmid was suffering with a terrible cold when they shot this scene but it did nothing to diminish his performance. Star Wars does Faust.
- Anakin, having told Mace Windu his fears about Palpatine being the Sith lord, waits in the council room, the words of his mentor echoing in his head. Padme, alone in her quarters, looks silently towards the Jedi temple, lost in thought, to the accompaniment of Williams's haunting score. Chilling and evocative.
- Order 66. To the accompaniment of Williams's lachymorose music, the Jedi fall one-by-one. I always well up with tears when I see Ki-Adi Mundi turn to his troops with a rallying cry only for them to turn their blasters on him. Star Wars has never been so dark.
- "You're going to kill him, aren't you?" Again, Williams provides the perfect soundtrack to the drama unfolding onscreen. "Anakin is the father isn't he? I'm so sorry." Oh no, I'm crying again.
- the exchange between Anakin and Padme on Mustafar. How deluded Anakin is at this point, offering Padme a place at his side (echoing what he will say to his son in TESB) as he truly believes he can make the galaxy a better place. There is no such thing as evil men, just men who commit evil deeds. In Anakin's eyes, he is doing the right thing here, so in thrall he is to the dark side. And how quickly his mood changes, from exultant to betrayed, when he sees Obi-wan. "Liar!" he roars at his wife. Heart-rending stuff.
- the battle of the heroes. Some of us have been waiting for this since 1977, when we read in the Star Wars poster magazine of how Vader's injuries on a volcano were the cause of him wearing his mask. The ensuing fight between the two men who were once the best of friends is everything we might have hoped for and so much more. "You were my brother!" says Obi-wan and once again I feel the tears start to roll.
- the birth of the twins. With her lasp gasps, as causes unknown steal her life away, Padme tells Obi-wan that there is still good in Anakin.
- Tatooine sunset. We have truly been put through the mill but there is still hope. Pass the tissues, somebody.

 

From TPM: I liked the Jedi/Sith aspect of it, as well as many of the action scenes. I also enjoyed returning to Tatoonie and seeing familiar sights, as well as new ones. C3PO's inclusion was a nice homage. Coruscant is one of my favorite planets, it just looks stunning and has great detail. Naboo is as close as we get to Earth in all of Star Wars. When Obi-Wan says "What's this?" about Jar Jar, you get to see how the Jedi Order is quite arrogant and full of themselves at this point of history.

From AOTC: For the most part, I liked Obi-Wan's detective work. Loved Jango Fett! The Battle of Geonosis is one of the best battles in Star Wars and is also quite nice to look at. Return of the Imperial March! People complain about Anakin in this one, and while I agree to an extent, there's a reason behind why he's so... awkward. He has so many emotions within him and he doesn't know what to do with them. He's frustrated and doesn't know how to let it out, so it comes off as "whiny". He's awkward with Padme, and he should be. As a Jedi, Anakin has never been in a romantic relationship before and is new to all of it. He has been in love with Padme ever since he was a small boy, but doesn't know how to win her over.

From ROTS: Basically all of it! The middle was a bit slow, but the soundtrack and action was great. Love the Jedi Interceptors and the Battle of Coruscant. Love the Lightsaber duels. Order 66! The ending is a nice lead in to the OT. People complain about the "Noooooo!" Part, but if you have lost all that you care about, are in terrible pain, and are enslaved to a life you never really wanted, I think you'd be in anguish! People also say that Anakin's turn is too quick, but I've never had a problem with it. He took his first steps into the dark side in AOTC and we see him embracing it more and more as the Clone Wars go on. (The Utapau arc of TCW is a perfect example).

I think the all movies are good and none of them deserve the hate they can get. Sure they all can have cringe-worthy moments, but I think the good over weighs the bad here.

 

ROTS is my all time favorite movie!! Anyone else think it has the best soundtrack??

 

ROTS gets good once Darth Sidious is unleashed and Anakin becomes the Emperor's hand. soundtrack is pretty good but prefer TPM.

 

Recently purchased and watched the prequel trilogy for the first time in a while. While I consider myself more of an OT fan, I did find some things to like. Obviously there's Order 66, Maul, etc... the stuff everyone seems to have some favor for in the prequels- but here are some things that really stuck out to me recently:

TPM- I think that the coolest thing about the first film is how much character Naboo has. There are two sentient civilizations on the planet, and neither is generic space stuff. The gungans are obviously unique, but even the Naboo are very unique. Naboo starfighters, police, speeders, the architecture itself is very unique to it in the franchise.

AOTC- In general, sound and music. The sound design is incredible during Kenobi v Fett in the Asteroid field. Also, the music-free element of the arena fight really adds to the intensity.

ROTS- The Battle of the Heroes is, in my opinion, the best lightsaber fight in the prequel trilogy. That being said, I actually enjoy their verbal sparring (before swing sabers) when they're on the landing platform even more.

 

WhA's funny about this is that a lot of fans dont like the prequels BECAUSE of this, since they want everything in sw to look rusted and lived in even though the entire point of these was to show the shinines and newness of the height of the republic
.

--- Double Post Merged, Jun 1, 2017, Original Post Date: Jun 1, 2017 ---

yeah usually bad people don't start bad, I think that this is the best realistic portrayal of someone who is "Evil."

--- Double Post Merged, Jun 1, 2017 ---

.

 

I did appreciate that scene. Outside of Luke's more subtle attempts to influence Jabba, it was a nice way to nerf the Jedi's mind powers. After all, Jabba was a pretty big figure. By showing how it didn't even necessarily work on a relatively average joe (when done by one of the most powerful Jedi masters) I think it goes to show why the Jedi couldn't totally rely on their mind powers 24/7.

 

I love the Prequels, perhaps more than the OT. Let me explain. Episodes I-III were the films I saw growing up from tween to teen and early adult. Logically this endears them to me, but the merits of these films stand om their own.

The Prequels opened a larger world of SW, to quote Kenobi the OT was “our first steps” which we all treasure, but the Prequels are as Armstrong said “One giant leap,” into a galaxy far, far away...

One of those leaps was the Force Lore and mythology of the Jedi and Sith. Aside from “The Tales of the Jedi” (Darkhorse Comics) with Exar-Kun, Ulic Qel Droma, and Nada Sadow; the lore of the Force was majorly unexplored (canonically). With the Prequels we got introduced more formerly to Darth Bane’s Rule of Two:



And we got to see The Jedi Order at its Appex:



We were given the glimpse into the golden age of the Jedi and it was good.

Like many I too was a teen when AOTC came out, and I was smitten with Padme:



She was my first real crush and I will carry that with me “Always.”

The Revenge of the Sith was the culmination of my child and teen years. In many ways the darkness that prevades over the last Prequel was felt as the Saga (then) was to be at an end.

All the familiar faces and places of the Prequels are etched on my heart. They played a big part in my life from childhood to adulthood. I cherish every frame, even Anakin shouting “its not fair!” I sure felt that as at the time my parent was hit in a crossealk by a car and died and then came back to life, having a long ten year recovery I helped with. I felt the pain of Ani as he held his broken mother Shimi as I held my mother’s broken body. I felt catharsis for the truama in Anakin’s Vader in ROTS, a form of venting my own feelings of truama; I wore a red lightsaber in those days constantly.

 

Not a fan of the prequels but there are some things that I really appreciate as:

TPM - Battle Droids, Neimoudians, Watto and Sebulba's designs, expressions and their voices.
Soundtrack, one of my favorites of all saga.
Pod Race, beatiful designed, CGI is perfect and the pace and that feeling of adrenaline are great.
Beautiful ships as the Naboo Starfighter and the Nubiam J327.
The wardrobe of Queen Amidala.
Great characters such as Maul e Qui-Gon.

AOTC - Kaminoans and their beautiful installations.
Obi-Wan, the detective.
Very Dark end with Sidious and Palpatine in some type of hideout on Coruscant.

ROTS - Palpatine and Anakin in the Opera House.
Boga.
The finale with the twin suns.