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You Won't Have George Lucas to
Kick Around Anymore |
Ever since it was announced that Disney/Lucasfilm would release a Star
Wars: Episode VII, everyone in the galaxy has put forth their opinions about
who should write it, direct it, star in it, provide the catering, supply the
port-a-potties on set, and so on and so on. Being a lifelong Star Wars fan and
publisher of this modest little blog, darthmaz314 figured why not throw his two
cents (or Republic credits) out there into the blogosphere?
The debate over the impact that the prequel trilogy had on the Star
Wars legacy may never end. How good (or bad) those three movies are is a topic
for a future post, or series of posts, or a series of Congressional hearings.
Some say that only George Lucas could have ruined the Star Wars franchise.
Whether you believe that he succeeded or not is yet another topic for debate.
But one thing is clear now that Disney has acquired Lucasfilm. Someone other
than George Lucas will now have their crack at ruining Star Wars.
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Episode VII Screenwriter Michael
Arndt Won an Oscar for Little Miss
Sunshine |
The detractors are already lining up the scapegoats. They’re already
blaming Disney, director J.J. Abrams, screenwriter Michael Arndt, Santa Claus,
the Easter Bunny…you get the picture. All this before a frame of footage has
been shot or a special effect has been storyboarded. The fact remains that
certain things are untouchable in the hearts and minds of the public,
particularly the fanatical public. By the time there was rumor of another
trilogy in the late 90’s, it had been over fifteen years since the release of a
Star Wars movie, and even that last movie (Jedi) was already being criticized
as the weakest of the franchise. The Star Wars films had already been cast as
three mystical stone tablets in the church of science fiction, which, in my
opinion, is no less credible than the Church of Scientology. It would have been
very difficult, if not impossible, to live up to the expectations of the
enumerable masses of Star Wars fans.
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A Beatles Reunion Would Have Been Destined to Dissapoint...
Just Like the Prequels |
You can compare it to a hypothetical
Beatles reunion in 1980 before John Lennon’s death. Sure, it would have been
the most anticipated musical happening since the first caveman smashed his
stick against the cave wall. But once it had been done, there would have been
tons of people lamenting how “they just don’t have the chemistry anymore,” or
John and Paul can’t harmonize as well as they used to,” or “this new song is
crap compared to A Day in the Life!”
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Jar Jar Was the Scapegoat, But Not Totally
to Blame for Disenchanting Star Wars Fans |
A cultural phenomenon like Star Wars (or the Beatles) eventually
elevates to a point where it becomes unmatchable, particularly after the
passage of enough time. Any attempt to duplicate its legend is futile. Does
that mean that George Lucas hit the bulls eye with the prequel films and it was
everyone else’s unrealistic expectations that were the problem? Not so much.
There are problems with the prequel films and they extend beyond the long
floppy ears of Jar Jar Binks, although it is hard to navigate around him in any
defense of the prequels. But if we were to hop in our time machine and travel
back to 1977 and not be influenced by the fact that Star Wars (I can’t bring
myself to refer to it as Episode IV) was groundbreaking and unlike anything
folks had ever seen in up to that time, AND were truly honest with ourselves,
wouldn’t we all think that C-3PO was annoying? I think so. Did the character
work? Absolutely!
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C-3PO was Annoying, But the Character
Worked and We Loved Him |
Did he have better dialog to work with than Jar Jar?
Absolutely! Is Anthony Daniels a better actor than Ahmad Best? Absolutely! Was
Jar Jar an over the top attempt at connecting to kids and selling action
figures and Halloween costumes? Absolutely! Were both characters written to be
annoying? Absolutely! The difference is that Jar Jar also annoyed the people on
the other side of the movie screen. Simply put, C-3PO worked and Jar Jar
didn’t, regardless of the reasons. Did many people think that some of Mark
Hammil’s performance was corny and not his best work? Absolutely! But it wasn’t
enough to destroy the movie. There was too much good about Star Wars to allow
it the imperfections to tarnish our view of it. AND Star Wars was not trying to
fill the shoes of three larger than life older brothers who were prom king, won
every sports trophy, got straight As, and dated the head cheerleader throughout
high school.
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| Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker |
So can a new trilogy be embraced by the fans? This fan thinks it can.
As with the last trilogy, the first film will be crucial. Let’s be realistic.
The true fanboys will go see Episode VII, despite their claims on the net of
wanting to encase Lucas in carbonite or toss him in the Sarlacc Pit. Sure, they
pound firmly on the keys as they post their bitter attacks in cyberland, but
the diehards will be there when Episode VII hits the screen. The audience that
will determine the fate of Star Wars’ next trilogy will be young adults or as I
have dubbed them…the children of the prequel trilogy generation.
The children of the prequel trilogy generation, are now young adults.
If you were ten when Phantom Menace was released, you will have been on the planet for
about a quarter-century by the time Episode VII opens in theaters. Chances are that if you became a Star Wars fan and
were baptized into Lucas’ Church of the Force during the release of the prequel
trilogy, you are willing to give a new trilogy a chance. But if your parent was
a Star Wars fan, you grew up hearing about how great Star Wars was and how much
of a genius George Lucas was, and were dragged to three movies that you felt
didn’t live up to the hype, you are probably not salivating for another trip to
the galaxy far, far, away. If the Force is not strong among the entire prequel
trilogy generation, the box office receipts will not be strong either.
Considering how important the 18-34 crowd is in the entertainment economy
today, it is hard to underestimate the power of the prequel generation in the
success of Episode VII.
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| George, Carrie, Mark, & Friends |
The other category that will be crucial is the casual
moviegoer. Will Episode VII be a movie event? Will the average
multiplex-dweller feel compelled to pluck down their dollars to be part of the
hype or will they be kept away by fifteen years of whining about how the
prequels destroyed Star Wars. It is hard to say. The criticality of the opening
weekend can’t be understated these days, so Episode VII may not have the luxury
of waiting for word of mouth (or word of blog) to get around that Star Wars is
back to entice the casual moviegoer. If the world doesn’t flock out to see this
film at midnight screenings and the first few days of release, the word on the
street (net) will be that it must be just like the prequels.
However, before Disney/Lucasfilm can woo the right demographics, they have to
make a good film. So what will make Episode VII a success?
For our opinions, check back for Part II of this post coming soon.......
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