Star Wars prequels-why all the hate?

[Hedji]

I wondered how Hedji felt about the comments about the prequels and if it changed how he felt about them.

Nope. I still love them. I just wish I had a nickel for every hour I've spent defending them. Or, even better, I wish I had the time back. It's pretty unlikely me or anyone else will change their mind, which is why I commented that I cringe a little when I see another Prequel thread pop up on a forum to which I belong. This one being my favorite message board, I just couldn't help adding my 2 cents.

[jwyblejr]

I have always wondered how these would have turned out if George Lucas' first wife had done the editing? I've heard stories of how bad A New Hope was until she came in and fixed it. Would the Prequels have been better if she was involved?

[Werewolf]

N which is why I commented that I cringe a little when I see another Prequel thread pop up on a forum to which I belong.

You shouldn't take it personally. The topic is asking why people dislike the prequels after all. If anyone starts a thread about loving the prequels and happily reminiscing about them I wouldn't add a single criticism to that topic and I doubt anyone else would either.

[enyawd72]

I love the prequels...to me they're just as good as the original trilogy, and the OT has just as many flaws. That said, I would have liked them even more had they eliminated The Phantom Menace, made Attack of the Clones Episode 1, Revenge of the Sith Episode 2, and had Episode 3 focus on Darth Vader hunting down the remaining Jedi, which is what everyone wanted to see.

I've always felt the ending of ROTS is rushed and Vader was put into the suit much too early...he was still raw from his burns. I think it would have been far more impactful to see a limbless Vader inside a bacta tank receiving the news of Padme's death and lashing out with the force to show how powerful he still was, despite his injuries. The last thing he would see was the medical droids beginning construction of the Vader suit which would become his prison for the next 30 years. Then open Episode 3 with the Emperor's newly constructed enforcer hunting down the Jedi. It would have been great to see the Imperial hierarchy react to Vader's sudden appearance...who was this guy who seemingly appeared out of nowhere, giving them orders? Such a missed opportunity.

[palitoy]

Nope. I still love them. I just wish I had a nickel for every hour I've spent defending them. Or, even better, I wish I had the time back. It's pretty unlikely me or anyone else will change their mind, which is why I commented that I cringe a little when I see another Prequel thread pop up on a forum to which I belong.

this is how i feel about people decrying things i enjoy.

In 1991, i was in my dorm room during a house party, some dude wanders in, starts talking to me and casually goes through my records. And I quote "You've got a nice collection but get rid of all the punk stuff"

I nodded and told him i'd work on that. I could have defended my tastes but why? I like that stuff and it doesn't resonate with him.

Hi main flaw was assuming i was wrong to like something that he didn't.


And yeah, this thread was a question and having just re-watched the films over the weekend, I thought I'd give my reasoning.

[CrimsonGhost]

SO MANY missed opportunities! Darth Maul was a great character who should have been a major character thru the whole trilogy ending in a showdown with Vader and Anakin could have been introduced as a teen instead of a child making his romance with Padme less awkward. Those are a couple of things I think could have worked better.

[CrimsonGhost]

this is how i feel about people decrying things i enjoy.

In 1991, i was in my dorm room during a house party, some dude wanders in, starts talking to me and casually goes through my records. And I quote "You've got a nice collection but get rid of all the punk stuff"

I nodded and told him i'd work on that. I could have defended my tastes but why? I like that stuff and it doesn't resonate with him.

Hi main flaw was assuming i was wrong to like something that he didn't.


And yeah, this thread was a question and having just re-watched the films over the weekend, I thought I'd give my reasoning.

I agree 100%. I'll even laugh along with how bad something I like may be. I mean, I can't defend Escape From LA. but I love it.

[palitoy]

I have always wondered how these would have turned out if George Lucas' first wife had done the editing? I've heard stories of how bad A New Hope was until she came in and fixed it. Would the Prequels have been better if she was involved?

I think a hired gun director would have been good. Lucas should have concentrated on the story, the look and let someone else work with the actors on their performance.

[palitoy]

I agree 100%. I'll even laugh along with how bad something I like may be. I mean, I can't defend Escape From LA. but I love it.

I crack that out occasionally as well. I also think Hudson Hawk is a fun movie.

[Brue]

The Pod Race in Phantom Menace is a perfect example of how to stop a movie dead in its tracks.

Coincidentally this is this same problem I had with the Llama race in the Force Awakens. (Conversely, I love TFA - I use this as the restroom break in subsequent viewings)

[Brue]

Nope. I still love them. .

Love 'em if you want. Some people like to eat Chicken liver. Some people like Kanye West's "music".

Wait. I started out trying to be nice, and ended being sarcastic.

Really, I get it. It is hard to hear people dislike something you like. I like Daredevil (movie) and don't understand half the hate.

[toothaction]

Star Wars: A New Hope... The movie comes along with a great story, special effects and matinee serial innocence. Becomes a phenomenon. There is mystery in the characters and the things they reference like Jedi wars and dead fathers, Kessel Run, bounty hunters and all the details of world-building are left to the viewers mind.

Empire Strikes Back is an anomaly, in that is a sequel that doesn't drop off from the original. In the pre-Internet days, the biggest secret in cinema is able to be kept and it pays off big time. Return of the Jedi is just a big party to wrap up this great ride. The story is still moving forward (not backwards) and there is not so much canon that the minefield cannot be traversed.

The prequels were never going to be able to capture the same moment in history. They made their money for sure because it's freaking Star Wars and we were all hoping to recapture that magic, but that moment of fantastic discovery was unique. Too, for me, the visions formed in my juvenile brain of the clone wars and the Jedi Order were self-romanticized to a degree that the prequels over-explanations just diminished the magic. I did learn to enjoy them in moments because the Star Wars universe is just a fun place to visit, but the magic wasn't there for me like it had been before. I had changed. The movies had too.

And now the sequels are kind of in the same boat, other than they are at least not bound to the future. But the sense of discovery has been replaced with a whole lot of meta-knowledge. Soon there will be a new Star Wars movie that will perhaps show us what Solo's Kessel Run looked like, but it's doubtful that it will live up to anyone's mind picture.

Same with Indiana Jones, Alien, Karati Kid, First Blood, or Van Halen with David Lee Roth... Going back and recapturing the magic is tough. Not impossible maybe, but tough.

Gospel! Well said.

Also, this:

I don't hate the prequels. It's actually worse. I'm indifferent to them. They've stirred as much emotion to me as 2016's Ghostbusters did. I have no connection to it at all and it might as well not exist.

Having said all that, I have movies that I know aren't good, and maybe they're even flat out bad movies, that I like despite their flaws because I find them entertaining or fun or whatever. I have an emotional connection to them. And there are plenty of movies that the masses love that I can't stand.

[C.H.O.A.M.]

I love the prequels...to me they're just as good as the original trilogy, and the OT has just as many flaws. That said, I would have liked them even more had they eliminated The Phantom Menace, made Attack of the Clones Episode 1, Revenge of the Sith Episode 2, and had Episode 3 focus on Darth Vader hunting down the remaining Jedi, which is what everyone wanted to see.

I've always felt the ending of ROTS is rushed and Vader was put into the suit much too early...he was still raw from his burns. I think it would have been far more impactful to see a limbless Vader inside a bacta tank receiving the news of Padme's death and lashing out with the force to show how powerful he still was, despite his injuries. The last thing he would see was the medical droids beginning construction of the Vader suit which would become his prison for the next 30 years. Then open Episode 3 with the Emperor's newly constructed enforcer hunting down the Jedi. It would have been great to see the Imperial hierarchy react to Vader's sudden appearance...who was this guy who seemingly appeared out of nowhere, giving them orders? Such a missed opportunity.

Comments like this both depress me and give me hope.
Hope because this would've made for a MUCH better series of films and depressed because even though creative people with good ideas are out there, hollywood can't stop regurgitating itself with remakes and reboots.
As for the topic, my "hate" for the prequels was based on the fact that they pretty much sucked. TPM was awful except for Maul and the depiction of the Jedis as being totally badass. AOTC was an improvement, ROTS was ok but too little too late for me.
(I did see TLJ and thought it was good: it looked amazing, like you'd expect a 21st century SW movie to look, and it was well written and acted. Never saw TFA and thought R1 was blah except for the amazing Vader scene at the end... possibly the coolest minute or so of any movie ever!)

[enyawd72]

Comments like this both depress me and give me hope.
Hope because this would've made for a MUCH better series of films and depressed because even though creative people with good ideas are out there, hollywood can't stop regurgitating itself with remakes and reboots.
As for the topic, my "hate" for the prequels was based on the fact that they pretty much sucked. TPM was awful except for Maul and the depiction of the Jedis as being totally badass. AOTC was an improvement, ROTS was ok but too little too late for me.
(I did see TLJ and thought it was good: it looked amazing, like you'd expect a 21st century SW movie to look, and it was well written and acted. Never saw TFA and thought R1 was blah except for the amazing Vader scene at the end... possibly the coolest minute or so of any movie ever!)

Glad you like my ideas...I still believe we may get that standalone Vader film. But if they're going to do it they need to do it quick before James Earl Jones leaves us, and they need someone who can really act in the suit. One little thing that bugged me about Vader's appearance in Rogue One...when he was on the bridge of the Star Destroyer and turned to leave and board the rebel cruiser he just kind of turns and strolls away casually. He lacked that David Prowse "power walk" His Vader always moved like he was on a mission, and you better get out of his way.

[C.H.O.A.M.]

Glad you like my ideas...I still believe we may get that standalone Vader film. But if they're going to do it they need to do it quick before James Earl Jones leaves us, and they need someone who can really act in the suit. One little thing that bugged me about Vader's appearance in Rogue One...when he was on the bridge of the Star Destroyer and turned to leave and board the rebel cruiser he just kind of turns and strolls away casually. He lacked that David Prowse "power walk" His Vader always moved like he was on a mission, and you better get out of his way.

I can see that... to me he seemed more unfazed, like he knew nothing was gonna stop him. Regardless, that scene alone is worth watching all of R1!

I'd also echo what some have said about trying to explain the mysterious and being so in love with your "vision" that you can't see no one wants to watch taxes and embargoes and Vader shouldn't be called "Ani" all the time and some of the chars were racial stereotypes etc.
TESB is considered the best of them all, and Lucas didn't write or direct it. Story, exec produce yes. He should've handed the prequels over to others to make and just overseen their production. I guess when you're Lucas and you're making more SW then nobody is gonna tell you how it is.