Wow! Disney bought Lucasfilm

[forrestcupp]

am I the only one who liked the last few films? *shrugs*

No. I liked them. I don't like The Clone Wars, but I liked the films. I even didn't mind Jar Jar Binks. People who rag on him forget the ewoks in the original trilogy.

I will say that I will always like episodes 4-6 best, no matter what Disney does.

[johnnybgoode83]

When is copyright on Star Wars due to run out? Disney will do what they do with Mickey Mouse and lobby for copyright extensions so that it won't go into the public domain.

[Linuxratty]

am I the only one who liked the last few films? *shrugs*

It looks that way...They got worse and worse as time went on imho.

[neu5eeCh]

am I the only one who liked the last few films? *shrugs*

They had their moments, but that's the best I can say for them.

Originally, Lucas' intention was for 6 to end on the planet of the Wookiees rather than Ewoks. For whatever reason (possibly because they didn't have the digital capabilities and partly because Lucas might not have considered the Wookiees primitive enough) he created the Ewoks. You didn't need digital special effects to create Ewoks, just a bunch of really small people wearing costumes. I think Lucas ruined the last film (and set an unfortunate tone for the following movies) by over playing the simple-mindedness of the Ewoks, their silliness and their "cute" naivety. (This was all part of the mythological archetype recognized by Joseph Campbell -- the much weaker combatant overcoming the much more powerful opponent.) Even Williams' Ewok theme, in my opinion, over emphasized the silliness of these creatures. The Empire wasn't brought down by a primitive but heroic culture (which was originally the Wookiees) but by waddling and intentionally laugh-provoking Teddy Bears. Lucas missed the mark. There was nothing "heroic" about these overstuffed Makaks. Instead of pathos, the movies ended in bathos. Unfortunately, Campbell (who Lucas had been consulting with) died prior to the "6th" movie. I sometimes wonder whether Campbell would have steered Lucas away from the Teddy Bear ending. In my judgement, Lucas has a good grasp for storyline, but too often veers from pathos into triviality wherever emotional complexity is called for.

My concern is that Disney will pick up on the bathos and run with it. Their audience is kids, not adults.

[qamelian]

I don't think Disney has a gritty bone it its corporate body. Maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised, but I'm not going to count on it.

I felt the same way until I saw "John Carter". That definitely didn't feel like a Disney film to me.

[forrestcupp]

Originally, Lucas' intention was for 6 to end on the planet of the Wookiees rather than Ewoks. For whatever reason (possibly because they didn't have the digital capabilities and partly because Lucas might not have considered the Wookiees primitive enough) he created the Ewoks. You didn't need digital special effects to create Ewoks, just a bunch of really small people wearing costumes. I think Lucas ruined the last film (and set an unfortunate tone for the following movies) by over playing the simple-mindedness of the Ewoks, their silliness and their "cute" naivety. (This was all part of the mythological archetype recognized by Joseph Campbell -- the much weaker combatant overcoming the much more powerful opponent.) Even Williams' Ewok theme, in my opinion, over emphasized the silliness of these creatures. The Empire wasn't brought down by a primitive but heroic culture (which was originally the Wookiees) but by waddling and intentionally laugh-provoking Teddy Bears. Lucas missed the mark. There was nothing "heroic" about these overstuffed Makaks. Instead of pathos, the movies ended in bathos. Unfortunately, Campbell (who Lucas had been consulting with) died prior to the "6th" movie. I sometimes wonder whether Campbell would have steered Lucas away from the Teddy Bear ending. In my judgement, Lucas has a good grasp for storyline, but too often veers from pathos into triviality wherever emotional complexity is called for.

I don't agree that the Ewoks ruined it. I think they added some lightheartedness to a serious situation, and also added to the sense of celebration after the victory. It's not bad for a dramatic movie to have bits of comedy relief. If you'll look back through all of the original movies, the ewoks were not the only lighthearted, goofy things they had.

I felt the same way until I saw "John Carter". That definitely didn't feel like a Disney film to me.

I've wanted to see that movie since they first announced it, and I still haven't seen it.

[philinux]

The films were aimed as family entertainment. My kids loved the ewoks and all the rest of it.

I think they were about 10 and 12 at the time we saw Return of the Jedi.

[qamelian]

I've wanted to see that movie since they first announced it, and I still haven't seen it.

It wasn't the story as I would have liked to see it, but it was still a very watchable film. They took a few liberties, but it was still a solid way for a fan of ERB's books to kill a bucket of popcorn.

[KiwiNZ]

The Stars Wars series was good escapism and entertainment, they are considerably better than most of the garbage peddled by tinsel town including a tedious trilogy about a ring.

[fontis]

Well.. I have a bit of mixed feelings towards this. Not that he sold the franchise, I couldn't care less.

I mean, the Star Wars universe has been milked to kingdom come afaik. Tons of crappy games, merchandise and what not trying to muster the very last drip of juice remaining from it.
For him, it makes sense. Sell it at it's peak and get your moneys worth for it I suppose.

Regarding the new movies.. Man I can't see anything good come out of it. I bet Episode 7 will be some crappy semi-animated, singing-fest, like the rest of the crap Disney lets out.

But hey, the Star Wars brand is a powerful recognized brand with tons of following, and given the current trend, it isn't so hard to understand why Disney would want to pursue the same thing as everyone else seems to be doing atm (Die Hard 4+, Bourne movies, etc).

I'll probably watch them anyway, because I'm bored. But it's not really something I'm excited about