Star Wars Ep II Discussion. (Will contain SPOILERS DON'T ENTER IF YOU ARE YET TO SEE)

[caleb]

The end of jar-jar [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Rimjaw]

Originally posted by caleb: The end of jar-jar [img]smile.gif[/img]

i can see it now:
Jar-Jar: Mesa so happy to see you!
Obi-Wan: The empire is all your fault! DIE!
Jar-Jar: Mesa no under...AAAAAHHHHHH!

[Memnoch]

I was actually quite disappointed in Ep2. There were good bits, like the Yoda scene at the end, the Janga Fett scene (I'm a big fan of Temuera Morrison ever since I saw Once Were Warriors), and the gladiator scenes. I thought the special effects were outstanding.

What I was disappointed in was the fact that there was so much filler in the rest of the movie...it seemed to meander around without any plot. The romance between Amidala and Anakin was a joke. Seriously, Hayden Christensen needs to pick up a "How To Act In Three Quick Steps" book - a piece of plywood would have conveyed more emotion than he did. I REFUSE to believe that a spoiled, shrimpy little kid like him will end up becoming Da Vader - you've gotta be joking. There is ZERO chemistry between him and Natalie Portman - if I was him and Natalie was a girl I was dating I would be getting worried - no positive vibes, no negative vibes, just...no vibes.

Nobody in the film really grabbed me except Yoda (and maybe Ewan McGregor). Isn't it a bit sad when a CGI character can elicit more emotion than his flesh-and-blood counterparts? And Yoda WAS brilliant - his impersonation of an angry, lightsabre-armed gnat in the fight with Count Dooku (who I thought was ok but too one-dimensional - we never find out the WHY or the HOW of this guy) was quite outstanding and nearly salvaged the entire film for me.

Maybe my expectations of the film were too high - but I just felt that it was so much like a "tweener" film - between episodes.

Or maybe it was the fact that I went and saw it at 11 pm on a Sunday night to beat the crowds, booked a La Premiere booth with my sister (it cost me $60 for two tickets for comfy seats - normally 2 tix are $28, free popcorn, drinks, etc) again to beat the crowds, get there at 10:45 to find that there were NO crowds and the cinema was half-full and the movie went on for 2 1/2 hours plus previews so I got out of there at two am and all I could think of was "what a SHOCKER!!!". [img]tongue.gif[/img]

Anyway...just my 2c, don't be biased by my experience.

[ 05-30-2002, 09:17 AM: Message edited by: Memnoch ]

[Yorick]

I'm with you Memnoch. Points well taken.
I was disappointed with the plot of Dookoo being a Darth Sidious underling myself. It would have made a more tragic tale if he was a free agent. Who was good? Who was bad? Oh the colours blur....

Not in Star Wars. Sidious is all bad. It's all the fault of one man. Right?

I agree about the romance. At one point I was in the film thinking "This is really boring, and really bad. I'm bummed."

But then it cranked up. The plot sped up. The sabre scenes, the arena, Dookoo et al.

But the trump card was YODA. It turned around the experience for me. I left the cinema feeling really happy.

The different worlds left a good impression as well. The cinematography was wonderful.

Anyhow Mem, I'd suggest seeing it again. Episode I was better for me the second time. I went in with high expectations the first time, and came out disappointed. The second, I went in knowing the reality, and enjoyed it.

With this film, I went in not expecting a great flick - I'd heard bad reports about the acting (Suprise suprise. Star Wars? Bad acting? How can that be?) - but came out very pleasantly suprised.

I'll be seeing it again for SURE!!!

[Memnoch]

Originally posted by Yorick: Anyhow Mem, I'd suggest seeing it again. Episode I was better for me the second time. I went in with high expectations the first time, and came out disappointed. The second, I went in knowing the reality, and enjoyed it. With this film, I went in not expecting a great flick - I'd heard bad reports about the acting (Suprise suprise. Star Wars? Bad acting? How can that be?) - but came out very pleasantly suprised. I'll be seeing it again for SURE!!!

Oh, I'll be seeing it again, never fear - but on DVD this time, where all I pay is $5.

[Epona]

Memnoch, I agree with a lot of your points.

As far as actors go, Temuera Morrison was superb - I too thought he was excellent in Once Were Warriors (which is an OUTSTANDING film, of course it was sidelined here as an 'ethnic' film some things never change). Ewan McGregor is an excellent actor, I can't think of a single thing he's done badly - Shallow Grave and Trainspotting are amongst my favorite films. Hayden Christensen sucked bigtime. You are right, no chemistry between him and Natalie Portman (I thought she was good in Leon, despite her youth), their romance was completely unbelievable. People in the cinema actually laughed at some of the lines, not a good sign. And his 'dark side' moments just weren't dark enough.

The criticism I had on leaving the theatre was that there wasn't enough depth and intrigue to the plot. We could have done with more twists and turns, a couple of side-plots to keep up the suspense, that sort of thing.

The scene in the robot construction place on the conveyor belt was a bit too Indiana Jones for my liking. Not that I have anything against Indiana Jones, but there's a time and a place. Similarly the 'car-chase' scene (for want of a better description) at the beginning seemed to be lifted almost straight out of Besson's 'The Fifth Element' - did anyone else think that?

Having said that, it was the mass battles that made the film for me, and they did make up for the nitpicks I have about plot and acting!

[mistral4543]

Originally posted by Daniel_M: Yoda's fight was funny because when he was fighting count Dooku (sp?) he was like a dragonball z character and when it finished he got his stick and hobbled off like he has got a twisted ankle or something.

Heh, I thought he resembled a pesky fly that just couldn't be swatted [img]graemlins/hehe.gif[/img]

I found the cutscenes rather abrupt; before I could really sink into the atmosphere of one, it was yanked off and another was shoved in forcibly. And yes, Anakin whined too much; I can't imagine why Amidala would have loved him. Maybe he was the only young man around that was not disciplined enough (Obi Wan is so much more charismatic).

[ 05-30-2002, 09:56 AM: Message edited by: mistral4543 ]

[caleb]

Originally posted by Memnoch: the Janga Fett scene (I'm a big fan of Temuera Morrison ever since I saw Once Were Warriors),

Yep its a shame he and the guy that played uncle bully usually get bit parts in american movies.

booked a La Premiere booth with my sister (it cost me $60 for two tickets for comfy seats - normally 2 tix are $28,

Whats so special about those booths to cost that much?

[Memnoch]

Originally posted by caleb: quote: Originally posted by Memnoch: booked a La Premiere booth with my sister (it cost me $60 for two tickets for comfy seats - normally 2 tix are $28,

Whats so special about those booths to cost that much?[/QUOTE]1. Free popcorn and softdrinks
2. Comfy seats with perfect view, with lots of personal space
3. Can buy wine, beer and other alcoholic beverages along with cheese etc and take them in
4. Chance to sit away from the plebs (j/k)

It's not all it's cracked up to be...unless you're taking a date out and want to have a bit of a snog - you can lift the armrest dividing the two seats.

[norompanlasolas]

well, shoot me but i actually liked the love scenes and the dark side parts. i though the acting wasnt that bad too.

on the other hand, i thought the yoda part was a bit ridiculous. i liked much better the suave yoda from the empire strikes back. i hope lucas doesnt make the emperor use his lightsaber in the 3rd. those kind of characters should menace more than they act to keep them regal and imposing. [img]smile.gif[/img]