Ten Little Chances to be Free (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
tenlittlebullets) wrote2005-06-25 11:24 am
tenlittlebullets) wrote2005-06-25 11:24 am
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I did the Crazy Thing. Six movies. Thirteen hours, plus ten minutes to account for technical difficulties and bathroom breaks. Nine PM to ten AM. Holy fuck, I just watched all six Star Wars movies in a row--I used to daydream about doing that when I was a wee eight-year-old SW fanbrat and the prequels were still years off.
First off? I admit it. I cried at the end of Return of the Jedi. I must be going soft or something, but Darth Vader was my favoritest character evah as a kid (and possibly still is), and Anakin Skywalker ownz0rz the prequels, and I just watched his life from beginning to end and goddamned bawled my eyes out. There are no words for how much I love the RotJ throne room scene. None. There are many things I don't like about the rest of the movie, but that scene is just Perfect with a capital fucking P.
The biggest thing I noticed was that I have no mental continuity between the prequels and the original trilogy. None. It might as well not be the same story; I have to consciously work to link them in my mind. And honestly, I'm not sure whether the PT is drastically more flawed than the OT or whether I'm just more blind or forgiving to the OT's flaws because I grew up with it. (Which reminds me. I need to back it up onto DVD right NOW. My ANH tape is already beginning to corrode--I need to get them onto more permanent media unless I want to be stuck with the sithspawned special editions for all eternity.)
And now, thoughts, movie-by-movie:
Phantom Menace: Sucked even more than I remembered. Its few redeeming qualities--Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, and maybe podracing--were vastly overshadowed by the horrors of Jake Lloyd, Jar Jar Binks, dated and overused CGI, bumbling battle droids, ethnic stereotypes till they come out your ears, etc. Why, George, why?
Attack of the Clones: Sucked a lot less than I remembered. The Anakin/Padme is still flinch-worthy, but hey, at least Hayden and Natalie are hot. There's a touch of the humor and banter from the OT that I like, especially between Anakin and Obi-Wan and with 3PO's misadventures, and though I was inexplicably cringing through all the Kamino scenes, Geonosis was a nice opportunity to just turn the brain off, make wisecracks about badass Jedi, and watch things blow up. Also, I found Anakin enjoyably unlikeable--he whines, he broods, he slaughters women and children, and generally acts as a budding Sith Lord ought to, unlike in RotS where he came across as a decent sort, oddly enough. It's not a particularly good movie, but it accomplishes its task--backstory, backstory, backstory--decently.
Revenge of the Sith: Seen it eight or ten times recently, so nothing much new here. Except, with the context of the rest of the PT fresh in mind, I was really pissed about turning Padme into a simpering victim. This is the Padme who stormed Theed Palace to take out the Trade Federation, who was smart-mouthing Anakin all through AotC, and you expect me to believe she wouldn't bitchslap Anakin into next week the moment she set foot on Mustafar? Bitch please. Aside from that, whenever I watch this movie I'm haunted by the sense that it's good but it could've been better. There were a thousand different ways to make Anakin's turn to the dark side less abrupt and more believable, to make Padme's death mean more than it did--a thousand divergent realities that would have been equally if not more poignant than how it actually transpired. I'm satisfied with the way that it did turn out, but I want to be more than just satisfied. *sigh* Although, mad props to the Jedi purge. My breath catches in my throat every time I view those scenes, in a good way.
A New Hope: First sensation was akin to coming home again, that comforting familiarity. I might have seen RotS eight or ten times and be able to recite the dialogue along with the characters, but it's not familiar like the OT is. This movie is just what I love about Star Wars, distilled to its essence. The prequels can be fun, but baby, this is Star Wars. You probably don't want to hear me waffling on about everything I love about this movie, but this really emphasized the mental divide between prequel and original. RotS is that shiny new outfit you love and wear every chance you get, but ANH is your favorite comfy sweatshirt, and it never gets old. Ever.
Empire Strikes Back: First, let it be said that I am a massive badass!Vader fangirl, and this is Vader at his most badass. Hell yes. I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but by the time I got to ESB it was pushing five or six AM and I was falling asleep in front of the TV, so I kind of half-missed this one. But I still snickered at "Apology accepted, Captain Needa," and mouthed along to all the Han/Leia banter. (Why, oh, why did Leia have to lose the snark in RotJ? Does Lucas think women automatically become docile little things when they fall in love, or what?) And I like Yoda a lot better when he's (a) a puppet instead of animation, and (b) not constantly stating the obvious like he did all through the PT. Oh, and Imperial March looooove. *hugs ESB soundtrack*
Return of the Jedi: My combined bathroom/caffeine break was right before this one, but the caffeine took a while to kick in so I actually did sleep through a lot of it. Unfortunately, it was all the best parts. I was struggling to keep awake through all the setup at Jabba's palace, finally dropped off around the Sarlacc pit, and woke up just as the Endor speeder chase was beginning. So I fell asleep just as the fun began and basically woke up to... Ewoks. Argh. Another "why, George, why?" moment for the Ewoks. Why couldn't you have just kept it on Kashyyyk? Wookiees pwn Ewoks any day, and it would've saved us the gratuitous insertion of the Kashyyyk battle into Episode III. Oh, but enough whining. The throne room scene. I think I've mentioned that further up, yes? It owns. It just owns. Everything, from the characters to the acting to the duel to the music right down to the lighting. Feel the dramatic tension, yo. There are a thousand little things I just want to squee about, from the lightsaber toss to the Luke-staring-at-his-mechanical-hand down to the sheer darkness of it all. And then the mask came off and the funeral pyre lit up and I just cried. Fuck the cheering crowds in the special edition, this is how RotJ is supposed to end.
General thoughts? I'd do it again. Only setting aside a whole day for it instead of a whole night, so I won't have the dozing-off problem.
First off? I admit it. I cried at the end of Return of the Jedi. I must be going soft or something, but Darth Vader was my favoritest character evah as a kid (and possibly still is), and Anakin Skywalker ownz0rz the prequels, and I just watched his life from beginning to end and goddamned bawled my eyes out. There are no words for how much I love the RotJ throne room scene. None. There are many things I don't like about the rest of the movie, but that scene is just Perfect with a capital fucking P.
The biggest thing I noticed was that I have no mental continuity between the prequels and the original trilogy. None. It might as well not be the same story; I have to consciously work to link them in my mind. And honestly, I'm not sure whether the PT is drastically more flawed than the OT or whether I'm just more blind or forgiving to the OT's flaws because I grew up with it. (Which reminds me. I need to back it up onto DVD right NOW. My ANH tape is already beginning to corrode--I need to get them onto more permanent media unless I want to be stuck with the sithspawned special editions for all eternity.)
And now, thoughts, movie-by-movie:
Phantom Menace: Sucked even more than I remembered. Its few redeeming qualities--Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, and maybe podracing--were vastly overshadowed by the horrors of Jake Lloyd, Jar Jar Binks, dated and overused CGI, bumbling battle droids, ethnic stereotypes till they come out your ears, etc. Why, George, why?
Attack of the Clones: Sucked a lot less than I remembered. The Anakin/Padme is still flinch-worthy, but hey, at least Hayden and Natalie are hot. There's a touch of the humor and banter from the OT that I like, especially between Anakin and Obi-Wan and with 3PO's misadventures, and though I was inexplicably cringing through all the Kamino scenes, Geonosis was a nice opportunity to just turn the brain off, make wisecracks about badass Jedi, and watch things blow up. Also, I found Anakin enjoyably unlikeable--he whines, he broods, he slaughters women and children, and generally acts as a budding Sith Lord ought to, unlike in RotS where he came across as a decent sort, oddly enough. It's not a particularly good movie, but it accomplishes its task--backstory, backstory, backstory--decently.
Revenge of the Sith: Seen it eight or ten times recently, so nothing much new here. Except, with the context of the rest of the PT fresh in mind, I was really pissed about turning Padme into a simpering victim. This is the Padme who stormed Theed Palace to take out the Trade Federation, who was smart-mouthing Anakin all through AotC, and you expect me to believe she wouldn't bitchslap Anakin into next week the moment she set foot on Mustafar? Bitch please. Aside from that, whenever I watch this movie I'm haunted by the sense that it's good but it could've been better. There were a thousand different ways to make Anakin's turn to the dark side less abrupt and more believable, to make Padme's death mean more than it did--a thousand divergent realities that would have been equally if not more poignant than how it actually transpired. I'm satisfied with the way that it did turn out, but I want to be more than just satisfied. *sigh* Although, mad props to the Jedi purge. My breath catches in my throat every time I view those scenes, in a good way.
A New Hope: First sensation was akin to coming home again, that comforting familiarity. I might have seen RotS eight or ten times and be able to recite the dialogue along with the characters, but it's not familiar like the OT is. This movie is just what I love about Star Wars, distilled to its essence. The prequels can be fun, but baby, this is Star Wars. You probably don't want to hear me waffling on about everything I love about this movie, but this really emphasized the mental divide between prequel and original. RotS is that shiny new outfit you love and wear every chance you get, but ANH is your favorite comfy sweatshirt, and it never gets old. Ever.
Empire Strikes Back: First, let it be said that I am a massive badass!Vader fangirl, and this is Vader at his most badass. Hell yes. I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but by the time I got to ESB it was pushing five or six AM and I was falling asleep in front of the TV, so I kind of half-missed this one. But I still snickered at "Apology accepted, Captain Needa," and mouthed along to all the Han/Leia banter. (Why, oh, why did Leia have to lose the snark in RotJ? Does Lucas think women automatically become docile little things when they fall in love, or what?) And I like Yoda a lot better when he's (a) a puppet instead of animation, and (b) not constantly stating the obvious like he did all through the PT. Oh, and Imperial March looooove. *hugs ESB soundtrack*
Return of the Jedi: My combined bathroom/caffeine break was right before this one, but the caffeine took a while to kick in so I actually did sleep through a lot of it. Unfortunately, it was all the best parts. I was struggling to keep awake through all the setup at Jabba's palace, finally dropped off around the Sarlacc pit, and woke up just as the Endor speeder chase was beginning. So I fell asleep just as the fun began and basically woke up to... Ewoks. Argh. Another "why, George, why?" moment for the Ewoks. Why couldn't you have just kept it on Kashyyyk? Wookiees pwn Ewoks any day, and it would've saved us the gratuitous insertion of the Kashyyyk battle into Episode III. Oh, but enough whining. The throne room scene. I think I've mentioned that further up, yes? It owns. It just owns. Everything, from the characters to the acting to the duel to the music right down to the lighting. Feel the dramatic tension, yo. There are a thousand little things I just want to squee about, from the lightsaber toss to the Luke-staring-at-his-mechanical-hand down to the sheer darkness of it all. And then the mask came off and the funeral pyre lit up and I just cried. Fuck the cheering crowds in the special edition, this is how RotJ is supposed to end.
General thoughts? I'd do it again. Only setting aside a whole day for it instead of a whole night, so I won't have the dozing-off problem.
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