I am one of the few thirty-somethings out there who had not had the pleasure of watching the original Star Wars series, until very recently. And let’s just say, I am unforgiving of George Lucas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6sdpH5N1c0
Gasp, shock, horror… how dare I?! It was something that stunned my partner as well, he was absolutely shocked that I, the ultimate non-selective movie watcher that he knows, would actually criticise and hate such a beloved and iconic movie. Star Wars revolutionised the genre, it set the standard to which all other movies have now tried to meet.
You know what, as a fully fledged adult, having seen so much that has come since, and watching Star Wars for the first time, it just stinks. Granted, the effects are cool, and I appreciate that, but the plot line and stiff acting was just, well, for lack of a better word, bad. I’m sure, if I had watched it for the first time as a child, I would have loved it, the cheesy lines and acting wouldn’t have gotten to me. And the franchise would hold a special place in my heart, where I would be able to overlook so much of the ridiculousness of it.
And given that I already knew “Luke, I am your father” was coming, the biggest spoiler of movie history was destroyed and I lost that shock factor. Please, I myself quoted it when someone would say “spoiler alert”, because I am reminded of The Simpsons episode where Homer ruins it for everyone else. Ah, Homer, you wonderful role model, you.
I’m afraid, I am with Alec Guinness. He hated Star Wars, and he was in it. So, don’t hate the haters. We just have our own opinions.
I will give credit where credit is due. George Lucas created an amazing world, and his imagination is awe inspiring. So too was his ability to deliver a cinematic piece which was a symphony for the senses (acting and uttered lines aside). His ability to pull off such cool effects for the 1970s is to be praised. Lucas set an amazing bar for which all scifi movies have tried to live up to. Darth Vader was absolutely awesome as a villain. Or, should I say, James Earl Jones is amazing.
Harrison Ford is absolutely terrible as an actor in the trilogy, he’s got crazy eyes for most of the series, and is so stiff and unnatural. Mark Hamill just seems, a little off, as Luke Skywalker. Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia was less than desirable. Was it the acting style of the 70s and 80s? Before actors learnt the art of portraying actual people with a full range of emotions? I don’t know, they just failed to hit the mark with me.
Overall, Episodes IV, V and VI have just not held up to the test of time. Perhaps the added digital enhancements have also made it into a series which takes itself way too seriously. If it had been left alone, I may have viewed it as a fun movie, not taking itself too seriously. Rather than an ongoing work of art, which needs to be respected and treated in awe.
I also don’t like how somehow it is totally glossed over that Darth Vader is also Princess Leia’s father. The man that she’s been fighting for the longest time is her father, the one man that she’s recruited armies all over the universe to fight against, is her father. Luke came to the fight much later than she did. Yes, he was the one who was a Jedi, but Leia was the one who was recruited him to the cause. It also really bothers me that she’s not a Jedi, or have Jedi powers. She’s a strong female character, but in the end, needs a man to rescue her.
Sadly, I am not a fan, and I just can’t get excited about the universe that George Lucas has created. And this bothers my partner an awful lot. He absolutely loves Star Wars. He is incredibly annoyed that I am critical over it, that I am unable to appreciate it for the true masterpiece that it is.
So what, I hated The English Patient too. Deal with it, not everyone is a fan of the obvious. Some of us just go against public opinion.
With the release of the new trilogy imminent, I am again, the only person I know who just doesn’t really care about it. The excitement is not catching. The only thing I’m excited about is that George Lucas is neither the writer nor director. Episodes I, II and III absolutely sucked. They sucked so much, that when watched IV, V and VI, the bad taste that they left behind was casting a shadow on my viewing experience.
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