With all the magic that is Star Trek, there is already small talk, somewhere in a dark alley, where hardcore movie buffs live, the kind of talk that is only whispered, and there is generally a bit of fear in their voice. The talk is of Star Wars, the beloved franchise, and whether anything more should ever be done, and if so, should George Lucas be a part of it.
J.J. Abrams has a lot of people talking about remakes, I mean, if you can make Star Trek into a watchable movie without screaming the word “Kahn,” then it opens a whole new world of possibilities. In this world, anything is possible, including touching the other side of the geek Tri-Force, Star Wars. So, would you let someone mess with Luke, Leiah, Han and the rest, or would you prefer to leave the greatness that was the original trilogy lie?
My favorite movie blog is themovieblog.com, there is much wisdom to be found on that site, including some rather interesting rules on remakes, including having a majority of your audience not familiar with your story, the reason being is it will never be a fresh, new story, rather a comparison to a previous one (the reason the Incredible Hulk failed). In my opinion, the most important rule he has, is the story needs to benefit from a retelling. This means technology needs to have advanced to give the film a new look, or a truly amazing script can be written, dwarfing the previous one, or maybe many of the shots can be done in a way that enriches the story. While Star Wars is now a bit older (if you say old, it’s on) I don’t think special effects have evolved to the point where there would be a huge difference in the space battles, which is a testament to the original series. While the script could have been a bit better in the original trilogy, I think everyone will agree, it ads a certain charm to the film.
So, since a remake of the original series is out, what about the talked about third trilogy, which takes place after Jedi? Here is the thing, after the prequels, which, from this point forward, I will refer to as “those we do not talk about,” most have a bad taste in their mouth, and the world has seemed to discover Lucas’s grand scheme: to make money. At this point, I would say anything Lucas does will simply look like an attempt to make more money, not to tell a story that needs to be told. So, if a third party came up with an absolutely fascinating script, not involving anyone from the original trilogy, then it may be worth the debate, but at this point, there is no such thing, therefore no debate. I also don’t know how you can get the epic scale of the original trilogy, without forcing the issue. I mean, how many deathstars and Jedi’s evil fathers are really out there?
So, it looks like we are out of options, even J.J. cannot bring this around, not for another 10 years, at least, maybe then, we’ll have something to talk about, until then, we’ll just have to live with the super directors mega awesome edition of Star Wars where Guido still doesn’t shoot first, but it’s ok, because stuff looks really pretty; and there’s an Ewok in the background of one of the shots, and Jar Jar is actually one of the Rogue Squadron pilots. Until then, live long and prosper.
4 comments:
I guess I could've titled this "my attempt at being clever, tonight at 11"
Here is my boy Troy's take:
"You've hit a chord with this one. Here's my official answer on that: Star Wars was the perfect storm for its time. You can always remake it, but it will not have the same quality or impact that it did then. It's sci-fi's Casablanca. No matter how old it gets, it will always be appreciated for all the reasons that matter most. If you remake it, it'll be more than just recasting. It'll be redesign. Enterprise has been redesigned a lot. Darth Vader? Stormtroopers? Why mess with some of the most iconic images in history?
The story is retold mythology, and it was done on a palette that young viewers do not appreciate anymore. Most of them won't sit through the first hour of the movie. Note for note, Episode I practically is the remake, an it's the most reviled of the saga. Most of that's Jar Jar, I grant you, but still...take that out, it's got the same beat. Young boy joins venerable Jedi Knight, leaves Tatooine, faces big galactic faceless threat in his fighter plane while having aspirations of being a Jedi himself. Venerable Jedi gets killed by cooler-than-hell Sith lord. Award ceremony at end, roll credits. Lucas couldn't bottle lightning twice. I wouldn't trust anyone else to do it either."
I agree that Star Wars was Sci-Fi's Casablanca, the movie was perfect with inconic characters and great one liners. I also agree Vader is too iconic to mess with (he was #1 on my villain list). I would also agree, for the most part, ep. 1 was similar to Ep. 4.
What I won't agree with, however, is that because its retold mythology, people won't like it anymore. The reason people didn't like it is because the characters were unlikable, there was too much green screen, the kid was annoying, Jar Jar was there, the movie was slow, Lucas smacked you in the head with green screen, and they made the coolest looking villain look like a loser; that's why. I think mythology, if done right can be incredibly well received, look at Battlestar Galactica. I also think a remake of Star Wars would be well received, as long as Lucas had nothing to do with it, but right now, there isn't that fresh idea out there, it's too jaded from the prequels. Maybe in another 10 years.
That green screen hurt when it hit me in the head. lol
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