Preparing for New Star Wars Movie

[prisonchaplain]

My family wants to see the new Star Wars movie.  The last one I watched was ... uh...er...:::cough:::...1977. 

 

So...do I need to rewatch the original, and then the other two, before seeing this new one?  Will it make sense "cold turkey?"  Maybe there is a good-enough synopsis online that the family can read?  Help!

Edited December 19, 2015 by prisonchaplain

[Guest]

If you haven't seen a movie since 1977 (episode 4) then you didn't see episodes 5 and 6.  So, yes, you'd need to see those for it to make sense.  

 

However, you do NOT need to see episodes 1 through 3.  Those were a waste of time and money.  I have no idea why they made as much money as they did.  Everyone I spoke with who was older than 12 when they saw them said they were awful.  And they really didn't do anything but fill in the backstory that we already knew about.

 

If you want a synopsis, you can go to www.imdb.com and look up the plot synopses on each of them:

 

Star Wars (AKA Episode IV: A New Hope)

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

 

The original movies were really good.  When Lucas went and added some scenes, I think most of them were a waste.  And a few scenes messed things up.  Only a few other added (previously deleted) scenes actually helped fill in the story.

Edited December 19, 2015 by Guest

[Ironhold]

Here's the way the franchise is set up:

 

Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Episode II: Attack Of The Clones

Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

Episode IV: A New Hope

Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back

Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi

Episode VII: The Force Awakens

 

You need to see 4 - 6 in order to understand 7, as 7 is a direct sequel. 

 

1 - 3 provide context for the overall battle between the Rebellion and the Empire, as do various television efforts like "The Clone Wars" and "Rebels". However, they aren't necessary to understand everything. 

[Just_A_Guy]

By all means, don't miss the (parody of) Ken Burns' documentary on The Galactic Civil War.

[kapikui]

You need to see the original trilogy to understand it, and really most of the purpose of VII is fan service so you really need to see IV V and VI to understand it.  The other three mentioned above are a myth and never really happened. 

[Guest]

...The other three mentioned above are a myth and never really happened. 

 

I...uhm... well... yeah.

[Crypto]

I actually think this New episode does quite well for standing alone. It would be optimal to watch the other movies, but I think for anyone who just starts watching it is sufficient.

[LeSellers]

do I need to rewatch the original, and then the other two, before seeing this new one?  Will it make sense "cold turkey?"  Maybe there is a good-enough synopsis online that the family can read?  Help!

I haven't seen the new one (and have no intention of doing so for a while).

What I want to know (or, better, who I want to meet) is if there is anyone who's seen the Harry Potter films without having read the books.

I find the movies disjointed, with huge holes only Rowling's text can fill. But that's difficult to ascertain because I have read the books (dozens of times each), and the movies are only "based on" the novels.

At least with Star Wars there is no book: the scripts/screen plays are the whole story (ignoring the cutting room floor), so the movie must fill in all the blanks.

Some have said that Episode III failed to bridge all the chasms between I & II and IV (the first film). It was unsettling for me, at least because while, say, the origins of Vadar's scarred face was there, it was shallow, and an enormous gap (how he became Vadar, v. Skywalker) had a trivial explanation.

For those who like the franchise, good on you. I'm getting more and more ambivalent.

Lehi

[Vort]

Some have said that Episode III failed to bridge all the chasms between I & II and IV (the first film). It was unsettling for me, at least because while, say, the origins of Vadar's scarred face was there, it was shallow, and an enormous gap (how he became Vadar, v. Skywalker) had a trivial explanation.

 

The celebrated "redemption themes" are silly. A mass murderer who willingly slaughtered children, savagely betrayed his own best friends, conducted a murderous rampage for power, and was complicit in destroying an entire planet is redeemed because he saved his own son from a murder that he himself planned and led his son into.

 

Uh-huh.

 

As long as you turn off your brain and allow Star Wars to be just a sort of operatic performance, it's fine. But seriously, don't try to read anything important or meaningful into it. The characters are purely two-dimensional. Star Wars is the very cinematic definition of painting in broad strokes and bright colors.

[prisonchaplain]

The three movies that I ought to watch are $40 at Target, in Blu Ray.  I have a DVD player.  Nobody's selling them cheap, nor are they streaming cheap.  So, I ordered the book.  There is one.  The trilogy was 1-cent (i.e. $4 with shipping) from Amazon, used.

 

Now...if someone can find those DVDs or streaming versions, on the cheap, enquiring minds wanna know.  :-)

[LeSellers]

Now...if someone can find those DVDs or streaming versions, on the cheap, enquiring minds wanna know.

I only have the VCR versions of IV~VI. Dunno if we have any of the "first" three.

Lehi

[Ironhold]

I only have the VCR versions of IV~VI. Dunno if we have any of the "first" three.

Lehi

 

You have the old VHS tapes? 

 

Save them. 

 

For reasons known only to him, George Lucas made a number of edits to the films for the most recent DVD releases, including several changes that have generated quite a bit of controversy. 

 

Because of this, older fans and "purists" are looking for those older copies, with some using those copies as the basis of (illegal questionably legal) "rips" meant to upgrade the video quality to DVD quality for their own personal enjoyment. 

[mrmarklin]

Having seen the movie myself now, I would advise you strongly to NOT se episodes 4-6.

[Guest LiterateParakeet]

Okay, so I'm confused.  Are the movies numbered chronologically, or in the order they came out?  And is the new movie any better than that horrible movie with JarJar...that's about all I remember of that one...how much JarJar annoyed me....

[james12]

The three movies that I ought to watch are $40 at Target, in Blu Ray.  I have a DVD player.  Nobody's selling them cheap, nor are they streaming cheap.  So, I ordered the book.  There is one.  The trilogy was 1-cent (i.e. $4 with shipping) from Amazon, used.

 

Now...if someone can find those DVDs or streaming versions, on the cheap, enquiring minds wanna know.  :-)

There is a good summary video of episodes 4-6 on Youtube. It's a half an hour. This is what I would recommend.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6s0JNdAN_88

[Guest]

LP,

 

I understand your confusion.

 

The "Original" trilogy starting in 1977 and later was the "middle" trilogy of the series (episodes 4, 5, & 6).  The "first" trilogy (episodes 1, 2, & 3) was the set that came out in 1999 and later.  (See Ironhold's post #3).  This new movie begins the third trilogy starting with episode 7.

 

So, the first was the second and the second was the first. (not the first/last, last/first)  

 

Thankfully, the third is the third. :)   I hope that clarified things.

[Guest LiterateParakeet]

Thanks Carb.  That does help.  You know, I saw Ironhold's post, but I wasn't quite sure about all the names.  (I'm not a very good fan, I know. LOL!)  

 

1977?  Holy Cow, I didn't realize it has been that long.  I saw episode er...IV...after staying up all night for the very first time...I was only 11, LOL!  So I fell asleep and woke up with the Luke and Leah in the trash compactor...I was very confused!

 

I've been falling asleep in movie theaters ever since . . .  I usually only go to the dollar theater now, because $10 or so is an expensive nap!  

[Guest]

Yeah, my wife does the same thing.  I don't understand how anyone can fall asleep during an action movie.  But who am I to judge.  I fall asleep in sacrament meeting and sometimes in priesthood and Sunday School.

 

That's right.  I said it.  I fall asleep in meetings.   

[Guest LiterateParakeet]

I work graveyard (on Sundays) so I regularly fall asleep in church meetings too!  I feel your pain.  :) 

[Guest]

Ah, this is sad.

 

Episodes 4, 5, 6 are,  of course, awesome.  This is where the technology finally caught up to Lucas' imagination.

 

You don't need to watch any of the movies to enjoy Episode VII.  All you really need to know is that there's this thing called the Force that gives life to everything (same concept as the Spirit).  There's the dark side of the force (practiced by the Sith) and light side of the force (practiced by the Jedi).  Certain people can be born force-sensitive - that is, they have a stronger connection to the force and with some training can use the force to do things.  The Skywalker family seem to have genetics that give them force-sensitivity.

 

Anakin Skywalker was trained as a Jedi but then he turned to the dark side and became Darth Vader which led to the death of many Jedi.  This also led to the death of his wife who gave birth to twins right before she died.  Darth Vader and his Sith master disbanded the Republic and formed the Galactic Empire with the Sith Master as the Emperor and Darth Vader as his first officer.  Storm troopers are their military.

 

Princess Leia is one of Darth Vader's twins and she grew up to be the leader of the rebellion against the Empire.  Luke Skywalker is the other twin and he ended up training as a Jedi in secret and so he is the last Jedi left.  Luke met this scavenger named Han Solo and his sidekick Chewbacca who own a starship called the Millennium Falcon.   Solo and Chewie reluctantly got pulled to help with the rebellion because of their friendship to the twins.  Darth Vader and the Emperor tried to turn Luke Skywalker to the dark side and wipe out the rebellion but he was able to resist it.  The Emperor tried to kill him, but Darth Vader ended up killing the Emperor to save his son which also led to Vader's death and the fall of the Empire.

 

Now, there are stuff written in the books that is not in the movie that would help understand the new movie.  After the fall of the Empire, Leia and Han Solo get married and Luke Skywalker built the Jedi Academy to train force-sensitive children in the light side to eventually take their place as the peacekeepers of the galaxy.  Leia led the effort to reform the Republic after the fall of the Empire keeping all the galactic worlds political, economic, and social interactions functioning.

 

Now you are ready to watch the new movie.  May the force be with you.

[Guest]

Okay, so I'm confused.  Are the movies numbered chronologically, or in the order they came out?  And is the new movie any better than that horrible movie with JarJar...that's about all I remember of that one...how much JarJar annoyed me....

 

[Guest]

I haven't seen the new one (and have no intention of doing so for a while).

What I want to know (or, better, who I want to meet) is if there is anyone who's seen the Harry Potter films without having read the books.

I find the movies disjointed, with huge holes only Rowling's text can fill. But that's difficult to ascertain because I have read the books (dozens of times each), and the movies are only "based on" the novels.

At least with Star Wars there is no book: the scripts/screen plays are the whole story (ignoring the cutting room floor), so the movie must fill in all the blanks.

Some have said that Episode III failed to bridge all the chasms between I & II and IV (the first film). It was unsettling for me, at least because while, say, the origins of Vadar's scarred face was there, it was shallow, and an enormous gap (how he became Vadar, v. Skywalker) had a trivial explanation.

For those who like the franchise, good on you. I'm getting more and more ambivalent.

Lehi

 

I know several who watched the Harry Potter movies without reading the books.  They enjoyed it but when we talk about what they understand of Harry Potter, it is vastly different from how I understand it.  For example - one friend of mine doesn't see the Slytherin house as a dark aspect in the story.  He just knows Harry doesn't want to be in it for some reason.

 

Star Wars universe is very big because of the books - from kid books to big books - and all the other media - like the animated series, graphic novels, etc. etc.  The movies are only a small fraction of that universe.  Each movie has its corresponding book and the movie come out first then the corresponding book come out - which is the opposite experience of Harry Potter.  But the movies take on a much deeper and vastly layered outlook when you read the books.  The books doesn't have special effects limitations so they can get quite complicated.  This is especially true for Revenge of the Sith.  The movie was so rushed that Anakin's frustrations seem rooted in being pulled in competing forces and his pride.  The book show a much deeper layer to it - especially if you read the book before it that told the story leading to Palpatine getting "kidnapped" by General Grievous.  His frustrations for not being given the honor of Jedi Master after being called to join the council in the movie just seemed like a pride thing.  The books give a much deeper layer to it which gives his desperation of needing to be a Master very elemental which also put a certain inevitability to him kneeling down to pledge his loyalty to Palpatine.  The movie didn't quite give us that same inevitability when the scene rolled out.  Also, his act of wiping out all the Jedi including younglings seems out of balance in the movie after being a Jedi just a few minutes beforehand.  But, reading the youth books plus all the other books about Anakin gives you a, "yeah, I can see why he did that" kind of thing to that scene especially when Lucas showed the dark Anakin looking back with this mixed expression of despair and hate - with the tears running down his face.  That one second scene spoke volumes and I have to give a shout-out to the amazing skill of Hayden Christiansen for pulling off that expression.

 

Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan's story is told in a Youth series - ages 8-12, I believe.  I love those books.  These "kiddie" books start out when Obi-Wan was a baby and ends sometime before Episode 1.  This give a much deeper understanding of Qui-Gon's connection to the living force that makes you understand what drove his connection to Anakin and his constant disagreement with the council, especially Yoda.  These books also give a much deeper understanding of Obi-Wan and what led him to defy the council to train Anakin and how he is the kind of Master that he is that frustrated Anakin.  This is one of my favorite books in the universe.  There's also another Youth series that falls between Episode 2 and 3 showing Anakin's growth as a Jedi apprentice under Obi-wan.  And another set after Order 66.

 

The way the universe was set before Disney bought it out, Lucas had control over what people can write about or make a film about (like in the case of the animated series).  This made it so that each book falls within the canon and the Star Wars movies timelines.  There are some stuff that go out of character - like the Bobba Fett adult series is horrible - set around the time Fett delivered the cryo'd Solo to Jabba.  It is an important series because it shows how Fett survives the sarlac pit but Fett in this series is so out of character (and the universe is also out of phase) that it just gets frustrating reading the thing.  From the fan rumors, this was during the time that Lucas got divorced so Lucas did not pay as much attention to his project.  The Youth series is much better - set after Jango died and before Episode 2.

 

Anyway, I can go on and on and on about Star Wars.  But now, with Disney getting the rights to the characters, the first movie basically just blew up the canon.... Not sure how the universe is going to look like now.

Edited December 21, 2015 by anatess

[Guest]

P.S.  One treat of watching the new Star Wars movie is the trailer for the new Harry Potter movie...

[Ironhold]

 

The "official" story is that Lucas realized his master narrative was too long to produce as a single film, so he broke it down until he had a series of trilogies. 

 

He went with the middle trilogy because he didn't have the budget or the available technology to film anything else. 

[Guest Godless]

What I want to know (or, better, who I want to meet) is if there is anyone who's seen the Harry Potter films without having read the books.

I find the movies disjointed, with huge holes only Rowling's text can fill. But that's difficult to ascertain because I have read the books (dozens of times each), and the movies are only "based on" the novels.

At least with Star Wars there is no book: the scripts/screen plays are the whole story (ignoring the cutting room floor), so the movie must fill in all the blanks.

Some have said that Episode III failed to bridge all the chasms between I & II and IV (the first film). It was unsettling for me, at least because while, say, the origins of Vadar's scarred face was there, it was shallow, and an enormous gap (how he became Vadar, v. Skywalker) had a trivial explanation.

For those who like the franchise, good on you. I'm getting more and more ambivalent.

Lehi

 

I only read 1-4, but I've seen all of the movies. I can definitely see where the books could have offered more background to what went on in the later books, but I didn't find myself confused at all while watching the movies.

 

As for the Star Wars prequels, I feel they were unnecessary. Everyone knew the gist of what happened before episode IV. It was nice to have it detailed, but the franchise would have been fine without it. Interestingly though, episode VII continues the stormtrooper origins concept that the prequels introduced.