Episode II Gets Rave Review 272
Astin writes: "Dark Horizons has obtained a copy of what it believes is the script for Attack of the Clones, and has posted a review. Apparently they got this one right, with epic battles, lots of action, and that sense of adventure that was missing from Episode I. Canoe.ca is also carrying a synopsis from the site."
Not so fast (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Its not the battles, it's not the action... (Score:5, Interesting)
I'm no Lucas lover, but the opening credit crawl is brilliant! And Lucas had to fight [imdb.com] the directors guild to get it in there:
Milalwi
Bad trailer != bad film (Score:2, Interesting)
[rant]
Besides, I'm _very_ glad that the trailer doesn't reveal everything - The Ep 1 trailer showed far too much. Like Darth Maul and his double bladed lightsaber. Go back in your mind to the first time you saw the film. Now replay the scene where Maul lights the second blade - as if you _didn't_ know he had one from the trailer. That could have been a "holy f*cking sh*t!!!" moment that would have made the entire film. Who cares about Jar Jar when you've got a scene like that? But no. They had to go and spoil it...
[/rant]
IIRC, Lucas said that Ep 1 was an introduction to the characters and time period. 2 is _mostly_ a love story, while 3 is much darker. I for one can tollerate a little glucose content in 2, as long as it doesn't detract from the story (or get in the way of some bad-guy ass-kicking Jedi style).
And as for the title, I am still holding out hope that it's a ploy to screw all the fake merchandise that's bound to appear. I'm not sure, but I don't recall the trailer explicitly calling it "Attack of the Clones" - it was just "Episode 2". Am I right?
Maran
"Mystery" Trailer (Score:3, Interesting)
Even if this script isn't the real one, pretty much everyone involved in Episode II has remarked that this one has the potential for greatness. Ewan McGregor, not exactly silent on how bad Episode I was, remarked early on that this script was great. In fact, last week on the Today show, while promoting Black Hawk Down, Ewan again remarked how good he thought Episode II was going to be. There was genuine sincerity in his voice, not the usual Hollywood bullshit.
If you really want to see the promise in Episode II, you'll need to view the "Mystery" trailer. Yeah yeah, I know, only available to Phantom Menace DVD owners, only available to Windows users, whatever. It's a good trailer, and shows the sense of adventure much better than the "Forbidden Love" trailer.
Re:I don't think so. (Score:2, Interesting)
Of course Jar Jar will be a Jedi (look at all the "blind luck" he had in the first film -- the force is strong, if not blatently obvious, in him). I predict Jar Jar will make the ultimate sacrifice trying to help to separate the Skywalker twins from the Empire.
Re:Probably a hoax. (Score:4, Interesting)
1. No trailers or commercials to fast forward through. Just a few seconds of the FBI's you-better-not-copy-this-tape.
2. A storyline developed by someone over the age of 10.
3. Characters who act like human beings, instead of ludicrous puppets being jacked around by plot devices and ridiculous situations.
4. A soundtrack that supports the movie, instead of screaming "here's what you should be feeling".
5. Less makeup and other artifices to create the "perfect" visual image.
6. Characters who show good principles and morals, instead of "oh, well, I just felt like it" ethics.
I could go on. The point's been made.
Are there still good films being made? Sure. Are all older films better than today's? No. But the quality of the "average" film has IMO declined considerably.
-Thomas
repeat of history? I hope not (long) (Score:3, Interesting)
back around the time when Episode I was about to be released, was still the time when another 'Epic' (touted by the creators) entertainment event was unfolding. That event was the conclusion of the Ultima series. For just under 6 years, fans and even new initiates to the series had eagerly awaited not just the release but any snippet of news, screenshots, story, etc. The excitement built up this mere game both amazed and scared some who did not understand the game (hey, what do THEY know). Literally hundreds of sites devoted themselves to this next epic conclusion known as Ultima IX, and then Ascension later. Many fan sites had a ton of fiction and story lines, many a serious (and often very nasty) discussion on forums was held about what the origin of blackrock, the guardian and this whole mess really was. There where even rumors of published books. (I for one never saw them) In a stated attempt by Origin|EA to not scare off potential new customers they would stealthily release tidbits of information to select organizations (usually in other countries than most of the fan sites, but that is merely a demographic issue). It was touted as just another action adventure game, and the title changed to reflect that no player had to have any existing experience with the series.
However, things began to go sour. Long time devoted fans (made obvious by their volunteer time and effort given so generously to the community) found that they where THE ONLY source of information about the upcoming game. Questions about why they, the fans, must volunteer their time (as in free) to promote and advocate the game, ask questions that never where answered, be put off by EA|Origin staff, yet not get paid or compensated for it. (In case you don't know, free is not accurate. The fans in fact take a loss from the costs to bandwidth and hardware, not to mention loss of real life productivity) EA|Origin obviously did not care about this issue, and could not seem to spend the money to either help out some sites, through direct assistance or just providing a few hours here and there for knowledgable employees to act as liasons. Soon, many web sites began to disappear, feeling dejected that they would not only be denied any information, but where often lied to. (as evidenced by answers from staff that where directly contradicting a press release that would be released a day later to a gaming magazine, usually in a foreign language) It soon became apparent that EA|Origin either where taking the existing fan base for granted (in a VERY extreme case), or simply did not wish to make a game that appealed to them and thus felt some sort of guilt or shame, leading to the alienation treatment of the fans.
While the term 'understand' can be used to describe how the vast majority of fans felt in relation to the game appealing to a larger market, many where worried that if the development/producing team did not have the integrity necessary to first produce a game that answers the call of the fan base (regardless of whether they dress it up later a bit to appeal to others) then it would manifest as a bad game that appeals to none (neither the new crowd or the existing fans). This was warrented not only because of this situation happening so many times in other games and even non entertainment and/or computer industries... but more importantly, was the fact that when it had been tried with Ultima 8, it only ended in disaster. No one liked the game (by no one and none used earlier I mean a significant enough sized group to justify expenses, much less keep people interested in later releases). Like a restaruant that serves fecal matter and wonders why no one ever comes back and why negative word of mouth travels faster than positive word, EA|Origin proved that they refused to comprehend this basic lesson of life and business (on any level) by releasing Ascension as a... well... it didn't seem like an "Ultima" at all to me and many others. Some will argue pro or con of its merits as a stand alone game, that is not my concern here. The fact was, it not only continued a series and a story line, but was a very eagerly anticipated final wrap up of the entire series. Just looking back at that time period, you see how eagerly people where to once again travel to Britania and face its perils. Fan art, fan fiction, fan news sites, fan organizations of real life events and sub-press conferences... all of this translated to a very easy market for Origin and EA. They could have layed off their marketers for this. Or in efficiency and logical terms, they could have better applied their resources to the tasks that most made sense. Put that marketing (including marketing management, oversite, corporate interaction, overhead, etc) into development of code, art and story. (not to mention QA) Not to go into a rant on the futility of and inefficiency of corporate/bureaucratic mentality and processes... they simply did not prioritize correctly. End result was yet another game and public relation status that angered many and alienated many more.
But wait, theres more... if you order now we include this guide, "How to take your one saving grace and flush it down the toilet". One of the most devestating (now seen in hindsite and admited by many ex employees including Garriot himself) was the mistake that trully relates to the Star Wars issue here. First, the comparison. Obviously many had awaited a long and often frustrating yet exciting time for Episode I to come out. Any news was lapped up like a marooned man in the Saharra laps up the dew off of a blade of grass if he finds it. Fans dressed up in silly costumes and acted out there favorite scenes from books and movies alike. Like with Ultima, fans devoted huge amounts of time, bandwidth, hardware and good ol fashion brain power to present news, art, rumors, facts and even fan based fiction. Even more than Ultima, Star Wars spawned an entire (and sometimes frightening) sub-culture of its own.
However, some began to see signs of impending doom in the commercials, trailers, interviews and art. I for one remember a particular ad on TV that scared the bones from my body... it was narrated by this woman who's inflections, voice tenor and choice and timing of words where obviously of the sort used by advertising agencies to appeal to small children. Complete with the choicest tidbits of scenes that all featured everyone's favorite CGI loon, Jar Jar. If no one had ever hear of Star Wars, then they would have been left with the impression that this 'new movie' was merely a fun and cute childrens flick, much like a Disney animated film (well, not just animated, and no that is not necesarilly a bad thing on its own). This seemed to contrast the existing movies, books, story, etc that made up the fantasy universe of Star Wars.
Now back to Ultima... the biggest single issue that destroyed the game and its effect on fans and newbies alike was the botched PR of the leak of the original game plot/script. (no, it is not ironic, at least not from a historical and 'Big Picture' perspective) Due to most likely a lack of consistent (or I should really say, just a sheer lack of PR in the first place) PR policy, growing tensions within the Origin camp and against its 'overlords', EA... a very large mistake happened. Besides the first mistake of leaking the script, the real issue was how they handled it. First they denied it, in an attempt to (as a prankster would perform if his joke was beginning to be suspected) turn the tide away from the discovery of the plot, Origin (whether directed or not) decided to redo the story. The result was a simplistic story with no real substance, much less any tie in with past releases and 'unanswered questions'. Very much less than any 'Epic' feel to the grand conclusion of one of the most popular and succesful (by various definitions) game series of all times.
Now fast forward to the present... now we hear of a release/leak of the plot. Should we be concerned at all that they would change it, not really. I doubt any film studio would ever throw away its existing film already recorded, not to mention the CGI already in place in most parts. Even though it has happened in the past (like when an actor/actress dies before completion), I doubt personally anything major COULD be changed. However, I just hope (as in 'New Hope'?) that this next movie will break the 'cycle'. I look forward to it, and hope that it returns to the Episode 5 look and feel.
Note that this was meant to really be silly to a large degree, so this does not necessarily reflect the internal ramblings of my rational mind... I know it is around here somewhere.
Re:!Scoop (Score:3, Interesting)
And **Music*** - It makes IV, V, and VI work, and I hang in there.
Re:SuperShadow's site is known to be fake (Score:2, Interesting)
Well, according to supershadow's site he has a small role in 'Attack of the Clones' (alien in 'Dexter's Diner'?). So if he's not in it, then you know it's bogus for sure.
But, I've been visiting the site since before ep.1 came out, and the script summary he posted way back for then ep.1 was accurate. So, who really knows...uh...the shadow i suppose.
Re:Its not the battles, it's not the action... (Score:4, Interesting)
You can continue hating Lucas then, because he borrowed it [jitterbug.com] from Flash Gordon.