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Revenge of the Sith reviews; **spoiler alert**
Topic Started: May 16 2005, 04:37 PM (610 Views)
KarunaDreamer
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Rating 'Revenge': MSN Movies Takes on 'Episode III'

The MSN Movies team got together on MSN Messenger to discuss "Star Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith" after viewing the press screening.

The team is made up of:
David Seno, lead producer, Movies
Dave McCoy, managing editor, Movies
Dish Diva, celebrity events producer


Here is our conversation (WARNING: Contains Spoilers):

David Seno says: So, let's not bury the lead: What did you guys think of "Revenge of the Sith"?

Dish Diva says: I can't remember the last time I saw a movie like this.  There are no words.

Seno: Is that a good thing or a bad thing? 

Dave McCoy says: Uh, sure there are words. So, the good news is I thought it was easily the best film of the "new" "Star Wars" films. The bad news is it's still a pretty bad movie.

Diva: Why bad?

McCoy: I'll get to that in a bit

Diva: I thought this was the best "Star Wars" film to date.

McCoy: Here are the things I liked ... First 30 minutes. Perhaps the most exciting in "Star Wars" history.

Diva: Yeah, I agree

McCoy: (SPOILER ALERT)

Diva: This whole conversation probably deserves one big spoiler alert.

McCoy: The sequence in which the Jedi are taken out, in "Godfather"-style, was impressive.  I really thought that worked emotionally

Diva: Yoda showed the little green guy can really kick some Sith butt.

McCoy: Yeah, but he did that in the last film. So the novelty wore off for me

McCoy: And all around, the action sequences, especially the saber duels, were tighter. But I heard Spielberg helped out with those, so it figures

Diva: What did you guys think of the Anakin and Obi-wan duel?

McCoy: Those were solid. Lava. Nice touch. But that's all of the good stuff I have.

McCoy: Let's go back Diva. Tell me why you think it's the best of the series. That's a HUGE statement

Diva: Yeah, I do think it's the best out of all of them.

Seno: I liked the movie a lot. I think it's the third best in the series (after Episodes IV and V)

McCoy: OK, I agree with Seno... but you know, that's not saying much, man

Seno: You better, I'm your boss :)

Diva: "Why," you ask?  Strong storyline, good character development, extraordinary effects (clearly George and his team pulled out every effect they could)...

Diva: I also quite liked the development of the relationship between Obi-wan and Anakin. There was some humor there which I liked.

McCoy: OK, I'd like to address character development, if I could

Diva: Please do.

McCoy: And then, afterwards, I'll trash the acting and the writing

Seno: I had two big fears, and only one them came true.  First, I was afraid of all the CG, but I thought the movie was pretty seamless.  Second, I was terrified of the Christensen/ Portman scenes... unfortunately, that was a well-founded fear

Seno: Poor Nat, she was hung out to dry by the script

Diva: Yeah, I agree with you on the Anakin/Padme scenes. They seemed awkward together.

McCoy: OK, wait ... first on Portman and Christensen. The scenes with Anakin and Padme were either laugh-out-loud bad or enough to make me cover my face in embarrassment. I literally felt BAD for Natalie Portman. From "Closer" to this drivel? Poor girl. 

Seno: She had NOTHING to work with

McCoy: They are BRUTAL scenes ... and there are, what, 7 or 8 of them?

Diva: She didn't have much to do but hang out in her spacepad.

McCoy: Exactly ... and cry ... and get in touch with her feelings. Though, apparently, everyone in the "Star Wars" universe is supposed to "search their feelings" For what? Character motivation? Better lines?

Diva: The Anakin/Padme scenes will drive the true mega "Star Wars" fans nuts. They will be interminably long to them.  I found myself studying her hair during the scenes with them together.

McCoy: The acting, across the board, is horrendous. And outside of Christensen, who is as interesting and convincing as a piece of wood, you can't blame the actors. Portman, McGregor, Jackson have all done solid work in other films. The blame is on Lucas, for a) writing embarrassing dialogue that not even Olivier could read convincingly and b) spending more time with his gadgets than his actors ... or his typewriter.

Diva: Let's step back for a second. How big of a Star Wars fan are you, McCoy?  I mean did you see all of them on the day they opened?

McCoy: Yes. I had the action figures. I have the bed sheets... still

Seno: LOL

Diva: How's that lunch box doing? 

McCoy: I loved them as a kid. I still love Ep. IV and V; "Return of the Jedi" has problems, but I like it. Hated Ep. I and, though Ep. II was better, it still sucked

McCoy: Look, when R2-D2 gives the best performance in the film, we're in trouble, folks

Diva: Ya know, I really liked R2-D2. He had some great scenes, didn't he?

McCoy: Me too... he/it/whatever was great

Diva: Strange that he showed emotions better than some of the actors.

Seno: The dude can jump and fly now, but in Episode IV, he needs a crane to be put in the Luke's X-Wing.  As far as continuity errors go, if that's the worst thing that happens, I guess Lucas did OK.

McCoy: I enjoyed Yoda too. Gotta love his grammar

Seno: Getting back to the dialogue/gadgets comment, couldn't you say the same thing about "Star Wars"?  Mark Hamill?  I mean, c'mon...

McCoy: Yeah, but the structure of the first two was great. And the romance between Leia and Solo felt genuine. The writing was better. There was humor. It still works.

Seno: That's true... the Han/Leia romance didn't seem as forced as Anakin/Padme

McCoy: But, yeah, watch the scene where Hamill learns that Vader is his father. It's brutal. Embarrassing

McCoy: "That's impossible!!!"

Diva: Watching the movie it was hard for me to believe that the love each of them had for each other was so strong that it drove them to their destruction.

McCoy: Exactly!

McCoy: I dug the darkness of this film (beheadings, guys flying through space, etc)...

Diva: Total guy film.

McCoy: Wait, how is it a "total guy film" but you, a woman, loved it more than us?

Diva: Well, I did love it, but it has the the guy elements.  It has the violence, light sabers, adventure in space...

Diva: Though (no spoiler here, it's been leaked already) the scene where the younglings are killed is pretty rough. At least they didn't show it.

McCoy: Unfortunately, no, they didn't.

McCoy: So, here's the real problem with "Episode III": It's designed as a Shakespearean tragedy. We already know going into the theater what the conclusion of the drama will be... it's going to be ugly. Othello will kill his wife. Romeo and Juliet will commit suicide. And Anakin will lose his soul and become Darth Vader.

McCoy: So, the biggest challenge for Lucas was getting his audience to care about his characters before the tragic ending.

Seno: Ah, caring for the characters. That's my biggest problem with Episodes I, II and III.  I didn't like Anakin... I just wanted to slap him around.

McCoy: Right

McCoy: For this film to work, we have to feel for Anakin and his dilemmas and what he's going through. There need to be scenes that grab us emotionally, so that when he crosses over to the Dark Side, it's painful. Personally, I didn't care about ANY of these characters, and Lucas is such a bad writer that he gives us little to stir our emotion, other than a few cool action sequences.

McCoy: And again, it doesn't help that Christensen's performance is so wooden. I just don't believe Anakin's change to the Dark Side. It just doesn't work. Just because someone films half of your face in shadows doesn't make you dark

Diva: Ha!

McCoy: Basically, this is a tragedy without any passion. It's a string of events that lead very nicely into the original "Star Wars." It answers questions, but it's not the grand achievement that can stand on its own that Lucas wanted ... or has been promoting.

Diva: What did you guys think about the way this film connected the episodes together?

Seno: Lucas nailed it.

McCoy: I thought the end was beautiful. The tie-ins are terrific. It bumps right up against "Episode IV."

McCoy: Here's the thing: After the first 30 minutes, I was calling for a time out. I was exhausted. I was like, "Slow down! Please!"

Diva: Yeah, that first 30 minutes were mind blowing.

McCoy: I was in the fourth row. I felt like I was flying those first 10 minutes

McCoy: But, sadly, when characters started talking ... I was like "No, wait! Speed up! Speed up!"

Diva: I found myself throughout the film thinking, "Oh, so THAT'S where it came from." (The whole how does Anakin go from being hot to Darth Vader)

McCoy: Those quiet moments need to hold the film together, as in "Star Wars" (scenes between Ben and Luke) or "Empire Strikes Back" (Han and Leia)... but here they don't.

Seno: The special effects are really, truly amazing

McCoy: Yeah, the F/X are amazing. But "Star Wars" is about more than that. The effects in parts 4 and 5 aren't great. And there isn't a ton of action. It's the relationships that carry those films.

Seno: At the time, though, the effects of IV and V were mind-bending.

Seno: "Star Wars" took me to another world. It was the first time film to do that for me (I wasn't old enough to see "2001.")

McCoy: Yes, but the storyline was tighter. Well, at least this one wasn't about trade embargos, like Ep. I.

McCoy: Woohoooo! Trade embargos! That's drama!

McCoy: Also, I give props to Lucas for keeping the critter count to a minimum. It's more toned down than Episode I, for sure

Seno: OK, so bottom line... McCoy, do you recommend the movie?

McCoy: To fans, yes. Like I said, it's better than the other two. To others, no.

Diva: Seno, would you?

Seno: Absolutely.  I had a blast.

Seno: OK, final thoughts time...

Dave McCoy: Here's my final thought: Personally, I hope this is not only the last "Star Wars" film, but the last we ever hear of George Lucas. He's now made more bad films than good. He has nothing left to offer. Back to the ranch, George. Take a screenwriting class.

David Seno: My final thought ... Lucas didn't screw this one up. That doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement, but all signs pointed to this movie blowing chunks. Not only does it do a nice job tying the series together, it stands alone as an outstanding summer movie.

Dish Diva: Final thought: I loved it. I already bought tickets to a screening next weekend. Go see it.
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Interesting that the woman was alot more forgiving than the men. They were harsh. But they were funny.

So far, though, the movie has a tomatometer freshness rating of 81%, which is pretty good.
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KingOfMilwaukee
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Good stuff!! Lets hope the tickets arrive by Wednesday.
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KarunaDreamer
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I know it! They better, or that fucker's getting negative feedback from me AND my money back! LOL. I'm sure they will. Who knows? They might be here now. I haven't checked the mail today.
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slater_girl
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I work at a theatre right, so I'll be seeing Star Wars sometime soon. :)
and maybe we'll get promo buttons and stuff, yay :P
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KingOfMilwaukee
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I see it is opening in London today! Why early for the Brits? :thinking1
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KarunaDreamer
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I don't know. Isn't that strange? There's no rhyme or reason to movie openings. When I was there, I saw 'Hulk' (which was sort-of a waste of money), but I saw it 2 weeks before it opened here. I thought that was weird, too. And then, you have a British-made film like 'Wimbledon' opening earlier here than it does there. ..weird.
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jackson
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to quote the wailing souls, "just like life"
or was that "just like that"?
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slater_girl
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yay starwars, I love light sabers! lol I saw part of the movie, pretty good, but I wanan see the whole thing dammit!
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afterglow
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I said God Damn! God Damn!
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did cinemas all across the world have special security durning the opening? even here all bags were checked and everything.. so... i dunno.... strange in some ways, sane in others...
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KarunaDreamer
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...uh, I don't remember all that much of the movie.


.......


...I was........................distracted.
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afterglow
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I said God Damn! God Damn!
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too much jagermeister, eh?
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KingOfMilwaukee
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afterglow
May 21 2005, 01:34 AM
too much jagermeister, eh?

I think KD is confusing distracted with anebriated. :crazy
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jackson
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i was too.
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KarunaDreamer
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KingOfMilwaukee
May 21 2005, 02:37 AM
afterglow
May 21 2005, 01:34 AM
too much jagermeister, eh?

I think KD is confusing distracted with anebriated. :crazy

LOL.

But no, the word is DEFINATELY distracted. Anebriated would be if I was just drunk and that was it. :)
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jackson
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I see. 2 grams more and what to do?
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