Star Wars: The Complete Saga (1977-2005)

[The_Donster]

Guess I'm getting the complete set, just not right now.

[ObiTrentKenobi]

(((Quote by guy #1
"some crap about about Lucas not being involved in directing/producing Empire Strikes Back so it was much better because of it")))
<<<Quote by guy #2
"Every plot point of Empire was written by Lucas, as well as quite a bit of dialog.

I love how the fans rewrite history just as much or more than what they criticize Lucas for. ">>>


Well put, in addition, when you read the actual history of the Empire Strikes Back filmmaking lore (The Making of Empire Strikes Back), the true story is that

1. a woman by the name of Leigh Brackett wrote the script based on notes from George Lucas' plot points, she completed 1 or 2 drafts, but she died before filming commenced, so George hired Lawrence Kasdan to finish the final draft with him. (George wasn't apparently happy with her screenplays anyway), So Lucas and Kasdan finished the screenplay, and Lucas kept Brackett as a credited writer as well as Kasdan, but didn't put his name on it. What a nice guy. He kept her name on the credit to be a nice guy for her work on the drafts.

2. Irvin Kirschner directed, yes. Gary Kurtz produced, yes. However, Lucas continually checked up on production (as any sane person should have) and gave his input on what was going on. I think it was about halfway through filming, Kurtz and Lucas were arguing a lot and Lucas basically took over producing alongside Kirschner. Lucas had a lot of his hand in Empire, so don't say that he was absent so that's why it was a better movie.

3. The same thing goes for Jedi. He was very involved, extremely busy on set - which is why he credits his divorce from his first wife.

BTW IMHO, I feel both Empire and Return were superior films to A New Hope. hahaha, blasphemy!

[ObiTrentKenobi]

Originally Posted by The_Donster

Guess I'm getting the complete set, just not right now.

If you own the DVD releases already for some of the special features missing from the bluray release, you won't be dissapointed.

[Falaskan]

Originally Posted by ObiTrentKenobi

BTW IMHO, I feel both Empire and Return were superior films to A New Hope. hahaha, blasphemy!

That's fine. IMHO ROTJ is the best, and if it wasn't for the ewoks, I think most ppl would agree (they don't bother me that much). I also don't think many people would like ESB as much if it wasn't for the "No, I am your father line." Now that is blasphemy! :P

[Gold Ranger]

Originally Posted by Falaskan

That's fine. IMHO ROTJ is the best, and if it wasn't for the ewoks, I think most ppl would agree (they don't bother me that much). I also don't think many people would like ESB as much if it wasn't for the "No, I am your father line." Now that is blasphemy! :P

Don't forget Most Over-Rated #1 - Boba Fett

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by Falaskan

That's fine. IMHO ROTJ is the best, and if it wasn't for the ewoks, I think most ppl would agree (they don't bother me that much). I also don't think many people would like ESB as much if it wasn't for the "No, I am your father line." Now that is blasphemy! :P

There was so much more to like about ESB than the surprise twist near the end. It really expanded the concept of what a sequel could do. It introduced a lot of new worlds, and characters - Yoda! Boba Fett! Lando Calrissian! The Emperor! -, instead of just giving us more of the same, more Tatooine, space stations, Millennium Falcon, etc. It also dared to be considerably darker than its predecessor.

And, more importantly, it proved conclusively that the Star Wars Holiday Special *really* was not really an indication of the direction in which the franchise was headed.

[AlexSing]

Originally Posted by BluBonnet

There was so much more to like about ESB than the surprise twist near the end. It really expanded the concept of what a sequel could do. It introduced a lot of new worlds, and characters - Yoda! Boba Fett! Lando Calrissian! The Emperor! -, instead of just giving us more of the same, more Tatooine, space stations, Millennium Falcon, etc. It also dared to be considerably darker than its predecessor.

Agree entirely. As a kid, from the moment it opened on Hoth I was in love with the movie. My wife still tells me it's my favourite movie opening ever. They had the coolest secret base on an Ice Planet no less (for some reason I just loved that) and then you had not only Han saving Luke's life but the impending fear of the empire finding the base and then not only tracking them down but launching a full scale assault!! With Imperial Walkers!!! FFS!!

Even the fact that I had kept wondering what had happened to Darth Vader after Ep4 and whether he'd be ok after flying off into space with no Death Star to go to was exciting. The fact he'd clearly regrouped, got command of a huge ship and was actively seekeing out the Rebellion (making the end of the first seemingly just a small victory) made the first hour even more exciting.

[AlexSing]

Weird thing just happened. I was in the gym listening to my weekly "Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo's film review show" (available as a free podcast on itunes - just go to the itunes top 10 podcasts to find it - no seriously do).

Now with all reviews of films I like to listen to them but still make my own mind up. With this show 2 things are sure: Firstly that the views of Kermode are just as repected by the millions of listeners as they are by film Directors and major stars (anyone familiar with the show knows that) that appear weekly on the show - and secondly whether you agree with their opinions or not, it's a brilliant show (I often don't)

This week they reviewed Phantom Menace 3D. It really is a must-hear.

I recommend all of you that like such things to download the free podcast from itunes and listen. The review itself is at about the 1hr 15minute mark but do listen to the whole show. For me it's the best movie review show/programme available and whether you agree with them or not it's an extremely pleasurable 90minutes of your time.

And Hello Jason Isaacs

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by Falaskan

That's fine. IMHO ROTJ is the best, and if it wasn't for the ewoks, I think most ppl would agree (they don't bother me that much). I also don't think many people would like ESB as much if it wasn't for the "No, I am your father line." Now that is blasphemy! :P

There is also this, of all 6 movies (even with Revenge Of The Sith) Empire is the darkess story of the entire series. Also Irvin Kershner contribution should not be ignored, he really gave the movie and story a strong structure. Luke left his training, got his @ss wipped by Vader, Han is gone.....Dark stories are attractive for many people and when they are well presented like in Empire, of course people will most of the time pick them as their favorite.

For myself, Return is the worst of all 6 movies. The way Boba get's kill, the stupid dialogue Han and Lando have, the silly stuff going on with Jabba....One of the worst, for me the acting is bad, very bad. It feel to me like all main actor are just doing it for the sake of doing it and you can almost read in their faces "thank god this silly adventure is now over and we can move on!" I think most people pick Return because they feel the final battle between Luke and Vader is amazing. I feel it was done way better in Empire.

[jcarugati]

Does anyone know if the price on the entire saga boxset is going to go down anytime soon? The lowest I see for new is at 89.99.

Thanks.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by jcarugati

Does anyone know if the price on the entire saga boxset is going to go down anytime soon? The lowest I see for new is at 89.99.

Thanks.

I got it on release day for $74. I think there was a sale not long ago for $79 but I can't recall where it was. It might drop during 2012 to much below that if you wait a bit.

[Falaskan]

Originally Posted by AlexSing

Weird thing just happened. I was in the gym listening to my weekly "Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo's film review show"

You had me at "gym." You mean Star Wars fans go to gyms? j/k

[Breather]

Originally Posted by jcarugati

Does anyone know if the price on the entire saga boxset is going to go down anytime soon? The lowest I see for new is at 89.99.

Thanks.

About a month ago, it was just under $71 on Amazon. I don't know if it was just a one day special or something more. Check Amazon on a daily basis. Their prices tend to change often.

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by Breather

About a month ago, it was just under $71 on Amazon. I don't know if it was just a one day special or something more. Check Amazon on a daily basis. Their prices tend to change often.

Or you can use this site's price tracker

[Duffy12]

Originally Posted by ObiTrentKenobi

1. a woman by the name of Leigh Brackett wrote the script based on notes from George Lucas' plot points, she completed 1 or 2 drafts, but she died before filming commenced, so George hired Lawrence Kasdan to finish the final draft with him. (George wasn't apparently happy with her screenplays anyway), So Lucas and Kasdan finished the screenplay, and Lucas kept Brackett as a credited writer as well as Kasdan, but didn't put his name on it. What a nice guy. He kept her name on the credit to be a nice guy for her work on the drafts.

2. Irvin Kirschner directed, yes. Gary Kurtz produced, yes. However, Lucas continually checked up on production (as any sane person should have) and gave his input on what was going on. I think it was about halfway through filming, Kurtz and Lucas were arguing a lot and Lucas basically took over producing alongside Kirschner. Lucas had a lot of his hand in Empire, so don't say that he was absent so that's why it was a better movie.

Yea, but don't forget....










"I love you!"

[Show spoiler]"I know."

.

[Duffy12]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

For myself, Return is the worst of all 6 movies. The way Boba get's kill, the stupid dialogue Han and Lando have, the silly stuff going on with Jabba....One of the worst, for me the acting is bad, very bad. It feel to me like all main actor are just doing it for the sake of doing it and you can almost read in their faces "thank god this silly adventure is now over and we can move on!" I think most people pick Return because they feel the final battle between Luke and Vader is amazing. I feel it was done way better in Empire.

I absolutely agree 100%


In fact, I have watched the whole set twice now, except for RotJ, which is only once.

That movie for me is a total utter balls-up! I will never ever watch it again, even if I purchase a 3D or holographic set when it comes out. The whole thing is just so bad, that the Ewoks were the least annoying thing about it.

.

[s2mikey]

Originally Posted by Falaskan

That's fine. IMHO ROTJ is the best, and if it wasn't for the ewoks, I think most ppl would agree (they don't bother me that much). I also don't think many people would like ESB as much if it wasn't for the "No, I am your father line." Now that is blasphemy! :P

I like ROTJ and ESB but A New Hope is still my favorite. The pacing and characterization are just brilliant. The end battle is still the most exciting in ANY Star Wars movie. Its a 4-star film, IMO.

[Mahatma]

Originally Posted by Duffy12

I absolutely agree 100%


In fact, I have watched the whole set twice now, except for RotJ, which is only once.

That movie for me is a total utter balls-up! I will never ever watch it again, even if I purchase a 3D or holographic set when it comes out. The whole thing is just so bad, that the Ewoks were least annoying thing about it.

.

lol.Only time I put that movie into my player is to see the epic spacebattle at the end.There is something to be said about a stardestroyer crashing into a deathstar But agree that it is the worst of the three first.It may even be worse than some of the PQ,but have no interest in visiting them again.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by s2mikey

I like ROTJ and ESB but A New Hope is still my favorite. The pacing and characterization are just brilliant. The end battle is still the most exciting in ANY Star Wars movie. Its a 4-star film, IMO.

I think A New Hope is probably the more fun of all 6 movies. There is a reason why it also did what it did in 1977 and none of the other 5 movies did. Sure they were huge success on their own but none of them ever came close to capture what the first movie did. It was the perfect movie for the perfect moment in that time. The world needed that movie at that moment for whatever reason. If Lucas and co. had not made it who knows what type of world we would be living in now? Would it be better or worse? Impossible to know but it would be a very different world.

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

I think A New Hope is probably the more fun of all 6 movies. There is a reason why it also did what it did in 1977 and none of the other 5 movies did. Sure they were huge success on their own but none of them ever came close to capture what the first movie did. It was the perfect movie for the perfect moment in that time. The world needed that movie at that moment for whatever reason. If Lucas and co. had not made it who knows what type of world we would be living in now? Would it be better or worse? Impossible to know but it would be a very different world.

The very first film had a huge advantage because moviegoers had simply never seen anything like it before. Sure, there had been movies set in space, but there hadn't been such an escapist type of popular movie for a long time that used special effects to such a novel extent. That's also what gives an advantage to films like "Titanic" or "Avatar", which offer something that feels pretty new to moviegoers.

Besides, VCRs were all but unheard of in 1977; nobody was going to put off watching a movie several times in the theater because a home video release could be a few months away. Thus the film played in many cities for a year or longer.