George Lucas Is Ready to Roll the Credits

[John in Covina]

I think that's naive, especially since racial relations in USA are probably more tense than what the media portays it to be. Why would average Joe watch a movie with no actors of his own ethnicity? Movie studios have to SELL movies to exist, why would they cater to the minority? That would be suicidal.

I don' think that racial tensions are greater than portrayed by the media. 90% of every race is just trying to get by, less than 10% are out protesting anything.

The majority of teens and twenty somethings of any race in the US are captivated by black artists in the music businss.

What bout those laplander racial tensions in Norway?

 

[Feraud]

Interesting, I didn't realise a WW2 picture would be a hard sell like that in the US - maybe that's my prejudice showing, but elsewhere online I'd encountered plenty enough folks from that side of the pond whose knowledge of WW2 is gleaned entirely from Sixties war films (you know the time - "you would be speaking GERMAN if it wasn't for US!") to have thought there certainly was a market for it!

I agree there are plenty of folks whose knowledge of WW2 is based on war films. That seems to be the older crowd where as the younger film goers have no real interest in history. Based on our treatment of architecture and overall culture I'd say the majority of Americans hate the past.
You mean we didn't save the world from the Nazis??

 

[John in Covina]

Today most people younge than say 35 see history as a disposible item, it has no bearing only anything important to them. i heard a high school student say that independnce day (4th of July) commemorated the US clicking out Japanese rule in the Americas. On the basis of that I can say my hope in the future is waning.

 

[Edward]

Hi

Movie subjects aside, we used to go see both movies at the theater (two screens) most weekends, but we didn't buy the popcorn and the movies were only $2.00. Now it's $7.00 for a matinee, and $10 or $12 (3D) at night, and now it's not worth the price. I go to see 3-4 movies a year now instead of 5-6 movies a month. Sherlock Holmes 2 was good, but I could have waited until it come out on Cable.

Same over here, it's gotten expensive just to go see a film, especially as 3d (which I don't much mind, but wouldn't miss) is so often the only option now for a film. To be fair to the cinemas, I know people in the industry and its rare for a film to do better than break even (if memory serves, when I was last doing Rocky Horror regularly, you had to sell at least two dozen seats to any single screening of any film to break even)- all their money is made on the concession stand. It's a tough business to be in. When you can pick up a DVD for four quid in the supermarket, sometimes it's hard to justify. Add to the mix that as a single guy living alone I find it that much harder to get motivated to go out at all....

I agree there are plenty of folks whose knowledge of WW2 is based on war films. That seems to be the older crowd where as the younger film goers have no real interest in history. Based on our treatment of architecture and overall culture I'd say the majority of Americans hate the past.
You mean we didn't save the world from the Nazis??

Nein! Nein! Nein!

 

[Gingerella72]

I must be the only one here who likes the special edition Star Wars....? [huh]

 

[Atomic Age]

Supposedly he plans to go back to his college days of making "art" pictures. The main commonality between that and most of his blockbusters is both lack credible narrative.

THX1138 was fun, though. I saw that for the first time a year or two ago. At first I hated the ending, but it grew on me more and more.



He's a brand, and a big one at that. For everyone of us who can see the naked emperor, there are ten fanbois who would go and see anything with his name on it. Same exact thing as the Apple fanbois who will show up at midnight to buy any old rubbish onto which apple can slap their logo. Yay capitalism!

Well its not just fan boys, a movie doesn't make over $700 million dollars (Indy 4) by just fan boys going to see it. There just aren't that many of them. That film attracted the average film goer who enjoyed the other Indy films, and in most cases took their kids to see it more than once.

Doug

 

[Atomic Age]

What "racial tensions" are you referring to that are not portrayed in the media? Are we Americans not being told something?

I agree the film will not do well in the U.S. due to the prejudices of the moviegoing public. Race is an issue but so is subject matter. WWII films are a hard sell to audiences that flock to see another Mission Impossible or Twilight film.
To categorize these factors as racial tension is incorrect.

I'm not sure I buy the notion that World War 2 films don't make money....Saving Private Ryan made over $400 million....as did pearl harbor (I know it was a bad movie) and Band of Brothers had some of the highest ratings ever for an HBO mini series.

I actually think that Red Tails will do quite well. I'll let you know what I think of it. I got invited to a screening tomorrow with some real Tuskegee airmen.

Doug

 

[Atomic Age]

I must be the only one here who likes the special edition Star Wars....? [huh]

No I like it too. I also like the original version. I don't think the new version does any damage to the previous.

Doug

 

[Gene]

No I like it too. I also like the original version. I don't think the new version does any damage to the previous.

Doug

Unnecessary CGI, Greedo shooting first, Boba Fett's voice change, Hayden Christiansen's ghost showing up at the end. Sorry for sounding like a fanboy but Lucas should just learn to leave well enough alone. It's a cliched argument, but a valid on..."Citizen Kane" didn't get rebooted throughout the years, why should Star Wars?

And Crystal Skull...watch the South Park episode "The China Probrem" for my thoughts on that!

 

[Atomic Age]

Unnecessary CGI, Greedo shooting first, Boba Fett's voice change, Hayden Christiansen's ghost showing up at the end. Sorry for sounding like a fanboy but Lucas should just learn to leave well enough alone. It's a cliched argument, but a valid on..."Citizen Kane" didn't get rebooted throughout the years, why should Star Wars?

And Crystal Skull...watch the South Park episode "The China Probrem" for my thoughts on that!

Welles might very well have made changes to Kane had he been allowed too. Now if a studio executive had made changes that would be something different all together.

The fact of the matter is that Lucas was talking even in interviews in 1977 about how he was not happy with the film, and how it could be better if they had been able to do things the way he wanted.

I remember thinking, when Empire came out, that they would have to re-do some of the effect shots in Star Wars, because they had gotten so much better in the 2 years in between the two films, that the two films wouldn't match.

I'm not saying that all of the changes are something that I would have done, but they certainly don't ruin my enjoyment of the films. And frankly who am I to tell the creator of the world what to do with it?

Doug

 

[Tomasso]

I don' think that racial tensions are greater than portrayed by the media.

If anything the press overplays racism by following Jesse and Rev. Al on their weekly protests.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

If anything the press overplays racism by following Jesse and Rev. Al on their weekly protests.

On a different subject ...


Guess who I met last night at AMPAS's gala screening of the restored 1927 silent film, "Wings" (the "Star Wars" of its time)? The real A.C. Lyles. He's taller than I expected. For the record, the stately Mr. Lyles was wearing a single-breasted mini houndstooth check suit and black & white spectator wingtips.

 

[Feraud]

II actually think that Red Tails will do quite well. I'll let you know what I think of it. I got invited to a screening tomorrow with some real Tuskegee airmen.

Doug

I too hope it does well. Please let us know what you think of the film!

Speaking of the real Tuskegee airmen.. a few years back I was at a corporate event attended by the Tuskeegee men. I wasn't sure what the crowd made of the old soldiers but I was simply stunned to be sitting in a room listening to the men talk about their lives during and after the war. It was an event I'll always remember.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Between the godawful reviews and what a hard sell an old-school war flick is these days, I still predict lousy business. We'll see...

 

[Atomic Age]

Between the godawful reviews and what a hard sell an old-school war flick is these days, I still predict lousy business. We'll see...

So far its getting an 81% fresh rating from Audiences on Rotten Tomatoes .

Also the reviews that I've seen didn't seem to get that this is not supposed to be the black Saving Private Ryan, but rather the black Flying Tigers.

Doug

 

[Edward]

Glad it's not Saving Privater Ryan! That was better than I thought, but still massively overrated, and I hated the whole 'worm that turned' / 'revenge killing' sub-plot.

 

[Atomic Age]

Well I got to see the film, with 3 real Tuskegee airmen, and I must say that I really enjoyed it. Is it a great war film? No. Is it a dark "war is hell" movie? No. What it is, is an old fashioned kind of movie that they don't make much of anymore. Its the kind of war move that they used to make during the World War 2. The Nazi pilots are the bad guys and the Tuskegee Airmen are the heroes. And why not. Someone else said it better than me. They finally got the John Wayne treatment! Add to that it is a very patriotic pro American film. The audience seemed to really enjoy the film also, cheering and clapping, and it got a standing ovation at the end. Of course that may have been at least partly for the men who were sitting with us.

The event itself was really amazing. It was cool to see people lining up to meet and talk briefly with the men themselves. They stayed around for about 2 hours after the film to sign autographs and talk with people.

All and all a very enjoyable evening.

Doug

 

[ButteMT61]

On a different subject ...


Guess who I met last night at AMPAS's gala screening of the restored 1927 silent film, "Wings" (the "Star Wars" of its time)? The real A.C. Lyles. He's taller than I expected. For the record, the stately Mr. Lyles was wearing a single-breasted mini houndstooth check suit and black & white spectator wingtips.

He sure gets around...my wife met him tonight. Had to laugh at that bizarre twist, "knowing" him from posts here. Hope I'm as busy if I'm lucky enough to live as long. She proclaimed him quite handsome. Hmm, maybe I should have gone with the girls... lol

 

[3PcSuit]

Today most people younge than say 35 see history as a disposible item, it has no bearing only anything important to them. i heard a high school student say that independnce day (4th of July) commemorated the US clicking out Japanese rule in the Americas. On the basis of that I can say my hope in the future is waning.

Could you please knock off the stereotyping "ageism" that is in all of your posts this thread? How is that any better than saying all black people [Negroes] aren't able to operate heavy machinery like airplanes?




There is definitely some racist white trash in the United States, but there's plenty of discrimination elsewhere. I think stereotyping the enttire United Sttaes non-black populace is just as bad that is going on in this thread.


Yeah there are some idiots that won't see this movie because of its cast, but we have a black president now. It's time to move on. There's some really conservate coward suits in the studios that don't want to do ANYTHING that deviates too far from a "movie success formula."


Personally, I probalby won't see this movie because it looks just like another Star Wars episode, complete with the same crummy looking digital that made me skip Episode 3.

LOL, glad to know I'm not the only only that never bothered seeing it I and II were so bad. I honestly don't understand using a digital camera to shoot a '40s movie. I do give a few movies like "Public Enemies" a chance that are period digital "films," but they usually let me down.


I think the modern spins are so poor most of the time that they belittle the subject. I'd like to see a filmmaker with the courage to tell a history story warts and all, no glorifying the characters portrayed as God-like supermen, but rather as real human beings, flaws and all.

Anyway, will watch it at home, for free, on my hi-def. TV. After all, that's what Lucas is making it for anyway. The HBO movie would look better at the local multiplex, not that I've seen it, solely because it was shot on the right stuff, 35.

 

[ButteMT61]

If anything the press overplays racism by following Jesse and Rev. Al on their weekly protests.

WIthout "victims", Jesse and Al and others in their ilk have no jobs. It's in their best interest to maintain the status quo and have people believe they're needed to survive - let alone prosper and succeed. They are the racists.