Episode one plus one plus one

Openly embracing the Dark Side, I had to delay my first viewing of Star Wars: Episode III until this weekend. I mournfully wept in a hotel room in San Francisco on May 19th, and had to endure many more days of meetings, followed by an overabundance of California sunshine in that blessed city before making my way back east, towards a coca cola saturated theatre seat. Upon returning to DC, only one final hurdle stood in my way: I had to hunt down Episodes I and II to ensure that I was in the proper state of mind to enter the theatre. Good God that was impossible. I literally haunted the movie stores within a two mile radius (recall, I’ve no car in DC) to the point that when they saw me enter, they automatically searched the return bin to see if any copies had just returned. A bit of serendipity and dedication dictated that this HolyGrail-esque search took only two days (trust me, that was as fast as possible). Therefore, this weekend was dedicated almost exclusively to Star Wars in all its glory (this included a healthy dosing of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic X-Boxing, just to ensure a well-rounded understanding of the pre-history along with the more contemporary….long, long time ago….past).

The first episode made mammoth gains on my favorites list. I think I finally managed to come to terms with the excessive Jar Jar Binks dialogue and the underlying pedophilia and focus on the ingeniousness of the Pod Race, the intentional shortcomings of Trade Federation droids (hence, the switch to clone armies in Episode II), and the general thought paid to appeasing a demanding 1999 viewer while not alienating Episodes IV, V, and VI. Furthermore, I think I more fully understood and appreciated the Midichlorian revelation and its implications this time around (Damn, Anakin!), [a term that sounds strikingly similar to the little generators inside our own cells that pump out energy].

While festering in the frustration of having finished Episode I and having no access to Episode II, I comforted myself by checking out the accompaniment disk to Episode I. Here’s some trivia I picked up from that well-spent hour and a half:
-Although a completely digital character in the final release, Jar Jar Binks was played by an actor during live taping who wore a $100,000 suit…a suit that ultimately proved unnecessary.
-That suit must have been especially abhorrent when filming the Tatooine segments in 134 degree Tunisian heat
-A storm laid waste to a good chunk of Mos Espa, the city where Anakin and his mother, Shmi, were held captive by the Toydarian junkdealer Watto (notably, one of my favorite characters from all six episodes)(second note, their original owner was Gardulla the Hut, who sold them to Watto). This destruction forced a frantic and costly reconstruction of Mos Espa and a number of Pod Racers, along with necessitating a reordering of the filming schedule.

But this entry isn’t about Episode I. Nor is it about Episode II…which I finally got my greedy paws on a day later. All I have to say about that episode is that Yoda is a machine, and purple light sabers rule. Also, Christopher Lee looked cooler with long, white hair.

Now, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.
As a level 7.92 (ten point scale) science fiction/fantasy nerd (more accurately, when engrossed in this milieu, my interest approaches ten, but I tend to stray away for extended periods of time to other pursuits), I entered this movie with astronomical expectations. I also entered with complete faith in Mr. Lucas (thank you, Jake) and his associates fulfilling those expectations. I walked out of the theatre 2 ½ hours later at peace with the world. As my (here's where i write 'girlfriend', but dammit that always sounds weird, what do i do? what do i do, kristy?) characterized it, I was in a state of “euphoria” (that euphoria even carried through the following few hours when I discovered that she is a way better tennis player than myself).

Now there’s a couple different levels on which to appreciate a movie such as this. I tried to keep my mindset elevated for the most part on this initial viewing, focusing on the overall flow and feel of the movie instead of delving too much into the particulars. With subsequent viewings (the first of which is tentatively scheduled for tomorrow), I hope to examine the intricacies of the movie.

A couple thoughts: I loved the movie. I loved it both as a Star Wars devotee and as an objective movie critic. The movie was dark, as suspected. This goes for the scenery and the content. In sharp contrast to the many calming shots of Naboo and the majestic shots of Coruscant from the previous movies, Naboo was largely non-existent and Coruscant was often shrouded in darkness or twilight. I loved how Anakin’s fall was accompanied by the setting rays of the star, as shadows became pronounced in the foreboding rays of twilight. Human suffering and malicious violence (aka. Anakin’s massacre of Jedi-in-training) materialized as never before.

The central character in the movie, Hayden Christiansen underscored the fact that he’s much more convincing as a sneering melancholic on the verge of self destruction than as a young paduan-learner spitting galactic game (“I hate sand, it’s rough and gets everywhere. Not like you. You’re soft and smooth.”…projectile vomit). Although he doesn’t vocally roar the way I’d like to hear a Darth Vader roar, his malevolent eyes and venomous expression enable him to pull it off.

Regarding the scenes in the movie, I thought that they utilized the established (successful) formula as well or better than any other Star Wars movie. What does Lucas do to create his fascinating worlds?...He simply takes an element of our world that is exotic, yet familiar (meaning we understand this feature as part of our world, yet still find it really interesting). Some of these planets we’d already been introduced to in previous episodes (ie. Coruscants’ enveloping cities) but received stunning new images in Episode III. Revenge of the Sith supplied us planet-hungry hordes with new imaginary playgrounds as well. Most notably, I loved Utapau’s endless cave corridors and Mustafar’s boiling, volcanic cauldrons. He uses a similar technique to make outrageous characters more endearing. For example, the creatures running around in the background often embody some kind of dinosaur/more-familiar-not-yet-extinct-animal hybid. Another example is how he anthropomorphizes an utterly bizarre alien character with a quirky human personality. A pretty simple plan yields ingenious results. Whereas the former technique exaggerates the familiar, the latter technique familiarizes the alien. It’s great.

The story itself spoke for itself years ago. Nobody’s going to this movie to find out that Anakin turns into Darth Vader (he does…maybe). All the key underpinnings of this plotline revealed themselves years ago. Instead, we’re going to this movie to see our imaginations projected on a 2-dimensional screen and pick up some small filler pieces at the same time. For instance, I thought Darth Vader’s mangled form from Episode VI resulted from years of festering underneath the mask of Vader. The explanation of Emperor Palpatine’s gnarled physiognomy enticed me, as well. So much attention was paid to these details and it all came together beautifully.

That being said, my list of complaints is rather curtailed. One might argue that I’ve been swept up in the hysteria of the movie. Perhaps there’s some validity to that stance, however, I think a more likely explanation is that I simply like these movies and similar pictures. In my opinion, the cheese-laden dialogue that vexes so many remains an inherent and unbothersome ingredient in these movies. Instead of being poor screenwriting, I think George Lucas utilizes such exchanges to engage and entertain a broader swath of moviegoers. That’s one of the ingenious characteristics of these movies: there’s something for everyone. An eight year old can drag her/his jaw on the ground as she/he watches a podrace or laugh uncontrollably as Hans Solo acts like one of their 3rd grade classmates, while an astute student of Jedi lore can gather a virtual library of background information on the ascension of the Hutts to power on Tatooine. These movies weren’t just made for Star Wars gurus, they were also made for kids and casual moviegoers, and Lukas, etc.’s ability to appease all categories floors me.

The scientist in me wonders why disintegrating spaceships often fall as though under the influence of gravity, when the battles occur deep in the floating echoes of space. Furthermore, I’ve had some trouble swallowing the fact that light doesn’t always move at the speed of light. But, hey! This was a long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away and who are we to assume that the physical laws of the universe have remained constant ever since.

I remain unconvinced that Samuel Jackson should reign as one of the most influential members of the Jedi council. I can’t help but doubt that Jules Winnfield has really achieved a state of Zen and I continued to find his dialogue forced and unnatural. I think this is the one instance where selecting a well-known actor, with a fairly inflexible image proved problematic. Most people would add Natalie Portman to their list of weak characters but I agree with the boss, George Lucas (supplementary disk to Episode I), that she played the part exactly as it was intended.

While thinking about the Star Wars franchise and all the joy it’s brought to myself and billions of other people roaming this earth, I have one image ingrained in my mind: it’s a nauseatingly-staged shot at the end of the “Making of Episode I” that shows George Lucas sitting down alone at a quiet desk with a pad of paper and a pencil…he scribbles on a blank page in not-too legible handwriting “Episode II…” and I remember that this mania all traces its roots back to the imagination of one man. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not running away to Australia and joining the Jedi religion, but I am in awe of how far this thing has deservedly blown up.

Just for the fun of it, let's indulge ourselves in a little VII, VIII, and IX.