James Rolfe (AVGN) Reviews Star Wars

[TheThrasher]

James Rolfe, or also known as the Angry Video Game Nerd, is . The review is on his movie site, Cinemassacre. Its a very good review, like all of his other movie reviews. It has very little swearing, unlike his AVGN videos . The first part is about the OT, and the second part will be released soon, which is about the PT.

[Marf]

This video is pretty neat I never knew how many things George based Star Wars on I may be very slow but in this video I just realized that in Ep. 4 when the Lars' Homestead is burned their bodies are there kinda creepy I must've forgotten since I havent watched it in a while . I want to see that video that explains how they did the special effects probably gonna drive to the local library later today. Thanks for showing me this video it showed me a lot about Star Wars that I didnt know.

[GIR3691]

Part II is up.

[Flynn]

I was actually considering posting this myself. Just caught Part II, and all I can say is that I think he was a little harsh on EP. I. But, whatever, it's all personal opinions. It does make me want to pull out the OT and watch them back-to-back over spring break.

[onions]

nah, i don't think he was harsh at all. i think he was spot on in every aspect. they were quite enjoyable reviews.

[thepatient]

These were cool to watch, but he didn't seem all that angry. If you like his take on the films, and if it ever comes on again, see Star Wars:The Legacy on the History Channel. It goes over many of the themes he talks about (not so much fan stuff) in this review. Only it goes into much more depth since its a 2 hour show. It dissects pretty much all of the characters and shows that Star Wars is more than what it appears to be on the surface. It's the only show I won't let my wife erase off of my DVR. Until I can get it on DVD or something.

[Flynn]

[deco_droid]

i guess my question is why do we care what james rolfe thinks about star wars? he's a movie reviewer, i gather? whatever -- i doubt the guy was ever that big a fan in the first place. he even admits he didn't like star wars after the ot concluded in 1983.

i like how he criticizes the prequels "overuse" of cg (as most lucasbashers do), yet fails to mention the fact that there were more models used in the prequels than there were in the ot. i also find it funny how the ot with its low-tech matte paintings and rubber masks earns a "10", "5 star" rating, yet the prequels (for the most part) get just a "ho-hum" yawn from mr. rolfe. i'm sorry, there is just no practical way to make half the stuff in the prequels without cg -- it would be nice if some of the bashers recognized that.

he also criticizes the "boring" story of the prequels with it's taxation of trade routes and trade federation talk. i know he must be in his 30s, but he sounds like a 10 year old with that statement. i know i found the more adult dialogue in the pt interesting, especially since we're watching how palpatine uses government to seize control by the end of rots. to balance that, there were quite a few action sequences, so i don't know why the guy has such a negative view of the prequels as a whole.

i will give him that the han solo/greedo shootout change was stupid, but the reason i don't like it, is it wreaks of political correctness -- a good guy can't shoot a bad guy in self defense! do we forget that han solo was cornered with a gun pointed in his general direction?!? bah...

really, the guy just comes off as jaded when it comes to the pt, yet forgiving when it comes to the ot. to me, it's one story, six chapters. i don't go around saying fellowship of the ring sucked, but the two towers and return of the king were awesome, because it's ONE STORY. anyway, my view...take it with a grain of salt.

[Draykov]

[thepatient]

[Darth's Daddy]

This was an awesome review. Many others have discussed the influence of older movies on the OT, but I liked how he actually gave side-by-side examples.
I also agree that he was spot on in his reviews. The reason the OT gets such high marks is NOT simply becuase of the special effects, but because of the strength of story, the strength of the characters, and the chemistry between the actors (dialogue plays a big part of this). All three of those things are weak in the PT (no chemistry, poor dialogue, bland plot). So what we are left to do is look at the "cool" special effects. When the effects of any movie are put under that much focus, we see the problems with it. That is why many people are overly critical of the special effects from the PT.
In the OT, the special effects are not spectacular compared to modern times. They have their own issues, but they are good (great even). In essence, they were better than anything else from the 70s and 80s and they merely enhance the movie instead of try to carry it. We can forgive their flaws because we are focused on the other parts of the movie.

And to answer thepatients questions:
I have already introduced my kids to Star Wars. We started with Episode IV from the OT. My opinion is that the story is told best from that point forward. I think that the time gap between the sagas makes it hard for the little ones to understand how they are even related. I also feel that until they are older (teenage), most kids are just going to think the two are not related, but different stories told in the same universe. Plus I don't plan to show Episode III to my kids until they hit 12 or so.

[Mister Ed]

[Daz Hoo]

Great review! I surprised myself agreeing with him the whole way, the only exception being when he talks about Episode I. It kinda grew on me over the years, so now, even though it's not that good, I can honestly say that I do enjoy it every once in a while.

I still say that keeping Darth Maul alive for the rest of the prequels could have help made them better...

[Flesh Skywalker]

I can honestly say I enjoyed evey movie. I was born in '76, so I did not see Star Wars until it was on TV, Empire too. I did see Jedi in the theater with my family. I watched the rerelease of A New Hope and Empire at the theaters and when the PT came out I avoided previews like the plague. I did't even know the titles of the films until i went into the teater and saw the familiar scroll. From this perspectie I as looking to see what the story was behind the OT, so I ot what I wanted.

My 3 year old daughter has seen all of the movies from 4-3, I plan on showing my second child (due in May) in the 1-6 order, just to see the different perspectives.

As far as changes in the story (special ddition), I am OK with them. If you see a play, it has different performances, perhaps nightly. If I tell a story, it will be different the next time I tell it. They only place the story is complete is in the mind of George, and it's his story so I can't fault him for trying to make it the best story. Specifically, I don't care if Han or Greedo shot first, I think it doesn't look quite right unless he has the force move the laser blast. I don't enjoy the musical changes to ROTJ, but that is really all. I'm even ok with Jar Jar.

Mister Ed, that is anawesome thought, but the theater would have been crying foul if we didn't see Vader.

[Flynn]