Star Wars: Rancor Was Almost a Man in a Suit

If you are anything like me, you are tentatively looking forward to the next installment of Star Wars. I say tentatively, because the last trilogy had some major weaknesses that should probably be addressed this time around.

Fact of the matter is that the story itself was compromised a bit, whether George Lucas would be willing to admit it or not. The story did not draw people in, like it did with the first trilogy.

It was not all bad. I liked the last one, "Revenge of the Sith". I mean, no matter what, the story of how Anakin Skywalker becomes Darth Vader was going to be enticing.

That said, even though that last one was far and away the best movie of that trilogy, it still compares unfavorably with any of the original three. Those had gripping storylines, as well as one thing that was far too overlooked for the last trilogy: a sense of humor.

The special effects were better, true. But that does not replace, can't replace, a solid story. They just cannot rely as exclusively on special effects as they did in the last trilogy, or the legacy of Star Wars itself might actually be compromised, I think. It needs to be better.

The thing is, I read "Revenge of the Sith" before seeing the movie, and I was really moved. But the movie was entirely different. First of all, there was more of a sense of humor on those pages, but they removed those bits for the movie, for some unknown reason. Some of it was dark humor, but it definitely had humor.

And frankly, it was more absorbing than the movie. Usually, you hear that books are actually better than the movies. Part of it is that you can live through the psychology of the character. But that would be an excuse in this case. Simply stated, the drama did not translate nearly as well as I had been hoping for with the movie.

Maybe it was some of the acting. Maybe it was the story line itself, which was watered down. Maybe it was the spirit of commercialism and bad decisions that led Lucas to make obviously bad decisions, like Jar Jar Binks and having his daughter's favorite boy band in the movie.

One way or another, the next trilogy should not be tinkered with so freely. Time to stick to the strength of the story, to add spice with humor, and let it stand on it's own. CGI special effects are nice, but the story is what resonates for most fans. That is where this legacy will live if done properly, or die if not.



The Star Wars Rancor was nearly a man in a suit!?   About Star Wars: Episode VII   · 28,431 Reads   · 30 Comments   · Posted December 24th, 2013:

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