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[The Unknown Poster]

Star Wars is up to $766M worldwide.   In one week.  Yowza!  I know I tried to get tickets today also and found the theater I looked at almost sold out three days ago so I expect the numbers will continue to sky rocket.

[bigg jay]

Not surprising, I know a lot of people who haven't gone yet but plan to once they're off work for the holidays.   I've gone once already but I'm going again in a couple days with 8 other people who haven't.  

Between ticket sales and merchandise, this will be the best 4 billion Disney ever spent.  Not that he needs the money but Lucas might kick himself for not asking for more!

[The Unknown Poster]

3 minutes ago, bigg jay said:

Not surprising, I know a lot of people who haven't gone yet but plan to once they're off work for the holidays.   I've gone once already but I'm going again in a couple days with 8 other people who haven't.  

Between ticket sales and merchandise, this will be the best 4 billion Disney ever spent.  Not that he needs the money but Lucas might kick himself for not asking for more!

I was thinking that too!  Before the film some of us talked about how much Disney spent but man, they might make back the cash on this one movie (they gave Lucas $2b in cash and $2b in stock).  I think they bought Pixar for $7b...in hindsight LucasFilm was a steal for Disney.

How many people are waiting til the crowds die down too?  My gf is one of them.  If you consider there is a large number of people that are waiting to see it (several at my work fall into that category too).  Plus the hardcore fans who will see it 10 times.  And the soft fans like me who will see it 2-3 times.  Odds are it will surpass Avatar as #1.

[Brandon]

Lucas doesn't need or really want the money,  he just wanted the franchise to be in good hands. 

 

[FrostyWinnipeg]

And who better to make sequels then Disney right

Actually sequels to Disney movies are pretty sucky outside of maybe Toy Story.

[Logan007]

Considering they do a pretty good job with Pixar and Marvel...I'd say yes.

[The Unknown Poster]

There may be a hull breach into “Star Trek: Axanar.”

 

The crowdfunded Star Trek indie film raised over a million dollar had generated plenty of publicity in the past year. The project even recruited notable names to the project including Richard Hatch, Tony Todd and Kate Vernon.

 

If Paramount Pictures and CBS have anything to do with it—they’ll make sure it won’t even be on the launching pad. Last week, the studios filed a lawsuit in California federal court that “Star Trek: Axanar” is a violation of their intellectual property.

 

"The Axanar Works infringe Plaintiffs’ works by using innumerable copyrighted elements of Star Trek, including its settings, characters, species, and themes," written in the complaint.

 

Producer Alec Peters pitched the film to investors that it is not a fan film, but will be a high-quality Star Trek film with a fully-professional crew. Earlier this year, Peters gave interviews in which he is confident that it will survive any legal actions since it “wasn’t a commercial endeavor.”

 

However, in the lawsuit, it seeks an injunction with damages for copyrighted elements with Vulcans, Klingons, Federation starships, phasers or anything that has the look and feel of Star Trek.

 

“Star Trek: Axanar” takes place two decades before Captain Kirk’s voyage in “Star Trek.” It tells the tale of Garth of Izar, who is the legendary Starfleet captain and Captain Kirk’s hero. Garth navigates his crew through the Four Years War with the Klingon Empire that later solidified the Federation.

 

With juggernauts of Paramount and CBS uniting, Axanar will definitely feel like it’s fighting a losing battle against Klingons for a new Four Years War. Read more at: https://tr.im/SIVzI

[FrostyWinnipeg]

http://www.comicbookresources.com/article/joss-whedon-confirms-hes-done-with-marvel-movies

[bearpants]

Might as well come here for some opinions on this...

I have never seen a Star Wars movie... no particular reason, just not a huge sci-fi fan... but I recognize that Star Wars is such a major part of society and Western culture... I have been meaning to watch them all for some time now so with the release of the new movie this seems like a good time to get caught up...

So what I am looking for opinions on is what is the best way/order to watch them in? I have been told there is something called the "machete order" and I think it goes 4, 5, 2, 6, 3 and just completely ignore episode 1... anyone else have any thoughts on this?

[The Unknown Poster]

4 minutes ago, bearpants said:

Might as well come here for some opinions on this...

I have never seen a Star Wars movie... no particular reason, just not a huge sci-fi fan... but I recognize that Star Wars is such a major part of society and Western culture... I have been meaning to watch them all for some time now so with the release of the new movie this seems like a good time to get caught up...

So what I am looking for opinions on is what is the best way/order to watch them in? I have been told there is something called the "machete order" and I think it goes 4, 5, 2, 6, 3 and just completely ignore episode 1... anyone else have any thoughts on this?

Just watch them in order of release.  4 5 6 1 2 3.  And to be honest, 1 2 & 3 are actually generally irrelevant to the sage.  You can miss them.  Assuming you've picked up spoilers over the years, seeing the Prequels wont be earth shattering to you but if someone knew nothing about Star Wars, seeing the Prequels ruins the Originals.

I watched all six just before 7 came out and I watched them in order (1-6).  And the prequels are awful.  A friend at worked wanted to show his kids the Saga to prepare for 7 and asked me the same question.  I initially said "see them in order" the way Lucas supposedly intended.  But when I watched them like that, I realised it 1-3 cuts the balls off of 4-6.

See 4-6 as must see to prepare for 7.  See 1-3 after that just for "fun".

[FrostyWinnipeg]

4567123

[Brandon]

Watch them in order, just know that the first one Phantom Menace is real real bad.

It makes most sense doing that.

If you only have time to watch a few then watch Revenge of the Sith #3 and Empire Strikes Back #5...those are the two best movies that cover most ground.

[The Unknown Poster]

Don't skip any of the originals. 

if you only watch one prequel then Revenge it is. It's the only one where anything happens that impacts the rest of the saga really. 

But I mainain that the prequels ruin the originals. See them in order of release not number. 

[tacklewasher]

456, then have 123 on a pvr or something so you can watch the 3 of them, skipping over the painful dialog between Anakin and Padme as well as anytime Jar Jar is speaking. Takes about 2 hours total to watch the prequels.

You can do the same for the Ewok portion of 6 if so inclined.

[Logan007]

1 and 2 are painful to watch.  It's just the dialogue and how it's delivered.  Liam Neeson's character is the only decent one in EP1 followed by Ewan.  And the story line is just all over the place.  Too much politics in it for me personally.  Way too much CGI not enough practical effects.  EP2 is the same.  Speaking of effects and how bad they are, when you get to the scene where Anakin is hanging off this Bounty Hunter's speeder, notice how Anakin is hanging straight down despite the fact that this speeder is flying at 200 KM per hour or something.  It's like there's no wind drag at all or anything.  It just makes watching it ridiculous.

uggh...just thinking about it makes me nautious.

...and then there's Jar Jar...omg...

EP3 is at least a bit better...sort of...  So much potential just flushed down the toilet.

[Taynted_Fayth]

I just watched the phantom menace the other day to refresh my memory as to why it was "so bad"... its really not, just fan boys blowing things out of wack. I can think of a lot of crappier movies.  I do agree tho 1-3 arent as necessary as watching 4-6 leading into 7, but I have a feeling rogue one will make 1-3 more relevant.  

[The Unknown Poster]

Nope, TPM is not "fanboys blowing things out of whack".  Its universally disliked.  I watched it in December and nearly turned it off after ten minutes.

Revenge of the Sith is only "better" because of Palpatine and the actor chewing scenery (highly entertaining) and finally getting the fight between Anakin and Obi Wan, even though it was a lousy fight.

[FrostyWinnipeg]

Actually liked 2 more then 3. 3 the ending is rushed. The problem with 1 is that it is a kids movie first and foremost.

Well not just that. The "force" is more or less explained as bugs in the body?

Maybe the real stickler in all the movies is that their force power is so far ahead of anything in 4,5,6.

 

[Taynted_Fayth]

I would agree that ep 1 is the worst of the series, but as a stand alone movie, again ive seen way worse. Peoples expectations were too high after a long hiatus and were delivered a less then spectacular movie. But it wasnt THAT bad

[Logan007]

Fanboys...yeah, that's why I hate 1, 2 and 3.  It has nothing to do with the acting being so stiff and the dialogue so brutally bad.  Trust me, I've tried hard to like these movies because I want more Star Wars, but I can't.  These movies are just so bad.

Frosty, I hear people say "it's a kids movie" all the time and I ask the question, what child likes watching politics and trade federation issues?

Yeah, midichlorians...uggh...  This is what happens when you surround yourself with yes men and fund everything yourself.  In the original trilogy he had so many good people helping him out.  Notice how Rick McCullum (Lucas's Producer) just disappeared after doing the prequels?  He produced nothing other then Star Wars and Lucasfilm stuff for the longest time.  The guy is just now getting jobs outside of that company.

Ok, I'm done talking about this.

[The Unknown Poster]

@Logan - exactly.  Kids movie.  Well, I think Lucas might have meant to make a kids movie but his dialogue and plotting was so awful...

I just read a story online about how Lucas *almost* got them right.  Ill try to find it.  It basically said that with a few tweaks, the prequels could have worked.  Something along the lines of the "balance" of the Force being an actual balance between the dark and light and because the Jedi had grown so powerful and strict and dogmatic in their beliefs that the force was out of balance.  Anakin was constantly fighting the dark inside of himself and trying to reject it due to Jedi training.  What saved the Jedi was Luke was much like Anakin except learned to keep the dark and light in balance.

Basically look at the Jedi as the bad guys in the prequels.

EDIT: Here it is: http://www.gamesradar.com/george-lucas-nearly-wrote-perfect-prequel-trilogy-he-just-didnt-seem-notice/

Edited January 11, 2016 by The Unknown Poster

[17to85]

The prequels fail on technical movie making criteria and their story is not strong enough. I can watch them and even enjoyed them for what they were... but they're not good movies. George Lucas plain and simply is an idea man but as a director and writer he needs other people to do the work for him. That's where the prequels fell short. No one was going to say no to the guy who made all the money by creating Star Wars. 

[bearpants]

Thanks for the info... sounds like just watching them in order 4, 5, 6, 1, 2, 3 is the best way to go about it...

[The Unknown Poster]

The Prequels ruin the Originals in many ways because they remove a lot of the surprises and the specialness of them.  So in that regard, they fail as a "saga".  So yes, watching in order of release makes sense.  You get the great story of the Originals and then the Prequels are sort of filling in the blanks.

[The Unknown Poster]

It sounds like someone is going to crossover to the Dark Side.

 

John Boyega is very excited for the next Star Wars installment with Rian Johnson at the helm. Of course, the tight-lipped English thespian merely teases Star Wars fans by saying that the next film will be like “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.”

 

“[We’re] just starting work on ‘Star Wars VIII,’ the next film, so I’m back to keeping secrets again,” said Boyega to Vogue Magazine. “It’s great. Much darker, but we’re very excited.”

 

Of course, details will be lacking for the eighth movie. The only thing we know is that actor Benicio Del Toro will appear in the film (probably a villain).

 

As for our former Stormtrooper of the Year, Boyega hinted he’ll face more action.

 

“My part in the next film will be much more physical so I might be in the gym a bit more,” he said. Read more at: https://tr.im/2OfMi

Edited January 12, 2016 by The Unknown Poster