George Lucas’ new movie Red Tails is set to release this Friday, January 20. According to a recent interview with Lucas in the New York Times, this will be the last movie Lucas ever makes, except for a possible fifth Indiana Jones movie. “I’m retiring,” Lucas said, per the article.
The interview eventually, and inevitably, turned towards Star Wars. That’s when the interview became absurd, and hence why I’m writing this post.
“Why would I make any more,” Lucas says of the “Star Wars” movies, “when everybody yells at you all the time and says what a terrible person you are?”
Translation: Stop mocking me!
Those sound like the ravings of a maligned child. I have criticized the prequel trilogy myself, but I’ve never really yelled and I sure have never implied or stated that he’s a terrible person. I may have suggested that he had forgotten how to make a good movie between the time he made Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and The Phantom Menace. I, for one, would love to have more Star Wars movies to watch. Sure, Jar Jar sucked. Yeah, the dialogue in the love scenes was horrid. But I still love to watch the movies. They are entertaining despite the odd quirks he slipped into the movies. The action is great, the overall story is good, and other than Hayden Christiansen the acting is pretty decent.
“On the Internet, all those same guys that are complaining I made a change are completely changing the movie,” Lucas says, referring to fans who, like the dreaded studios, have done their own forcible re-edits. “I’m saying: ‘Fine. But my movie, with my name on it, that says I did it, needs to be the way I want it.’ ”
Translation: Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine!
Ok, George. Releasing the Special Editions was one thing. The movies were old and deserved to be updated. I was onboard with all of the changes except for Greedo shooting first. The idea of Greedo shooting first isn’t the problem, it was the implementation of it. The scene is just not believable at all. Han jerks his head slightly to the side and that’s all it takes for Greedo to miss? Not likely. Not from point-blank range.
And, George, it’s not that you changed the movies, it’s that you keep changing the movies In 1997 there was the Special Editions. Fine. Great. You cleaned up the film. You added some CGI to enhance a few scenes. You even added a couple of deleted scenes. No problem. Then came the DVD release, in which additional gratuitous changes were begotten. Ian McDiarmid was superimposed over the actor who originally played the Emperor in The Empire Strikes Back. Hayden Christiansen was superimposed over the actor who played Anakin in Return of the Jedi. With the Blu-ray release, we now have Darth Vader screaming, “No!” while he heaves the Emperor down into the Death Star core. Lord only knows what changes will be made in the 3D (why, oh why?) versions of the films set to release later this year.
Aside: I’m somewhat intrigued by the idea that some fans made their own edits to the movies. I wonder where I could find said movies so I can see just what changes were made.
“I’m moving away from the business, from the company, from all this kind of stuff,” he says.
Translation: I quit. . .and I’m taking my ball with me.
This entire interview sounds to me like he just can’t handle criticism, constructive or otherwise. I don’t believe any of the criticism bestowed upon him is unwarranted. I agree with the majority of it, though I still enjoy the movies whereas others refuse to watch them and claim outright that these movies are the worst thing since Roseanne Barr sang the National Anthem.
If that’s the way he feels there’s obviously nothing we can do about it. I find it childish, however, that he’s taking his ideas with him. If he no longer wishes to make movies then so be it, but pass the torch. Let some one else produce some Star Wars movies. There’s no need for a script. There are literally hundreds of them already written in the form of Expanded Universe novels. There are many worthy novels in the Star Wars EU library that would make excellent movies.
So, fanboys, you’ve done it. You’ve finally broken George Lucas. You’ve hurt his feelings. You assailed his work and made him cry. And now there will be no more Star Wars movies…unless he dies and his family decides to sell their rights to the franchise.
Mental Defecation 
Excuses to cover that fact he really didn’t want to do it anymore. You can’t stop a moving train and he’s been at the station awhile.
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Whatever he does I hope he doesn’t prevent anyone else from telling stories in his universe. I love the books, but watching the movies is a completely different, and much more enjoyable, experience.
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