Will Clone Wars do Star Wars justice?

Full trailer for the initial "Clone Wars" is now up.

http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/starwarstheclonewars/

Will Clone Wars do Star Wars justice? What do you think about the style?

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[Post edited by Henning on May 22, 2008]

I really hope so because this franchise deserves a lot better quality than it has been getting lately. It seems to be nothing but money, merchandising, and flash with the franchise. Bring back the mythical stuff, the good stories, the MAGIC and oh ya the fun!

I have hopes for this cartoon but I know enough to be realistic and not expect the second coming either. I think based on the impact of the original trilogy I have unrealistic expectations.

I'm going to go and see this with my 6 yr old and if it's in 3-D even better! Can't wait but nothing beats live action Star Wars for me. Still, cartoons are fun.

EDIT: I just watched the HD trailer linked above and WOW. It looks REALLY good in HD. It almost looks 3-D already. This will be sweet in the theatres and hi-def for sure.

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[Post edited by Falcon01 on May 22, 2008]

One simple answer for this question.........NO!!!

Wouldn't "justice" in this case involving burning all extant copies of the three prequels and Lucas personally funding hypnosis to help everyone forget the trauma of having seen them?

LOL! Chris I really laughed out loud on that one...and I'm at work Good one.

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[Post edited by Falcon01 on May 22, 2008]

of course the new movie will do the saga justice...it'll suck like the other movies. (Y)

I like the styalistic animation. It's the same as the Clone Wars TV series was. The way I see it, it can't be any worse than Episode I. I just wish they would get past the clone wars. That's getting boring already. Let's move on to the time between episodes 3 and 4! I want more Darth Vader!

New Clone Wars trailer...

http://www.starwars.com/video/view/000647.html

Looks pretty good!

LMAO!!! There's so much eye candy that it looks just like all of the last movies! I don't know, looks kind of cornball if you ask me, but hey, maybe the acting will be better! LOL

YUP! It does look rather promising. Let's not forget that this is just a "launch" for the tv series. I believe 100 episodes have been ordered? Still, i'm looking forward to the live action show more. That is if they make it...

100 episodes?!? I assume is not going to be 'primetime'...let's hope for the live action series...

"Following the theatrical debut, the television series will premiere in the U.S on Cartoon Network, followed by airings on TNT."

"Each week, viewers will see a thrilling 30-minute "mini movie"


-SW INSIDER

(sounds primetime to me. i read the 100 ep. quote somewhere else. i don't have it in front of me at the momment to post.)

Well I just finished watching the new Hulk movie (WAY better than the first one btw) and they showed this new Clone Wars trailer at the beginning. Looked pretty good on a big screen.

In the spirit of Star Wars...here's the new launch trailer for Star Wars: Force Unleashed.

http://www.starwars.com/video/view/000656.html

Good call, Falcon.

Spoonard

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Let's move on to the time between episodes 3 and 4! I want more Darth Vader!

This is why you play SW: The Force Unleashed. It fills in some space between 3 and 4.You even get to play Vader in the beginning of the game.

Holy Clone Wars videos Batman...

The Battle of Christophsis

http://www.starwars.com/video/view/000657.html

The Clones are Coming

http://www.starwars.com/video/view/000655.html

Epic Battles

http://www.starwars.com/video/view/000636.html

There's a bunch more at starwars.com. Movie looks ok from what I can see but so far nothing amazes me the way a Star Wars movie should (I probably sound like I'm asking too much). Anyway, it seems like it's geared for a young audience kinda like the prequels.

Well fellow Star Wars nerds, it looks like the Star Wars: Clone Wars animated movie is going to be the first Star Wars movie released on Blu!!!!
Check this out:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Star-Wars-Clone-Blu-ray/dp/B001CEE1XA/ref=wl_it_dp?i

http://www.eucantina.net/archives/852


-JS

I think this will. The little cartoon shorts that were on TV had more creativity and energy in them than the prequels.

They all look like Jay Leno with those square jaws.

The Clone Wars movie -- which takes place between Attack Of The Clones and Revenge Of The Sith -- sees Anakin and Obi-Wan (voice actors Matt Lanter and James Arnold Taylor, the latter of whom has been the voice of Fred Flintstone) trying to secure the co-operation of Jabba The Hutt, whose son has been kidnapped by Dooku (Lee), who in turn attempts to convince Jabba that the Jedis actually committed the kidnapping.

So it is that Anakin and his new Padewan, a 14-year-old girl named Ahsoka (Ashley Eckstein) set out on a rescue mission while droids battle clones and Obi- Wan battles Dooku's own Sith apprentice, the lethal Ventress (Nika Futterman).

For such a male-centric series, it's a change of pace to add not one but two female characters, both of whom can take care of themselves. "I happen to have a couple of daughters. So I said, 'Instead of making it a guy, why not make it a girl? It's fun and girls are just as hard to deal with as boys are when they're teenagers.

"With Ahsoka, I wanted to develop a character who'd help Anakin settle down. At the end of Episode II, he's kind of a wild child, and he and Obi-Wan don't get along."

There are few voices from the movies here -- including Lee, Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu and Anthony Daniels as C-3PO. Part of it was budgetary, Lucas admits. "A really great actor, like a Tom Hanks, doing an animated movie was a revolutionary idea that belonged to (Dreamworks animation boss) Jeff Katzenberg. They do it for the publicity, two days in the studio, then they spend two weeks doing press.

"Well, there are a lot of great actors who aren't movie stars. And to be honest with you, much as I love you guys (in the media), I don't think I need a big movie star like Angelina Jolie to go out and publicize my movie."

http://www.torontosun.com/Entertainment/Movies/2008/08/10/6402926-sun.html

There's more at the link. I think this will be shown in 3-D IMAX, if so I'll see it cause my 6 yr old wants to see it. Honestly, it's cause of him. I'm such a good parent.

BTW, Angelina Jolie as a female Jedi...two tumbs up!

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[Post edited by Falcon01 on Aug 12, 2008]

The Ahsoka Tano dialogue shown in the trailers/tv spots makes me cringe.

And it looks like I'm not the only one.

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The dialog was beyond horrendous. I’m not even going to go into it.

The new Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, was so freaking annoying… so “modern youth”… so bitch like I wanted to climb into the screen, kick her in her little kid ribs and shove a lightsaber down her annoying little throat. She was NOT what a padawan or Jedi is supposed to be… not even close. She was so mouthy she made Anakin look like the Dali Lama of Padawans. It made me angry whenever she spoke. Her action sequences were sweet… but they should have kept a gag on her.

I can't wait until all the reviews are in at RT. So far it's a mixed bag but only 7 reviews counted.

Dialogue and script have never been Georges strength, it's always about the visuals and sound with him. I don't know if he wrote the script for this but you can bet he dictated most of it, or at the very least had the final say on it.

*Dialogue and script have never been Georges strength, it's always about the visuals and sound with him.*


And his visuals suck nowadays too. The weakest part of the prequels is not the script and acting and dialogue, but the fact that they look like shit.

He's good on sound though, I'll give him that. Even though the credit probably goes to the other tech guys.

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And his visuals suck nowadays too. The weakest part of the prequels is not the script and acting and dialogue, but the fact that they look like shit.

Are you serious? He once again upped his visuals with the prequels I mean, it is still a movie with aliens, so they more than likely it will look funny, but to say that the weakest part of the prequels are the visuals, come on, totally wrong.

mvckalel, I dislike that csjlong because I think he's an idiot. But he's right on this one.

The visuals on #3 and #4 were way much better than those crappy total CGI effects in #1, #2 and even #3. Sorry to say, but that gritty, great atmosphere, plus the puppet/model/blue screen effects seemed to me to catch my eye more than that overly edge-enhanced CGI fake crap. Some of it wasn't bad, but certainly not as engaging somehow as the original trilogy IMO.

Well, then I'll disagree with the both of you and take mvckalel's side on this one. Now, if you want to argue that some of the CGI looks TOO CGI, then that I would agree with. If you want to argue that perhaps there is WAY TOO MUCH CGI, then again I would agree. However, they are all visually stunning films to look at and very enjoyable to the eye -- I just can't get past the lame dialog and wooden acting. However, the visuals are the orgy of eye-candy. There is no way on god's green earth that lucas's visuals in star wars movies are a weakness. If anything, him and his boys at ILM have been setting the bar for years.

Chris and Skyhawk, you guys are way out on Jupiter with this one. For the love of Pete, stop spreading FUD!

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[Post edited by Tim Raynor on Aug 12, 2008]

Tim. I will not stop spreading "FUD" about this issue!

This is my opinion, but I really think the first 2 movies in particular beat out the last 3 on several levels. Yes, even in the "eye-candy" category. The later movies always had some ridiculous unrealistic CGI aspect to them that ruined it for me - not because they were CGI, because they looked silly, fake, and dumb - from Jar-Jar to even that silly lizard creature that he rode around on. This just pushed the bar past the possibly believable to the unbelievable for me and ruined the entire thing for all three. I'm sorry about that.

Now subtle effects, like when he exits his craft on the planet in the original, and it actually shakes and rises while he gets out... now that's effects! Even if the effects were made from plastic and styrofoam. Now that is art and attention to detail! No attention to detail in that new trilogy however. Guess they figured everyone watching was under 14 years old and wouldn't notice?

What do you mean no detail? Have you actually seen these movies?

Like Tim said before, one thing is the overuse of CGI, and another very different to say that it is bad CGI. Look at the shots of Naboo, the bars on Attack of the Clones, the opening scene in III, really, you think no detail?? ...once Luca$ decides to release his babies on blu-ray, you will realize how wrong you are.

Just don't say that LOTR has better visuals, or Spider-man...

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He's good on sound though, I'll give him that. Even though the credit probably goes to the other tech guys. [/quote

Ben Burt created the sound for all of the SW films.

Lucas has a pathological fear of negative space. He has to crowd every inch of the frame with "something" just because more is obviously always better. What, a little bit of air up there? Can't have that? Time to stick in another cute CGI character to fill up the hole.

His CGI backgrounds look fine. His CGI characters look utterly ridiculous (ping-pong Yoda is the most laughable CGI creation I have ever seen) with the exception of creating multiple copies of similar-looking characters (e.g. clones) in large groups.

The prequels are simply offensive to look at, so garish and so hyperactive they are nearly intolerable.

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mvckalel, I dislike that csjlong because I think he's an idiot.

Geez, I thought you only attacked John and Eddie.

I got, like, lots of degrees and stuff, so I can't possibly be an idiot.

Chris,

I work in graphics, so I can make you any degree you'd like . . . that is if you're looking for more.

Tim

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I work in graphics, so I can make you any degree you'd like . . . that is if you're looking for more.

Cool. Can I get one that qualifies me for this job?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26153773/

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Cool. Can I get one that qualifies me for this job?

Hell, I can even make you the business card for the "age verification unit".

Rotten tomatoes gives it a 44%. I think a lot of people are forgetting that this movie was made as a way to promote the animated TV series that is going to be coming out soon. Guess I'll wait and see for myself:

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/clone_wars/

Some reviews:
http://www.eucantina.net/


-JS

When Luke asked Obi-Wan if he had fought on the Clone Wars with his father, all of us wondered how those wars were, and how they came to be. Attack of the Clones depicts the very first moments, and RotS shows some battles.

I hope this movie shows actual combat, with war strategies and whatnot, lots of action and battles. I will obviously go and watch the movie, heck, it's Star Wars!

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[Post edited by mvckalel on Aug 13, 2008]

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(ping-pong Yoda is the most laughable CGI creation I have ever seen)

Chris, it can't be any worse than that horrible puppet Yoda in Phantom Menace.

I agree that the prequels have some of the most beautiful visuals ever seen or imagined on film BUT at times they did go overboard also. I swear sometimes it was as if I was watching a digital cartoon. It was so annoying and it bugged me most in Attack of the Clones in that "arena battle".

OMG this movie looks soooo cornball. Check out this clip of the light saber duel between Obi Wan and Ventress. Totally made for a 5 yr old.

http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_seyret&Itemid=227&task=videodirectlink&id=1335

There's more hires videos here also...

http://www.collider.com/entertainment/news/article.asp/aid/8719/tcid/1

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[Post edited by Falcon01 on Aug 13, 2008]

Falcon, that's because it is. There will be about 100 episodes of this on Cartoon Network. The reviews I read said that the visuals are excellent but the movie as a whole is geared towards the kids. That's one of the reasons they introduced the little padawan Ahsoka.
Lucas hooked me with the original trilogy when I was young, then hooked my daughter with the prequel trilogy when she was young, and now he's reeling in a new generation with the animated series. He will now get more of my money when this comes to DVD (or Blu if available).




-JS

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[Post edited by Jedi_Soljah on Aug 13, 2008]

Yeah you're right. I think whats drivign me nuts is the way Obi Wan talks (not his accent as I have Scottish friends and am used to it, the WAY he talks). Seems very forced (pardon the pun) or robotic for lack of a better word.

This movie is going to look and sound beautiful, but the story is going to be "cold" like the prequel trilogy, and we are all going to hate the "Ahsoka Tano" character. (prediction)

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[Post edited by bladerunner1 on Aug 13, 2008]

I don't mind her so far in the clips I have been watching. Nothing can be worse than Jar Jar.

Falcon, I feel the same about Jar Jar but his antics are what got my daughter hooked, now my 6 year old nephew will be nuts about this series. I just hope they do something really cool for the live action TV series coming in like 2010. I heard Boba Fett is going to be a big part of that live action series.




-JS

I don't know, at 37 years of age, I just feel that I have outgrown the whole Star Wars phenomenon. The last three episodes really put the final nails in the coffin for me.

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I feel the same about Jar Jar but his antics are what got my daughter hooked,

I worry about your parenting skills JS.

I feel the same about crystal meth. But its antics are what got my daughter hooked.


see what i mean..haha...your treading on some seriously shallow water here. your daughter may need help.

Ahsoka Tano?!

Commences googling................................

Ahsoka Tano, nicknamed Snips by Anakin Skywalker, was a Togruta Jedi Padawan during the Clone Wars. She was assigned to Skywalker by Jedi Master Yoda, and showed an eagerness to prove herself worthy to be his Padawan, and shared his skill with a lightsaber and a starfighter.

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[Post edited by wolfen on Aug 13, 2008]

Hahahaha...funny blade. I got her locked down. She's a sophomore in high school now and I make it a point to tell her friends how many guns I have in my house and that I'm not affraid to go BACK to prison.... JK




-JS

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She's a sophomore in high school now

Oh man JS, i feel for you. Mine's gonna be 10 soon...I'm starting to pump the iron now!

My daughter is 15 and in high school, am I doomed? Hell no, to her I'm the fun party Dad that all her friends want to hang out with. Most of her friends are jealous they don't have a father as light hearted and witty as me. We both like the same films, video games and music, but I will admit I'm not your average textbook parent. I'm only strict where I need to be but I'm extremely understanding of what it's like to be a teenager. Plus, hanging out with her and her friends -- basically draging them from mall to mall, lol -- has allowed me to make some good friends with other parents around the hood. So, for me, I've been having a lot of fun with the teen years -- plus it helps to act like a big kid sometimes.

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[Post edited by posters5 on Aug 14, 2008]

18 reviews are now in, only 5 positive.

Wow, this movie is really taking a nose dive! Looks like I won't be wasting my time or money on it.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/clone_wars/

I wen tot see it with the Kids today and it wasn't that bad. I mean, what do people expect from an animated Star Wars movie. Did it clear up all of those rumors and lost secrets about plot holes in the other prequels, and sequels, no not completely. There were stones still left unturned for you Star Wars nerds, but in the end it was mapped at nerds and kids. So grab a bucket of popcorn, and a pop, and shut the hell up when it comes to DVD. I give it 7/10.

Jim Slotek of the Toronto Sun wrote this in his review...

Put simply, this is a children's movie, with non-stop light-sabre action and angry, fast-paced minimalist dialogue to cover up the fact that The Clone Wars -- the Republican army-cloned-from-Jango-Fett thing -- still doesn't make sense (and it would bore any kid to death if you tried to explain it).

This 3-D one is like an unsuccessful attempt at artistic nouvelle cuisine -- a blend of anime and '60s Supermarionation (they even walk like characters in Thunderbirds) that just seems frankly weird (Samuel Jackson's Mace Windu looks like E.T.).

And the plot? Well, one shudders when it opens with worried dialogue about trade routes being cut off.

Again with the trade and tariffs. Did Lucas get trapped at a NAFTA conference or something?

There's more here...

http://www.torontosun.com/Entertainment/Movies/2008/08/15/6457771-sun.html

I hope DVDTown's Jason Vargo does a theatrical review. I'm interested to read his take on this movie.

100 episodes on order, starting october 3rd, cartoon network. you would think that some of those might be pretty good.

Henry Gilroy, shame on you.

"Sky Guy" seriously?

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I think a lot of people are going in there and putting a lot in to it and not understanding what it is: A primer. No one should have expected to pass the previous movie, but it’s pretty close in my mind. Children and adults will have a good time, although it is a more simple, child oriented story and movie overall. If you’re a Star Wars fan, I believe you will enjoy it, and I also think you might come out with a “meh” feeling, but I’m sure that will change with the series coming this fall.

http://www.eucantina.net/star-wars-the-clone-wars-review



-JS

I wen tot see it with the Kids today and it wasn't that bad. I mean, what do people expect from an animated Star Wars movie.


Reggie, a better question is: What do people expect from Lucas? Seriously, when was the last time he produced or directed anything good?

Like I said, what else do you expect to see from a animated Star Wars movie.

I saw it today and thought the same...it wasn't bad at all. Dialogue was a little dry but overall it was a pretty good movie. 80% of the theater were kids and not one peep during the entire movie. There was even clapping at the end. I enjoyed it. PQ was AWESOME!!!! Before I saw the movie the whole story seemed a little hokey to me but it actually worked out real well. I would say go see it and enjoy. Sit back relax and have fun with a good animated movie.



-JS

It's called Clone Wars...what do you expect, if not laserguns and the clone army and the droid army and Jedis...I mean, this is what Obi-Wan was talking about in Star Wars (no suffix)...you people are so weird, you like certain movies because they have a good plot and character development, and you hate others because of the same thing...then you love movies that have horrible plot points and hate others with the same problems...then hate Indy 4 because it had to do with UFOs, I mean, in the '50s, who wouldn't?...and you criticize an animated Star Wars movie, I mean, is not like Pixar did it...

Damn mvckalel...what did I say that got you all fired up????



-JS

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What do people expect from Lucas? Seriously, when was the last time he produced or directed anything good?

LMAO!!! It did just a little over $15-mill, and that's a little sad for a Star Wars movie, live action or not! What a laugh! I think it goes to show that even children are sick of the Lucas CGI spew salads.

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LMAO!!! It did just a little over $15-mill, and that's a little sad for a Star Wars movie, live action or not! What a laugh! I think it goes to show that even children are sick of the Lucas CGI spew salads.

Children these days are freakin spoiled....most think the originals are lame.

Which brings me to my point. The original trilogy would most likely be brushed aside as kiddy fare if it were released today. Star wars just blew our minds because we had never seen anything like it back in the day. Sure it is a great movie, but take away them effects? hmmm. I remember back in that time period, critics were saying that the characters really didnt matter, that it was all about the effects, sound, music.

Now, with the prequels, lucas was kinda in a bind. He didnt have any of the characters that those early critics basicly called "disposable". He had to make a sw film without luke, leia, han, chewy, vader, stormtroopers, etc. He was also in a bind with these "new" characters because of their fate's. Imagine if he would have burnt luke to a crisp, killed off leia? Theirfore these movies are forced (ahem) to be woodenly acted and lame. You are not supposed to like annie/padme...because of the story arc...because they die.

"Clone Wars was a bad movie because it's fiction. We're keepin' it real!"

Not to beat a dead horse but I just read this article and it kinda makes sense...

Defending George Lucas and His Critically Trashed 'Wars'

Jeff Jensen explains the importance of ''The Clone Wars''

The Clone Wars is simply too well produced to justify virulent disdain and too insignificant to prosecute the Lucas-legacy argument. The movie is a small pleasure, which is only a problem when you expect huge things from a Star Wars film. Today's kids have no such expectations. For them, Star Wars is a stream of content — books, comic books, toys, micro-cartoons, videogames, DVDs, and, soon, a TV series. This new generation sees no distinction between movies and their merchandise, and that's just fine with them. Expect to see more of it. After all, the biggest movie franchise (Harry Potter) and the most-talked-about youth TV show (Gossip Girl) are literary franchise accessories. In Hollywood, the buzz phrase is ''transmedia properties,'' where movies are but one of many separate conduits for a story. It's a tricky, in-process idea, one that, if executed creatively and with integrity, portends an inventive new form of storytelling in its own right — and Star Wars is leading the way. The Clone Wars will not be remembered as a great animated movie — or an awful one, for that matter. But it might be remembered as part of a larger pop moment that is wiring the future of entertainment.

http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20225033,00.html

NOPE!!!!!