OK, it's crunch time. I'm assuming that most people here have seen Return of the King, so it's safe to put this to a vote. Star Wars or Lord of the Rings? (The original Star Wars trilogy, of course)... As for me, I'll always be a Star Wars geek through and through... Never underestimate the power of the force...
Unfortunately, you CAN'T take just the original Star Wars trilogy by itself anymore. All 6 movies go together, whether you like it or not. (Remember, "A New Hope" is Episode 4...) Therefore, because the new prequels are devoid of all decent acting, credible dialogue, a well paced plot, and any emotion or passion, they drag down the ENTIRE series. Therefore, LOTR wins this one easily. Had Lucas NEVER made any prequels, I would have given the edge to Star Wars. What's done is done, though, and cannot be erased. Plain and simple, George Lucas made a great trilogy into a merely mediocre series, much like the Wachowski brothers did with the Matrix franchise.
I KNEW someone would say that! Personally, I think you CAN take the original trilogy by itself because of the big gap between the filming of Jedi and Phantom Menace. The prequels also take place about 30 years or so before the original trilogy. Episodes IV, V,and VI have completely different characters and storylines from episodes I, II, and III. The new films don't have Luke, Han, or Princess Leia. Darth Vader as we know him doesn't even make an appearance until episode III. If the two films had been set in closer proximity to each other time wise or been made with comparable technology, THEN, you could count the entire series as one, IMO... I think most film buffs and even the majority of Star Wars afficionados count the two trilogies as separate entities for comparison purposes, so
I think the peak of Star Wars (the Empire Strikes Back) is higher than LOTR, but the dregs (Ewoks, Jake Lloyd, not showing Anakin massacre the Sand People, medichlorians, etc) are much, much lower than the worst that LOTR has to offer (toss me). Therefor, as a whole the LOTR franchise is superior, because it is more consistantly good. On a related note, I cannot wait until they make the Hobbit, which I actually liked better than LOTR. It is a much better story to tell, especially in film, because it focuses mainly on a single group of characters and the events taking place are far more localized. The huge battles look pretty good, but they are not as appealing as a one-on-one conflict like you see in the Star Wars movies, or even a one-on-severeral like Bilbo vs. the Spiders. For those that like the huge battles, they still throw in the battle of five armies, and you get to have an army of dwarves instead of a single dwarf that says r****ded things. I hope they leave some of the songs in it though.
It's gotta be Star Wars. I liked how Jackson started out, but my feelings of the last two installments of LOTR range from mild disinterest to disgust. Star Wars is the bomb. And yes, you definitely can take the original three seperately from the new ones.
Have they announced the making of the Hobbit, or is this something you think will happen? It sounds like it is a project in the making the way you worded it, and if it is I want to know any details you can find (a link would be good too). If I read you wrong then nevermind me.
Star Wars easily. Yes, it IS a trilogy. It'll be two trilogies when all is said and done. LOTR has the benefit of the middle picture, The Two Towers, being its weakest entry unlike SW which ended with the weakest of the trilogy, Return of the Jedi. That being said, ROTJ is still a terrific movie and the Vader/Luke/Emperor scenes are as great as anything in any of the LOTR films. To this day, I still don't understand the hatred of the Ewoks. I enjoyed them as a kid. I enjoy them as an adult. They represent a primitive, seemingly harmless tribe that overcomes Palpatine's technological and military threat("Your overconfidence is your weakness."). And for all of you who b**** about them being cute and cuddly and included for the kids, have you actually watched this movie?! Most of the Ewoks are hideous-looking and several bite it during the Battle of Endor(unlike the Gungan/droid "battle" in TPM where NOBODY dies). My only legitimate gripe with ROTJ is that Carrie Fisher looked totally disinterested in the film. Yes, I know she was coked up the entire time, but regardless of the behind-the-scenes excuses, her performance was lifeless and it nearly killed the moment where Luke tells her the truth on Endor(Mark Hamill saves that scene). Harrison Ford wasn't too impressive either, but that's due more to Han Solo having little to do in the film rather than bad acting. And he still does get off a classic line. "Hey....it's me!" Both A New Hope and Empire are flawless motion pictures. To this day, Empire is still my favorite movie of all-time and is widely regarded(even by SW haters) as one of the greatest films ever made. LOTR is a solid trilogy and has three entries ranging from good to great, but I don't think its story is as effectively told and frankly the theatrical versions(which are what I'm using when ranking it against other series) are missing key elements. Saruman's complete absence in ROTK is the most glaring example.
No contest for me...LOTR all the way. No trilogy battle is complete without one of the greatest of all time, though. "I believe in America..." "I'll make him an offer he can't refuse..." Thats right...The Godfather. Thanks to meticulous filmmaking, all three parts of the trilogy rank among the best in number of blunders/mistakes. The three combined have less mistakes than any one of the 5 Star Wars or 3 LOTR films(And people have had years and years to pore over the GF films, while ROTK has been in the theatres for all of 2 weeks). Truly a testament to great filmmaking(I realize that the number of mistakes only serve as trivia if the movie sucks, but I think, in this case, it only enhances the greatness of the series).
Star Wars all the way. And last time I checked, a "Trilogy" of movies meant three of them, so no, you can't count the craptacular Episodes I & II. Lord of the Rings blows. I can't sit through any of the movies without falling asleep, and believe me, I've watched alot of crappy movies in my day. There are just so many awesome things about Star Wars that I can't even get into right now! I'm not a SW fanatic, but I've been playing Knights of the Old Republic non stop for a few days now, so I'm on a real Star Wars high... And see, there's something positive about the first two episodes. A lot of the things taken from it, like the Sith or double bladed lightsabers weren't created until those movies came out...and without them I wouldn't be playing such a badass game right now!
Sorry to be misleading. I have a strong suspicion that the hobbit will be made based on the fact that studios and producers do not generally like to pass on an opportunity to make boatloads of cash. I have not heard anything specific about production, but when you have three movies making 300 million each and you have a forth property that is perfectly targeted at the same audience, it would be almost inconceivable that that property would not be developed. What could be a concern is that Peter Jackson may not want to work on the Hobbit, or at least not so soon after doing LOTR. That could delay getting it into production or could neccessitate a change in who is making the movie. I did find this at Dark Horizons: ... so it looks as though at least Gandalf could be on board for a return (one of about 3 of the characters that they would need, with Elrond and Bilbo). It's worth mentioning that Bilbo is supposed to look the same age in Fellowship and in the Hobbit due to the magic of the ring, so he was a bit off on the last part.
I'd love to rank The Godfather up there with SW and LOTR, but the third movie was weak. The story was essentially over after Part II(even Coppola admits this), and there were plenty of mistakes made with Part III. Not paying Robert Duvall and replacing him with freaking George Hamilton. Casting Sofia Coppola as Mary(I know she was a last minute replacement for Winona Ryder, but was Coppola's daughter really the best they could do?). I also hated the change in Connie from Part II to Part III. They probably did this due to Tom Hagen's absence, but I never bought it. Also, that final scene with Michael falling out of the chair was an embarassment. The first two Godfather films are classics. Part I is arguably the greatest movie ever made(Empire Strikes Back is my favorite, but I'll admit it's not on the level of The Godfather). Part II is one of the best sequels of all-time, and while I don't feel it's on par with the first one, the last 45 minutes(leading up to that haunting final image) are as perfect as anything ever committed to celluloid. Part III is superfluous and mediocre. Does it crap on the series like Alien 3? No. But it's a bad enough finale that I all but ignore its existence. The only reason it's in my DVD collection is because Paramount only offers the films in a box set(at least until next year).
A-Train, In the "who do post like, blah , vlah , b;ah thread: I was going to say you but yourt are sooooooo cool I didn't want to be presumptous. Yu are the king of the one-liner posts. Apollo, You didn't like me because I deservedly raggedon frat guys but we are on the same side???!! People forget the cultural impact Star Wars had on the freakin world. It wasn't a cool movie. It was a cultural phenomenon, Disco LOTR??? No. I don't want to even try to defend SW. Lucas pussed n the prequals (EVEN JEDI) I have not read all the LOTR books but my wife has. She hated the movies. To make a drunbk post short, I will be amazed if anything comes close to SW in my lifetime. Star Wars and the Houston Rockets mean a lot to me. Good Night. Meey Xmas!
I used to love Star Wars so much. I still do, but ever since I picked up The Hobbit I found a new trilogy to love. The Lord of the Rings is such a good story. The books kick a**. I am surprised of how good of a job Jackson has done with the movies. I love the movies a lot too, they are my favorite movies (or movie).
LOTR wins easily with me, though if a director remade the Star Wars Trilogy now, it might be a different story. It's hard to compare movies with a gap of around twenty year together.
star wars for me....if i were 12 years old today, i might say LOTR...but as an adult, looking back, nothing could touch star wars.
I can't in good conscience vote for a series (SW) in which the creator (Lucas) feels the need to revamp every little thing 25 years later. These movies have stood the test of time. Why tinker with them? Okay, a few changes here or there won't bother me. Wanna add a CGI Jabba in the scene in which Han and Jabba are talking? Go ahead. Wanna make the Death Star blow up all pretty? Okay by me. However, Lucas takes things too far and ends up crapping on the original product. Greedo firing first? Adding cool CGI that DOES NOT mix with the low-tech feel of the movies? More freaking songs in Jabba's Palace? Puh-lease. I don't see how you can say that the original trilogy can stand alone. Just because the prequels were made 25 years later and LOOK different? (Heck, Godfather III came out 11 years after the last one did...) Lucas intended there to be at least 6 movies all along (he's hinted at an Episode 7, 8, and 9 in interviews). For chrissake, the original trilogy starts in the MIDDLE of the saga. Just because the prequels suck doesn't mean they can be discounted. There's still an Obi-Wan, Anakin Skywalker, Palpatine, Yoda, Jabba, Bobba Fett, Uncle Owen, and Aunt Beru. There are still Jawas, Hutts, lightsabers, Sith, the Force, and Sand People. So, we go back to the original question: Why do you think Lucas went back and re-did the effects in the original series? Answer: For the same reason there are rumblings and rumors about replacing music and actors in the original trilogy with those from the prequels. Lucas wants to make the transition between old and new series more SEAMLESS, and he's gonna do everything in his power to make it happen (whether the fans approve or not). It's all one story, folks...
I think LOTR has a better starting point The books were better than the overly obscure Star Wars books. I dunno . . I think it is hard to compare I think I was more AWED by Star Wars when I saw it but I'm a bit older Add in Technological changes ect . . . LOTR has too many Advantages Better Books Better Technologies I'll say equal actors at best Take away to CGI and the advanced Techniques. . .is it HALF the movie that STAR WARS was????? Rocket River
