By Katey Rich
As I mentioned in the last post, there will be another theatrical Star Wars film, despite the collective sigh of relief that occurred after the last prequel left theatres. Above is the first promotional image from the film, snagged by USA Today. Yes, that's Anakin, looking just like the Hayden Christensen we were all convinced would have gone away by now. And with him, as Entertainment Weekly's PopWatch blog points out, is his own padawan, or apprentice Jedi. And she's a girl, which might mean we'll see a lady do battle in the galaxy without having her shirt inexplicably ripped apart at the midsection to show off her toned abs (I still resent you for that, Natalie Portman).
Is there anyone left who's eager to see a new Star Wars, after everything we went through with the prequels? It's tempting to say no, given how the series' position in pop culture has shifted from revered icon to easy punchline in the last seven years or so. But then again...Attack of the Clones made over $300 million in the United States. That's about as much as Spider-Man 3. The other two prequels nearly topped $400 million, and were the #1 moneymakers of their years. Either we're willing to take whatever George Lucas will give us, or we really never learn our lesson.
So is this another example of money being more important than artistic merit, or does George Lucas honestly think he's got a new direction for the series? Your answer may depend on how many years you spent sleeping on Star Wars sheets, or how many weeks in advance you bought tickets to The Phantom Menace. The Star Wars series is a part of our American DNA, and there are enough diehard or just curious fans out there that anything related to the series could never fall entirely flat. As commenter Zod said at Pop Watch, "Any Star Wars, no matter how bad it may be, is still good." He may not be the majority, but he's not alone. And if an animated Star Wars can really be the salvation of the galaxy, he may find himself in even bigger company. I'm just a casual fan of the series, but even I have to acknowledge-- how awesome would that be?
No comments:
Post a Comment