An elitist film for elitists? (Off-Topic)

by Kermit , Raleigh, NC, Thursday, May 09, 2019, 08:03 (2023 days ago) @ MacAddictXIV

I’m with you.

I’m all for a Star Wars universe that examines itself, instead of pretending that killing the space Nazi leader solves all the galaxy’s problems.

I understand that the original trilogy was a personal story, and not one concerned with the grander politics of the entire galaxy. But I think giving us a glimpse of those politics doesn’t detract from what makes Star Wars great. I think the reaction to The Last Jedi is justification enough for why the movie should have been made, to be honest.

I agree. And I understand that people still want the feel of the original trilogy, but from what I've read about it so far, you apparently have to be elitest to even understand what it's about. Kudos to the 1% who understand all of that and get something out of it. I consider myself a smart guy, but I never got all of that from any of the star wars movies. And I'm all for Sci-fi being a tool to help us understand ourselves and our culture through another medium.

Hmm. If you're referring to any of my points, I suspect you're both misunderstanding. The elites I'm referring to like the political angles (I'm not talking about politics as they are portrayed in that fictional universe, but how The Last Jedi checked the boxes for the very specific politics of our time in our world). Yes, the original trilogy is a personal story, but it has a timeless mythic quality that speaks to universal themes that have existed as long as humans have told stories. There are many things that are much more important than politics.

I was referring to how we are becoming the movie elitists (the 1%) by examining this movie to the nth degree. While the other 99% that watched the movie have no problem with any of this because it's still a great movie.

Ah, gotcha. Don't think I've examined it to the nth degree here. I've not gotten into too many particulars because I don't want to get into that kind of extended debate. I also might quibble with your numbers. I think the percentage of people who had problems with it is greater than 1%. All that said, I understand that this conversation can be tiresome if you simply enjoyed the movie.

Yeah, I generalize :D But I also have no problem with people digging into movies. I just don't like people who seem to think that if you don't understand a movie at that level then you can't enjoy the movie. When usually, the majority of people just want to watch a movie at whatever depth of understanding they care to use. So when I hear people talk to this depth I'm just like "Yeah, I never got that, but I still really enjoyed the movie"

I think its legitimate to criticize a movie that includes elements that seem to, in a hamfisted way, flatter a particular audience. Otherwise, if I'm come across as begrudging anyone who simply enjoys a movie as entertainment, that wasn't my intention. Most people get way more out of Marvel movies, for instance, than I do. The Star Wars franchise means more to me than most IPs because of how it influenced me at age 13 when there was nothing else quite like it, and its influence was profound. It affected my intellectual development. It expanded my interest in science fiction, fantasy, and story telling in general. Just like the Beatles made me a fan of everything that influenced the Beatles and everything they influenced, so it was with Star Wars. Empire was more mature movie, and by that time I had matured. I read Joseph Campbell. I began to understand on a more cerebral level why these movies had the staying power they did. That understanding is what drives my critique. The movies can still be plenty entertaining, but for me Star Wars was something special in that it was a phenomenon--something that was tremendously popular, yet there was substance underneath (very similar to the Beatles' music, the more I think about it). I'm not saying everyone has to think about it the way I do. Obviously, many don't, and that's okay.