Rian Johnson to write and direct a new trilogy of films.. (Star Wars Universe)

Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

Star Wars should always retain its sense of whimsy and fun and have broad appeal. I‎t continuously does my head in listening to grown men winging that the more recent Star Wars products are too directed towards kids. If any adult just can’t accept Star Wars films that have elements that appeal to children they really need to find an new fandom.

Right, that seems a little odd to me, too. SW movies have always been pitched to a younger sensibility. They've never been designed to be put under a microscope by adults. As soon as you do that, a lot of the magic goes out of them.
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

Fix the title of this thread, please!

I️ did!

It says "director", when it should just say "direct".

Hey fellas, cut our pal, Bryan, some slack, please. It's important to Bryan that he be the first to break news on the RPF, and in his haste to rush this thread out there before anyone else, he botched the title in a few ways. Ya gotta remember, Bryan works for Disney--a company known for botching their movies as they rush to crank them out.

The Wook ;)
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

..oy vey.

You're upset someone wants a typo fixed in a title? Ok...

I really hope it's like 1000 years in the past or something. Something that couldn't have a tie in to the existing universe except in name. Future seems cheesy - even 1000 years into the future.
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

You're upset someone wants a typo fixed in a title? Ok...

I really hope it's like 1000 years in the past or something. Something that couldn't have a tie in to the existing universe except in name. Future seems cheesy - even 1000 years into the future.

Oy vey is the Yiddish equivilant of good grief, hardly upset.
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and direct a new trilogy of films..

It's an interesting development. But, it could all de-rail ala Han Solo, as well. I've lost almost all interest in what Disney is doing with this current trilogy. Maybe there's hope for something new. But, the instincts so far have left me deflated. The quality just isn't there when it comes to story, and certainly to editing. The new films are not re-watchable. Very short shelf life. I had initially liked TFA, even though it was nothing more than a remake of ANH. But, as time passed, I realized that once the nostalgic glow of seeing Han and Chewie on the Falcon again had worn off, there was VERY little there of interest.

I HATED the prequels. They don't exist for me. But, these films leave me feeling nothing, really. They're just there. A missed opportunity to elevate the story and mythology beyond the most superficial levels. Maybe TLJ breaks free of that. But, I'm getting nothing from what I've seen so far. Still looks like Empire to me, so I'm fearing another lazy remake.

I've reconciled myself to the fact that there isn't anyone in charge of Star Wars who understands what made it what it is. It'll never be that again. There's just too much "not getting it". These new movies will make some money, but none will be legendary. They LOOK like Star Wars. Most of the time. But, they don't feel like it. Which for me, basically makes it all a waste. Yes! Pavlov's dogs will come a runnin'. But, perhaps not quite as many this time.
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

Case in point Star Trek Discovery. It’s a slick, modern, somewhat dark with very flawed characters like BSG with a Star Trek wrapper. It’s not bad per se, it’s just not Star Trek. Star Wars should always retain its sense of whimsy and fun and have broad appeal. I‎t continuously does my head in listening to grown men winging that the more recent Star Wars products are too directed towards kids. If any adult just can’t accept Star Wars films that have elements that appeal to children they really need to find an new fandom.


Are you serious?! Did you miss that last 18 years of Prequel bashing? Not one person said "Hey these are for kids so you should ignore Jar Jar!". Nobody said that. I don't care about the kid stuff, I just want a new, good story, and some decent ship designs. If you fault people who don't like TFA for that, you have to fault the people who didn't like the Prequels for the same thing.
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

You had me at "SWIQ".
Seth,

SWIQ is a term I coined, which encompasses both a person's factual knowledge about Star Wars (e.g. Bothans died stealing the plans to the second Death Star, not the first), and a person's judgement about what made Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back--the two masterpieces in the franchise--well, masterpieces.

My fear was that this was some arbitrary scale that judged fandom level and used as a way to shut somebody down. Like The way some people tell me I can’t be a big SW fan if I haven’t read every stupid EU novel.

I have a big problem with fandom assuming ownership of their chosen franchise and determining random parameters to say what counts and what doesn’t and then use that to exclude others. There’s a bit of that in what you say, but I also agree with you that getting Star Wars means getting it’s influenced and DNA as much as knowing the combination to Mace Windu’s luggage.

But the problem is it’s still arbitrary to your opinion. I’ll defend TFA despite its serious narrative flaws because for me it got the SW FEEL back. The PT did not feel like SW to me.

SW has had a major impact on my life and I always get triggered when somebody tells me I’m not fam because of XYZ.
 
star wars was made in the Nixon/Carter era and in a style which was older still. alot of the technicians came from the old hollywood era. they just simply don't make 'em that way anymore. i think that's part of the reason you can never catch that lightning in a bottle again. not even with Reagan/cheesy 80's era film making style(ROTJ).

just gotta accept these will be made to modern film making standards i reckon.
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

But the problem is [that SWIQ is] still arbitrary to your opinion. I’ll defend TFA despite its serious narrative flaws because for me it got the SW FEEL back. The PT did not feel like SW to me.

No, SWIQ is absolute. How closely my SWIQ aligns with the absolute SWIQ, determines how high my SWIQ is. And how closely your SWIQ aligns with...not MY SWIQ...but the ABSOLUTE SWIQ, determines how high your SWIQ is. Now you and I can have differing opinions as to what things do and do not belong in a Star Wars movie, but if we do differ on that, then one of our SWIQs will be more closely aligned with the absolute SWIQ, and therefore will be higher. (Absolute SWIQ is defined by the theatrical cuts of SW and ESB, as they are the standard of the essence and excellence of Star Wars.)

You should believe your SWIQ is high, and that anyone who agrees with you on almost all things Star Wars also possesses a high SWIQ; and that anyone who disagrees with you on almost all things Star Wars (e.g. they rank AOTC and TPM as the two best Star Wars movies) has a low SWIQ.

SW has had a major impact on my life and I always get triggered when somebody tells me I’m not fan because of XYZ.

In part, this is why I came up with SWIQ. Because I don't ever want to question someone's fandom. There are a lot of HUGE fans of Star Wars, who possess low SWIQs. I would never tell such a person that they are not a fan. Nor would I tell them they're not a true fan. Unless of course they're a total poser, and really don't know squat about Star Wars. But no, it's pretty much a guarantee that all of us who come onto the RPF and argue over Star Wars are mega fans. So, when I disagree with one, I don't ever want to call into question their fandom.

But whether or not someone is a legit fan, only tells you so much about them. Let me give you a practical usage example where SWIQ comes in handy. Let's say the trailer for the Chewbacca standalone film came out today, and I purposely didn't watch it, because I don't want spoilers, I wanna wait 'til May to see it unspoiled in the theater. But, my curiosity gets to me a little bit, and I call up my buddy Jim to see if he watched it, and what he thought of it. I know Jim has a high SWIQ like me, as he and I agree on almost everything related to what should and should not be in a Star Wars movie. But he tells me that he also didn't watch it, for the same reason I didn't. Then, he goes on to say to me, "However, I was curious just like you, and so when my co-worker came up to me today to talk about the trailer, I told him I didn't watch it, and that I didn't want him to tell me anything specific about the trailer, but I did ask him whether or not the movie looked good to him.". I would reply with the following, "Don't tell me what he said yet. I first wanna know...what's his SWIQ.". And he'd say, "I've talked Star Wars at length with him, and he's got a high SWIQ.".

That would tell me practically all I needed to know about how much weight I should put on this guy's take on the trailer. I wouldn't know the specifics of his high SWIQ, but based on Jim's assessment of his SWIQ, I would then be ready to hear the guy's take, and give it the credence it deserves. Now, if instead I had just asked if the guy was a big fan, that wouldn't tell me nearly as much, because maybe he is a big fan, but has a dreadfully low SWIQ.

SWIQ is just so easy to use, and to say someone has a high SWIQ, a medium SWIQ, or a low SWIQ, is so much more informative than saying they are a huge fan, moderate fan, or not much of a fan at all.

The Wook
 
SWIQ?
What?

When the hell did it just stop being fun?

I don't know what my eight year old nephews SWIQ is, but I know he believes in all this.
Kylo, K2, Ahsoka Tano, he loves all of it, so keep it coming Disney and best of luck to Ryan and the new adventure he plans to take us on.
Robert
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

I find myself conflicted for both hating the pretentious nature of the SWIQ concept and agreeing with every word in this post...

You had me at "SWIQ".



Seth,

SWIQ is a term I coined, which encompasses both a person's factual knowledge about Star Wars (e.g. Bothans died stealing the plans to the second Death Star, not the first), and a person's judgement about what made Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back--the two masterpieces in the franchise--well, masterpieces.

The only thing necessary for you to embrace the concept of SWIQ, is a general belief in the existence of absolutes, and a specific belief that there exists an absolute standard of excellence in Star Wars filmmaking: the theatrical cut of Star Wars, and the theatrical cut of ESB.

A person with a high SWIQ knows when something does belong in Star Wars movie, and when something doesn't belong in a Star Wars movie. A person with a low SWIQ will not be able to make those judgements correctly.

To make a good Star Wars movie, the filmmaker must have a high SWIQ, or else the film will contain all sorts of things that make a high-SWIQ viewer cringe and think, "This is not Star Wars". And if the filmmaker does not have a high SWIQ, a high-SWIQ viewer will come out of the theater disappointed, and thinking, "WTF? Why didn't they do this instead of that? And God, that scene would've been so much more moving if there had been better music behind it.".

But a low-SWIQ viewer won't ever know that a Star Wars movie was made by a low-SWIQ filmmaker, because that viewer will not be offended by the things that are there and don't belong; and because that viewer will not even notice the good things that are (conspicuously) missing from the film.

There is no actual numeric values for someone's SWIQ. That would be impossible to standardize. SWIQ is merely a matter of degree: high SWIQ, medium SWIQ, or low SWIQ.

Now, every fanboy, who knows a lot about Star Wars, and has strong opinions about Star Wars, should believe that he possesses a high SWIQ. But because there is an absolute standard of what does and does not belong in a Star Wars movie, he may be right, or he may be wrong. I know that I have a high SWIQ. You should also be confident that you have a high SWIQ. But if you and I disagree *a lot* on the movies that came after ANH and ESB, then one of us is right, and one of us is wrong. One of us has a high SWIQ, and one of us has a low SWIQ.

To put it in practical terms for you, let's say you were hired by Disney to direct a Star Wars movie--an Obi-Wan Kenobi standalone film, set in the years between ROTS and ANH. Disney tells you to hire the writer, the cinematographer, the chief VFX artist, the chief make-up artist, the chief editor, the music composer, etc. You are confident that you possess a high SWIQ, but you know that you cannot do everything, and that you must rely on these other people to make the film. You're gonna wanna hire people to head up those departments who you deem to also have a high SWIQ.

Like when you're interviewing a writer for the job, what are you gonna do? You're gonna talk to him about all the Star Wars movies, and ask him what he likes, dislikes, etc. If you hate Jar Jar, but he says Jar Jar is his all-time favorite Star Wars character, you're gonna give him the bum's rush out the door, right? Of course you will. Because the guy's an idiot. With an abysmally low SWIQ. If another writer candidate professes his love for the Special Editions, and thinks it was very progressive and awesome for George to change the original film so that Han didn't shoot Greedo until he was fired upon first, you'd say thanks, but no thanks.

I didn't create SWIQ. It's existed since that magical summer of '77. I only named it. And I did so, because I felt the need for a word (or short phrase or acronym), to describe how in touch an individual is with true Star Wars. Not just how many facts they know, but how much the 'get it'. How much they understand what makes those first two films masterpieces. What makes them magical. What makes them...Star Wars. And what makes these new episodes ring true, or ring false, when measured against those absolute standards of Star Wars excellence.

The Wook
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

I'm wondering at what point Disney will be introducing Earth as a known planet in "Star Wars" lore. Technically you could say it's already canon since the E.T. species appeared in "The Phantom Menace". Think about it, and it's an eventual no-brainer for Disney when you consider the franchise tie-in opportunities. I even wonder if Galaxy's Edge is supposed to be an outpost on Earth.

I bet late Glen A. Larson´s estate is just WAITING for Disney to make a move like that and sue their asses off for trying to copy Battlestar Galactica :p
 
Re: Rian Johnson to write and director a new trilogy of films..

Are you serious?! Did you miss that last 18 years of Prequel bashing? Not one person said "Hey these are for kids so you should ignore Jar Jar!". Nobody said that. I don't care about the kid stuff, I just want a new, good story, and some decent ship designs. If you fault people who don't like TFA for that, you have to fault the people who didn't like the Prequels for the same thing.

I've never bashed the PT. I enjoy it for what it is and would have defended it as such if we had this part of the RPF forum when they were released. Back then we were more concerned with lightsaber hilts then Jar Jar.
 
I would have really welcomed the announcement that SW was getting a five-year break after episode #9.

They set five SW movies in motion when Disney took over and only the first two have been released. The public's appetite for SW may be in a much different place after 3 more big movies.


A ton of summer tentpole comic book movies probably sounded like fun to a lot of people 6-8 years ago. I dunno about everyone else but I'm completely burned out on it and they aren't done coming yet.
 
I'm not, Thor was awesome, looking foreward to Black Panther, and Infinity Wars is going to be epic! :)

Plus, keep in mind they're up to 3 Marvel flicks a year, and SW is still at 1. Stay at 1 and i think you're good. 2 might be starting to push it and I know that's their goal.
 
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