http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=169574

Vote on this poll

The Phantom Menace
[bar] 10/1%
Attack of the Clones
[bar] 63/8%
A New Hope (originally: 'Star Wars')
[bar] 105/14%
The Empire Strikes Back
[bar] 237/31%
Return of the Jedi
[bar] 113/15%
Damian Does Dagobah
[bar] 69/9%
I can't decide
[bar] 20/3%
They're all equally wonderful
[bar] 24/3%
They're all equally appalling
[bar] 63/8%
Star What?
[bar] 45/6%
Other (See my complaint below)
[bar] 24/3%
773 total votes
Replies are listed 'Best First'.
•Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by merlyn (Sage) on May 27, 2002 at 14:34 UTC
    My favorite was the Original Star Wars, before it was retitled Star Wars IV: A New Hope during the 1979 re-release.

    I saw that something like 70 times in the theatre during its 95-week run (1977 to 1978) at the Westgate theatre down the street from my house.

    Scariest words uttered in SW2: "Representative Binks".

    -- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker

      Scariest words uttered in SW2: "Representative Binks".

      Yeah, but what's even scarier is when you walk out of the theatre and hear "President George W. Bush."

      Still gives me nightmares...<?p>

      My favorite was the Original Star Wars, before it was retitled Star Wars IV: A New Hope during the 1979 re-release.

      Yes, the addition of those 5 words made all the difference.

      I have to say that I really hadn't thought that it would be possible for Lucas to produce a worse film than TPM (especially since it had boba fett in it), but he proved me wrong.
(kudra: tauntauns) Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by kudra (Vicar) on May 27, 2002 at 14:23 UTC
    It has to be 'Empire'. Reason: tauntauns.

    I like to refer to warm people on cold days as tauntauns, although I usually restrict myself to warming my hands on epidermis rather than entrails.

      <quote>And I thought these things smelled bad on the outside!</quote>

      One of the top-ten most sexually tilted lines in the trilogy.

      {NULE}
      --
      http://www.nule.org

Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by Biker (Priest) on May 27, 2002 at 14:31 UTC
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by Joost (Canon) on May 27, 2002 at 15:26 UTC
    Either TROOPS or The star wars gangsta rap or the above mentioned ASCII version

    or the muppet's 'star wars (eps. III-V) in 30 seconds'

    -- Joost downtime n. The period during which a system is error-free and immune from user input.
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by newrisedesigns (Curate) on May 27, 2002 at 15:03 UTC

    I liked Episode II, but I didn't like the amount of whining that took place.

    Anakin whines, Jar Jar whines, lil' Boba Fett whines.

    However, I doubt that if we see Boba Fett in Episode III, I doubt highly that he will speak.

    If I saw my father/master-copy-clone killed by a guy with a purple lightsaber, I wouldn't have much to say either.

    John J Reiser
    newrisedesigns.com

(jeffa) Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by jeffa (Bishop) on May 27, 2002 at 15:22 UTC
    Definitely Episode IV - not just because i was 7 when it was first released, but because it still holds up to the others. When it was re-released at the theaters a few years ago, i watched it again and realised just how good of a movie it really is. The only audience it caters to are the movie fans.

    Second for me would be Episode V, with Episode II trailing very closely behind - Yoda**2 !!! (and i've always been a Boba Fett fan!)

    jeffa

    "These are not the droids you are looking for."
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by webfiend (Vicar) on May 28, 2002 at 05:29 UTC

    I had to think about this one. It took so much work to think about it that I came up with a script to help me figure it out.

    my $EHH = 0; # A constant indicating indifference. my $best_time = 0; my $favorite = ""; my @episodes = what_were_the_names_again(); foreach my $movie (@episodes) { next unless (released($movie)); %scenes = watch($movie); my $opinion = $scenes{"fun"} + $scenes{"cool"} - $scenes{"awkward"} - $scenes{"midochlorians mentioned"}; if ($opinion > $best_time) { $favorite = $movie; $best_time = $opinion; } # Present a quick recap of how I felt about this episode. if ($opinion > $EHH) { print "$movie was pretty good.\n"; } elsif ($opinion == $EHH) { print "$movie was okay.\n"; } else { print "$movie kinda sucked.\n"; } } print "My favorite would have to be $favorite.\n";

    I'd have to say Episode 4 was my favorite according to this logic, but a more refined approach to calculating $opinion would be in order. For example, this calculation completely ignores appearances by my favorite cranky green muppet (besides Kermit).

    Oh, man. I worry about myself sometimes.

    Update: Updated the commentary to match the code. Whoops.


    "All you need is ignorance and confidence; then success is sure."-- Mark Twain
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by S_Shrum (Pilgrim) on May 28, 2002 at 07:19 UTC

    Two words...Harrison Ford.

    His acting alone makes this movie the most enjoyable to date.

    Empire all the way!

    However, the techno-geek in me says kudos to the Lucas staff on their melding of CG and live action in the recent outings.

    ======================
    Sean Shrum
    http://www.shrum.net

Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by penguinfuz (Pilgrim) on May 27, 2002 at 18:22 UTC
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by greywolf (Priest) on May 27, 2002 at 19:12 UTC
    It's gotta be Empire. You've got Yoda and Boba. Nuff Said!

    I don't know how high Clones will get on my list but it was pretty damn good.

    Don't forget this short called Tietanic with tie fighters and storm troopers attacking the Titanic as it goes down. It is very funny.

    mr greywolf
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by tadman (Prior) on May 27, 2002 at 23:49 UTC
    The Empire Strikes Back was, as far as I can tell, the only one that was actually improved, albeit slightly, by the recent George Lucas "restoration" recently applied to it. It also doesn't feature a dramatic ending with a song and dance routine, nor does it conclude with a Hollywood standard-issue explosion, size XXL. This has to be the definitive Star Wars movie.
      I have yet to see attack of the clones, so I don't know if it will be my new favorite or not, but the original 3 are great, episode one not so much


      work it harder make it better do it faster makes us stronger more than ever hour after our work is never over.
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by tune (Curate) on May 27, 2002 at 17:52 UTC
    My current top-list is:
    1. Empire Strikes Back (Ep V)
    2. Star Wars: New Hope (Ep IV)
    3. Return Of The Jedi (Ep VI)
    4. Attack of The Clones (Ep II)
    5. Phantom Menace (Ep I)
    I admit I am an old school SW fan :)

    --
    tune

(wil) Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by wil (Priest) on May 28, 2002 at 11:22 UTC
    I can't decide

    Shouldn't that be mu? :-)

    - wil
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by shadox (Priest) on May 27, 2002 at 15:16 UTC
    The Empire Strikes Back of course :)
    ___________________________________________
    Optimus magister, bonus liber
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by Chainsaw (Friar) on May 27, 2002 at 19:08 UTC
    To me the best movie is The Empire Strikes Back. But the new movies are good too. Let see what the new films carry us.


    God help me always to see the other face of the coin. And prevent me from accusing of betrayal those who don't think just as I do.
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by virtualsue (Vicar) on May 29, 2002 at 12:06 UTC
    I wanted to vote for Hardware Wars. Fluke Starbucker++
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by frankus (Priest) on May 30, 2002 at 10:29 UTC
    I think George Lucas should have franchised the Star Wars saga and let someone else have a go.
    • Kevin Smith - Jango and Silent Boba Strike Back, Womp Rats
    • Quentin Tarantino - Spaceport Dogs
    • The Cohen Bothers - Barton Binks, Oh Boba where art thou?,
    During "Episode 1", I expected a MacDonalds on Corruscant, the story was lacking.
    The marketting was better planned.

    The first two were the best IMHO.
    Or the making of Starwars: George Lucas in Love

    --

    Brother Frankus.

    ¤

Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by bnh (Novice) on May 27, 2002 at 19:51 UTC
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by japhy (Canon) on May 31, 2002 at 18:14 UTC
    I liked Episode IV the most -- there was a lot of excellent cinematography, acting, and it was a properly-executed coming-of-age story.

    Fast forward to the crap that Lucas has unleashed upon the world. Episode I failed. Miserably. From "midiclorians" to a virgin birth, from Jar Jar Binks to the pod race, from Anakin's poorly delivered lines to Anakin's poorly delivered lines... it was awful.

    And then there's Episode II. First of all, there is absolutely no excuse for Yoda's abilities -- and his use of a cane to walk is not funny, it's ridiculous. Lucas is doing the wrong thing: using COMEDY instead of HUMOR. There is a difference, and he once knew it; when C-3P0 and R2-D2 exchanged banter in Episode IV, that was humor. When Jar-Jar Binks came onto the screen, I knew it was comedy, and comedy, frankly, has no place in this saga. Things can be funny, it's true, but things like that are there for pure idiotic laughter. I think the problem is that Lucas has lost the ability to get any emotion from his movie and from his audience, so he has to settle for the cheapest: the cheap laugh.

    Episode II was stale -- the scenes between Anakin and Padme (good Lord, couldn't he have developed a less obtuse name than Padme Amidala?!) were torturous to watch (and by the way, Lucas designed one of Amidala's outfits... the BLACK LEATHER ONE), the dialogue was coarse and forced, the action was obligatory (meaning, "oh, it's time for an action scene!"), there are plot holes and rather obvious goofs, and the USE OF SPECIAL EFFECTS RUINED THE MOVIE ENTIRELY. Let me repeat that for you in a way that might make more sense. Lucas has placed the success of his movies in the special effects team, and neglected the actors. WHY?! You might as well make the next movie be entirely computer-generated.

    I'm in the process of writing outlines for an ALTERNATE pre-trilogy to episodes four through six. I'm serious about them. I'm going to release them as fanfic or whatever.

    Finally, here are a few gripes about Episodes I and II.

    • Yoda is Obi-Wan's master, not Qui-Gon. Qui-Gon was never mentioned in Episode IV. Why? Because Obi-Wan clearly says that Yoda was his master.
    • Midiclorians. Lucas has gone berserk.
    • Count Dooku has mastered the Narrative Side of the Force. Example: "it is clear that we have both mastered the force, so let me cue the lightsaber duel."
    • Why is Anakin's fake hand some weird metallic thing? Luke (30 years later at most) has a REAL-LOOKING hand.
    • Padme does not need to change clothes every five minutes. Really. And the costumes she was wearing must have been purchased at the Naboo Nubile Negligee store. Honestly.

    _____________________________________________________
    Jeff[japhy]Pinyan: Perl, regex, and perl hacker, who'd like a job (NYC-area)
    s++=END;++y(;-P)}y js++=;shajsj<++y(p-q)}?print:??;

      'Padme Amidala' - heh heh, 'Padme'
      perl -le 'print scalar reverse pack A20,scalar reverse Amidala'

      jeffa

      L-LL-L--L-LL-L--L-LL-L--
      -R--R-RR-R--R-RR-R--R-RR
      B--B--B--B--B--B--B--B--
      H---H---H---H---H---H---
      (the triplet paradiddle with high-hat)
      
ATTACK OF THE DRINKING GAME!
by gregor42 (Parson) on May 31, 2002 at 20:11 UTC

    OK, to keep this on-topic I''l answer the question first....

    STAR WARS (later known as A New Hope - what a stupid name for such a wonderful movie...) It was perfect on it's own. It was groundbreaking, exciting, breathtakingly NEW. It had great actors: Harrison Ford, Carrie Fischer, and Sir Alac Guiness to mention a few... it had great plot, it had subtext, and it had The Force, a mystical thing that was hard to describe but could be instantly related to.

    It did not need to be edited. The scene with Jabba was not necessary, the extra buildings in Mos Eisley were not needed, and naturally one of the best scenes was DESTROYED.....Greedo shooting first.... STUPID. And having Boba Fett standing there next to Jabba was also unecessary.

    It truly didn't NEED any sequels at all. That being said, The Empire Strikes Back, another bad title, is by far the most dramatic. Hell it HAS drama, the rest of the sequels simply don't.

    SO.... NOW ON TO THE GAME

    I won't give my opinion of SW2. It's pointless & redundant. No wait, I DID just give my opinion... ;-D

    Anyway my wife & I have invented a drinking game worthy of watching this film. (If nothing else it'll help you get through the whole thing.)

    It goes like this:

    Watch the movie with LOTS of beer. Every scene that comes up, someone yells out the movie it was STOLEN from. Then everyone else drinks. UNLESS, someone else calls out an EARLIER reference that was ripped off.

    Here are some examples to get you started. Please feel free to respond with your own!

    • Janguar Fett & Obi-wan fighting in the rain on a rooftop: THE CROW (drink) no... BLADERUNNER!(you drink)
    • Boba Fett staring at his father's helmet face to face: BACKDRAFT!
    • Janguar Fett....: IRON MAN (ok not a movie but you get the idea)
    • On the water planet of the cloners (I forgot the name) the critter breaks through the waves & flies with a rider on it's back: HEAVY METAL
    • The 'execution' scene: GLADIATOR!
    • First creature to emerge in the arena: JURASSIC PARK!
    • Second creature to appear: ALIENS! no wait...not quite, ok this one's a stretch: It's Sebastian from the Little Mermaid after smoking the weed from Class of Nuke 'em High
    • The third beastie to emerge: THE LION KING!
    • Obi-wan lands on the water planet & walks through the first portal into an all white glowing room: 2001 a Space Odyssey!
    • R2D2 flying: BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED**
    • Jumping out of hovercars in traffic on Corrisant: THE FIFTH ELEMENT
    • Yoda's Fight Scene: THE TASMANIAN DEVIL!
    • Dooku/Darth Tyrannus: FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING! (Same costume practically, with BattleStar Galactica's Commander Adama's clasps on his cape. & more or less the same character also! A very powerful jedi/magi turned by the Dark Side)
    • Darth Tyrannus lying by telling the truth (About Darth Sidious): well that one's from the Bible... The Virgin Birth in Episode one, same thing...

    Optional rules:

    • If somehow you're not getting drunk enough from this, try identifying alien-heads from old Star Trek episodes for bonus points.
    • Everyone who still has all of your body parts, drink every time someone loses one.
    • Drink every time Anakin breaks/loses another light sabre - because you know you wouldn't have dropped yours
    • Everyone yell "GEORGE LUCAS SUCKS" every time someone gives a painfully bad line like: "This party's over" or "what a drag" ARRRGH... Drink because you need one after that...

    So that's the idea... Now you can blame your alcoholism on Georgey boy and yours truly.



    Wait! This isn't a Parachute, this is a Backpack!
(zdog) Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by zdog (Priest) on May 27, 2002 at 15:42 UTC
    The first episode I saw and the one that made me fall in love with Star Wars is Return of the Jedi. That's probably why I still consider it to be my favorite.

    ... and they're not teddy bears!!

    Zenon Zabinski | zdog | zdog@perlmonk.org

Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by neilwatson (Priest) on May 29, 2002 at 18:31 UTC
    Where is the Star Wars Christmas special? What about the Ewok Adventure movie. Those were my favorites.

    Neil Watson
    watson-wilson.ca

      What about the Ewok's caravan of courage movie?
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by Gerard (Pilgrim) on May 28, 2002 at 04:25 UTC
    Attack of the clones: Natalie Portman!
      I hear u!
Re: Favorite Star Wars film:
by Aristotle (Chancellor) on Jun 02, 2002 at 16:40 UTC

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