Watched Burn Notice yesterday, and a lot of the scenes DID cut out on time... but the back and forth *during* the scenes was sometimes very slow, which made things awkward. Which I blame on the directing, not the editing- esp., because it's worse in some episodes than in others, depending on who is directing.
Maybe this is a new style? Because I felt the same way watching Twilight. During on-screen conversations that are supposed to be really meaningful and sweet, etc, there would be all these loooong (awkward) pauses that made me (though apparently not anyone else?) twitchy.
Back to our regularly scheduled programming:
I (used to) play The Force Game. How to play: watch Star Wars episodes 2 or 3 (2 AND 3 if you're really feeling brave). Every time the word "force" is said, you take a drink.
So usually when I watch episodes 2 or 3, I'm really just "watching" and making my own versions of the sound effects and doing other *sshole things with my friends. But last weekend, I happened to rent Episode 2 (ahem). The other day, I was talking to a friend about the force game and how ridiculous certain parts of the movie are, so I turned it on to show her... and ended up being sucked in and watching it all.
LOVED IT. Not "this dialogue is so corny I'm going to choke on my taquitos" loved it- seriously, "wanted to cry when Anakin killed those sand-people and maybe actually shed a tear or two but don't tell anybody" loved it. WHY?
Today I watched it with commentary to try and figure out how a movie that clumsy, that wooden, managed to suck me in and angst the hell out of me. But I still couldn't get it (because half the commentary is from the special effects guys, and the other half is exultation of the great god Star Wars Seventies Version).
Later tonight, Episode 3 came on TV and I got sucked into watching it TOO even though I should have tried a LITTLE harder to earn some cool points by doing ANYTHING else.
WHY??? Why would I feel the need to watch these movies over and over? Why would I think about buying them? How can I sit through three hours of children's sci-fi when I can't get through ANY OTHER MOVIE SHOWN ON TELEVISION?
What's their hook? Episode 2: whiny adolescent boy falls in love, while his mentor unsuccessfully hunts a wanna-be assassin. Episode 3: whiny, teary man betrays everybody while his mentor(s) turn against him.
And listening to George Lucas on the commentary: these more recent movies were obviously vanity projects. Every scene is meant to lead up to or echo something from the 70s movies, every decision seems to have been made with those movies in mind. The more recent three movies seem to have been pulled wholesale from Lucas's fantasy/dream life, with all the boring repetition and senseless symbolism inherent in that. They are (expensive!) fan-fiction.
YET. Something works. Something IS compelling, even amongst all the mess. What IS that diamond in the rough?
It damn sure isn't the dialogue. (Here's a representative sample: in Episode 3 when Anakin and Padme are arguing- as ever- about some boring stuff. Out of nowhere, she says: "Hold me. Like you did by the lake on Naboo. So long ago, when there was nothing but our love. No politics, no plotting, no war.")
It's not the action (for once), because that's pretty much: REALLY long chase (boring), or REALLY long light-saber battle (interesting, but repetitive)
It's not the structure. From the commentary, it seemed that Lucas had ALL KINDS of world-building he wanted to do, and ALL KINDS of loose ends he wanted to tie up- to the point, where it seemed every scene was just exposition (to him).
Besides, I couldn't care less about all that trade federation/republic/politics stuff, and many viewings later I still can't really follow it- and that was supposed to be the scary/adventure part of the story- the plot's meat. According to Lucas, the love story between Anakin and Padme was just a side plot, and that love story didn't make TONS of sense anyway.
Honestly (from the commentary), his approach seemed very heavy on the structure, at the expense of play and freshness. And maybe because he's SO close to the material, plot-wise, his priorities seemed out of whack.
So what plot lines are we really following? The only one that sticks out to me is: Anakin's descent into the "dark side."
I think it's the character of Anakin that sells Episodes 2 and 3. He's got a compelling dilemma. He loves people (ie, his mother, his wife, his mentor/surrogate father Obi Won). Yet Jedi Knights must be selfless, and think only of the group- they can't have attachments, and they can't let people become attached to them.
If Anakin keeps love in his life- if he stays a part of life at all- he can't be a Jedi anymore... but if he isn't a Jedi anymore, he no longer deserves his friend's/family's love.
That character and his story ARE compelling, despite the awkward dialogue and hair-pieces.
To me, his struggle is between his ability/need to give all of himself (to love, to ambition, etc) and the healthful rationality of temperance, moderation, reserve- and that's a struggle I relate to a lot. Just as, I guess a lot of people relate to Bella's struggle in Twilight, between keeping her man but changing herself, or losing her man but staying true to herself.
In both Anakin's and Bella's stories, the dilemma is: how much of myself should I compromise? How much can I compromise and remain me?
Lucas and Meyer both seem to think compromise to become one with the Jedi/Edward is necessary. Anakin stayed true to himself and his passions, and look what happened with THAT. Meanwhile, Bella 2.0 is frolicking around the world with the love of her....death.
Jeez, really? Don't compromise and you're evil, compromise and you're dead?
Regardless, both Twilight and Star Wars are carried by a single character with a compelling dilemma. Wow.
Makes me think: what are my characters' dilemmas? God, how can I make them that awesome?
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