Why Do People Hate the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy?

[Venardhi]

Most of the things that people complain were 'all CGI' were actually practical effects, a massive chunk of the backgrounds were miniatures and matte paintings, and damn good ones at that. The amount of what most people would call 'old school' craft that has gone into these movies is immense. The criticism that the prequel trilogy is all computer generated is, quite frankly, complete bollocks. I think because it's a well known fact that Lucas shot ATOC & ROTS digitally, they naturally made the assumption that the whole shebang was created in a digital sandbox. I know I did.

And every one of those models was immediately buried under dozens of digital effect layers to the extent that it removed all the tactile quality from them.

 

[Prax]

I think it has more to do with all the stuff about the Old Republic from the old Expanded Universe.

But all that came after the PT. The EU authors weren't allowed to write in the Prequel era before the films.

 

[Prax]

And every one of those models was immediately buried under dozens of digital effect layers to the extent that it removed all the tactile quality from them.

Oh puhhhlease. Gimme a break

 

[Kor]

But all that came after the PT. The EU authors weren't allowed to write in the Prequel era before the films.

I mean the ancient stuff, like "Tales of the Jedi," and the few references to those days in the EU stuff that took place after the OT.

Kor

 

[Smellmet]

And every one of those models was immediately buried under dozens of digital effect layers to the extent that it removed all the tactile quality from them.

Just the production images on the first thread I quoted look just like they do in the movies. I'm sure there was some digital manipulation at play, but it looks like it's minimal to me. Hell even most of the ships were models.

 

[Ithekro]

I mean the ancient stuff, like "Tales of the Jedi," and the few references to those days in the EU stuff that took place after the OT.

Kor

They actually sometimes still use that stuff in Rebels and maybe revisiting it more as Star Wars continues onwards towards the 2020s.

 

[Hound of UIster]

Probably Pablo apparently likes ToTJ.

 

[Prax]

Just the production images on the first thread I quoted look just like they do in the movies. I'm sure there was some digital manipulation at play, but it looks like it's minimal to me. Hell even most of the ships were models.

Here's a link to a page where someone collected all the images from the first 100 pages of the thread. They're categorizes hierarchically:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/aozfi6s6eaxtjde/AAD1ATQ9x9Gj6ffnG9U_cSy2a?dl=0

There's about 1000 images

 

[fireproof78]

Just the production images on the first thread I quoted look just like they do in the movies. I'm sure there was some digital manipulation at play, but it looks like it's minimal to me. Hell even most of the ships were models.

There are other ways to manipulate images digitally, including flipping ore merging plates, that can affect perception. I know several people, even if they like a particular scene in a film, they still can pick up on the slight alterations. I've heard one person describe it as sterile, where there feels like there is no life to the actors, or the scene, or that they are manipulated in some way. There's something off to some people, similar to the uncanny valley.

So even if it isn't modeling or layering, there are people out there who can pick up on the changes done digitally.

 

[suarezguy]

I like all the prequels quite a bit but I do think Obi-Wan was never very likeable and Anakin wasn't very likeable in Episode II. Episode II also feels a bit overstuffed with action set pieces of uneven quality.

Just because a lot of people go to see something, that doesn't mean they all love it by default.

No but it does strongly suggest that they didn't think Christensen and Portman's acting or the writing, though maybe flawed, was so bad as to be unwatchable or that the films overall were terrible or embarrassing.

 

[Prax]

There are other ways to manipulate images digitally, including flipping ore merging plates, that can affect perception. I know several people, even if they like a particular scene in a film, they still can pick up on the slight alterations. I've heard one person describe it as sterile, where there feels like there is no life to the actors, or the scene, or that they are manipulated in some way. There's something off to some people, similar to the uncanny valley.

So even if it isn't modeling or layering, there are people out there who can pick up on the changes done digitally.

Fast forward to Force Awakens and the practice of using miniatures has been 100% abandoned. Every space scene, every set extension(except for the woods, which used a Matte) is now fully CGI. Where's the outrage? Even some of the Stormtroopers fighting on Tokadana were cg animations. The Millennium Falcon flying through the desert, The Tie-Fighters attacking the castle, The X-wings coming to the rescue, The battle of the death Starkiller, all 100% animated

 

[Kor]

Fast forward to Force Awakens and the practice of using miniatures has been 100% abandoned. Every space scene, every set extension(except for the woods, which used a Matte) is now fully CGI. Where's the outrage? Even some of the Stormtroopers fighting on Tokadana were cg animations. The Millennium Falcon flying through the desert, The Tie-Fighters attacking the castle, The X-wings coming to the rescue, The battle of the death Starkiller, all 100% animated

And they look outstanding... not video-gamey like CGI did fifteen years ago.

Kor

 

[Prax]

And they look outstanding... not video-gamey like CGI did fifteen years ago.

Kor

Could you add some examples that are video-gamey? Episode 1 & 2 also filmed on location, each in more places than the entire OT.

EDIT: and as I said earlier. Even the most negative critics of the Prequels, praised the visuals, the visual effects, and much of cinematography

 

[fireproof78]

Could you add some examples that are video-gamey? Episode 1 & 2 also filmed on location, each in more places than the entire OT.

EDIT: and as I said earlier. Even the most negative critics of the Prequels, praised the visuals, the visual effects, and much of cinematography

Does this mean that no one can object to them? Because, I can agree that the PT generally looks good, that doesn't mean it looks good to everyone. Several of my friends did not care for the lightsaber effect in ROTS, as well as the flipping of plates, and some other editorial decisions.

The most glaring video gamey moment for me is the droid factory in Episode 2. None of that looked really, especially C-3P0 and Padme's perilous predicament.

 

[Kor]

The duel on Mustafar...

Kor

 

[Prax]

Does this mean that no one can object to them? Because, I can agree that the PT generally looks good, that doesn't mean it looks good to everyone. Several of my friends did not care for the lightsaber effect in ROTS, as well as the flipping of plates, and some other editorial decisions.

The most glaring video gamey moment for me is the droid factory in Episode 2. None of that looked really, especially C-3P0 and Padme's perilous predicament.

Fair enough. That's actually the only CG environment in the movies, and it's because it was a pick up shoot. I also would have preferred they left in the scene of Anakin and Padme meeting the separatist council and being condemned.

 

[Prax]

The duel on Mustafar...

Kor

It certainly looks better than Mt Doom. And most of it is "Real." The sets were very large and detailed, like the control rooms/landing pad/catwalk. set extensions are a 40 foot long miniature, with some kind of neon ooze used to make the Lava flows. The erupting Lava in the background is footage taken from Mt. Etna which erupted during production. The collapsing pillar was animated as were the "hover" droids. The beach was a set.

 

[fireproof78]

Fair enough. That's actually the only CG environment in the movies, and it's because it was a pick up shoot. I also would have preferred they left in the scene of Anakin and Padme meeting the separatist council and being condemned.

There was a lot deleted from Episode 2 that should have been left in, and a lot added that could have been left out.

It certainly looks better than Mt Doom. And most of it is "Real." The sets were very large and detailed, like the control rooms/landing pad/catwalk. set extensions are a 40 foot long miniature, with some kind of neon ooze used to make the Lava flows. The erupting Lava in the background is footage taken from Mt. Etna which erupted during production. The collapsing pillar was animated as were the "hover" droids. The beach was a set.

Again, it's not just whether or not it was a set or not, but also what digital effects were added in to enhance the image, plats being flipped, more smoke, less smoke, etc. All of this is fairly standard in film-making now, but was still experimental at the time.

I'll certainly take Mt. Doom scenes over the Mustufar battle any day though.

 

[Prax]

You think Mt. Doom looks more realistic than Mustafar? Google: Art Bias

 

[fireproof78]

I said I preferred the scenes overall, not the sets themselves. You know, the characters, the effects, the visuals, the sets, and the like as a collective whole? I prefer the scene.

I've always liked the Star Wars sets, especially Naboo.