Messages

Also, saying that you can't accept the sub-titles is a bit narrow-minded. We don't dub movies in sweden, which means 95% of all movies have sub-titles.
I can assure you that my average movie experience is no less than yours. It sure makes me better in English, though.

I didn't say I couldn't accept them, just that I don't enjoy 'reading' a movie (being dyslexic doesn't help much either).  I don't see how that's 'narrow-minded'?

But,I see your point: bring back those heady days when awards were won by Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Attenborough, Richard Burton, Donald Sutherland, Lawrence Olivier, oh hang on, none of them are american!

I don't mean that the actors, actresses, directors, etc. are Americans ... but that the Oscars are for movies that are American made.  From Hollywood.

I mean, if that were the case I'd be excluding some of my favorite people.  Gary Oldman, Russel Crowe,  Peter Jackson ... I could go on and on.

Darth, do you think that if an animated movie was good enough, it should be allowed to enter into the Best Picture category?

If it was American made, and in English, sure.

Also, why are you so scared: its not as if they've had a huge success rate in any of the main categories. Let's face it, its a novelty when a British or Australian film gets nominated, let alone a Uruguayan one.

I'm not scared, it's more like annoyed.  Call me uncultured if you want, but I don't enjoy 'reading' a movie.  For me personally, I like watching a movie.  If I have to pay attention to the subtitles I miss what's happening on-screen ... movies, to me, are to be watched, not read.  I enjoy reading books.

especially since the Academy Awards are an American institution and dominated by English-speaking films.

That was basically my point.

I definitely think foreign films should be recognized, just in their own categories.

The Oscars feel like they're getting away from what they used to be (to me).

They're less magical.  Maybe I'm just getting older and more cynical.

I know it's unpopular 'round these boards to express 'pro American' sentiment ... but what's wrong with the Oscars belonging to America?  It's how it used to be.  There are other award ceremonies and film festivals which hi-light films from accross the globe.

[Read Me!]

I'm actually speechless ...

Read Me!

Um... because the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science is about ALL forms of film art, not just ones created in the States?

I can understand that.  But it doesn't make sense then to have categories for foreign languages.  At least to me.  If they want to make it 'worldly' then throw them all in together.

That would ruin the Oscars for me though.  Don't get me wrong, there are some great foreign films, but I watch the Oscars to see the movies I can watch, not read.    Bah ... it's a lost cause anyway.  The Oscars have seriously gone down hill for me in recent years.

What I don't understand is why Beyonce sang most of the songs.

I don't know why they had Bay-Once sing all those songs either.  I think she's got a good voice, but in my opinion she butchered 'Believe' with Josh Groban.  He's 10 times the singer she is and should have done the song solo, as it was recorded.

Personally I don't understand how a song not in English, from a movie not in English, gets nominated for Best Song in the Oscars.

Why do they have the foreign language categories?

Now I know, of course, that as an American I'm not allowed to stand up for Americans because that would just be so close minded of me, but it bothers me just the same.

Oh well ... congrats Whore-Hay.

We replaced all (or, at least, almost all) sounds with ones we recorded on our own. Most of the new sounds were voice overs. It was HILARIOUS to play.

Haha!  We did this too!  We replaced the monster's 'alert' sound.  (the sound it makes when the notice you).  We changed it so that everytime one of the monsters sees you it shouts out, "Pooooopie!" in a really nasaly pitched voice.  It was priceless!

Umphy Berfday!

[TheBrat]

TheBrat - First of all ... take a deep breath and calm down!  It's not the end of the world!  (Meaning: Don't type in all CAPS)

Secondly, this isn't really the right place for this post, however, there is a solution to your problem!

There are several sticky threads throughout these forums which might provide you with the information you're looking for.  Don't be afraid to take the time to read through them.

Make sure to read all the "Read First Before Posting" threads, and the "Forum Rules" threads as well.  Believe me; it'll save you some headaches/trouble down the road.

Can't find what you're looking for in the sticky threads?  Have you tried the Help Page found in the navigation on the top of this very screen?

Then, and only then, if all else fails ... try posting your question(s).

Welcome to the forums!

Making levels for Doom ... ahhhh the memories.

My brother and I used to go crazy with this stuff.  We made a Star Wars total conversion one time.  You played as a rebel soldier going around blasting storm troopers and the final bad guy was Boba Fett.

We also started a G.I.Joe conversion, with tons of the characters.  But we only got a few maps done before losing interest.

We also made a new weapon out of the chainsaw using our dog.  When you pressed the trigger he started biting ... it was hilarious!

[Episode I Padme]

i really am ashamed of lucas for creating Jar Jar Binks, I mean what the hell was he thinking? Chewbacca never seemed to annoy the pants off of me, so why did lucas make jar jar so damn annoying?

Should every single alien race/species/creature in the galaxy be cool and smooth?  Sit back and sip Colt45 with Lando?  That's not even conceivable ... I applaud him for making Jar Jar so annoying (to some).  It didn't really bother me that much. 

1 Why does anakin age but Padmé doesn't?

Because Anakin was 9 in Phantom Menace, and 19 in Attack of the Clones.  Padme was 14-15 in Phantom, and 24-25 in Clones.  I do think she looks much older and more mature in Clones:
Episode I Padme
Episode II Padme
I think the better question would be; Why doesn't Padme look younger in Phantom?

2 how come the Empire weren't taking control of the galaxy sooner?

Palpatine/Sidious (Sith Lord) conceived of a way to kill all the Jedi and take over the galaxy.   These things don't happen over night.

3 What do the trade federation actually trade?

"The Trade Federation was a consortium of merchants and transportation providers that effectively controlled shipping throughout the galaxy." Source: Star Wars Databank

Think of 'trade' not as, "I'll give you this for that".  It's like this, " The people working in or associated with a business or industry:"  The people working in or associated with a business or industry: a textile-exporting publication for the trade. " : Source: Definition @ Dictionary.com

4 How come Bevel Lemelisk wasn't in ep 2?

Bevel Lemelisk was conceived entirely in the EU.  He wasn't a creation of George Lucas.  Though the EU is sanctioned/approved by LucasFilm, George has said on several occasions that he's writing the prequels with no influence from the EU, and that he hasn't read most of it.  Personally I think he threw stuff into the prequels to debunk the EU, like Midichlorians, and Jango Fett.

5 What the hell had Jar Jar got to do with anything?

Again, you really shouldn't question things like this until you've seen episode III.  A very clear reason for Jar Jar to exists might be revealed.   Personally I find it hilarious that Jar Jar, in a way, started the Clone Wars by granting Palpatine Emergency Powers.  I laughed my ass off about that one.  Gave all the whiny bashers something back.

[color=000055]1) In The Phantom Menace, the pod-race announcer (the two headed guy).  He/She/It drove me up a wall, I thought Barney might come out next!

2)  In The Phantom Menace, the farting Eopie ... that was just rediculously bad.

3) In Attack of the Clones, Anakin says, "shoot them under the such and such" and Obi-Wan says, "good call my young padawan"  it was dumb sounding to me.

4) In Attack of the Clones, Natalie Portman's acting after falling off the skiff ... it was god AWFUL!

5) In Attack of the Clones, Anaking going out like a chump fighting Dooku[/color]

Although I admit there were some bad moments ... I don't think they'll be relegated to B movie status in 10 years.  At least I hope not.  I'm still holdin' out hope that episode III will make it all 'fit' together.

i was refferring to star wars, you should cough up the â,¬5 to buy the Issue of Empire if you wish to challenge my opinion.

Can you (or anybody) provide a scan and/or link to the image?  I'd really like to see it.  A lot of times the pictures given to magazines and website (pre-release) aren't polished shots and aren't how they'll look in the film.  So I don't deny it's possible the image may look bad/questionable.

P.S. I don't have any links to help you, I read it with an old friend in a copy of Star Wars magazine about seven or eight years ago.

Hmmm ... I read EVERYthing I could get my hands on back then.  I really don't recall it ever mentioning 50 years.  Well, moot point I guess.

P.P.S. Consider the fact that qui gon found it difficult to fight maul, now consider obi wan's skills at that time, it all adds up when you think about it.

Gonna have to disagree here.  Obi-Wan was, in The Phantom Menace, older than Anakin is in Clones.  Anakin in clones far surpasses Obi-Wan's skills, he just lacks experience and is a little more hot-headed than Obi-Wan is/was in Phantom.  It's not iconcievable that Obi-Wan could have the lightsabre skills to defeat Maul when Qui-Gon couldn't.  Especially considering that Qui-Gon might have been working towards a greater goal ... I still think he LET Maul kill him.

P.P.P.S. you seem to like S.W. v much, did you read any books?

I read almost all of the EU right up until they killed Chewbacca ... I haven't read any of it since then.

Why aren't more people complaining about the dialogue? I think that's the WORST part of the Episode 1 & 2, (& probably 3).

My one major gripe about the prequels is the dialogue. For some reason it just doesn't feel as good as the dialogue from the originals.

I'm with you on that one!

I really miss "zippy" lines like when the Falcon won't start in Empire-(Leia asks, "Would it help if I got out & pushed?" and Han says, "It might"). "Pushing" is such a car phrase, but it sucked me into the story.

I'm with you on that one too!

P.S. I'm confused about EP: 1-3 being more civilized. This isn't a flame to the post, but I thought the reason they used "knobs & switches" instead of "holographics & touch-sensors" was because the LAST place you wanted your crap to break down was in space. The empire hadn't lost any tech......why didn't they have that stuff?

That's how Obi-Wan describes it to Luke in A New Hope ... "Before the dark times ...".  I just always assumed that a civilization of peace (like the universe before the rise of the empire) would have tended towards artistic stuff (think the Naboo cruisers) where a society flogged with 20 years of war and strife would tend towards craft/technology which is designed to be functional and not worry about how aesthetically pleasing it is

[Killer Flamingos]

Pretty interesting sound ...

I like the 'local' band scene.  I used to go see the Killer Flamingos twice a week.  That was when I lived in Michigan.

If I were going to be in the UK around March 4th I'd come see Jasco ... alas, that would be a long commute for me.  Maybe if I take my segway ...

I miss Trap.  And Rode.

Seconded.

[Edit]

I think we should clear up this fact first, CGI is not at the stage where it is indistinguishable, If anybody read the latest copy of Empire Magazine, they would have seen the picture of yoda sitting with Obi-wan and mace windu in one of the drop ships, now, I ask you (those who have seen the pic that is) does the picture seem real to you, (Besides the actors of course), do the two clones seem real?, does Yoda? I speak for everybody when I say no.

You don't speak for me   I haven't seen the picture, but I've seen PLENTY of CGI that blends perfectly with live action.  (Gollum in Lord of the Rings) and I've seen completely CG movies (Polar Express) that had so much realism you could almost not tell.  There is (some) CGI in the matrix movies that seemlessly blends.  To me at least.  Some of the best (invisible) CGI work I've ever seen was in "The Last Samurai".  Don't know what CGI I'm talking about?  That's my point

As regards the maul debate, Darth Maul is a fuckin deadly dark jedi, he killed a jedi master fer cryin out loud, do you think it's possible that an apprentice could defeat him? (consider Luke VS Vader in ep 5) I think it would have been a better climax if Obi wan fell and we would not know his fate until later in the film (like the Lord of the Rings). Maul would have kicked ass in ep ii if he survived, I think that Lucas created the character too hastily without considering future events, and late in the writing of the story, he just killed him off.

Darth Maul was Darth Sidious' apprentice ... just as Obi-Wan was Qui-Gon's.  So, while Maul was able to kill Qui-Gon, that doesn't mean Obi-Wan wouldn't be able to kill Maul.  They were both apprentices. Edit - not to mention I think Qui-Gon let Maul kill him ... just a theory of mine.

To address the year difference between the first film and the fourth, It was announced at the completion of the first that it was set fifty years before (or thereabouts) the fourth, and was later changed.

I'm not sure where you got that information?  Can you provide a link?  I remember hearing (long before Ep I came out) that it was set approximately 30 years before Ep. IV.  As in the link I provided in my last post.

a) I can't get the original release OT on DVD

You can't? 

[Star Wars Timeline]

I'm confused how people can say there are plot inconsistencies before Episode III has been released?

I agree that there are some things about the prequels that bother me.  But saying that there are inconsistencies between the prequels and the OT is rather silly.  George Lucas is (to me) one of the greatest story tellers of all time.  I'm pretty sure these 'loose-ends' will be tied up in ep3.  At least I hope so.

The one 'plot' consistency that I feel must be addressed are the midicholrians.  Midichlorians MUST be explained away/about in Ep. III.  This is the the one main thing that irks me terribly.  If they are so pivotal to force potential, why doesn't Ben tell Luke about them in the OT?  I have a few theories, but I'm not going to go into them now.

I think the updated visuals actually works to the favor of the prequels.  The time-frame of the prequels is supposed to be a 'more civilized' time.  The galaxy was in good shape with high technology.  Years of war and imperial oppression cause the dingy run-down look of the OT.  Again, just my opinion.

As for Darth Maul's significance?  The prequels already mirror the OT so much, I think it was a great idea to introduce an 'all powerful sith' who gets whacked in half in the first film.  Think about it:

Young boy taken off Tatooine by an older Jedi gets caught up in a galactic conflict and blows up a large space craft in the end after his master is killed by a dark lord of the sith.

That description works for both A New Hope and Phantom Menace ... so killing Maul differentiated the two, but still leaves the connection.  To me, that's great story telling.

Episode I actually takes place 32 years before A New Hope.  View the Star Wars Timeline to see what I mean.  (Although it includes many non-canon stuff, the movies are listed properly.)

My one major gripe about the prequels is the dialogue.  For some reason it just doesn't feel as good as the dialogue from the originals.  But I think this is Lucas' directing, rather than poor dialogue.  I think the man is an incredible story teller, but his directing leaves something to be desired.

I do enjoy a good Star Wars discussion ... however, I think the bashing about 'plot holes' and 'inconsistancies' should really be held in reserve until after we've all seen Episode III.

Welche's White Grape / Peach blend.

I swear to god it's better than cocaine .... not that I would know ... er ... um ....