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CRMcNeill
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 Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 2:32 am Post subject: What is the best way to watch the films? |
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A friend of mine is a high school teacher, and for the end of the school year, he showed all six films to his classes, including several who had never seen any of the movies. Apparently, several new Star Wars fans have been born, thanks to my friend Craig. When I asked in which order he showed the films, his response is quite likely the best I have ever heard. He shows ANH first, followed by ESB, then cuts to the prequels, ending with ROTJ, basically showing the entire prequel trilogy as a flashback of how Anakin fell and became Darth Vader, while simultaneously amping up the suspense and the angst for Jedi. Honestly, if I were to show the films to someone who had never seen them before, I can't think of a better way to do it. Thoughts?
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Zarm R'keeg
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| Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 11:43 am Post subject: |
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I agree. I've heard this order advocated, and it makes a lot of sense; for new viewers, it preserves the 'I am your father' AND 'Palpatine is Sidious' surprises, makes ESB more of a cliffhanger, and leaves ANH as the rightful introduction, and ROTJ as the rightful ending.
Of course, it's far too late for me to see them for the first time, but I figure anyone I introduce to them, this is the method I'll try,
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cheshire
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| Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 2:09 pm Post subject: |
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Yeah, I can't speak for what a first time experience might be like, but I can give you my experiences from having done a youth group Star Wars marathon.
We went in numerical order, not in order of their release. We watched the PT first, then the OT. There were a few things that readily stood out. There was a DRAMATIC pacing shift once we hit the OT. People had already been there for hours, and then we moved into slower paced films. It had an affect on the landscape.
Second, having seen Yoda totally wailing on people just a few hours ago, then you see him deliberately act like a buffoon in ESB was a little jarring. Some of the less experienced viewers laughed out loud at the absurdity of his actions and asked "Why is he DOING that!?" It wasn't at all clear that he was deliberately testing Luke's patience.
However, these observations come from watching them in a row, rather than watching them in order in separate sittings.
Oh, and afterwards, we were all very tired of watching Star Wars. 
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Zarm R'keeg
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| Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 5:15 pm Post subject: |
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I can second that. We tried that with the Blu-ray release. Enjoyed the first act of TPM (the movie really seems like it gets a bad rap until about the time when they reach Tatooine) more than ever before... and did not enjoy the OT at all. exhaustion set in... and our brains had grown accustomed to the faster pace so that films we usually enjoyed now seemed glacially slow. Never doing that again.
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Fallon Kell
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| Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 5:34 pm Post subject: |
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I'd say the best way to watch the films is two per night over the course of three days...
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cheshire
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| Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 6:05 pm Post subject: |
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| Fallon Kell wrote: | | I'd say the best way to watch the films is two per night over the course of three days... |
I'd give that a shot. The question then becomes how you will watch all nine when Kathleen Kennedy gets done with her round of films.
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CRMcNeill
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Location: Redding System, California Sector, on the I-5 Hyperspace Route.
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| Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 6:10 pm Post subject: |
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| Fallon Kell wrote: | | I'd say the best way to watch the films is two per night over the course of three days... |
So, ANH and ESB on the first night, TPM and AOTC on the second, wrapping with ROTS and ROTJ on the third. Works for me.
| cheshire wrote: | | I'd give that a shot. The question then becomes how you will watch all nine when Kathleen Kennedy gets done with her round of films. |
Let's burn that bridge when we come to it.
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"No set of rules can cover every situation. It's expected that you will make up new rules to suit the needs of your game." - The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, 2R&E, pg. 69, WEG, 1996.
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cheshire
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| Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 10:25 pm Post subject: |
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| crmcneill wrote: | | Fallon Kell wrote: | | I'd say the best way to watch the films is two per night over the course of three days... |
So, ANH and ESB on the first night, TPM and AOTC on the second, wrapping with ROTS and ROTJ on the third. Works for me.
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That's not an order I'd expect. Why leave the gap in the closure of ESB and run ROTS with ROTJ?
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CRMcNeill
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| Posted: Mon Jun 03, 2013 12:24 am Post subject: |
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Read the original post. It preserves the surprise and angst at the end of ESB, then shows the prequels as a flashback without truly revealing Palpatine as the Emperor / Sidious, then wraps everything up with Jedi. For people who haven't seen the films before, this is, IMO, the best sequence I have ever heard of for bringing someone new into the fandom.
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cheshire
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| Posted: Mon Jun 03, 2013 6:12 am Post subject: |
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Somehow I missed the "cuts to the prequels" part. Sorry.
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CRMcNeill
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| Posted: Mon Jun 03, 2013 9:56 am Post subject: |
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| cheshire wrote: | | Somehow I missed the "cuts to the prequels" part. Sorry. |
LOL. No prob.
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"No set of rules can cover every situation. It's expected that you will make up new rules to suit the needs of your game." - The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, 2R&E, pg. 69, WEG, 1996.
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Fallon Kell
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| Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2013 1:07 am Post subject: |
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| cheshire wrote: | | Somehow I missed the "cuts to the prequels" part. Sorry. |
Without that, isn't it just "only watch the original trilogy"? Not that I can't accept that recommendation...
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Zarm R'keeg
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| Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2013 8:28 am Post subject: |
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When I have kids, that will be my methodology. I can just endorse the former as something for adults that WANT to see all 6. 
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DougRed4
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| Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2013 4:36 pm Post subject: |
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BTW, the order suggested in the OP is often called The Machete Order, though it is also common to completely axe Episode I (or watch a condensed version). Personally, I really like E1, so don't see that as a good method at all.
Googling the subject provides some excellent ideas for such a marathon (here's another, followed by one more).
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Barrataria
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| Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2013 11:14 pm Post subject: I like it |
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That actually makes quite a bit of sense.
I'd like it even better if we could compact I-II-first half of III into one movie!
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