None of those old seniors need to be in these new films. The only connection at this point is a 7, 8 and 9.

just pickup whatever length of time after Rotj or Not. no need to connect r2d2 or any of those main characters.

There will never be a Star Wars film without R2-D2.

Timur Bekmambetov, holy shit...he's even worse than lucas. if they have any brains, they'd give brad bird the job.

R2D2 must return!!

Yeah, I haven't seen M:I4, but just judging from his animated films he has a greater sense of "classic" film entertainment than most filmmakers working today, especially younger ones.

Revenge of the Sith was the worst of the prequels.

Only SW apologists think otherwise because it would have been the final SW film and they couldn't bear to dislike it or maybe their expectations were already so low. Either way, the SW fanbase is like the Twilight one, the material was terrible but people still came out in droves for reasons unknown.

TPM/AOTC may be bland but ROTS is insulting. In fact a true fan should be able to pick ROTS apart. But nowadays there are many who consider a real fan being a person who does nothing but praise and any criticisms = blasphemy.

star wars episode 1 still has some of the best trailers ever made. cant wait to follow this films marketing.

Which the general public doesn't agree with, so what is your argument, exactly?

I honestly enjoy The Phantom Menace the most. It may be absurd and flawed, but it plays well as an earnest family sci-fi adventure film. There is also a potent nostalgia component. The more the prequels focus on the dead-eyed romance and the bland "political intrigue," the less enjoyable they become. Call me an asshole for saying it, but I believe Revenge of the Sith is, to a certain extent, overpraised because people were so desperate to love what was once thought of as the final Star Wars film.

Sam Raimi with Spider-Man 2 sensibilities could be AMAZING.

But we need Revenge of the Sith level action sequences.

"SW apologists", mess. Sith got the best reviews of the prequels and jumped in grosses, it was the best received and it's the best one out of the prequels. Yeah it has horrible "love scenes" and bad acting but it's EPIC and has a good story at the core. And visually it's just absolutely jaw-dropping. No one has realized a fantasy world on screen like that. Avatar my balls.

Well I think they are each equally disappionting due to various issues. Each time any of them appear on tv there's is just no chance that I can sit and watch them all the way through. Those movies have become just certain scenes to watch types of films for me yet I own them all like the SW fan that I am.

Revenge of the Sith is awesome!

Can people please stop trying to psychologically justify what I do and don't like? I'd appreciate it.

I don't have to lie to myself to enjoy a film. If I don't like it, I don't like it.

Seriously, for every nut job there is 100 normal people that say whether they like or dislike a film. I saw Phantom Menace as a when I was 12, loved it. Saw Revenge of the Sith when I was 18 and loved it. Everyone has their own ranking systems.

And not to disagree with Dave, but I find Phantom Menace to be the least fun and the most political of all the prequels. I judge it on what things each prequel gets right. And in my opinion, none of the prequels are bad films. Even the worst Star Wars film is still more entertaining and better than any Narnia, Stardust, Eragon, John Carter bullshit.

The best bits of each of the prequels would make a damn fine 220 minute film. Alot could have been trimmed or completely left out without impacting the story and at the same time improving the quality.

I, I, I. What a narcissist. I wasn't referring to your personal opinion, which is neither here nor there. You are a fool, though, if you don't believe desired narratives do not shape a film's initial reception. I would argue, for example, The Matrix Reloaded was held in a much higher esteem in the summer of 2003 than it is in 2012.

I would argue the opposite, actually, and I'm hardly a Matrix fan.

No way. The Matrix Reloaded's reviews were very solid, but now people (critics, commentators, etc.) nearly always refer to "the Matrix sequels" in a derisive, snorting, oh-those-major-disappointments type way. And I'm a big fan of the trilogy.

I can at least watch Revolutions now, but god, it took me almost 7 years to watch Reloaded again after hating it so much on that dreaded Thursday preview, so much that I didn't even watch Revolutions until it came out on TNT, almost 4 years later. I gave it a D back then, now its closer to a B-

Revolutions is a wretched film from start to finish, its preachiness and cliches make me want to puke.

Yeah, Revolutions is flat-out awful. I'm not a huge fan of the series, but I like The Matrix and The Matrix Reloaded. Revolutions? No thanks.

I would say Revolutions was a big reason why everybody hates the sequels. Revolutions is a horrible mess.

I (to use Dark Shape's favorite word) love the entire trilogy.

I still laugh/cringe at that actor doing the Agent Smith impression and fucking no one can connect the dots.