Star Wars' Rian Johnson Defends The Prequels, And He Brings Up A Good Point
By Dirk Libbey published 26 December 16
Ever since they were released, the Star Wars prequels have been criticized by many fans. They're generally not viewed as great movies, however, the director of an upcoming Star Wars sequel has come to their defense. Rian Johnson, the director of Star Wars: Episode VIII thinks that the prequels should be viewed, not as what we wish they were, but simply what they are, because for what they are, they did their job.
The conversation on Twitter began with a comment by a senior editor of The Atlantic who wondered out loud if anybody would actually care if Disney just went and remade the prequel trilogy to Star Wars. This lead to a couple other writers chiming in to say that they believed that the prequels were not simply bad movies, but bad ideas for movies. At some point, director Rian Johnson chimed in with his devil's advocate position, that the prequels are just kid's movies trying to get a message across.
In the end, we can't really argue a great deal with this position. There were certainly aspects of the trilogy that were geared more toward the younger audience than we saw in the original Star Wars trilogy_. _
Beyond that, that the prequels were trying to teach a lesson about how fear can cause good people to lash out in negative ways, well that aspect seems clear. Anakin Skywalker was somebody who was capable of great good, but was unable to achieve it because he could not overcome his fear. Had he been able to accept loss there's no telling what he would have been able to accomplish.
This is the second time in recent days that a new member of the Star Wars family has defended the prequels. Last week Rogue One: A Star Wars Story star Riz Ahmed said that he appreciated the political aspects of the trilogy, another aspect that has been roundly criticized by fans.
It's interesting, because while Rian Johnson defends them for being kids' movies, Riz Ahmed defends the fact that they were more adult. It's almost like they were designed to have different things that appealed to different people, and that not everybody necessarily needs to love everything in a movie in order to get something of value out of it.
The prequels aren't perfect, but they're also not the worst movies ever made. Even if they're not your favorites, there are probably things in them that you enjoy. Would you like to Disney remake them? Let us know in the comments below.
Dirk Libbey
CinemaBlend's resident theme park junkie and amateur Disney historian. Armchair Imagineer. Epcot Stan. Future Club 33 Member.
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